Drilling News and Updates

According to Sen. Charles Schumer, the permanent drilling ban is currently part of the energy bill now making its way through Congress. On the whole, we don't support the energy bill because of all the bad things in it, but if it does become law, there is a good chance that the FLNF will finally have a permanent ban on gas drilling.

An odd article in a recent edition of the Ithaca Journal seems to imply that the Iraq war might be changing opinions about drilling in the FLNF. While the Journal seems to have found one or two people in favor of the drilling, we suspect they were in favor of it before, and no one we've talked to has changed their opinion one way or the other. The question in our minds is: why raise this now, and who are they trying to convince? Forest Plan Revision meetings are ongoing, and it is certainly in some people's interests to portray this as an open issue, especially without a permanent ban in place.

Drilling in the Finger Lakes National Forest

The Finger Lakes National Forest has been targeted in recent years by energy companies, eager to drill for natural gas beneath its lands, and the Bureau of Land Management, the government agency in charge of leasing on federal lands. The Forest Service has the authority to prevent such leasing, and we urge them to exercise that authority now and in the future.

The Forest lies near a natural gas deposit known as the Trenton/Black River Formation, which is already being tapped on private and state lands nearby. Since the methods used in these existing wells can be observed and documented, we can deduce the impact that drilling would have on the Forest. The drilling process involves total devastation of the drilling pad, severe noise and visual pollution, and possible spills of brine. In addition, if gas is found, pipeline corridors must be cut through the forest connecting each well to the main lines. In addition, roads must be cut to haul workers in and out of the site, and utility lines must be erected. We feel that these and other effects of gas drilling make it a danger to the Forest, and we oppose any and all proposals to lease FLNF land for gas drilling.

On December 19, 2001, the Forest Service chose the "No Action" alternative in their Record of Decision regarding a proposed plan to drill for oil and natural gas in the Finger Lakes National Forest. The Forest has been protected for now. We will not stop here however. The Land and Resource Management Plan (LRMP) for the Forest, which determines how the forest will be utilized over the next fifteen years, is currently up for renewal. In hopes of averting future reoccurrences, we are dedicated to changing the current LRMP to reflect a management strategy based on environmental stewardship and habitat preservation. This includes language specifically reiterating the ban on oil and natural gas drilling in the Forest.

While we were successful in winning over popular and political opinion on the gas drilling issue, the fact remains that the ban is a temporary ban, and even a permanent ban could be lifted at some future time. The drilling issue is an ongoing struggle, and perhaps it always will be. Here are links to the current proposals that could have an impact on drilling, now and in the future:

• LRMP (Land and Resource Management Plan) Revisions
• Proposed Federal Rule Changes

We have an extensive list of press clipping links herefrom our 1999-2001 campaign to halt the BLM drilling proposal.