Riverkeeper’s statement on the environmental review that lays the groundwork for NY’s fracking ban

For Immediate Release: May 13, 2015

Contact: Cliff Weathers, 914-478-4501, Ext 239

OSSINING, NY – The Cuomo administration’s Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) just released its long anticipated environmental review that lays the groundwork for ban of hydraulic fracturing or “fracking” for natural gas in New York. Called the Final Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (FSGEIS), it is a key step in New York’s prohibition on fracking. The DEC must wait a required 10 days to issue a findings statement that would formally put the ban in place.

Riverkeeper issues this statement from Kate Hudson, Director of Cross Watershed Initiatives:
“We’ve been eagerly awaiting the release of this document and are encouraged to reach this stage. We will review it to ensure that it will be consistent with state law and that it will fully protect New York’s residents and environment. We look forward to the release of a strong findings statement in the coming days, which will put in place the fracking ban that Gov. Cuomo courageously announced back in December.”