Hudson Mohawk Magazine

New York State has a large budget surplus for this year. As the Governor and the assembly begin work on the new budget, advocates from the State University of New York are drawing attention to the major cuts that have taken place in the last decade to the funding across the entire university system. Moses Nagel attended a rally at the University at Albany campus on March 3 calling attention to the issue.

New York State has a large budget surplus for this year. As the Governor and the assembly begin work on the new budget, advocates from the State University of New York are drawing attention to the major cuts that have taken place in the last decade to the funding across the entire university system. Moses Nagel attended a rally at the University at Albany campus on March 3 calling attention to the issue.

Today, on the Hudson Mohawk Magazine,

We begin by hearing the NYS Climate Action Council’s plan for the year.

Then, we get up close with radioactive fracking waste when Alexis Goldsmith brings us to an oil and gas waste processing facility.

Later on, we head to a rally to demand housing for people with AIDs.

After that we get some excerpts from last weekend’s Peace in Ukraine rally in Albany;

Finally, Moses Nagel gets an update from photo-journalist Bryan Smith who has been documenting an escape route from Ukraine at a Polish border crossing.

Today, on the Hudson Mohawk Magazine,

We begin by hearing the NYS Climate Action Council’s plan for the year.

Then, we get up close with radioactive fracking waste when Alexis Goldsmith brings us to an oil and gas waste processing facility.

Later on, we head to a rally to demand housing for people with AIDs.

After that we get some excerpts from last weekend’s Peace in Ukraine rally in Albany;

Finally, Moses Nagel gets an update from photo-journalist Bryan Smith who has been documenting an escape route from Ukraine at a Polish border crossing.

Inside a nondescript red barn in Martins Ferry, OH, is Austin Master: an oil and gas waste processing facility that takes much of the radioactive fracking waste from around the Ohio River Valley. It is located next to a high school and sits on top of the municipal aquifer.

Fracking generates large amounts of contaminated water that contains radioactive isotopes from the Earth’s crust. Yet, this radioactive waste generated by the fracking industry is largely unregulated thanks to the Bevill and Bentsen Amendments to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).

Jill Hunkler is a member of Concerned Ohio River Residents, a coalition of organizations and individuals that have been campaigning to move the regional economy away from fracking infrastructure. Jill says that Ohio has become a fracking dumping ground, but the waste is not treated as hazardous, endangering the community:

“If [the fracking industry] had to process and deal with this radioactive waste the way they should be, financially it would crush the industry. It’s not possible economically for them to handle the waste and dispose of it properly and then make any profit off it, it would be so costly. And so that’s why they’ve had exemptions and been able to operate outside of the regulatory system, because they couldn’t operate if they had to handle the waste appropriately.”

The radioactive waste generated by fracking was reported on in the 2019 Rolling Stone article “America’s Radioactive Secret” by independent reporter Justin Noble. However, it has been known since at least the 1990’s that oil and gas waste is radioactive.

Just one ethane cracker - a plastic factory that turns fracked ethane gas into polyethylene plastics - requires 1,000 new fracking wells every 3-5 years. Therefore, the hazardous waste generated by fracking can be considered a waste stream of plastics, in addition to the pollution caused when plastics are eventually disposed of.

According to Jill, it's time to ban fracking and move to industries that are truly sustainable. "Concerned Ohio River Resident's ultimate goal is to keep it in the ground, there is no way for the oil and gas industry to operate safety."

The Ohio River Valley is facing a massive proposed fracking infrastructure buildout called the "Appalachian Storage Hub." To learn more about this issue, visit: https://www.concernedohioriverresidents.org/what-is-a-cracker-plant

Photo: Alexis Goldsmith

Inside a nondescript red barn in Martins Ferry, OH, is Austin Master: an oil and gas waste processing facility that takes much of the radioactive fracking waste from around the Ohio River Valley. It is located next to a high school and sits on top of the municipal aquifer.

Fracking generates large amounts of contaminated water that contains radioactive isotopes from the Earth’s crust. Yet, this radioactive waste generated by the fracking industry is largely unregulated thanks to the Bevill and Bentsen Amendments to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).

Jill Hunkler is a member of Concerned Ohio River Residents, a coalition of organizations and individuals that have been campaigning to move the regional economy away from fracking infrastructure. Jill says that Ohio has become a fracking dumping ground, but the waste is not treated as hazardous, endangering the community:

“If [the fracking industry] had to process and deal with this radioactive waste the way they should be, financially it would crush the industry. It’s not possible economically for them to handle the waste and dispose of it properly and then make any profit off it, it would be so costly. And so that’s why they’ve had exemptions and been able to operate outside of the regulatory system, because they couldn’t operate if they had to handle the waste appropriately.”

The radioactive waste generated by fracking was reported on in the 2019 Rolling Stone article “America’s Radioactive Secret” by independent reporter Justin Noble. However, it has been known since at least the 1990’s that oil and gas waste is radioactive.

Just one ethane cracker - a plastic factory that turns fracked ethane gas into polyethylene plastics - requires 1,000 new fracking wells every 3-5 years. Therefore, the hazardous waste generated by fracking can be considered a waste stream of plastics, in addition to the pollution caused when plastics are eventually disposed of.

According to Jill, it's time to ban fracking and move to industries that are truly sustainable. "Concerned Ohio River Resident's ultimate goal is to keep it in the ground, there is no way for the oil and gas industry to operate safety."

The Ohio River Valley is facing a massive proposed fracking infrastructure buildout called the "Appalachian Storage Hub." To learn more about this issue, visit: https://www.concernedohioriverresidents.org/what-is-a-cracker-plant

Photo: Alexis Goldsmith

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has led to a massive refugee crisis as an estimated 1.5 million people have fled the war. Moses Nagel spoke to photo-journalist Bryan Smith who has been at one of the border crossings in Poland that has been a major escape route in the last two weeks.

https://www.instagram.com/b.r.smith/

https://www.bryanrobertsmith.com/

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has led to a massive refugee crisis as an estimated 1.5 million people have fled the war. Moses Nagel spoke to photo-journalist Bryan Smith who has been at one of the border crossings in Poland that has been a major escape route in the last two weeks.

https://www.instagram.com/b.r.smith/

https://www.bryanrobertsmith.com/

On March 5 in downtown Albany, a rally for peace in Ukraine took place. HMM's Andrea Cunliffe brings us a report of some of what took place with excerpts from Mark Dunlea and comments by Salley Lauretta, Judith Ench, Kathy Fitzgerald, and others.

On March 5 in downtown Albany, a rally for peace in Ukraine took place. HMM's Andrea Cunliffe brings us a report of some of what took place with excerpts from Mark Dunlea and comments by Salley Lauretta, Judith Ench, Kathy Fitzgerald, and others.