EcoWatch
New York Supreme Court Justice Phillip R. Rumsey ruled today in favor of the right of the Town of Dryden to adopt zoning that prohibits natural gas drilling within its borders in Tomkins County.
In the case of Anschutz Exploration Corporation v. the Town of Dryden and the Town of Dryden Town Board, the judge concluded that the town zoning ordinances is not preempted by the state Oil, Gas and Solution Mining Law.
“This is an important vindication of local democracy—with national ramifications—at a time when it is being trampled in our country by powerful interests like the gas and oil industry,” said Adrian Kuzminski a moderator for Sustainable Otsego.
This is the first ruling in New York on the issue as to whether towns can outlaw gas drilling, including hydraulic fracturing. There are more than a dozen communities that have adopted similar drilling bans throughout the state.
“New York State Supreme Court Judge Phillip R. Rumsey affirms via granting Summary Judgement, right power and authority by the Town of Dryden, New York to pass a zoning amendment to protect the health and welfare of its citizens from the deleterious FRACers. Hopefully Judge Rumsey will be affirmed on the probable Appeal,” stated Denise Katzman, a media industry business manager at EcoEdifier.
“This decision is vitally important because it ruled against the Denver-based company Anschutz, a conglomerate focused on natural gas exploration or production projects in New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, North Dakota, Montana and Wyoming,” said Katzman.
“This is huge victory for the Town of Dryden. In an impressive and well reasoned opinion, Judge Rumsey resolved all claims in favor of the Town of Dryden except one. The provision in the Dryden law that invalidated any permit issued in violation of the Town law was stricken and severed. Significantly, the Court found that even a ‘total ban’ on extraction is permissible, because there is no express legislative intent to preempt local laws or ordinances in the Oil and Gas Law. This will go a long way to reassure towns and local governments that properly enacted land use and zoning laws remain enforceable against industry claims that they were immune from their application,” said Nicole Dillingham from Otsego 2000.
To read a copy of the decision, click here.
This proves that we are right to “be realistic, demand the impossible”
-Dr. MLK
Amazing.. We can win back what is rightly ours.. Keep up the good fight! We are all struggling to grasp onto whats left of what IS our children and Grand Childrens birthrights. Water, air and Land. We have to recognize that these are basic needs of human beings. If we don’t have healthy air, water and land no amount of jobs or money wil help us. This is what supports LIFE! Congratulations to the people of Dryden and thank you! For the industry supporters and the job seekers.. We should insist that the US goes to renewable, clean energy jobs NOW! We don’t have time to waste and we are spending up what rightly belongs to our children. Every generation leave a mark on its point in time. Our generation should open up our eyes and see that the power and jobs we need to run our country comes up with the sun every day and blows in the wind.
Ok let me get this straight-you want to make it impossible for me to lease MY land out to a gas company to extract gas from MY LAND of which I have MINERAL RIGHTS TO, and yet I have to pay taxes on acreage that has NO ROAD FRONTAGE, NO HOME ON SAID PROPERTY, NO CHILDREN ATTENDING SCHOOL, but I HAVE TO PAY TAXES for service I do not even use? I’m sorry, is this AMERICA?
Property rights are tools for wealth accrual and these tools should be monitored for the public good.
Donna, It’s not the drilling that is the objection. It’s the serious water pollution caused by fracking that is the objection. If I were your neighbor I would hope that no fracking would happen. The water under your land will go where it goes. You can’t control where it goes and therefore your rights should be limited for the health of your neighbors, community and you and your family.
Is this America is right. Who has the right to ruin my health, my family’s health, and my neighbors’ health all at once AND get away with it without option of recourse? A person can get burned by COFFEE (of all things) at a McDonald’s, file a lawsuit, AND win… but you are telling me that it should be your right as a landowner who wants a few bucks to build a fence and plant flowers to RUIN my life (as a fellow taxpayer) and have it all be unstoppable and without recourse?? GO crawl in your selfish hole (deep down with the gas if you will) and stay there.