Binghamton, NY (WBNG Binghamton) Binghamton City Council leaders pass a resolution to ban natural gas drilling in the City.
Over and over, and over again, Binghamton neighbors and those from outside of the city expressed their fears and frustrations ...fears that natural gas drilling could come to the area and ravage the environment, and frustration that City Leaders could bar an industry from fertilizing Binghamton's economy.
"Hydraulic fracturing would be a negative for this area due to the health impacts, raising rents, housing prices plummet eventually because of fracking ruining people's property values," said Eric Moring of the Town of Vestal.
"Everyone benefits by it because of increased jobs, increased revenues, everyone seems to do well with it,. So I'm quite confused why the city would take a negative view of it," said Robert Greene, general manager of the Holiday Inn in downtown Binghamton.
Dozens of speakers got their two minutes in before the Binghamton City Council, hoping the council would hear their voices,
And in the end, the council passed a two-year moratorium on natural gas drilling within the city's limits by six votes to one.
This marks a final contribution made to the city by a seven-member body of Democrats before three Republicans join in January.
But it's a move that one lawyer warns that could open up the city, not just to criticism, but legal trouble down the road.
"To pass it now--when the courts may say that this ban is illegal--it's just going to invite damages which could be very harmful to the City of Binghamton taxpayers," said Attorney Robert Wedlake.
For now, the moratorium stands
Whether Republicans will look to overturn it in the future remains to be seen.
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