Pennsylvanians Against Fracking Previews Next Week’s Coalition Kick-off Rally

Experts Rippel and Walter Discuss State of Fracking as Wolf Prepares to Take Office

Harrisburg, Pa: Pennsylvanians Against Fracking announced today that the coalition will send Governor-elect Tom Wolf a strong message at its Clean Up Pennsylvania rally on the capitol steps in Harrisburg on November 18^th at noon. Coalition members and concerned citizens will tell Wolf that he should impose a statewide moratorium on fracking. Click here for call audio.

Pennsylvanians Against Fracking is a new statewide coalition of organizations, business, and faith institutions calling for a ban on fracking. Coalition partners and concerned citizens will gather in Harrisburg for a rally to “Clean Up Pennsylvania,” to rid our state government of dirty energy money and speed the transition to clean energy alternatives. They will call on Wolf to impose a statewide moratorium on fracking, with the rally serving as a coalition kick-off. The conference call served as a prelude to the rally, and an opportunity to make the case for a halt to drilling. With Governor-elect Wolf’s transition team already assembling, the coalition showcased experts to speak to the need for a moratorium on the controversial drilling technique.

“What we have discovered in three years of intense study of the health impacts of unconventional natural gas development in Washington County, Pennsylvania, leaves us seriously concerned about industrial gas extraction or development activity taking place within three to five miles of where people live,” said Raina Rippel, Director of Southwest Pennsylvania Environmental Health Project. “In Washington County, over 28,000 people live less than one mile from an unconventional gas well, the highest number for any county in Pennsylvania.”

“Studying homes distant from and closer to fracking, scientists see steady increases in air pollutants, those that harm lungs and also chemicals that cause cancer,” said Dr. Cynthia Walter, Professor of Biology at St. Vincent College. “In addition, scientists see significantly increased birth defects in babies born closer to fracking. In Pa, we are just starting to study babies near fracking.”

Pennsylvanians Against Fracking contends that a statewide moratorium is long overdue. Coalition leaders point to a series of revelations in past months that call into question the quality of regulatory oversight of the natural gas industry. More important, they point to a mounting body of scientific research that says fracking is a dangerous practice that threatens our environment, health, and safety and contributes substantially to climate change.

“In just the past year we have seen an audit of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection reveal a lack of regulatory oversight, reports that the state Department of Health has ignored fracking-related health complaints, and new studies revealing the true harm caused by fracking,” said Sam Bernhardt, Pennsylvania Organizer for Food & Water Watch. “Now, as we move from one Governor to another, is the perfect time for a statewide moratorium on fracking.”

“We need a statewide moratorium on fracking in Pennsylvania,” said Tracy Carluccio, Deputy Director of Delaware Riverkeeper Network, “And, for the first time, it may be possible to achieve that because we have a new Governor who has pledged to safeguard the environment. “Pennsylvanians Against Fracking is going to Harrisburg to say to Governor-elect Tom Wolf that to truly protect Pennsylvania, we need a halt to drilling.”

The upcoming rally signals the launch of a statewide coordinated effort to pressure the new governor to halt fracking. More than 80 organizations, businesses, and institutions have joined the coalition. Steering Committee organizations include Berks Gas Truth, Delaware Riverkeeper Network, Food & Water Watch, Marcellus Protest, Marcellus Outreach Butler, PennEnvironment, and Pennsylvanians for Clean Water and Air. Learn more about Pennsylvanians Against Fracking at paagainstfracking.org.

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