OK, so New York has a moratorium, so does New Jersey.  Buffalo and Pittsburgh have banned it, and now our neighbor, Lewisburg, WV has called for a statewide moratorium.  Is this not enough!   People are waking up, this is dangerous, and it must be stopped until regulations are ON THE BOOKS!

Well – if it was not enough, here is one more – a little ditty from Morgantown, WV:

RESOLUTION FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A STATE MORATORIUM ON ISSUANCE OF ADDITIONAL PERMITS FOR HORIZONTAL DRILLING IN MARCELLUS SHALE UNTIL ADEQUATE STATE REGULATIONS ARE PROMULGATED TO PROTECT THE DRINKING WATER SUPPLIES, PUBLIC HEALTH, AND…PUBLIC SAFETY.

Whereas, the mile deep drilling for natural gas in the Marcellus Shale utilizes horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing techniques which involve the use of millions of gallons of fresh water for each frac job, and the transport, storage and use of hazardous chemicals, and the production of drill tailings and waste water which contain heavy metals and naturally occurring radioactive materials, and

Whereas, the harmful large and sometimes untimely withdrawals of water from streams, the mismanagement of the construction of cement drilling casings, and the mismanagement of spills and disposal of large quantities of used brine chemical solutions can pose serious damage to drinking water supplies, public health, and public safety as well as to fish, livestock, wildlife and other living organisms, and

Whereas, the present State regulations for governing the management of Marcellus Shale and other lower formations are inadequate to protect water resources throughout the State including the Monongahela River watershed, and

Whereas, state regulations do not adequately protect the sources of water for public water supply from contaminations by chemicals used in drilling and fracking and from total dissolved solids (TDS) which cannot be filtered by municipal water and sewer treatment systems, and

Whereas, in its 2011 regular session, the State Legislature did not support additional funding for the State Department of Environmental Protection to increase its number of inspectors to safely and adequately monitor development of 900 permitted Marcellus Shale wells as well as to manage the existing 59,000 operating oil and gas wells and the approximately 20,000 abandoned oil an gas wells in the State, and

Whereas, in its 2011 regular session, the State Legislature did not complete its work to safely and effectively establish guidelines for the protection of State water resources, air quality, nor roadways in the development of Marcellus Shale, and

Whereas, the City Council of Morgantown wishes to join with 23 or more Delegates and other cities to halt permits being issued to drill in the Marcellus Shale and to encourage the Governor to call a special session of the State Legislature to address these issues in a timely manner:

Now, Therefore, Be It Resolved, the City Council of Morgantown urges the State Department of Environmental Protection to use its emergency authority to temporarily freeze the issuance of drilling permits until comprehensive legislation and inspection resources for horizontal well drilling are established to effectively protect public water resources, public health and public safety.

Mayor, City of Morgantown
Attest: City Clerk