CITIZEN POWER ALLIANCE

The state Department of Environment Conservation recently pushed back the public comment period on proposed regulations for natural-gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale region of New York state.

Environmental activists and lawmakers had pressed for such changes, as many felt the 804-page document the state DEC had released _ the draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement, or SGEIS _ was too dense and important to be given only a cursory glance. Thankfully, now the deadline for public comments has been moved from Nov. 30 to Dec. 31. We applaud this decision and the efforts of lawmakers, including Sen. James L. Seward, R-Milford, who worked to bring this to pass.

However, we are still disappointed the state DEC did not see fit to schedule a meeting for public comment in our area. As we have said previously, this is an issue that stands to affect our community and its environment in a multitude of ways. To not allow all voices to be heard before examining the SGEIS for approval is unacceptable.

In Thursday's edition of The Daily Star, Seward said he has written DEC Commissioner Alexander "Pete" Grannis to request additional hearing sites, including Oneonta. At this time, Seward said, the closest hearing site is more than an hour's drive for most of his constituents. We are pleased with Sen. Seward's efforts, and we hope the DEC will seriously consider bringing a public hearing to our area.

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