Reed Says Frack

WENY reports that Tom Reed believes that "we're ready and ready to go" on Hydrofracking, the process of pressure-injecting a brine and chemical slurry to fracture rock in order to extract natural gas. The Southern Tier sits on huge reserves of gas trapped in the Marcellus Shale formation.

Last month, Eric Massa wrote an op-ed setting out his position on fracking. He thinks that the history of contamination in Pennsylvania, plus the lack of any wastewater treatment plan, calls for more regulation. He favors regulation similar to that already in place to protect New York City's water supply.

Both candidates agree that the state-mandated royalty rate of 12% is too low. Reed thinks that further negotiation will address that issue.