Image above: Effort to extend NY moratorium on fracking failed in June 2011. From (http://inhabitat.com/nyc/ny-aims-to-extend-ban-on-fracking-for-another-year/).
Win some, (partially, maybe) lose some: As New Jersey bans fracking, the political signs are pointing to New York governor Andrew Cuomo lifting the existing de facto state ban on fracking.
According to the New York Times state officials are maintaing the ban on hydraulic fracturing in the watershed of New York City (a large area of upstate New York) and in the watershed for Syracuse, but would allow fracking to take place outside of those areas.
[Editor's note: The affected are mostly the farms and woodlands of the wide Southern Tier of western New York state that includes rural Amish country and small cities such as Jamestown, and Olean. This will transform much of western NY into something like the mountain top removal area of West Virginia.]
When the official notification will take place is at this time unknown, but the state Department of Environmental Protection is planning to release its fracking survey soon.
In fact, the governor's office is keeping mum on the issue, with a spokesman saying that speculation on when or if the ban might be lifted is "baseless" and "premature".
So speculating more, based on this report of what might happen:
The good news is that the watershed of millions of people will be protected. Phew. One major concern dealt with. The bad news is that the local water supply, food supply and safety, and air quality in those areas opened up to fracking would still solidly be at risk. Opposition to fracking is unlikely to be diminished.
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