The Evening Sun reports that a Chenango County board of supervisors meeting this week got unusually feisty on the topic of natural-gas hydrofracking.
Supervisor Ross Iannello kicked off the discussion about local exploration and drilling by asking for immediate board support in leasing county-owned land at Preston Manor. The land is being integrated into a Norse Energy, Inc. spacing unit at an adjacent well site. Iannello and other supervisors who make up the county’s Natural Gas Committee have been pushing the board to take advantage of an opportunity to profit.
Only a short window of time remains to enter into a contract. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation will hold a compulsory integration hearing on the order in early March.
"Compulsory integration" means that even if the county doesn't sign a lease, the DEC can grant the gas company the right to drill on the land. Here's a DEC primer on what compulsory integration means for landowners.
