January 29, 2015
Philadelphia Magazine: Wolf reverses Corbett order, bans fracking on state parkland
Anti-fracking advocates welcomed the news, but said it didn’t go far enough. “Today’s decision, just days after hundreds of Pennsylvanians rallied at Governor Wolf’s inauguration for a ban on fracking, is evidence of the power of the movement to stop fracking in our state,” Jenny Lisak, a member of the Pennsylvanians Against Fracking steering committee, said in a release. “Keeping fracking out of state parks is welcomed news, but I am fearful that the negative impacts of this process will be concentrated in communities already being harmed. We must stop fracking around the state.”
Philadelphia Inquirer: Wolf restores fracking ban in state parkland
Another group, Pennsylvanians Against Fracking, asked the governor to ban fracking, despite his explicit support for it.
For Immediate Release: January 29, 2015
Contact: Karen Feridun, Berks Gas Truth- [email protected], 610.678.7726
Sam Bernhardt, Food & Water Watch – [email protected], 267.428.1903
Diane Sipe, Marcellus Outreach Butler- [email protected], 724-272-4539
Pennsylvanians Against Fracking Calls on Wolf to Stop Fracking Statewide After Parks Ban
Coalition cites impacts to PA communities and studies
Pennsylvanians Against Fracking regards Governor Tom Wolf’s reinstatement of the moratorium on state forest and park drilling to be an important first step in protecting Pennsylvania from fracking, but continues its call for an end to fracking everywhere in the state.
“Today’s decision, just days after hundreds of Pennsylvanians rallied at Governor Wolf’s inauguration for a ban on fracking, is evidence of the power of the movement to stop fracking in our state,” said Jenny Lisak, of Pennsylvania Alliance for Clean Water and Air, a member of the Pennsylvanians Against Fracking steering committee. “Keeping fracking out of state parks is welcomed news, but I am fearful that the negative impacts of this process will be concentrated in communities already being harmed. We must stop fracking around the state”
Wolf publicly criticized then-Governor Tom Corbett for the decision he made last May to lift the moratorium on state forests and, for the first time, open state park land to fracking. A petition the Wolf campaign circulated at the time said, “In 2010, a moratorium was placed on fracking in Pennsylvania public lands because an exhaustive scientific study concluded that further drilling would irreparably harm the state forests and parks.”
Since then, an avalanche of studies on fracking has emerged. Last month, New York banned fracking based on review of over 400 peer-reviewed studies.
“Clearly, Governor Wolf based today’s decision on his willingness to listen to the scientific evidence we had 2010. We’re confident that if he listens to the current science, he’ll have no choice but to protect all Pennsylvanians and end fracking statewide,” said Karen Feridun, of Berks Gas Truth, another member of the Pennsylvanians Against Fracking steering committee.
“Our organization works in Washington, Butler, Green and Fayette Counties, where there are hundreds of families who have been without potable water for more than five years,” said Briget Shields of Marcellus Protest and Friends of the Harmed. “Tom Wolf should protect the people of this commonwealth, not just the parks and forests.”
Pennsylvanians Against Fracking is a statewide coalition of nearly 100 organizations, institutions, and businesses calling for an end to fracking. For more information, visit paagainstfracking.org.
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