Guest Editorial: Ohio does not need "fracking"

Posted by Desmond Strooh 

Ohio is bracing itself for a significant increase in drilling operations across the state. Much is yet unknown, because the EPA report on the topic is not due out until 2014.

What we do know right now is that drilling is unnecessary, unwanted and unsafe.

Drilling is unnecessary: If over 99 percent of Ohio is drillable, we do not need to open state lands to drilling.

The state estimates that it owns less than one third of the mineral rights under state parks. The promised revenues are simply not realistic.

Drilling is unwanted: According to the Columbus Dispatch, most Ohioans do not want drilling in their state parks. The drilling legislation actually burdens state agencies and requires them to try to create "drillable parcels" out of land parcels that are currently unqualified for drilling.

Drilling is unsafe: We've heard that this process is completely safe but people all over the continent are taking a step back: New York is trying to stop drilling in the Delaware River basin.

Pennsylvania and Colorado have fined drilling corporations for contamination of water. Texas had to fight a drilling operation fire in a state park. The fire lasted 15 days.

States and provinces are considering moratoriums on drilling.

What are we doing here? If you don't have a lot of resources, you shouldn't gamble away the ones you do have. Opening our state parks to drilling is simply too great a gamble.

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