Environmentalists crash Rendell’s press conference

In an attempt to stave off criticism for failing to secure a state tax on natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale areas in Pennsylvania, out-going Gov. Ed Rendell staged a press conference on Oct. 26 to announce he was signing an executive order for a moratorium on leasing new tracts in state forest land to companies for drilling.

WW photo: Joe Piette

As part of the background for this event, moderate environmental groups were invited to stand behind the governor with signs and banners. However, word must have gotten out to more groups than intended, as several that showed up repeatedly interrupted Rendell with chants calling for a complete moratorium on all drilling in the state and for an environmental impact study on the wells already drilled. The highly questionable practice of hydraulic fracturing or fracking involves millions of gallons of water laden with toxic and carcinogenic chemicals.

Rendell’s pronouncement was seen by some as too little too late. Since September 2008 Rendell’s administration has leased over 725,000 acres of the 2.1 million acres of state forest land despite warnings from his own officials. Only about 1.5 million acres of state land, or 60 percent, sit atop the Marcellus Shale. Drillers see the forests, and the shale beneath it, as ripe for exploitation, while state officials see the potential for billions of dollars in land leases as a way to balance strapped state budgets.

Much of the land covered under Rendell’s order was “too environmentally sensitive to drill on,” according to Jan Jarrett, CEO of the environmental group PennFuture. “The horse is already out of the barn, but at least they’re shutting the door before anything else gets out,” added John Baillie, senior attorney for the statewide group. The next governor could reverse the moratorium in January.