The Environmental Protection Agency came to Binghamton last week to solicit public opinion on its study of hydraulic fracturing, a method of drilling for natural gas that has sparked a $1.9 million EPA investigation on the drilling’s effects on drinking water.

The drilling method involves injecting a pressurized mixture of water and specialized chemicals into underground layers of rock and forcing out natural gas that is encased within the shale.

Those opposed to the drilling are concerned that the chemicals used in the process could contaminate drinking water, in addition to other ill environmental effects.

Over two days of meetings last Monday and Wednesday, public figures such as Mayor Matt Ryan and Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY), as well as a host of local residents shared their opinions with the EPA.

Hinchey, who represents the Southern Tier and Ithaca areas in Congress, worked on the legislation that called for the EPA study. He was the first speaker at the forums. He supported at least a temporary ban on drilling.

‘We cannot and must not move forward with hydraulic fracturing absent an independent, scientific analysis, supported by empirical data, of the risks that hydraulic fracturing can pose to water supplies or air quality,’ Hinchey said.

Supporters of drilling made their opinions known as well.

According to a report from the Press & Sun-Bulletin, Brad Gill, president of the Independent Oil & Gas Association of New York, said that there are already nearly 14,000 producing wells in New York, many of which have been sites of hydraulic fracturing.

‘Despite claims to the contrary, there hasn’t been one case of groundwater being contaminated by the hydraulic fracturing process,’ Gill said.

Landowners like Bryant La Tourette, vice president of the Joint Landowners Coalition of New York, also supported drilling, saying that it would attract much-needed jobs to the region.

Ryan acknowledged the need to create jobs in in the Southern Tier, but he also cautioned against moving forward with drilling without knowing the full effects of the methods.

‘There is no doubt that extraction of these massive gas reserves has the potential to achieve impressive economic gains, but it also could produce even greater harm to public health for decades to come,’ Ryan said.

Ryan also asked the EPA to address in its study the effects of hydraulic fracturing on the quality of drinking water and air, as well as how the by-products of the process are shipped and stored.

‘I simply cannot support short-term financial gain for some while sacrificing the long-term health of our workers, families, ecology and economy,’ Ryan said.

And as hundreds of speakers took their turn sharing their opinion, dozens of protesters rallied outside to draw attention to their cause.

Tyler Albertario, a freshman majoring in political science, was protesting with a group of friends outside the event with a poster that read, ‘Don’t let corruption and greed taint study.’ Albertario believes that there should be a permanent ban on natural gas drilling.

‘They say basically trust us,’ he said of the drilling companies. ‘Even if they mean it when they say it, they never live up to it.’

The New York Senate has passed a bill that would ban new permits on natural gas drilling for at least nine months, but it would not go into effect without approval from the State Assembly and a signature from Gov. David Paterson.

Hydraulic fracturing is currently exempt from the Safe Drinking Water Act, under which the EPA enforces the protection of public drinking water from contaminants that pose a health risk.