Brooklyn Boro

OPINION: Cuomo should ban fracking statewide

September 18, 2014 By Paolo Cremidis For Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Anti-fracking activists are calling on Andrew Cuomo to ban the practice in New York.
Share this:

The past few years have been marked by extreme weather events in our state. This October marks the second anniversary of Superstorm Sandy hitting New York City.

Many Brooklyn residents are still recovering from the effects of the powerful storm, and preparations are underway to deal with more dangerous weather incidents down the road. 

Those of us who lost friends and family were heartbroken. Others who lost homes or suffered devastating property damage may never fully recoup the losses.

It’s getting harder for us to ignore what scientists know is fact: climate change has made the extreme weather more extreme, deadly and destructive.

This is part of the reason why hundreds of thousands of people from across the country are uniting in our city on Sept. 21 to participate in the People’s Climate March. We will be demanding that world leaders attending the Climate Summit at the United Nations take swift action to address climate change.

While President Obama has vowed to tackle CO2 emissions, his administration’s disregard of the methane from fracking and natural gas will not get us where we need to be.

Being selective in addressing the problems that contribute to climate change and exacerbate extreme weather will not solve our climate crisis.

Beyond fracking not being safe — it has been linked to water contaminationelevated rates of earthquakes and a range of health complications — the methane leaked from its processes contributes immensely to climate change.

Methane is 86 times more potent than CO2 over 20 years, demonstrating that fracking and natural gas offer us a bridge to nowhere if we’re being serious about addressing climate change.

Even energy firm BP reported that switching to shale gas won’t cut carbon emissions.  

Recently, Harvard researchers found that the EPA has significantly underestimated the amount of methane discharged in oil and gas production. Upon further study, researchers found extremely high levels of methane emissions near wells in Pennsylvania, up to 1,000 times above the EPA’s estimates.

With the federal government leading from behind on this issue, Gov. Cuomo has the opportunity to be a national leader with decisive action unconstrained by special interests.

He can do this by enacting a statewide ban on fracking, moving New York away from continued and further dependence on fossil fuels and leading a strong renewable energy future for our state.

Brooklyn residents do not need to suffer through another Superstorm Sandy to know that climate change is real and it is dangerous.  Climate change affects us all, and we can’t continue to deny the pace of change and persist with the same dangerous, failed policies.

The People’s Climate March provides a ripe opportunity for Cuomo to show that he is willing to be a strong leader and take a stand for the future of New York and our nation. It’s time for Cuomo to set an example on a world stage and commit to a statewide ban on fracking and make New York a leader in renewable energy.

* * * 

Paolo Cremidis

Paolo Cremidis is a Brooklyn College student and activist from Midwood, Brooklyn.

Subscribe to our newsletters


Leave a Comment


Leave a Comment