PRESS RELEASE

For Immediate Release
May 24, 2011

Jennifer Miller, Sierra Club, (614) 461-0734 x304
Tracy Sabetta, National Wildlife Federation (614) 581-2907
Julian Boggs, Environment Ohio, (614) 440-3434
Jack Shaner, Ohio Environmental Council, (614) 446-1693

State park drilling bill clears Ohio House committee

Drilling supporters reject 16 attempts to protect water resources and expressly bar drilling in state nature preserves, Shawnee wilderness area and Lake Erie

Send an email to your Representative now!

Columbus, OH - An Ohio House committee voted this morning to open Ohio's state parks to oil and gas exploration.

The panel's party-line vote clears the way for the 99-member Ohio House of Representatives to consider the bill. That vote map happen tomorrow.

Should lawmakers pass the measure, it would break a half-century of protecting the state parks from such industrial development since Ohio established its state park system in 1949.

"Lawmakers came one step closer to selling off our state parks and wildlife areas to the oil and gas industry today," said Tracy Sabetta, representing the National Wildlife Federation in Ohio. "Ohio families are planning their summer trips to see white-tailed deer and hear the sounds of nature. They will not pitch a tent to see oil rigs and hear the sounds of heavy machinery. Our elected officials should resist the temptation to put a price tag on our wildlife habitats. Hocking Hills should not be for sale to the highest bidder."

Before approving the measure 12-7, majority Republicans of the Ohio House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee rejected 16 separate attempts by minority Democrats to limit drilling on state lands and otherwise add protections for land and water resources.

The failed attempts included amendments to expressly bar drilling in Ohio's 135 state nature preserves and lone state wilderness area; to add state protection to an existing federal ban on drilling in or under Lake Erie; to empower the state agency that owns or controls a plot of land nominated for drilling o have final "go/no-go" say over the drilling, instead of the industry-dominated panel the bill proposes; to require the state to subject any drilling to federal air and water quality protections; and to prohibit the use of injection wells, open storage pits, water resources, construction of pipelines in state parks, nature preserves, or state wilderness areas

Bill supporters claim the bill protects preserves and the wilderness area from drillings. But drilling opponents point out the bill's language is not clear and may leave the preserves and wilderness area vulnerable to drilling.

"Ohio's leaders have received more than 8,000 emails, phone calls, and petitions against drilling in state lands," said Jen Miller of the Sierra Club. "The people of Ohio deserve a legislature and Governor that is responsive to their interests. Instead, we have a legislature and Governor interested in the interests of Big Oil and Gas at the expense of Ohio's citizens and wildlife."

Drilling supporters also rejected an effort to protect Lake Erie from drilling. The Toledo Blade on Saturday exposed the fact that the original, introduced version of the bill proposed to outlaw oil and gas drilling in Lake Erie.

In The Blade report, bill sponsors were unable to explain why they abruptly backed away from the proposed ban in a later version of the bill. Instead, they said Lake Erie is adequately protected by federal law, which bars drilling in or under the Great Lakes.

Drilling opponents point out that the federal law is subject to periodic renewal. Should Congress decide not to renew the ban, it would be up to Ohio to decide whether to protect its part of Lake Erie from drilling.

Conservation leaders suspect that oil and gas industry leaders persuaded lawmakers to eliminate the protective language from the original bill. An Ohio industry lobbyist has publicly contended that Ohio is missing out on developing Lake Erie's oil and gas reserves.

"This is a classic case of being for the ban before they were against it. Who and what changed their mind? It sure looks like someone has their eye on sinking a drill bit into our Great Lake," said Jack Shaner, Deputy Director of the Ohio Environmental Council.

Beyond their fundamental opposition to opening state parks to extractive activity, Ohio conservation leaders are bothered that the House panel's majority members and the Ohio DNR's leadership accepted the oil and gas industry's proposal to empower an industry-dominated panel to review state land parcels for possible drilling.

Under the bill, the proposed five-member Oil and Gas Leasing Commission would have full power to review and approve or reject nominations to lease state-owned or -controlled land that contains no encumbrances or deed restrictions that limit the exploration or drilling for oil and gas. The commission would be composed of two oil and gas industry representatives; the chief of the ODNR Division of Geological Survey, one member of the public with expertise in finance or real estate, and one representative of a statewide environmental or conservation group.

"Under park rules, it is unlawful for a camper to tack a clothesline to a tree. But under the bill, it would be ok for a driller to chop his way through the forest to set up a drilling rig. This puts a whole new spin on 'getting away from it all,' " said Shaner.

Amendments rejected at today's committee hearing:

1. O'Brien - Ban drilling on state nature preserves; state wild, scenic, and recreational rivers; and Shawnee State Wilderness Area.

2. Phillips - Place a 2 year moratorium on use of hydraulic horizontal fracturing in state parks, etc., and require ODNR to provide an Endangered Inventory of endangered species on any state land before it may be drilled.

3. O'Brien - Place a 10-year cap on number of state lands that may be drilled each year, starting with 10 sites in the first year.

4. Phillips - Prohibit the use of injection wells, open storage pits, water resources, and construction of pipelines in state parks, nature preserves, or state wilderness areas.

5. O'Brien - Require baseline testing of groundwater for water quality and water quantity, both before and after drilling.

6. Clyde - Require drillers to comply with federal standards, including Superfund Act, Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Resources Conservation and Recovery Act, and National Environmental Protection Act.

7. Clyde - Require recycling, capture, treatment, and documentation of processed waste water by drillers and require drillers to report all chemicals used in well stimulation fluids.

8. Phillips -Require driller to indemnify State of Ohio against any loss of water quantity or quality and require driller to maintain sufficient insurance.

9. O'Brien - Take 3% from drilling proceeds and transfer to Ohio EPA Linked Deposit program to assist local county health boards to finance additional water quality protection during the drilling process.

10. Gentile - Repair of roads, bridges, culverts. Require drillers to post sufficient bond. Restore to conditions present before drilling.

11. Murray - Restore balance to commission by adding a sportsmen to the commission.

12. Murray - Empower state agency to have final say over whether to proceed or not proceed with any drilling.

13. Murray - Require state Attorney General to establish terms of standard oil and gas lease to be used by state agencies.

14. Heard - "Buy Ohio" - Require drilling companies to utilize OH companies and OH goods and services.

15. Gentile - Transparency. Require public hearings and opportunity for public comment and public notice,

16. Murray - Restore language from the original bill, to exclude Lake Erie from oil and gas drilling.