Five reasons to NOT support Mark Obenshain

Mark Obenshain has not been a very good senator and he would be an even worse attorney general. Here are the top 5 reasons you should NOT vote for Mark Obenshain on November 5:

1. Mark Obenshain supported legislation that would force a woman who had suffered an emotionally devastating miscarriage to report it to police. He eventually withdrew the bill citing "flaws" but that doesn't excuse his basic premise that government should actively intrude in women's personal lives.
2. Mark Obenshain has pushed for voter ID laws that obviously target minorities and poor and would make voting more difficult for thousands of Virginians.
3. Mark Obenshain supported a personhood bill that, if enacted, potentially would ban some forms of birth control.
4. Mark Obenshain did not support the transportation bill that eventually passed with bipartisan support and the signature of a Republican governor. In short, Mr. Obenshain voted against jobs and improving the Commonwealth's economic climate.
5. Mark Obenshain has received big bucks from oil, coal, and natural gas companies. If you care about issues like clean water and clean air then Obenshain's friends who favor mountain top removal coal mining, fracking, and uranium mining in Virginia should scare the bejesus out of you.

Ken Cuccinelli and Mark Obenshain - twin sons of different mothers. The former is a far right extremist with a mean-spirit scowl. The latter is a far right extremist with a fake smile. Don't be fooled. If Obenshain is elected the Office of the Attorney General will become ground zero for rolling back women's rights, for diminishing our democracy, and for degrading our environment.

Frack U III

I have previously posted about fracking in the Shenandoah Valley and about the George Washington National Forest Management Plan. Like some of you, I've attended meetings and contacted decision-makers to urge fracking caution on both public and private lands. In recent months the issue seems to have fallen off the media radar, but that doesn't mean it has gone away.

Fortunately, the Rockingham County Board of Supervisors (most of the proposed wells are in the Bergton area, but other locations could eventually be impacted) is being just that - cautious - and insisting on local self-determination for setting regulations that will protect the local quality of life. They have set a good example for other jurisdictions.

The George Washington National Forest Management Plan, which will guide activities on nearly 1.1 million acres for the next 15 years, is nearing completion. Although public comments (53,000) on the plan were overwhelmingly (95%) in support of a ban on natural gas fracking and horizontal drilling in the Forest, and 10 local governments in the region support it, it seems the final version of the plan may yet weaken or eliminate the proposed ban - as Ken Landgraf a National Forest planning officer said, "we're evaluating that very carefully to see if we can put together a package of mitigation factors that would allow us to make portions of the forest available." Might be a fox in the henhouse - could oil and gas campaign contributions to key congressmen and high powered D.C. lobbyists be hijacking the process from citizens and local governments?

We could talk about the million plus visitors to the GWNF each year, or the impact to wildlife, or the heavy truck and equipment traffic that would shatter the tranquility of not only the forest but also of the communities along roads accessing this treasure. However the most compelling reason to keep the ban on hydraulic fracking and horizontal drilling is the protection of a huge watershed (headwaters of both James and Potomac rivers) that provides drinking water for local residents of the Shenandoah Valley, and also for millions in NOVA, Washington, D.C., and Richmond.

Below is a proposed letter drafted by the Shenandoah Valley Network for you to copy/paste/edit and email directly to Secretary of Agriculture (the Forest Service is part of that Department) Tom Vilsack at agsec@usda.gov. Time is of the essence as the Management Plan is expected to be finalized in the next few months.

Dear Secretary Vilsack:

I support the US Forest Service’s sensible proposal to protect forest resources and drinking water on the George Washington National Forest by prohibiting horizontal drilling on any future federal oil and gas leases in the new Forest Plan. 

The Forest Service should stand firm. The well-considered ban, which is intended to limit or prevent high-volume hydraulic fracturing, was supported by the great majority (95 percent) of more than 53,000 public comments, as well as by many local governments adjacent to the Forest. 

The proposed ban on horizontal drilling will protect the direct drinking water source for 260,000 local residents and the headwaters of the James and Potomac Rivers which supply water to millions in cities in Virginia, West Virginia, Washington, DC, and Maryland, safeguard fish and wildlife habitat, and preserve the forest recreation experience for the more than 1 million people who visit the George Washington National Forest each year. 

The draft forest plan also proposed to make nearly the entire GW Forest available for vertical gas drilling. The potential impacts of vertical gas drilling on the GW should be more thoroughly studied, with public input, before a decision is made. At a minimum, local drinking water supply watersheds, priority watersheds, and other sensitive natural, scenic and recreation areas should be made unavailable to drilling. 

Thank you for your support on this critical issue.

More information on Marcellus Shale Gas Drilling, the George Washington National Forest Management Plan, and water quality.

Gasland: The Movie

The largest domestic natural gas drilling boom in history has swept across the United States. The Halliburton-developed drilling technology of "fracking" or hydraulic fracturing has unlocked a "Saudia Arabia of natural gas" just beneath us. But is fracking safe? When filmmaker Josh Fox is asked to lease his land for drilling, he embarks on a cross-country odyssey uncovering a trail of secrets, lies and contamination. (From the producers of Gasland)

The Shenandoah Group of the Sierra Club, in cooperation with the JMU Earth Club, will present the film Gasland: The Movie in the auditorium in JMU's Memorial Hall at 7:00 PM on January 18, 2011. Following the movie a panel of local experts will discuss hydrofracking and answer questions about its implications for our area.

Memorial Hall is the former Harrisonburg High School located at 395 S. High Street, Harrisonburg. Directions. The event is free and open to the public. More info.

Frack U II

A few weeks ago the Daily News Record reported that Carrizo (Marcellus Shale) Oil and Gas company had stopped pursuing a permit to mine natural gas in the Bergton area of Rockingham County. But, Carrizo made it clear it will reapply: "[we]...will take that permitting process up at a later date," stated Brad Fisher, vice president and chief executive officer.

If you live in Rockingham County or in much of the Shenandoah Valley (as well as West Virginia and Pennsylvania among other states), drilling for natural gas and the use of controversial hydraulic fracking is still a very real possibility. Want to learn more? If so, plan to attend an informational forum where people from all walks of life and with diverse views will gather to discuss the future of our economy, environment and way of life.

Saturday October 2, 2010 starting at 9:30 am

(come when you can - morning or afternoon - flexible "conversations design")

Broadway High School Broadway, Virginia

All issues of your concern are welcomed to the dialogue. Some topics for discussion are: property rights; state regulations; the effect on ground water, residents' wells, and rivers; mineral royalties; energy independence; roads; and the bond requirements for a permit to drill.

RSVP: Bruce Lundeen at blundeen9@comcast.net (cell 540-383-4718)

Frack U

Gasland, a film by Josh Fox, is must-see-TV for folks in Rockingham County, Virginia. A drilling company is pushing to drill for natural gas in the Bergton area using a controversial technique that could adversely impact ground water resources. Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, involves the high pressure injection of millions of gallons of water along with sand and chemicals into a deep well to fracture the shale and to allow the gas to flow more freely.

Fracking is permitted because the Bush Administration successfully got natural gas drilling exempted from the Safe Drinking Water Act. Drilling companies are not required to disclose the proprietary chemicals that are injected into the gas wells, many of which are over 8,000 feet deep. This so-called "Haliburton Loophole" essentially means the EPA cannot regulate these wells. Fracking in an area of karst limestone and aquifers, such as found in much of the Shenandoah Valley, is especially risky since since a poorly cased gas well could contaminate many wells, even those located miles from the drilling site.

Gasland has won numerous awards and will be airing on HBO through 2012. Let's hope members of the Rockingham County Board of Supervisors and especially their chairman, Pablo Cuevas, who represents the Bergton area, take time to watch Gasland and thoroughly investigate fracking before making a decision. Recent events scream for caution - if drilling/fracking is permitted in the Bergton area, the company should proffer a emergency fund to be held in escrow to compensate anyone adversely impacted.