Henry W and Pat C
With the fracing fight still going on, Hancock residents have gotten involved. Locals from Hancock and the neighboring communities got together on August 20 to view a film and discuss a number of issues relating to the gas drilling controversy in Upstate New York.
Pat C., Henry W., Brendan O., and Ben B., four students from The Family Foundation School, along with journalism teacher Chris Stein and yearbook adviser Ann Kozak attended the meeting for further research on the gas drilling subject.
The meeting began with a short film from Crestone Media which discussed the effects of gas drilling in Wyoming and Colorado. After the film was over there was a lengthy and sometimes contentious discussion. The group talked about their concerns regarding gas drilling in the area and suggested many ideas which might help prevent fracing in the Marcellus Shale.
Steps that could be taken include placing weight limits on local roads, more town board meetings, educating local landowners about leasing their land, and staying active in the community.
Many of the people at the meeting had strong opinions in regards to the issue of gas drilling. They felt that there is much more that the community could be doing to help prevent drilling. “[There’s] no interest from town board. We gotta get active, aggressive. We are dealing with the biggest industry in the country. If you [the group] really want to get into this, turn your gas off!” said Andrew Philips, a local resident and permaculture teacher.
Another topic of the meeting was that the community isn’t educated enough about how to deal with gas drilling companies who are offering leases and how to deal with the effects if drilling does occur. “Landholders who sign leases are playing the lottery game. A small percentage will make big money but the rest of us will pay,” said Dave Baker.
Amending Past Actions Is Key
