October 21, 2009 · Wheeling City Council approved a resolution Tuesday night that will allow Chesapeake Appalachia to drill for natural gas on city property near Oglebay and Wheeling parks.
Some residents are worried however about the environmental impacts drilling could have on the parks and their community.
Earlier this month, Wheeling City Council tabled a similar motion to give the Wheeling Park Commission approval to move forward with allowing Chesapeake to drill in the parks.
Wheeling mayor Andy McKenzie says he voted for the proposal, but with reservations.
“It is a very emotional issue because it is Oglebay Park and if we had not moved forward, the drilling still would have moved forward without any control by the city of Wheeling or the Wheeling Park Commission,” McKenzie said.
One council member, Robert “Herk” Henry, voted to table the issue for another week.
He says he’s getting calls from residents concerned about how the drilling will affect their drinking water.
“My concern is whether it is going to pollute their wells, because I imagine some people have well water up there,” Henry said.
One of those residents concerned about the environmental impacts of Marcellus shale drilling in the parks is Wheeling resident Bruce Edinger. He is a former biology professor at West Liberty University and Glenville State College, and has studied the impacts of acid mine drainage in Harrison County.
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