11/18/24 - 107 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA: http://tinyurl.com/3zb7jppr
| Share this: | ||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rendell Signs Moratorium On More State Forest Land Drilling, After Leasing 137,000 Acres
|
|
Gov. Rendell this week signed an executive order protecting Pennsylvania's state forests from any new natural gas development activities that would disturb the surface of these areas and jeopardize fragile ecosystems. Under Gov. Rendell's tenure, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources leased over 137,000 acres of State Forest land for Marcellus Shale natural gas drilling. Almost all of the proceeds from the leases so far have gone to balancing the state budget, not to conservation or environmental programs.
(Photo: DCNR, Marcellus Shale gas drilling site on State Forest land.)
The Governor said a recent and extensive evaluation of the state forest system conducted by DCNR over a period of seven months found that any additional leases could endanger the environmental quality and character of these tracts and pose a risk to Pennsylvania's existing certification that it manages its forests in a sustainable manner, which is important for the state's nearly $6 billion forest products industry.
Gov. Rendell added the executive order was necessary now given the state Senate's failure to act on House Bill 2235 (Vitali-D-Delaware), which would have instituted a moratorium on state forest land leases. The legislation passed the House with bipartisan support in early May, but has seen not action in the Senate.
"Drilling companies' rush to grab private lands across the state has left few areas untouched by this widespread industrial activity," said Gov. Rendell. "We need to protect our un-leased public lands from this rush because they are the most significant tracts of undisturbed forest remaining in the state. The House led the way to protect these lands, but the Senate failed to do so. That's why it's clear we need this executive order.
"Failing to protect these acres will significantly alter the ecological integrity and the wild character of our state forest system. That would devastate our ecotourism industry and jeopardize the green certification upon which the state's forest products industry depends."
Currently, 700,000 acres of Pennsylvania's 2.2 million-acre state forest are available for natural gas extraction. When completely developed over the next 30 years, these leased lands will include about 1,000 well pads and as many as 10,000 wells, which, along with the associated roadways and infrastructure, could disturb as much as 30,000 acres of the land already under lease.
Approximately 1.5 million acres of state forest lands sits atop the natural gas-rich Marcellus Shale formation. The remaining 800,000 acres that have not been made available for natural gas development contain significant environmental, ecotourism, and recreational values, including:
-- 180,000 acres of high-value ecosystems designated as wild and natural areas;
-- 200,000 acres of old-growth forests;
-- 128,000 acres with sensitive environmental resources (wetlands, riparian areas, threatened and endangered species, steep slopes, unique habitats) and valuable recreational resources (scenic vistas and viewsheds, trails, leased camps);
-- 299,000 acres in remote areas generally inaccessible by motorized vehicles and offering wilderness experiences paralleling those in the western United States;
-- 88,000 acres of highly valued recreational and water resources in the Poconos in close proximity to many residents; and
-- 20,000 acres important to ecotourism in the Laurel Highlands region.
"The moratorium is important to the state's economy because it protects some of our most valuable assets," said Gov. Rendell. "Countless people enjoy our state forests for recreation, which draws tourism dollars into the state, and our lumber industry needs the assurance of knowing we're going to responsibly manage these resources to protect jobs in that industry.
"After I sign this order into effect, it should remain in place. The stewardship of the public's forests demands no less," added the Governor. "We simply cannot risk subjecting these sensitive and high-value tracts to the same kind of environmental accidents and mishaps that have happened on private lands elsewhere in the state because of the drilling industry's poor practices."
NewsClips: Ridge Expects A Marcellus Shale Tax
Editorial: Marcellus Moratorium Is Wrapped In Politics
Editorial: Rendell's Drilling Moratorium, Playing Games Corbett Rally Draws Anti-Natural Gas Drilling Crowd Supporters, Drilling Critics Greet Corbett GOP State Senators Seek Shale Talks |
|
|
11/1/2010 |
|
| Go To Next Article |
