Yough River Watershed Board Votes To Support Gas Drilling Moratorium

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Jan. 6, 2011

The Youghiogheny River Watershed Association board, at its monthly meeting on Tuesday, unanimously adopted a position supporting a moratorium on Marcellus gas drilling in Maryland "until additional information is obtained and actions have been taken," according to board chair James "Smokey" Stanton.
Stanton said that the board members believe there is "insufficient information about the impact of Marcellus drilling, and believe development of this resource should be delayed."

He said that their concerns are "on several fronts," including the effect that the practice may have on air quality, ground water quality, surface water, water appropriations, transport, discharge, and disposal of fracking water, geologic information, and adoption of state and local regulations including, but not limited to, bonding, permitting, and monitoring.

He said that the board believes baseline information must be obtained in order to better understand the positive and negative effects of drilling over time.

"We do not oppose eventual drilling in the watershed and in Garrett County," he said, "but we believe there must be protections, accountabilities, and oversight in place before development is allowed."

He said that the board supports the various educational efforts that are ongoing and spearheaded by the Garrett County commissioners' Marcellus gas advisory committee, the University of Maryland Extension, and other watershed associations and groups.

Noting that the Yough-iogheny River Watershed encompasses approximately two-thirds of Garrett County, Stanton said that the board encourages each member of the YRWA to: immediately communicate their concerns about Marcellus shale gas drilling to the Garrett County commissioners; to attend and support moratorium legislation at the Garrett County Delegation pre-legislative meeting with Sen. George Edwards and Del. Wendell Beitzel this Saturday, Jan. 8, at Garrett College; and to attend the various upcoming public education programs on this topic.

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