This is a preliminary notice; a full report will follow soon.

Last year, New York's legislature passed, and the governor signed, a bill that would allow gas drilling in the "Marcellus shale" layer thousands of feet underground, along the entire southern tier of New York. This could result in lucrative leasing arrangements with farmers and property owners in that area.

The problem is, the chemicals used in the drilling make people sick. They get into the air, and (more importantly) the water supply. Not only do people on whose land the drilling takes place get sick, but the chemicals can migrate for miles and miles underground and infect the water table.

Locally, Council Member and Environmental Protection Committee Chair Jim Gennaro has taken the lead on this issue, followed closely by Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer. They are to be commended for bringing to light an issue that has gotten far too little press coverage.

New York City's entire water supply is at risk -- and that could mean a $20 billion-plus cost of building a new filtration system. Along the southern tier, anyone who allows drilling on their property, and their neighbors, are all at risk as well.

The state DEC has been pathetic in their failure even to attempt to understand the issue. Last year they testified that there would be no health problems, but in response to a FOIL request they admitted that they had no studies and no tests to back up that assertion. Pete Grannis should be ashamed of himself!

One of the reasons that no studies are done is that the drillers aren't telling anyone what chemicals they are using (we're finding out anyway, but it's slow). Section 322 of the "Energy Policy Act of 2005" (PL 109-58), an enormous bill (the GPO printout is over 500 pages), the drillers got an exemption from the Safe Drinking Water Act.

How did they get that exemption? It might have something to do with the fact that the process was first created by Halliburton.

This is not an upstate/downstate battle; it is everybody's battle. We must stop drilling in the Marcellus shale region before it starts. Contact your City Council member to support Councilmember Gennaro's resolution (most likely to be submitted at the next stated meeting on March 11). Contact the Governor's office and your state representatives, and contact your Congressmembers and our Senators. Spread the word -- we need to keep our watershed clean and safe.