The Manlius Greenspace Coalition is a community group
actively pursuing the protection and preservation of green space
in Manlius, NY and surrounding areas as a legacy for future generations.
Currently...
November 25, 2011
Negotiations are on going in settling on a fair price for the land. Once we come to an agreement with the land owner MGC will go into full gear on raising the funding to purchase Three Falls Woods.
Negotiations are on going in settling on a fair price for the land. Once we come to an agreement with the land owner MGC will go into full gear on raising the funding to purchase Three Falls Woods.
Marcellus Shale 101 - 12/12/2010
The Marcellus Shale is a black shale formation
extending deep underground from Ohio and West Virginia
northeast into Pennsylvania and southern New York. It has long been known that the Marcellus Shale holds natural gas deposits; however recent technological advances and commodity price increases have made recovering these deposits very attractive to natural gas companies. [The Paleontological Research Institution]
Check out the Paleontological Research Institution's website for more information:
http://www.museumoftheearth.org/outreach.php?page=92387/352042
Very interesting video on the drilling process:
http://www.api.org/policy/exploration/hydraulicfracturing/hydraulicfracturing.cfm
if the link does not work you can access the video through PRI's website.
extending deep underground from Ohio and West Virginia
northeast into Pennsylvania and southern New York. It has long been known that the Marcellus Shale holds natural gas deposits; however recent technological advances and commodity price increases have made recovering these deposits very attractive to natural gas companies. [The Paleontological Research Institution]
Check out the Paleontological Research Institution's website for more information:
http://www.museumoftheearth.org/outreach.php?page=92387/352042
Very interesting video on the drilling process:
http://www.api.org/policy/exploration/hydraulicfracturing/hydraulicfracturing.cfm
if the link does not work you can access the video through PRI's website.
Latest Happenings with Three Falls Woods
November 22, 2010 -
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
Appellate Division, Fourth Judicial Department
Appeal from a judgment (denominated order) of the Supreme Court,Onondaga County (Deborah H. Karalunas, J.), entered March 5, 2009.The judgment, among other things, granted the cross motions of defendants Town of Manlius Municipal Corporation and Village of Manlius for partial summary judgment. It is hereby ORDERED that the judgment so appealed from is unanimously affirmed without costs.
What it means is – WE WON!
Excerpt from decision:
We reject plaintiff’s further contention that the court erred in granting the cross motions of the Town and defendant Village of Manlius (Village) seeking partial summary judgment declaring that all of plaintiff’s property in Lot 96 is subject to the restrictive covenants.
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
Appellate Division, Fourth Judicial Department
Appeal from a judgment (denominated order) of the Supreme Court,Onondaga County (Deborah H. Karalunas, J.), entered March 5, 2009.The judgment, among other things, granted the cross motions of defendants Town of Manlius Municipal Corporation and Village of Manlius for partial summary judgment. It is hereby ORDERED that the judgment so appealed from is unanimously affirmed without costs.
What it means is – WE WON!
Excerpt from decision:
We reject plaintiff’s further contention that the court erred in granting the cross motions of the Town and defendant Village of Manlius (Village) seeking partial summary judgment declaring that all of plaintiff’s property in Lot 96 is subject to the restrictive covenants.
Latest News on Hydrofracking:
(12/11/2010)- Governor Paterson has issued an Executive Order directing the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to conduct further comprehensive review and analysis of high-volume hydraulic fracturing in the Marcellus Shale. The Executive Order requires that, if approved, high-volume, horizontal hydraulic fracturing would not be permitted until July 1, 2011, at the earliest.
"We in government must always focus on protecting the well-being of those whom we represent and serve, but we also have an obligation to look to the future and protect the long-term interests for our State and its residents," Governor Paterson said. "Therefore, I am proud to issue this Executive Order, which will guarantee that before any high-volume, horizontal hydraulic fracturing is permitted, the Department of Environmental Conversation will complete its studies and certify that such operations are safe."
"We in government must always focus on protecting the well-being of those whom we represent and serve, but we also have an obligation to look to the future and protect the long-term interests for our State and its residents," Governor Paterson said. "Therefore, I am proud to issue this Executive Order, which will guarantee that before any high-volume, horizontal hydraulic fracturing is permitted, the Department of Environmental Conversation will complete its studies and certify that such operations are safe."
HYDROFRACKING the Marcellus shale's
A new drilling process, called “high-volume hydraulic fracturing,” has made the huge natural gas reserves in the Marcellus Shale profitable.
Unlike other gas formations, the Marcellus shale layer is vast and continuous. Although it varies in depth and thickness, the Marcellus underlies the entire southern half of NY state (and extends under PA, WV, and eastern OH). Drilling in NY is expected to begin in the Southern Tier, along the Millennium Pipeline (which runs from Corning to Rockland County), and to radiate North from there.
Hydraulic Fracturing
Unlike in conventional gas reserves, the gas in the Marcellus is trapped and dispersed throughout the shale in tiny pores, and must be released in a process called hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. In each fracking, 2-9 million gallons of water mixed with sand and chemicals are forced through the well into the formation at high pressure. This will fracture, or crack, the shale. Roughly 80% or more of the fracking fluid remains in the ground. The rest of it (1,000,000 to 4,000,000 gallons) comes up out of the well and is considered industrial waste and must be disposed of. Each well may be fracked up to ten times during its productive life.
Water Usage
Fracking requires large quantities of fresh water. Fracking the Marcellus will require many billions of gallons of water over the next 15 years. This water can be withdrawn from lakes, rivers, streams, wetlands, ponds, and wells. Because the water becomes contaminated, it may never be returned to the watershed. Most of the leased land is located around the southern end of Skaneateles and Otisco lakes. Both lakes supply drinking water to the city of Syracuse and local communities.
Fracking Fluids
Most of the recent advances in fluid technology for shale gas recovery are owned by Halliburton. The gas industry describes fracking fluids as being “like soap and oil.” However, because Halliburton classifies the fracking fluids as proprietary, nobody knows for sure what is in them. Samples from well blowouts and fluids pits in Colorado, Wyoming and New Mexico found fluids to contain diesel fuel and more than 200 different kinds of chemicals - over 95% of which, have adverse side effects - including brain damage, birth defects and cancer.
The production water from the Marcellus Shale = toxic waste.
In addition to the added chemicals, the water picks up hydrocarbons, heavy metals like arsenic, and radioactivity from the shale. Billions of gallons of waste water will be produced in our area alone and will need to be trucked to a final disposal site or stored at or near the drilling site in open-air, lined dugout pits. The most common method of disposal will be by "deep well injection disposal", where the liquid waste is forced back underground at high pressure into the dry gas wells. This toxic liquid tends to migrate underground for miles, dispersing through existing subsurface cracks and channels, and can contaminate watersheds, aquifers and wells in far-reaching areas. Thus, there is nothing natural about this hazardous method of accessing "America's new natural gas"!
To find out more about hydrofracking and to see a schedule of meetings visit: http://www.shaleshock.org/
What's Happening
- Wednesday, August 12: CEA Hearing and Vote, WE GOT IT!!
- Read MGC's latest Newsletter
- We are helping fund the defense of the Covenant that protects Three Falls Woods in court.
On August 12, 2009, a huge turnout of concerned citizens watched several presentations and a fascinating Q & A session, after which the Manlius Town Board voted (4 - 2) to designate the Town portion (upper lands) of Three Falls Woods and the adjoining Cavalry Club natural lands as a N. Y. State Critical Environmental Area.
These lands adjoin the Village portion (lower lands) of three Falls Woods, which was designated a Critical Environmental Area in 2007.
Altogether, that makes 275 contiguous acres under this important SEQR CEA protection.
These lands adjoin the Village portion (lower lands) of three Falls Woods, which was designated a Critical Environmental Area in 2007.
Altogether, that makes 275 contiguous acres under this important SEQR CEA protection.
Our Projects
Three Falls Woods
Three Falls Woods is the best example of karst topography and the Onondaga Escarpment in the Town of Manlius. It is an unprotected 175 acre woodland with three waterfalls, old growth trees, unique geology and ecology, much-loved trails, and historic lime kilns. The land is currently privately owned, threatened by development, but accessible to the public. The portion in the Village of Manlius is considered a Critical Environmental Area and the portion in the Town is protected by a covenant, although that is being disputed by the developer. A long-term goal of MGC is to facilitate the purchase and preservation of this land for its continued ecological and recreational value.
