Meeting with Concerned Citizens of Medina

Sandra from Concerned Citizens of Medina County picked me up from Dorothy house, and we went to meet with Kathie Jones, Judith Cross  and a newpaper reporter Loren Genson .

Concerned Citizens of Medina Country, is a group of people (around 40) that was organized to educate the public about the dangers of Slick Water High Volume Industrialized Hydraulic Fracturing and the threats to health, safety and property rights. They work under the umbrella of NEOGAP organization (Neogap.com). What else they do is to educate elected officials about fracking.

So each time they have the opportunity they are going to the townhall meetings, and have 5 to 10 minutes to talk about their concerns regarding shale gas(2 times per month as I remember).
Michael E. Kovack, County Auditor, has been responsive by having leased maps put together for the County, City and Townships.   I got to see him today. (picture cu Michael).  Some of the Township Trustees and City officials have also been attentive to the literature that has been presented, and many Trustees have passed Resolutions to ban fracking on township owned property.

These maps shows you the County Parcels, the lakes, the streams, and the status of leased proprierties: the ones that  were leased prior to Mid. Dec. 2011 and those leased mid Dec. 2011- and July 2012. Kathie told me that these maps are very usefull and educative, as they help people to know which of their neighborhoods  has leased their properties. In this way they know if or not they will be exposed to the dangers of fracking.

Concerned Citizens of Medina County tried  to collaborate with teachers and school institution in order to raise awarness on the issue, but they refused saying it’s to much politics around this subject. They also organized different meetings, inviting President of Greene County Medical Society, Deborah Cowden to have a presentation about the Effects of Fracking Toxins on the Body.

Judith Cross is a retired judge who is running for Ohio State Representative in Medina County. She is for renewable energy and saving the environment. She is running againt a candidate that wants to Frack the entire country and the State of Ohio. So, we stayed and talked around the issue.
Loren Genson is a reporter from The Medina Gazette, and she was their to listen about my story and what is happening in ROmania with regard to fracking. Hopefully tommorow I’ll get a copy of the article she is writing about my story.

“Then we went to the Eastern Medina County, to see 2 houses, where, as the health agency says, there are explosive levels of natural gas.  This problem is potentially related with the nearby drilling of natural gas wells in 2008 (about half mile away) at Allardale Park.

First we got to see the water well in the backyard of Mark Mangan family and then we went to the natural gas well, that was build in the natural park on the State. You can find more about the story here.
After this we went to the township of Harrisville, where the Devon Energy Production Company has constructed a unconvenation natural gas well, but after a while they took their equipment away, due the fact that the well wasn’t profitable enough. (picture). Kathie from Concerned Citizens of Medina County thinks that they are just waiting for the proper moment to extract the natural gas.

Sandra got me back home and had some interesting conversation about how humanity is not taking care of this planet.

Day one. „We don’t want to wear you out”

Diary

Day one. „We don’t want to wear you out !”

Few days before going to USA, at the Professional Fellows programe  of the US State Department,through the Great Lakes Consortium for International Training and Development.

As it is an informal storytelling process, patterns of describing my experience encountering American culture willbe slightly different. and very complex patterns, as I’ll have the opportunity to find some quite interesting American people. And quite a lot. 🙂 And NEOGAP is responsible for this. 🙂 Thank you !

In a more concrete way part of the experience in Cleveland area will include :

-Short speaking engagement at the West Shore Unitarian Universalist Church in Rocky River, Ohio.
at the „Morning Forum” – informal remarks about the Romanian context in regard to fracking.This will include : parts of legislation (law 544/2001, HG 2004 – governamental deciision that give licence to Private Companies to start processes of exploration and exploatation of shale gas, about local authorities and the encountered problems.The informing campaign that Vira Ngo started was with lot of learnings) – October 14.

My disertation paper coordinator would laugh reading this. in his belief fracking is a very complex process, thus the process of getting the information and digesting it should be carefully managed. and his question, how can you translate this complex process to ordinary people that never heard of fracking? and now I’m asking myself a similar question : how can I address the encountered process of learning in frackingto people living in the rural area of Vaslui county? community organizing might be an answer. but how does it work community orgazing in a village, with mostly old population living in poverty? Based on national data, Vaslui county is the poorest in the country(population density 86/km2).most of the people in the rural area work agriculture (subsistance). Almost 400 villages take their water supplies from  ground water supplies through  their 21000 wells, through traditional wells. must I mention that this year was a drought season?

– Gwen, is planning something in Portage County – on 18th of October, mentioning that „this is a time when Ohiois in the midst of the shale gas boom”. I am wondering how it is to be in the Ravenna City Park of Dreams.

– On the schedule there will be some spending time with Broadview Heights group, Madison, who have  started a ban on fracking. Don’t ask for more details. More surprises and knowledge to come soon.:)

– Door to door informing campaign.Talking with people about fracking.

-Township Trustee meeting- Monday October 15 at 7:00. soon i’ll have some minutes from a prior meeting.I remember of Bucharest township meetings, with Oprescu mayor, an independent candidate, that keeps citizens in a separate room, connected with plasma and cameras at what is happening at the meeting. Call this democracy and participation? And this is happening in Bucharest, european capital.

– Saturday , October 13, might go see „Koch Brothers Exposed ” film.

But first I have to experience all this and tell you more. Keep you updated!

Gaze ieftine in SUA

Imi revine succesiv in minte declaratia domnului ambasador Mark Gitenstein cu privire la explorarea si exploatarea gazelor de sist :

„In prezent, strategia privind explorarile de gaze de sist este sa se afle daca exista gaze de sist in Romania. Nici macar nu cunoastem raspunsul la aceasta intrebare. Planurile actuale presupun nu exploatarea de gaze de sist, ci forarea pentru a descoperi daca resursele exista, ceea ce nu presupune riscuri pentru mediu. Daca as fi un roman obisnuit, as vrea sa aflu raspunsul la aceasta intrebare, pentru ca in SUA platim o cincime din cat platesc romanii pentru gaze naturale.”(17 mai, 2012).

Eu sunt un roman obisnuit si imi pun alte intrebari. De ce porneste domnul ambasador de la premiza ca romanul obisnuit e mai interesat de pretul  gazelor decat de starea mediul natural in care traieste ? De ce si-ar asuma romanii riscuri ecologice care sa le afecteze calitatea vietii?

Si nici macar nu vorbim de riscuri, vorbim de fapte. In SUA, tara cu traditie in explorarea si exploatarea gazelor de sist, s-au inregistrat  nenumarate accidente cauzate de metoda fracturarii hidraulice : afectarea panzei freatice de apa, degradarea solului, poluarea aerului.

Nu intamplator, o buna parte din organizatiile de mediu  si grupurile comunitare din SUA (Stop Fracking on the Great Lakes, Farmers Against Fracking, Forced the Frack, STOP  Arkansas Fracking, Frack Rat, Catskill Citizens for Safe Energy, Neogap, Capital district Against Fracking, Clean Water New York, Citizen Power  Alliance, Chenango Greens, etc.) au inceput o  adevarata campanie impotriva acestei tehnologii. De fapt impotriva acestei industrializari masive  care duce succesiv la divizarea comunitatilor.

Iar in unele cazuri au reusit sa interzica FRACKINGUL.  Cu ajutorul puterii organizarii comunitare, pe 16 noiembrie 2010, consiliul local al orasului Pittsburgh a votat o rezolutie prin care au interzis extragerea gazelor de sist in zona. Rezolutia a fost redactata de catre Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (http://celdf.org/press-release–pittsburgh-bans-natural-gas-drilling).

De ce mai crede domnul ambasador in teoria modernizarii? Pe scurt, teoria modernizarii reclama faptul ca orice societate care nu se gaseste in sfera dezvoltarii  poate dobandi un grad mare de prosperitate daca urmeaza experienta Statelor Unite. Oare simpla raspandire a tehnologiei garanteaza in mod automat progresul , fara schimbarile sociale si culturale care deseori insotesc aceste preluari?

Imi e greu sa cred ca statul se gandeste la pretul pe care il platesc eu la gaz. Poate doar inainte de alegeri, cand prin masuri populiste mai taie din facturile la gaze. De ce m-as increde intr-un stat iresponsabil, avid dupa putere si gainarii?  Pai daca Statul semneaza pe sest  hotarari guvernamentale prin care concesioneaza terenuri spre explorare si exploatare, in lipsa unei legislatii in vigoare (s-a semnat in baza legii petrolului 238/2004), apoi sa ma astept eu sa platesc de 5 ori mai ieftin? Sau stiind ca  perimetrele de explorare si exploatare au fost concesionate de catre guvernul Romaniei : fara ca societatea civila, ong-urile, mediul academic, asociatii profesionale cu expertiza in domeniu sa fie consultate, fara informarea si consultarea autoritatilor locale din ariile concesionate, fara o evaluare a impactului asupra mediului).

Si imi e greu sa cred in progresul realizat excesiv pe spinarea mediului inconjurator. Imi e greu sa cred in tehnologia utilizata de catre Chevron.  Chevron este a treia cea mai mare corporatie din lume care este responsabila pentru cel mai mare dezastru ecologic din Ecuador (au deversat milioane de reziduri toxice in ape, au imprastiat milioane de litri de titel brut in paduri. Efectele acestora au dus la distrugerea ecosistemului din padurea tropicala si a comunitatilor locale).

Imi e greu sa cred in progres  cand avem de a face cu  un primar (Pungesti) care doreste sa consulte populatia locala printr-un referendum platit de Chevron, „pentru ca noi nu avem bani pentru asa ceva”.

Pungasul din Pungesti ?

e inceput/fragment/parte..lucrez la asta!