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IT'S BEEN A WHILE SINCE YOU'VE HEARD FROM US. It's about a month since we published our last newsletter and we've missed you! Hope you had a great sum
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IT'S BEEN A WHILE SINCE YOU'VE HEARD FROM US. It's about a month since we published our last newsletter and we've missed you! Hope you had a great summer and, like all good holidays, hope you went somewhere exotic. We sure did, and we can't wait to tell you about it! Here's what we've been up to lately: |
Sure, maybe you went to Venice, or Paris, or China. Fine.
But for OUR summer vacation, we went all over New York State, in a big virtual station wagon of friends, to such hard-to-top places like:
The Chemung County Landfill!
The Constitution Pipeline Right-of-Way!
The MInard Injection Well!
We know, you're so jealous. But don't be. Like any good pal, we're happy to share our vacation photos. In fact, we want to invite you to come see ALL of them, in a couple of weeks. That's when we'll be unveiling an amazing online map we've been developing with our upstate friends.
It's called "You Are Here," and it's going to blow your mind. |
 Things are glowing in Elmira! That's because the wastewater plants are accepting leachate from landfills where radioactive frack waste is being dumped. And this "treated" water is flowing right into the river--a drinking water source for thousands downstream! |
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YOU ARE HERE – and you should be there, for the release of our groundbreaking interactive shale gas mapping tool, as part of the Climate Convergence:
WHERE: The Graffiti Church, 205 E. 7th St., between Avenues B & C, Manhattan
WHEN: Saturday, September 20, 12:30–2pm
Cost: Free! (And lots of other great panels over the course of this 2-day forum!) |
Many New Yorkers know that fracking has serious consequences for our health and our environment. But few New Yorkers realize that, although horizontal drilling is not happening in New York, we are already being fracked—by pipelines, compressor stations, storage caverns and waste dumping. How widespread is the problem? No one has really had a handle on that question––until now. |
This mapping project has taken nearly two years to put together. We started out with a list of 16 threatening infrastructure projects. Then it was 24. Then 30. Then 42. Now, at the point we are ready to launch, we are still hearing about new threats every week, and at last count, the number of shale gas infrastructure projects touching communities all over the state was 124. That's pipelines, compressor stations, injection wells, storage caverns, silica depots, support services, and the latest: CNG filling stations. We can't even get it all in for this launch, we'll add rail lines and other points later on. But that's the beauty of this being a collaborative work: the map will continue to evolve as we learn about more and connect with more affected communities. The idea is not for US to know where all this stuff is, it's for YOU to know, and to fill in the gaps for all of us when you hear about something. This map is for ALL OF US. |
Speaking of all of us, we didn't do this alone. We have been working in coalition with upstate grassroots activists to catalog fracking infrastructure all over the state, and this collaborative effort has resulted in a map that not only presents the big picture of shale gas development, but also connects users to local opposition groups. When you use the online map, if you click on any particular pipeline or compressor station, a pop-up box will tell you not just what's there–– whether it is proposed or existing, how many horsepower or what diameter it is––it will tell you who's already working to stop it. Now activists will have a tool to help their local community fully understand how they fit into the gas industry's plans, by seeing all existing and proposed projects in their area, and how that fits into the statewide network. And startled newcomers will have a group to connect with when they find out a gas project has just come to their town. |
 Allies from Albany, fighting the Bomb Trains. | |  Behind this rural barn is the Minard injection well. |
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 Can you believe this beautiful field is the site of the future CPV Valley power plant? |
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On September 20th, we can ALL be connected to other New Yorkers who are building a future without fracking. Please join us for a demonstration of the map’s ins and outs, hear firsthand accounts from affected frontline communities, and meet many of the contributors to this project. We'll have a long Q&A session, and iPads will be available for you to try out the map yourself! AND WE'LL HAVE A VERY SPECIAL GUEST! (details soon!) Please spread the word to your friends and colleagues to attend this unprecedented event. |
 Where we first heard about shale gas infrastructure: The site of the Spectra Pipeline. |
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WHAT: You Are Here: The Mapping Project, at the Climate Convergence
WHERE: The Graffiti Church, 205 E. 7th St., between Avenues B & C, Manhattan
WHEN: Saturday, September 20, 12:30–2pm
Cost: Free! |
Thanks to all the volunteer photographers who are taking part in You Are Here. These photos will appear on the map and on facebook, and many of the people in them will be at the launch on Sept. 20th. Check them out, spread them around, show your neighbors where things are happening! Want to send us a photo of a project near you? Email us at: contact@saneenergyproject.org/ and we'll get you a red map pin! |
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