WICZ

State DEC commissioner Joe Martens' comments that some fracking permits could "conceivably" be issued before the end of 2012 have unleashed a flood of reaction from all sides of the fracking debate.

Pro-frackers say it's further proof New York is ready to drill.

Others don't see how the DEC could get through the 45,000 comments it just received on it's latest environmental impact statement, or SGEIS, by the end of the year.

Anti-fracking advocates were hoping that getting up early would help them catch the attention of two elected officials.

Concerned citizens about hydrofracking gathered Friday morning outside Glenwood BOCES to request that Assembly Woman Donna Lupardo and Senator Tom Libous sign a pledge for the DEC not to lift its current defacto moratorium on hydrofracking until all 17 of their concerns have been met.

"For some of the regulatory programs like if you were dumping gas drilling wastewater into a local municipal treatment plant, EPA is the principal authority," said Walter Hang, President of Toxics Targeting.

And Hang says the EPA has submitted almost twice as many comments as it did for the first SGEIS draft in 2009.

"The main concerns were failure to come up with a way to deal with this incredibly toxic wastewater, failure to protect drinking water, failure to protect radiologic hazards for both the worker and environment."

Wednesday marked the deadline for public comment on the state's environmental impact statement about fracking.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is readying comments for the state.

The EPA expects to release those comments before midnight Wednesday.

The agency delivered comments on a previous draft of the impact statement back in 2009.

Fracking opponents hope the EPA echoes their concerns.

As the DEC gets set to hold public fracking hearings in Binghamton Thursday, it's task is not easy:

"Regulate what is by all accounts an intrusive industry but an industry that could have some real economic benefits," said Coughlin & Gerhart attorney Robert McKertich.

At the center of the hearings will be the DEC's latest Economic Impact Study, or S-GEIS. Those in favor of fracking say it's time to finalize the S-GEIS and move on.

**LINK to VIDEO**

Dozens of gas drilling demonstrators gathered outside the Broome County Legislature to get their voice heard.

The group gathered to oppose the Inflection Energy proposal to lease mineral rights on Broome County public property.

The group believes there was not enough analysis of the Marcellus Shale, and that could be dangerous.

This was the scene last month's EPA gas drilling hearing in Binghamton, Thursday night it was a much quieter picture as the public gave their opinion on the county becoming the lead agency that will review a generic lease for oil and natural gas drilling.

The drama of the natural gas saga in the Southern Tier can often seem like something out of a movie, and tonight someone out of a movie added another scene to the screenplay.

"All I'm saying is if we're going to do this, let's do it safely, because once the cat's out of the bag, there's no getting it back in," said actor Mark Ruffalo.

You might not expect the favorite in the polls to be the next governor of New York to be greeted by many protesters.

But that was the scene in Ithaca Thursday as Andrew Cuomo stopped through town on the campaign trail.

Hundreds of protesters gathered outside the building where Cuomo was scheduled to speak.

They insist that the draft general environmental impact statement, or DGEIS, would not fully protect the Southern Tier if and when hydro fracking is allowed in New York.

"Reject that draft, get rid of it, eat it, send it back to the drawing board," said Walter Hang.

"It's woefully inadequate," said Ellen Harrison of Caroline, NY.

Mayor Matt Ryan has joined thousands of legislators who say the DEC's draft on the environmental impacts of natural gas drilling in the area is not good enough.

The mayor says the draft doesn't take into consideration the potential for the Susquehanna River to become polluted.

As a result, the mayor wants the governor to withdraw the DEC's draft.

He says the DEC isn't prepared to handle the possible side effects of water pollution because of the state's budget crisis.