​​​ TODAY: Amherst Town Board Considers Anti-Fracking Law!

[Rita Yelda]

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TODAY: Amherst Town Board Considers Anti-Fracking Law!
Monday, May 18th at 7 p.m.
Town of Amherst Municipal Building
5583 Main Street, Williamsville, NY 14221

TODAY the Town Board of Amherst will review proposed legislation for a local ban on fracking and fracking wastes and we need you there to make sure that the board puts the public hearing and vote on their next meeting agenda! If the local anti-fracking law passes this hurdle today, it will be on the agenda for a vote at the next Town Board meeting in two weeks. TODAY'S MEETING IS AN IMPORTANT AND NECESSARY STEP IN GETTING THIS LOCAL ANTI-FRACKING LAW PASSED!

If you want to speak to the board, 3-minutes of testimony is allowed, just arrive at 6:45 p.m. to sign up. Speaking is optional and you can instead bring a small sign in support of a local ban (i.e. "Amherst Against Fracking," "Don't Frack Amherst, "No Fracking Waste in Amherst," "Ban the waste.")

Any questions? Call Rita at 716-507-2077.


Background:

Every fracking site, of which there are thousands across the U.S., produce about 1.2 million gallons of wastewater. That means the oil and gas industry are looking for ways to dispose of billions of gallons of dangerous wastewater each year. The methods are highly experimental at best - road spreading, injection wells, mismanagement at municipal treatment plants, and then there's also radioactive drill cuttings that end up in town landfills.

The Governor’s ban on fracking does not address all of the issues in regards to the far-reaching impacts of the fracking process. Amherst needs a law that will ban the treatment, transfer, storage, and disposal of oil and gas wastes. Fracking wastewater or "brine", as well as drilling muds or "cuttings" may have radioactive elements picked up underground, heavy metals, and a slew of cancer-causing chemicals used during drilling.

Without a local ban on fracking waste in place, these issues could have immediate impacts on town residents as fracking sites in Pennsylvania and Ohio already send waste in to New York State. Reports have shown that fracking fluid and solids from fracking are entering NY waste treatment plants, being spread on NY roads, and being disposed of in NY landfills. This is due to federal and state loopholes in laws that manage oil & gas drilling wastes.

The Amherst Town Board has even acknowledged the risks fracking waste has on human health and the environment by passing a resolution over 1 year ago in April 2014!!! The board must take the next step in protecting residents by passing legislation for Amherst as soon as possible!

That's where we come in... Amherst and area residents are encouraged to attend the May 18th board meeting to show our support for an Amherst-wide ban. We need to pack the room because our presence encourages the board to make this law a priority!

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