State House Approves Halt to Drilling
By ANNE HOLLIDAY
WESB/WBRR News Director
The state House has passed a bill that would immediately impose a three-year moratorium on natural gas drilling on state forest land.
Sponsors of the bill want a thorough environmental assessment of the impact of drilling on the land before more can be leased.
Speaking on the House floor against an amendment to the bill, State Representative Marty Causer said passing the bill would delay development in the Commonwealth.
He said the counties he represents have some of the highest unemployment in Pennsylvania and drilling is “one bright spot that we actually have.”
“This is one potential area where we can put people to work … and that’s what we need to do,” he said, drawing cheers from some of his colleagues
Causer continued, saying the overall goal of the bill is to stop drilling all together.
“Make no mistake, the people pushing this legislation want to stop the drilling, whether it’s on state land or private land – any land. They want to stop the drilling, and that’s really what the focus is,” he said.
He added that everyone knows a three-year moratorium will grow to five or six years “because we all know how government works, and it’s going to take longer than people say.”
And, he said, there’s no need for the bill because currently Governor Ed Rendell and the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources have the authority to decide where to drill.
Furthermore, Rendell’s February budget proposal counted on raising $180 million through another round of leasing for drilling. The last round raised $128.4 million on 32,000 acres of land in the Elk, Moshannon, Sproul, Susquehannock and Tioga state forests in Cameron, Clearfield, Clinton, Potter and Tioga counties.
“Don’t you trust your governor?” Causer asked on the House floor. The question was aimed at Democrats who support the bill. “Trust your governor, and let’s move forward with drilling.”
The bill now moves to the state Senate, where a spokesman for the Republican majority says there’s no plan to act on the bill.
WESB/WBRR News Director
The state House has passed a bill that would immediately impose a three-year moratorium on natural gas drilling on state forest land.
Sponsors of the bill want a thorough environmental assessment of the impact of drilling on the land before more can be leased.
Speaking on the House floor against an amendment to the bill, State Representative Marty Causer said passing the bill would delay development in the Commonwealth.
He said the counties he represents have some of the highest unemployment in Pennsylvania and drilling is “one bright spot that we actually have.”
“This is one potential area where we can put people to work … and that’s what we need to do,” he said, drawing cheers from some of his colleagues
Causer continued, saying the overall goal of the bill is to stop drilling all together.
“Make no mistake, the people pushing this legislation want to stop the drilling, whether it’s on state land or private land – any land. They want to stop the drilling, and that’s really what the focus is,” he said.
He added that everyone knows a three-year moratorium will grow to five or six years “because we all know how government works, and it’s going to take longer than people say.”
And, he said, there’s no need for the bill because currently Governor Ed Rendell and the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources have the authority to decide where to drill.
Furthermore, Rendell’s February budget proposal counted on raising $180 million through another round of leasing for drilling. The last round raised $128.4 million on 32,000 acres of land in the Elk, Moshannon, Sproul, Susquehannock and Tioga state forests in Cameron, Clearfield, Clinton, Potter and Tioga counties.
“Don’t you trust your governor?” Causer asked on the House floor. The question was aimed at Democrats who support the bill. “Trust your governor, and let’s move forward with drilling.”
The bill now moves to the state Senate, where a spokesman for the Republican majority says there’s no plan to act on the bill.
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Comments
NO!!!! And now I don't trust you either, Mr. Causer!