soliticing paddlers

Natural gas extraction, Democracy, Paddling. Three things that shouldn't go together?

Attached is a PDF letter soliciting participation. (Scroll down)

I'm planning to kayak the length of the Cuyahoga, hopefully this May or early June, to bring regional awareness of the plans the gas industry has for us - 300 5+ acre gas wells in Geauga county alone (where I live). If you aren't aware the the subject of "fracking", I summarize it in the PDF (scroll down). But this isn't just about fracking, it's about how it came to be that the industry has managed to get where it is - by dumping money into the political process, working with states to consolidate control over drilling decisions without local input, and mis-informing the public as the the history and safety of this method of deep shale gas extraction.

For some, maybe many of you, paddling is a way to forget about politics, etc. But for those of you interested in making a point, and/or just enjoying a portion of the river one day, please consider joining me.
I'm not organizing this as part of any group - I'm just a man who recently relocated / returned to the area with his wife and girls and didn't realize that our rural existence was going to be transformed out from under us.

For more information, email me at ofcorso@gmail. I have developed a Power Point on the subject for any group of people who want more info beyond my attached PDF.

Thank you for your attention.

Steven Corso
http://ofcorso.blogspot.com/ (this site has some of my articles and letters to local news papers)

 

Calling all kayakers and canoers!

Hello Northeast Ohio Water-Lovers

My name is Steven Corso. I am a former biology teacher turned farmer (pawpaw and other stuff) who recently moved to Geauga county with my wife and daughters from California. For me is was a return home; I grew up in Mentor.

Perhaps you've been following the recent expansion of natural gas extraction by the process colloquially known as “fracking”. I only learned about it a year ago, shortly after moving back. As you may know, the first such well in Geauga county was drilled a few months ago but, at the time of this writing, has not yet been “fracked”. Here's a clip of map (from the ODNR website) showing the well with its one well bore. (The dashed arrow is the directional drill bore that runs within the shale bed over a mile beneath the surface; the actual well pad is at the start of the arrow in the north).

Let me provide a summary of fracking, especially as it might be of concern for river users:

Fracking involves drilling deep (7000 feet possibly) then drilling horizontally for perhaps a mile. The well bore is pumped full of water – millions of gallons of it. The water can be obtained from aquifers or municipal water systems that are willing to sell. In some places the water has been diverted from local rivers and streams to the tune of millions of gallons per day.

Before the water is injected into the well it has thousands of gallons of chemicals added. Some of these are known carcinogens, endocrine disruptors, and toxins of various organs. Some are biocides added to purposely kill microbes that might contaminate the well.

For most well pads, this water and chemicals (and sand) must be trucked in; a thousand round trips of tanker trucks per well bore is typical. Keep in mind, one well pad could have 8 or more bores.

Now I probably don't have to say more about the potential risk for your favorite natural resource from spills; well blow out; leaks of containment ponds, pipes and trucks; and underground migration of frack fluid. The waste water, which is very salty (6x sea water), contains heavy metals and is often radioactive, must also be transported and dealt with. The industry says there is little risk. But a little research will dig up reports, anecdotes, and expert opinion that reasonably undermines the industry's confident claims of safety. Incredibly, the ODNR requires drilling must be at least 50 feet from any waterway.

I learned from the mouth of a gas industry spokesman that the industry plans to put 300 such well pads in Geauga county alone; at 400 square miles that's one 5+ acre well pad every 1.3 miles! Keep in mind the forest that must be cleared (potentially) for these pads plus compressor stations, miles of pipeline, processing stations, etc. The potential for increased erosion run-off is considerable.

Again, I probably don't have to point out to you all that the headwaters of the Grand, Chagrin, and Cuyahoga Rivers are all in Geauga county. In fact, in the map above, the small body of water just south of the well is Chicagami Park and the headwaters of the Grand River.

The gas industry plans for similar numbers of wells for all productive counties (mostly the eastern half of Ohio) and have been busy getting signed leases in rural counties all over northeast Ohio.

The federal and state governments have been on board the industry led efforts to expand this drilling across the U.S., with 500,000 pads envisioned across Ohio, PA, NY, WV and adjacent states. The industry has been given major exemptions from clean air and water laws. Local government officials in Ohio (and some other states, like PA) have no ability to determine where, when, or if gas wells will be established in their counties, towns and cities; the ODNR has consolidated all decision-making.

That leaves the fates of local places and local watersheds in the hands of state drilling laws – which, in my opinion, are not going to protect anything – and local leasers of drilling rights, many of whom I fear accept claims of safety by the industry and ODNR under the enticement of large checks when the leases are signed.

That leaves the rest of us to wonder how our voices might be heard. Which is what brings me to you all.

I would like to hold a news-worthy event, using a flotilla of boaters traveling from some point of entree in Geauga county, down the Cuyahoga and/or Grand rivers, to draw attention to the expansion of gas well drilling, the risks associated with it, the undemocratic decision-making process behind it, and most-importantly, the water that links the gas wells to the communities downstream.

I am emailing to ask your advice and see if there is interest in planning and/or participating in this event, which ideally I'd like to hold as early as later May. Although I've been minimally active with the Sierra Club and a group called NEOGAP since learning of fracking, I am not coming to you from any group.

Call or email me with questions or concerns. Ideally I'd like to come to some meeting to discuss this if that is possible. I could also present a more thorough Power Point on the subject if there's interest.

Thank you for your time and consideration,

Steve Corso

email: ofcorso@gmail.com

home phone: 440 635 0137
cell phone: 510 390 3160 (use this number for the second half of March)