NY Communities Triumph Over Fracking Industry In Precedent-Setting Case

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NY Communities Triumph Over Fracking Industry In Precedent-Setting Case
Victory: As NY high court rules towns can zone out oil and gas operations, trend spreads to other states


This decision by the Court of Appeals has settled the matter once and for all across New York State and has sent a firm message to the oil and gas industry.
Deborah Goldberg
Managing Attorney, Earthjustice
June 30, 2014


Albany, NY —Local communities have triumphed over the fracking industry in precedent-setting case decided today by the New York Court of Appeals, the state’s highest court.

In a test case pitting community rights against the oil and gas industry, the Court ruled that the towns of Dryden and Middlefield can use local zoning laws to ban heavy industry, including oil and gas operations, within municipal borders.

"Today the Court stood with the people of Dryden and the people of New York to protect their right to self determination. It is clear that people, not corporations, have the right to decide how their community develops," said Dryden Deputy Supervisor Jason Leifer. "This would not have been possible without the hard work of many of my friends and neighbors and our lawyers Deborah Goldberg of Earthjustice and Mahlon Perkins. Today's ruling shows all of America that a committed group of citizens and public officials can stand together against fearful odds and successfully defend their homes, their way of life, and the environment against those who would harm them all in the name of profit."

“Heavy industry has never been allowed in our small farming town and three years ago, we decided that fracking was no exception. The oil and gas industry tried to bully us into backing down, but we took our fight all the way to New York’s highest court. And today we won,” said Dryden Town Supervisor Mary Ann Sumner. “I hope our victory serves as an inspiration to people in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Texas, Colorado, New Mexico, Florida, North Carolina, California and elsewhere who are also trying to do what’s right for their own communities.”

Deborah Goldberg, an attorney with the public interest law organization, Earthjustice, represented the Town of Dryden in the case.

“This decision by the Court of Appeals has settled the matter once and for all across New York State and has sent a firm message to the oil and gas industry,” said Earthjustice Managing Attorney Deborah Goldberg. “For too long the oil and gas industry has intimidated and abused people, expecting to get away with it. That behavior is finally coming back to haunt them, as communities across the country stand up and say ‘no more.’ Earthjustice is proud to have stood with, and fought on behalf of, one such community.”

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http://earthjustice.org/news/press/2014/ny-communities-triumph-over-fracking-industry-in-precedent-setting-case