Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Stone and Webster Fault Map of Finger Lakes Region



I put this map (courtesy Karen Edelstein) up in response to this article,
http://www.stargazette.com/article/20130611/NEWS01/306110060/Geologist-endorses-plan-LPG-storage-Schuyler-County

which claims:

QUOTE: A state geologist is recommending the approval of an underground storage permit for the controversial liquid petroleum gas facility planned for the Town of Reading in Schuyler County.
Meanwhile, Ontario County has become the third county in the Finger Lakes region to pass a formal resolution against the $40 million project.


 In a letter addressed to Peter Briggs, director of the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s Oil & Gas Permitting Bureau, geologist Andrew Kozlowski says the plans to store propane and butane underground in depleted salt caverns will have no adverse impact on the existing geological environment.



“At the time of this application, there does not appear to be any geological reason to deny their request to utilize the geologic formations specified for the storage of liquefied petroleum gas,” Kozlowski’s letter reads. ENDQUOTE

Headline should have read "Inergy found one geologist to endorse plan!".

Just wondering what data this guy examined to make this determination. Inergy, DEC, and EPA all were denying requests for seismic and geologic data claiming it is "proprietary information". So any "scientific determination" about safety CANNOT BE INDEPENDENTLY VERIFIED. Independent verification is a necessary part of the scientific method.

A couple of facts we do know (thanks to Peter Mantius' excellent reporting):
  •  A 3.2-magnitude earthquake in February 2001 that geologists say was triggered by salt mining activity 26 miles southwest of Watkins Glen.
  •  An apparent 3.6-magnitude earthquake in March 1994 that was triggered by the catastrophic collapse of the Retsof Salt Mine in Cuylerville, N.Y., about 60 miles west of Watkins Glen.
  • A 3.4-magnitude earthquake in 1984 in Dresden about 20 miles north of Watkins Glen.
  • The earthquake of unspecified size, date and location that the EPA identified as the cause the roof collapse in “Well 58″ just north of Watkins Glen.

We also know that a major strike-slip fault runs right through the west side of Seneca Lake, as documented by Stone and Webster, and cited by Jacobi and others.

For more info, check out:


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1 comment:

Educated NY Geologist said...

What makes you think that the existence of a Strike-slip fault would be cause for concern? SS faults have no vertical movement. Not to mention, looking as faults on a plainview map is essentially useless if you don't know what formations they occur in. That fault could be a basement fault that occurs thousands of feet below the salt.

June 14, 2013 at 11:16 AM

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