CITIZEN POWER ALLIANCE

How do you tax a natural gas well installed on private property? Who pays the bill when oversized drilling equipment damages roads?

Municipal officials will address these and other questions dealing with the natural gas rush in the Southern Tier at a meeting tonight in the Town of Chenango.

More than 100 officials reserved spots to attend the private meeting at the Town of Chenango municipal office. Another 100 will view it at various locations over the Internet, said Rod Howe, an organizer with Cornell Cooperative Extension.

"It's critical that municipal leaders learn as much as they can on this topic," said Assemblywoman Donna A. Lupardo, D-Endwell, a sponsor of the seminar. "The water and infrastructure issues alone merit their full attention."

Presenters include officials from the state Department of Environmental Conservation, the Susquehanna River Basin Commission, the state Office of Real Property Services and the New York State Farm Bureau.

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