From Walter Hang:

Binghamton Mayor Matthew T. Ryan and local citizen activists will hold a news conference to release a letter sent to Governor Cuomo which requests that State Health Commissioner Dr. Nirav R. Shaw immediately undertake a “Public Health Impact Study” of High Volume Hydraulic Fracturing in order to fulfill sweeping requirements announced by the Cuomo Administration on 9/20/12. Until that Study is completed, the letter requests that New York’s shale gas extraction moratorium remain in effect.

BINGHAMTON — Opponents of hydrofracking in New York are asking for a say in the state’s review of its public health impacts.

Binghamton Mayor Matthew T. Ryan and other opponents of natural gas drilling on Tuesday called for formal public participation and other revisions to the New York State Department of Health’s review of hydrofracking.

“The problem with that entire proceeding is it is being undertaken completely in secret,” said Walter Hang, president of Ithaca-based Toxics Targeting. “There has never been a piece of paper released to the public about the scope of the health review, about how it’s being undertaken, about what its critical issues are.”

More than 1,000 drilling opponents, including several public officials, have signed on to a letter asking for formal written notice of what the Department of Health’s review involves, a minimum of 30 days of written review and comment on the review and at least one public hearing where interested parties can testify about how the review should be conducted.

“If it’s ever going to be done in our state, we need to make sure that there’s integrity in the process,” Ryan said Tuesday.

There should be public participation allowed into New York State's health assessment on fracking.

That's according to a group of scientists, doctors, politicians, farmers and other residents. They have sent a letter to Governor Andrew Cuomo asking him to put the State Health Department's review on-hold. Walter Hang, of Ithaca based Toxics Targeting, says the review needs to have formal written notice of what it involves. He also says it should allow for 30 days of public review and comment. And, there should be at least one public hearing.

Walter Hang says, "The final SGEIS must not be adopted, that entire proceeding has to be put on hold until these public participation requirements are completed. The last thing is we want to make sure that critical concerns that have been excluded from the proceeding are addressed."

Hang says those include the state not adequately addressing 650,000 known and potential toxic sites. And, thousands of abandoned gas and oil wells. Toxics Targeting has created an interactive map where you can see those areas of concern. It can be found at maps.toxicstargeting.com.

*** VIEW VIDEO ***

Activists who want to keep the state's moratorium on fracking are pressuring the governor to open the state's health review of the drilling practice open to the public.

They also came armed with maps showing current toxic sites and locations of uncapped wells in New York State to argue the d-e-c hasn't been able to properly regulate conventional drilling. State DEC commissioner Joe Martens said his department won't set forth fracking regulations before the health review is finished.

"It is being undertaken completely in secret. There has never been a single piece of paper released to the public about the scope of the Department of Health review, about how it is being undertaken," said Walter Hang of Toxics Targeting.

"New York state had a great record and that's why we didn't have to recreate the wheel? Well it's clear we have to recreate the wheel especially for an industry that is far more intrusive than vertical drilling," said Binghamton Mayor Matt Ryan.