COLUMBUS, Ohio, Dec. 19,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- It's déjà vu all over again for
state park lovers and protectors.
In 2022, during the Christmas lame duck session, Ohio lawmakers
stuffed a simple poultry bill with unrelated amendments, morphing
it into a law declaring natural gas "green energy" and requiring
state parks and public lands to be fracked.
There was no public discussion.
During this year's lame duck session, legislators similarly
stuffed bill H.B. 308. It declares nuclear energy "green" and
extends fracking leases under state parks and public lands as long
as eight years.
This time, Save Ohio Parks and a coalition of Ohio environmental
organizations are ready. They're promoting a letter-writing
campaign demanding Gov. Mike DeWine
veto the surprise law. As of press time, more than 610 people had
submitted letters asking DeWine to veto the bill.
DeWine has 10 days excluding Sundays to sign or veto a bill
after it's delivered to his desk. At press time, it had not landed
there yet. The letter campaign can be accessed at
bit.ly/veto308.
Last week, Ohio's Oil and Gas Land Management Commission
(OGLMC), an un-elected group appointed by DeWine, approved two
nominations to frack more of Salt Fork State Park. It also
selected Gulfport Appalachia to frack Egypt Valley Wildlife
Area.
Gulfport's parent company has paid more than $3.7 million for pollution at its other Ohio gas
and oil operations. Its bid paperwork also shows lapsed
insurance.
Other drillers selected to frack Ohio public lands this year
include Infinity Natural Resources, selected to frack two parcels
at Salt Fork, and Encino Acquisition Partners, slated to frack
Valley Run and Zepernick Wildlife Areas. EOG Resources will frack
Keen Wildlife Area and numerous Ohio Department of Transportation
rights-of-way will also be fracked.
"Our lawmakers are turning Ohio into an industrial colony for
out-of-state corporations and ruining our beautiful natural spaces
for short-term oil and gas revenue," said Cathy Cowan Becker, board president at Save Ohio
Parks. "This must stop. We don't need the energy here. The United States is already the largest
exporter of methane (natural) gas in the world."
While awaiting tardy commissioner Michael Wise, an oil and gas attorney for
McDonald Hopkins, at the
Dec. 9 OGLMC commission meeting, Save
Ohio Parks volunteers Loraine
McCosker, Jenny Morgan
and Sunrise Athens from Ohio University told seated
commissioners to protect our parks.
Once the meeting began, commissioners failed to discuss the nine
criteria mandated in Ohio Revised Code to be considered before
deciding to award a fracking lease. They took just 15 minutes to
rubberstamp even more fracking.
"Ohio's natural resources are being mismanaged by lawmakers and
state officials," said Cowan Becker. "Even though Ohio is in a
severe drought, hundreds of millions of gallons of fresh water from
our lakes, creeks and streams are being sold to oil and gas
companies to use in their drilling operations at a fraction of the
price other states charge."
Save Ohio Parks outlines reasons DeWine should veto HB 308:
- Ohio Department of Natural Resources does a poor job of
monitoring the gas and oil industry. Research by Save Ohio
Parks and analysis by FracTracker Alliance revealed 1,500 reported
gas and oil related "incidents" in Ohio over six years, including
explosions and contamination of soil and water from spills. The
data contradicts statements by an industry spokesman who claimed in
media that the industry is safe and virtually accident-free
- Gas and oil production accidents and waste cleanups are apt to
increase as fracking is expanded, and costs may be foisted upon
taxpayers.
- National and international drilling companies exploit Ohio for
investor profit.
- Ohio loses precious fresh water to fracking as the world
heats up and droughts increase. Fracking operations use up to
40 million gallons fresh water per fracked well.
- Fracking destroys our fresh water, making it undrinkable
forever. After gas, oil and water are separated, fracking
wastewater, which the industry calls "produced water," is
radioactive and contaminated by unregulated chemicals.
- ODNR's wastewater management is lax and dangerous. Seven
Class II injection wells have been closed in Ohio since the frack
boom began, the last two near Athens,
Ohio, after 12 years of citizen complaints. The toxic
wastewater leaked and migrated into wells, threatening drinking
local water supplies and aquifers.
- Radioactive nuclear and oil and gas waste threatens Ohioans'
health. One billion gallons of radioactive oil and gas
wastewater is injected deep underground in Ohio annually. Radium
can be found in oil and gas waste streams and in nuclear waste,
which is certainly not "green." Elevated levels of radium cause
bone-seeking cancers.
"Of extreme concern to us is ODNR's lax regulation of the
gas and oil industry and its dangerous management of radioactive
gas and oil waste," said Leatra
Harper of Freshwater Accountability Project of Grand Rapids, Ohio. Her group has been working
to protect Ohio's fresh water for a decade.
"Too much of Ohio's fresh water has been removed from the system
already. With climate change we will lose even more water, yet Ohio
is considered a climate change haven," she added. "Gas and oil
production clearly ruins the quantity and quality of fresh water in
Ohio."
"If we are to survive on a livable planet and drink clean water,
we need to focus much more attention on water quality and
preservation of our water supply," said Cowan Becker. "Ohio needs
policy and law that rapidly phases out fossil fuels, ramps up
clean, reliable energy, and protects Ohioans from cancers and
environmental harms. We can begin protecting our health and natural
spaces by banning fracking under our beloved state parks and public
lands."
For more information about fracking Ohio's public lands, visit
SaveOhioParks.org. For information on protecting Ohio's fresh
water, visit FWAP.org.
Contact DeWine directly at his online contact form
at governor.ohio.gov/contact.
Contact: Melinda Zemper
Email: mzemper@fuse.net
Phone: (513) 706-3737
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SOURCE Save Ohio Parks
