Albany, NY -- Darrel Aubertine was one of only nine state senators to vote last week against a bill to block New York from permitting a controversial natural gas drilling technique until mid-May. Under heavy pressure from environmentalists, the Senate approved the bill 49-9 to the dismay of the natural gas industry and landowners hoping to receive money by...
View full sizeDarrel AubertineAlbany, NY -- Darrel Aubertine was one of only nine state senators to vote last week against a bill to block New York from permitting a controversial natural gas drilling technique until mid-May.
Under heavy pressure from environmentalists, the Senate approved the bill 49-9 to the dismay of the natural gas industry and landowners hoping to receive money by leasing their land to drillers.
Aubertine’s district, which includes Oswego County, does not include the area that would be affected by hydrofracking. Aubertine, D-Cape Vincent, said he generally favors allowing high-volume hydraulic fracturing, provided it can be accomplished without harming the environment.
Gas companies want to use the method, also known as hydrofracking, to extract gas captured in the Marcellus Shale. The Marcellus Shale, an underground rock formation, stretches from West Virginia into Central New York.
Aubertine said he voted against the bill because he thought a moratorium will weaken coalitions of Southern Tier landowners, many of whom are farmers, who have banded together to negotiate leases with gas companies. If the coalitions break down, farmers who need lease revenue to survive, may receive less lucrative terms, predicted Aubertine, who chairs the Senate agriculture committee.
“I said publicly I would support a six-month moratorium,” Aubertine said. “But I think running it out for a year or more, you run the risk of breaking down these loosely knit coalitions of landowners who are trying to bargain for the best return on their property.”
If approved by the Assembly, the moratorium would end 9½ months after the Senate vote, on May 15. It could take until May 15 before the state Department of Environmental Conservation is ready to issue permits for hydrofracking.
DEC Commissioner Pete Grannis said in April during a visit to Syracuse that he expected DEC to issue hydrofracking regulations this fall. He said he expected drilling to begin by spring or summer 2011. DEC spokesman Yancey Roy said Thursday the agency has no timetable for finalizing its regulations and issuing permits.
Senators whose districts include Southern Tier counties where gas companies hope to drill were divided on the moratorium. Sen. Thomas Libous, R-Binghamton, and Sen. George Winner, R-Elmira, voted against the delay. Sen. James Seward, R-Milford, voted for it.
The Sierra Club’s legislative director in New York, Roger Downs, said he was surprised the vote — which happened around midnight Aug. 3 — did not break along party lines, as many Senate votes do.
The natural gas industry gave campaign contributions to some of the senators who voted against the moratorium — including Winner, who received $1,000 — but Aubertine said he received no contributions. The industry also gave campaign donations to senators who voted for the moratorium, including its sponsor, Sen. Antoine Thompson, D-Buffalo, who received $1,100.
In addition to campaign contributions, the natural gas industry has been spending money lobbying state officials. It spent $668,984 on lobbying in 2009 and has spent more than that amount this year, according to a study by Common Cause.
Contact Mike McAndrew at mmcandrew@syracuse.com or 470-3016.