Finding Ulysses

Julie and Craig Sautner came up from Pennsylvania to Trumansburg recently to share their personal experience with the consequences of hydrofracturing to drill for natural gas in the Marcellus Shale. Their only source of clean drinking water was contaminated by the process. The following video contains their talk on the subject:

Caroline town Supervisor Don Barber warns Trumansburg residents about the dangers of rural industrialization that come along with natural gas drilling.

What are the ethical considerations Earth Firsters ought to take into account in their anti-drilling activities in our area?

People in Ulysses who are concerned about coming drilling for natural gas in our town should take note: The Environmental Protection Agency has just started a tipline about illegal and generally suspicious activities taking place in association with drilling of the Marcellus Shale. If you see anything, you can call 877-919-4372 or email eyesondrilling@epa.gov .

Currently natural gas prices are at multi-year lows because supply is so plentiful. We are NOT in a natural gas crisis in this country. There is no earthly reason to drill for natural gas in Tompkins County except greed. But we are inviting a health crisis in Tompkins county and other residential and agricultural areas where natural gas companies are gobbling up land leases if we don’t attempt to regulate natural gas drilling now!

Congress has begun consideration of legislation to require the disclosure of toxic chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing in the process of drilling for natural gas.

The natural gas under Ulysses isn’t going anywhere. Will residents be willing to wait to sign leases until a new law provides them with more information about the substances that they, and their neighbors, may have to deal with?

Fracking requires the use of large amounts of fresh water, usually taken from local sources. Much of that water, contaminated by toxic chemicals, remains in the ground. The rest has to be recaptured and then disposed of as industrial waste.