Help Albany County Ban Disposal of Fracking Waste in its Landfills
April 10, 2015
Riverkeeper Team
Photo: Misti Duvall/Riverkeeper
Take action today and tell the Albany County Legislature to vote yes on Local Law D for 2014. Attend the Legislature’s public forum to express your support prior to the vote or call your Albany County legislator today and encourage them to vote yes.
When: Monday, April 13, 6:30 p.m.
On Monday, April 13, the Albany County Legislature will vote on Local Law D for 2014, a bill to prohibit the introduction of waste associated with oil or natural gas extraction activities, including hydraulic fracturing (fracking), into its landfills. Two years ago, Albany County banned the use of this waste for road spreading and its acceptance into wastewater treatment facilities. With the passage of Local Law D for 2014, Albany County will become the third county in New York State to ban all three practices.
Despite the announced ban on high-volume fracking in New York State, waste from oil and gas extraction activities in Pennsylvania is regularly shipped to New York landfills for disposal. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, more than 500,000 tons of fracking waste – including drill cuttings, drilling muds, flowback fracturing sand, and fluid waste – has been transported to New York landfills from Pennsylvania. This waste can contain a number of pollutants, such as chemicals, metals, and organic compounds that may be harmful to human health and the environment, as well as naturally-occurring contaminants, including radioactive materials, that exist thousands of feet below the surface and are mobilized by the drilling and extraction process.
Join us and speak out for the protection of our health and environment.
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