By Mayor Bloomberg’s clock, it’s time to get fracking.
“We need nuclear and we need fracking,” the mayor declared yesterday. “Which do you want, breathe the stuff that comes out of coal-fired plants which produce I think a third of all the pollutants in this country [or the alternatives]?”
Bloomberg heads an international environmental group called C-40 that advocates for reduced greenhouse gas emissions around the world, which has pressed for energy conservation and cleaner fuels.
A state Health Department report from February that was made public this week concluded that the gas-drilling process can be safe with proper controls.
The state, which has had a moratorium on fracking since 2008, is waiting for a report by outside experts on fracking’s potential impact on public health before moving forward on new regulations.
Gov. Cuomo has yet to take a position.
“I’d be interested to see what the governor says about fracking,” the mayor said on his weekly WOR radio show.
The mayor, however, opposes fracking in the city’s massive upstate watershed. State environmental officials studying potential fracking rules have said watershed areas would be off limits for gas drilling.