Matthew Bieniek Cumberland Times-News
2012 — CUMBERLAND — A new poll shows a strong majority of Marylanders favor a cautious approach on the use of fracking to drill for natural gas in the Marcellus shale in the western portion of the state.
The poll contrasts sharply with previous industry-funded polls on natural gas drilling, and there’s a reason for that, said Mike Tidwell, director of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network.
“The message Maryland voters are sending is that second chances are rare and expensive,” Tidwell said. Pennsylvania is now trying to do studies after permitting drilling.
“We want to do the opposite in Maryland,” he said. Citizens want the industry to pay for the studies, Tidwell said.
“I haven’t seen an industry-funded poll that asked Maryland voters about contaminated water … water quality or the concerns people in Pennsylvania have experienced over fracking,” Tidwell said.
In fact, one of the reasons his organization commissioned the poll by OpinionWorks was to combat the impression given by the industry polls. “We felt there was a gap,” he said.
The industry polls avoided questions about fracking or the chemicals used in fracking.
“There are no such things as perfect energy resources,” Tidwell said. “The gas industry only wants to ask you, ‘Do you want jobs, money and royalties?’”
Fundamentally, the results show Marylanders want to have studies done before any drilling in Marcellus shale begins.
In Western Maryland, 65 percent of voters also answered yes to the question on studies.
The poll only asked two questions, the first was: “Do you think the state of Maryland should or should not conduct studies to develop what are known as ‘best practices’ guidelines — including environmental protection guidelines — for energy companies to follow before permitting hydraulic fracturing when drilling for natural gas in Maryland?”
This question brought a 71 percent “yes” response, according to the poll results.
The second poll question was: “If such studies were required, should the energy companies or the taxpayers pay for them?” That question brought an 81 percent “yes” response, according to the poll results.
“Any numbers this high are rare,” Tidwell said. “Policymakers and reform advocates say the polling numbers show that the Maryland state Senate should follow the House of Delegates lead and immediately pass HB 1204 to fund safety studies related to fracking for gas,” a press release from the network said.
“This poll confirms what I’ve heard in every corner of the state — that from Baltimore City to Deep Creek Lake — Marylanders overwhelmingly support our go-slow approach to fracking,” said Delegate Heather Mizeur, sponsor of House Bill 1204.
The legislation to fund fracking studies passed by a wide majority in the House last week. “Taxpayers deserve the peace of mind that comes from scientific review of this controversial drilling practice and they shouldn’t be stuck footing the bill to pay for it,” said Mizeur.
“The results of the oll showed significant support for studies to develop fracking guidelines among every voter subgroup — including Republicans. Sixty-seven percent of Republicans and 74 percent of Democrats supported conducting studies,” the press release stated.
The poll had a 4 percent margin of error.
º“Education regarding shale development is a slow process due to the diverse range of issues involved,” said CitizenShale.org President Eric Robison. “Nationally and statewide, the awareness has grown mainly due to concerns about drinking water. Why should Eastern Marylanders be concerned? The answer is that some of their drinking water originates in headwaters in Pennsylvania, where regulations have been lacking. Maryland needs to address not just water quality, but air quality and environmental concerns — to name but a few of the issues voiced nationally.”
The total value of the natural gas in Allegany County’s Marcellus shale could be close to $15.72 billion, with the average well earning $65,000 to $524,000 yearly, University of Maryland Extension staff has said.
Contact Matthew Bieniek at mbieniek@times-news.com.
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