Smith Opera House and Seneca Lake Pure Waters to present Gasland

On Wednesday, December 8, at 7 PM, Seneca Lake Pure Waters Association (SLPWA) and the Smith Opera House in Geneva will present the film, “Gasland”, by Josh Fox. The presentation of Gasland will be followed by a question and answer session with panelists from the following area organizations: SLPWA, Committee to Preserve the Fingerlakes, the Finger Lakes Institute, and the Keuka Lake Association. The showing is free and open to the public. Donations will be accepted to defray costs.

Gasland is a documentary film, written and directed by Josh Fox. It focuses on communities all across the United States, impacted by the new method of obtaining gas from shale located underground, known as horizontal hydraulic fracturing.

In the film, Fox tells that he received a $100,000 offer from a gas company, for a lease to drill in the Marcellus Shale, under his land. After receiving the offer, he decided to visit areas where drilling was taking place to see how residents in those areas were being affected. In Dimock, PA, he met numerous families suffering from health problems, which had occurred since the drilling had begun, some who could light their water on fire, and many who feared their wells had been contaminated.

He also visited the western states where horizontal hydraulic fracturing has been underway for approximately a decade and heard similar stories. In many cases, gas companies were supplying the residents with potable water or had installed purification kits in an attempt to rectify the situation.

In his film, Fox interviews scientists, gas company executives and politicians, as well as landowners and residents affected by the process. Ultimately he also visits Congress and witnesses a subcommittee discuss a bill to repeal an exemption the gas companies received in 2005, so they are not required to abide by the Safe Drinking Water Act.

Gasland has won many awards in 2010, including a special jury prize from the Sundance Film Festival.