On Friday, MDN reported to you the disappointing decision from the NY Supreme Court Appellate Division that upholds the right of local towns in New York to ban gas drilling and fracking within their boundaries (see Breaking: NY Court Upholds Local Town Frack Bans). Scott Kurkoski, the attorney for the Joint Landowners Coalition of New York and the attorney of record who argued one of the two cases before the court (the Middlefield case), held a press conference on Friday to discuss the decision and to answer the question, “Where do we go from here?” MDN editor Jim Willis went along to the presser. As important as this decision was, you would think a press conference held by one of the lead attorneys in the case would attract a lot of attention. There was exactly one other reporter there–from YNN (Time Warner Cable’s Your News Now). That’s it. Two of us showed up.
Still, talking with Scott is a pleasure and we always come away with new information. Friday was no different. Here’s the insight he gave the two of us about the recent decision and what the future holds:
