The headline: The governor plans to lift a three-year-old moratorium on the further leasing of public lands for gas development to fill a budget gap. The budget factors in $75 million in drilling revenue to be accrued via further leasing of state park and forest lands for gas development.
The Corbett administration refers to the new drilling under public lands as "non-impact" drilling -- because no new well pads will be constructed, according to budget secretary Charles Zogby. It is unclear whether approved, but not yet built, well pads will fall under the moratorium.
Of course, "non-impact drilling" is a fallacy -- even horizontal drilling without more surface disturbances creates more air pollution, more truck traffic, more water withdrawals, and more toxic waste water. And drilling just outside park or forest boundaries creates real risks for these public lands should spills or other accidents occur.
Bottom line: Gov. Corbett is attempting to balance the state budget on the backs of our state parks and forest lands when he should be protecting these special places for this and future generations.
Pennsylvania holds and manages its public lands in trust for all citizens of the Commonwealth, including generations yet to come. We have a responsibility to preserve and protect them, not sell them out for quick cash.
Also of concern: The diversion of $117.5 million from the state's Oil and Gas Lease Fund (OGLF) as operational budget money for the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR). The OGLF was originally designated for conservation, recreation and flood control programs in state parks and forests.
Governor Corbett is not the first governor to raid the Oil and Gas Lease Fund -- but the practice is growing more alarming as our conservation and natural resource agencies are increasingly reliant on the rapid exploitation of the very resources they should be conserving.
Governor's Enhance Penn's Woods initiative: Gov. Corbett announced the Enhance Penn's Woods initiative as part of his
2014-2015 budget proposal, allocating $45 million in new funding for parks and infrastructure.
While moving to enhance public lands is always good
news, the question remains as to when a new, and permanent, revenue stream will
be put in place to protect Pennsylvania's crown jewels, our public lands.
Our state parks are not only
recreational and cultural assets, they are also an economic driver. For every dollar
spent in state parks, thirteen dollars is returned to the economy of
Pennsylvania.
Corbett proposes DEP staff cut, increase in funding: The governor proposed a $10 million increase in general fund support for the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), from $129.8 million to $139.9 million. (For context, the DEP general fund budget was $245.6 million in 2002-2003.)**
Yet, he also proposed slashing 66 jobs at DEP — the agency tasked with policing the gas industry and protecting our air, land, and water. DEP has seen a 17 percent decrease in staffing over the past decade.
It's hard to fathom how Pennsylvania is supposed to regulate an expanding industry with decreasing manpower.
** Correction: In our original publication, we stated that that Governor Corbett proposed to increase the DEP’s 2014-15 funding to $136.7 million, while noting that the DEP’s total budget in 2002-2003 was more than $700 million. While true, this statement was confusing because $136.7 million is not the DEP’s proposed total 2014-2015 budget – only the share of the budget that would come from the general fund. The DEP’s total budget for 2014-2015 (including special fund monies and federal appropriations, as well as general fund monies) is proposed to be $689.3 million. By contrast, the DEP’s 2002-2003 budget was $728.3 million, or about $922 million in inflation-adjusted dollars.
Andrew Sharp is PennFuture's Director of Outreach and is based in our Philadelphia office.
