By Bert Gambini and Joyce Kryszak
Albany, NY – State environmental officials have proposed a ban on drilling for natural gas with hydraulic fracturing in the New York City and Syracuse and on all state-owned lands.
The DEC however would permit fracking on private land only under what they say would be "rigorous and effective controls."
That new proposal would provide access to 85-percent of the Marcellus Shale, including a large part of the Southern Tier.
Environmentalists argue that fracking, which relies on chemically treated water, contaminates water tables and poses a public health threat.