What's New
Recently, powerful members of the state House and Senate have introduced legislation that will make it virtually impossible for state environmental regulators to stop oil and gas companies from being able to drill on every last acre in our state forests.
Sadly, this comes after Pennsylvanians have barraged state environmental officials with e-mails, letters and faxes opposing their proposal to lift a ban on oil and gas drilling in state forests. We need to show our state senators and representatives that we want to protect our state forests and parks—for now and for future generations. To see PennEnvironment in the news on this issue, click here.
How You Can Help
Take a minute to send an e-mail to your state senator and representative and ask them to oppose legislation that will leave our state forests and parks vulnerable to oil and gas drilling.
Brief Summary
Pennsylvania’s state parks and forests serve as critical habitat for endangered species, protect clean drinking water supplies for communities downstream, and afford recreational opportunities to millions of the state’s—and the nation’s—residents.
Unfortunately, more and more of our public-owned forests and parks are coming under the attack of oil and gas companies who want to use these public lands for private gains.
Consider:
- Oil and gas companies have asked to drill on more than two million acres of state forestland;
- Members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly are introducing legislation that would make it nearly impossible for state environmental regulators to protect our state parks and forestlands from proposals to drill for oil and gas.
- Concerned citizens in Allegheny and Bucks County are fighting against drilling that is literally being proposed in their neighbors’ backyards. Under the Pennsylvania Oil and Gas Act, local townships can’t pre-empt oil and gas drilling in residential communities;
Now, after Pennsylvanians have vocally shown their opposition to such proposals on state forestlands—sending thousands of comments to state environmental officials—politicians in both the Pennsylvania House and Senate have introduced legislation that would make it almost impossible for the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) to protect state forestlands from oil and gas drilling. To make matters worse, these same proposals also threaten state parklands as well.
