from The Sentinel
Hundreds of protestors gathered Tuesday in the Capitol Rotunda and called on Gov. Tom Corbett to impose a severance tax on Marcellus shale drillers to raise revenue instead of leasing forests and parks for natural gas development.
Wendi Taylor, of Cumberland County, says you can’t put a price tag on natural resources, and Corbett’s leasing plan is not a good long-term investment. Corbett says the leasing could generate $70 million to help close the budget gap.
“I think it is really stupid to ruin the forests and parks because we need the money,” Taylor said. “They will be much more valuable in the future.”
State Rep. Seth Grove (R-York) says he understands the concern for the environment, but no state does fracking better than Pennsylvania.
“We have the most stringent drilling laws and regulations in the country,” Grove said. “We are doing it right and responsibly, and we need to continue to monitor the environment and the water.”
A Franklin & Marshall poll found 57 percent of Pennsylvanians oppose fracking in state forests and 67 percent are against fracking in state parks.
