Town Supervisors Push Cuomo on Fracking

Even while he’s 700 miles away from the state, Gov. Andrew Cuomo is still facing pressure from hydrofracking supporters and opponents.

First, there was the full-page advertisement taken out in today’s Charlotte Observer, warning Cuomo that the “road to the White House is not lined with drilling rigs.”

Also today yesterday, 22 town supervisors from across the Southern Tier (and into the Catskills region) mailed Cuomo a letter, urging him to give a green light to the much-debated technique used in the gas-extraction process.

“Lastly, the delay is only empowering opponents, some of whom have now taken to civil disobedience and other disruptive acts,” the supervisors wrote. “While everyone supports the right of people to express their views, we see a situation where opponents are distorting the facts and trying to impose their views of what is right in our community.”

Some standard background: The state Department of Environmental Conservation is in the midst of a four-year review of high-volume hydrofracking, which has been panned by environmentalists but pushed by supporters for its economic potential. The technique can’t move forward in New York until that review is completed and the agency makes recommendations.

Here’s the letter from the town supervisors, including town of Binghamton Supervisor Tim Whitesell, who is current president of the state Association of Towns: