It's the law.
No fracking or fracking-infected wastewater in Niagara Falls.
If you ever wondered what difference 200 votes can make, look no farther than Niagara Falls City Councilman Glenn Choolokian, whose narrow victory last November earned him a seat on the Council and has resulted in the quick passage of Niagara Falls' first anti-fracking law.
Last week, the councilman spearheaded the resolution that bans the controversial process of induced hydraulic fracturing and bans the disposal of fracking water through the city's wastewater treatment plant and into the Niagara River.
"We passed an ordinance, a city ordinance, and it's law now," Choolokian said, adding that he worked with Buffalo Councilman Richard A. Fontana on the resolution. A similar resolution was passed in Buffalo last year.
If the Niagara Falls Water Board (put in place largely by Mayor Paul Dyster and former New York State assemblywoman Francine Del Monte) had its way, millions of gallons of fracking water produced in other parts of the state and contaminated with more than 600 chemicals, including carcinogens, could have been brought to Niagara Falls for treatment in the city's wastewater treatment plant.
"They were trying to bring hydro-fracking water here," Choolokian said of the Water Board. "They were looking to make big money. They didn't care who they were going to hurt."
The resolution, officially drafted by Choolokian, Council Chairman Sam Fruscione and Councilman Bob Anderson, was passed unanimously and signed into law by Dyster last week.
It is known as "Niagara's Community Protection from Natural Gas Extraction Ordinance," and its clear language expressly prohibits "the exploration for and extraction of natural gas and the storage, transfer, treatment or disposal of natural gas exploration and production wastes within the City of Niagara Falls, in order to preserve and protect the public health, safety and welfare of the residents and neighborhoods of Niagara Falls."
Hydraulic fracturing is the process of drilling deep wells into the earth's crust in order to crack the underlying shale using pressurized, chemically treated water. This process releases natural gas, and the water that gets pumped into the well is laden with chemicals from a base of approximately 600 different toxins, which leaves the water that reaches the surface highly contaminated and requiring treatment.
Anderson had harsh words for supporters of the process.
"To those who see the treatment of fracking water as a moneymaker, I ask, How do you justify the cash received from poisoning our river against the disease and death that will result from that act? You can't un-poison a water supply; toxins have consequences," he said.
Choolokian concurs with Anderson's assessment.
"It can't be treated," he says of the contaminated wastewater, disputing those who believe the water can be stripped of its carcinogens. "It's all B.S."
The anti-fracking resolution was accompanied by a separate resolution that "urges Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the State of New York to issue a Moratorium suspending hydraulic fracturing operations in New York State until such time that the Environmental Protection Agency provides specific details on the dangers and possible environmental impacts of such operations."
In November, it was reported that the Niagara Falls Water Board was moving forward with plans to treat fracking fluid at its wastewater treatment plant following a feasibility study performed by an outside firm. In a statement released to the media, the NFWB said: "Although the NFWB has not advocated for drilling in the Marcellus Shale, should the State of New York allow drilling to proceed, and our wastewater treatment plant meet all requirements and regulations as set forth by the DEC, the NFWB potentially offers a solution to effectively and safely treat wastewater produced from drilling and would help mitigate concerns about impacts on public health and safety and the environment. In addition, treating wastewater from Marcellus Shale would provide the NFWB with a significant opportunity to increase revenues, provide financial stability to our organization and stabilize our rate structure over the long term, all to the benefit of NFWB rate payers."
The plan was first revealed in the Niagara Falls Reporter in July 2011.
Choolokian is proud that, due to the law he sponsored, fracking and its associated wastewater will not be welcome in Niagara Falls.
"You can't bring it here. You can't treat it here. You can't store it here. You can't dispose of it here. Not in our wastewater treatment plants. It can't be done," Choolokian said. "If you had a brand new wastewater treatment plant, built today and opened up tomorrow, you still can't treat it." Choolokian pointed out that many members of the NFWB who supported the idea of treating the wastewater don't even live in the Cataract City.
"You have four or five directors that don't live in the city of Niagara Falls," Choolokian said. "They don't care about this area. They don't care who they hurt."
Research shows that Executive Director Paul Drof lives in Clarence. Mike Kelly, director of administration, lives in Orchard Park. Mike Kessler, director of infrastructure, lives in North Tonawanda. Board Chairman Mike McNally lives in Cambria. Rick Roll, director of technical and regulatory services, lives in East Amherst. Board Member Nicholas Marchelos lives in Buffalo.
"The Niagara Falls City Council will not allow out-of-town politicians, out-of-town board members or out-of-town management to make this tragedy a reality," Choolokian said. "We will not allow the temptation of millions of dollars in reward for out-of-town companies, corporations and individuals to be the driving force to put the children and families of Niagara Falls at risk with hydro-fracking."
Choolokian has criticized Dyster as being "wishy-washy" on the topic of hydro-fracking. Dyster recently told WBFO that "Niagara Falls, just from a technical standpoint, would be the candidate treatment facility for fracking water, if you decided to go that direction."
But the mayor also said, "We're very dependent on the natural environment for our livelihood. Niagara Falls is the goose that lays the golden eggs here, so we're very concerned about water quality."
Fruscione is passionately against the hydro-fracking and any related treatment of the wastewater in Niagara Falls.
"Accepting hydraulic fracturing wastewater for 'treatment' is a fool's errand. Can we put a price tag on fresh water? Can we perform a profit-and-loss calculation on the health of a single human being? Haven't we learned our lesson since Love Canal broke into the national media over 30 years ago? It's very upsetting that we have individuals in this community working behind the scenes to put millions of gallons of poisoned water through our treatment facility," he said.
Environmental leaders have detailed the health dangers of releasing the fracking toxins into the Niagara River for eventual exposure to millions of water users downstream of the water treatment facility. With each hydraulic fracturing company having their own unique "brew" of water (the chemical contents of which they are not currently forced to reveal to the public), it is impossible to determine exactly what toxins are in the water.
Additionally, the hydraulic fracturing process causes naturally occurring radiation in the shale to blend with the water and return to the surface, further contaminating the water.
Choolokian says that this law protects the current citizens of Niagara Falls, as well as its future residents. "Our once-great city and all the families of Niagara Falls have been through so much over the years," he said. "With Love Canal alive in our memories, we aren't going to allow another environmental tragedy to happen in our city -- not today, not ever."
E-mail Ron Churchill at ronchurchill@yahoo.com.
| Niagara Falls Reporter | www.niagarafallsreporter.com | March 13 2012 |