[Note: This information is about a bill concerning the new wave of gas drilling in the Marcellus shale strata in West Virginia. WVSC Chapter leader Beth Little has provided brief explanations of why the proposed bill is a bad idea. You can help, and she shows how.] Contact Del. Carrie Webster, chair of House Judiciary - e-mail cwebste1@mail.wvnet.edu or phone 304-340-3252 and ask her not to report the bill out of committee and give your reasons as to why it's a bad bill. Also contact any members of the Judiciary Committee (listed below) that are in your district. Reasons why SB 753 is a bad bill: It would prevent counties from addressing problems in their local areas.  If WV had adequate regulation of gas drilling at the state level, it would not be necessary for counties to take steps to protect citizens. WV has no limits on water withdrawals (only “advisories”) and no permitting process to alert county authorities or citizens to a potential problem ahead of time. WV allows land application of drilling brine (as in salty wastewater), which can poison agricultural soil (an incident in the Fernow Experimental Forest resulted in a few acres of dead vegetation within days, including trees), WV has no maximum limit on total dissolved solids (TDS) in streams and rivers.  Recently the Mon River violated PA TDS limits and caused problems at industrial facilities on the river, plus resulted in hundreds of thousands of PA residents having to use bottled water. WV has insufficient inspectors to monitor the increased number of drilling sites. WV allows onsite burial of pit liners containing potential toxic material. County planning agencies need the authority to regulate activities that threaten local land and water until the state can pass appropriate legislation, but SB 753 would prevent them from doing this. Judiciary Committee members: Highlight the name below and then press CTRL while clicking, and you will be taken to the delegates site for email, phone number and other information. Delegate Miley - Vice-Chair Delegate Ellem - Minority Chair Delegate Lane - Minority Vice-Chair Delegate Barker Delegate Brown Delegate Caputo Delegate Ferro Delegate Fleischauer Delegate Frazier Delegate Hunt Delegate Hutchins Delegate Longstreth Delegate Michael Delegate Moore Delegate Shook Delegate Susman Delegate Tabb Delegate Wells Delegate Wooton Delegate Hamilton Delegate Overington Delegate Schadler Delegate Schoen Delegate Sobonya Jim Sconyers jim_scon@yahoo.com 304.698.9628 Remember: Mother Nature bats last.