January 4, 2013 Attn: Draft HVHF Regulations Comments New York State Department of Environmental Conservation 625 Broadway

Albany, NY 12233-6510 Dear Commissioner Martens: I am writing to comment on the revised HVHF regulations. My comments are given under protest, as I am convinced that the issuance of the revised regulations by the DEC without the prior publication of the final SGEIS is a severely flawed procedure. I reserve the right to comment again on the draft regulations after the final SGEIS has been issued. Notwithstanding, I offer the following comments with regard to Part 551.1 (a)(1) through (7). Each person who is a principal or acts as an agent for another in any of the following activities within the State must file an organizational report on a form the department prescribes: (1) solution mining; (2) drilling, deepening, plugging back or converting oil, gas, solution mining or storage well or wells, or drilling, deepening, plugging back or converting stratigraphic, geothermal or disposal well or wells greater than a true vertical depth of 500 feet; (3) the production in the State of oil and gas; (4) the first purchase of oil and gas produced in the State; (5) the underground storage in the State of gas; (6) the practice of well abandonment and salvage of oil and gas subsurface equipment; or (7) the first transportation of oil and gas produced in the State. That information is gathered on form 85-15-12 (6/07)-28b which requires little more than the name, address and phone number of the entity and agent, as well as names and titles of director and officers and names of persons authorized to sign submittals to the Department. There is no requirement for such information from persons engaged in hydrofracturing activities. There is no place in the revised regulations or the proposed permitting conditions of the rdSGEIS of 2011 where information is gathered on the qualifications or experience of persons or entities engaged in any of these activities. There is no place in the revised regulations or the proposed permitting conditions of the rdSGEIS of 2011 where information is gathered by the Department on the safety record of persons or entities engaged in any of these activities. The Department should include hydro-fracturing in the activities on which data is collected. The Department should expand the information collected so as to assure that persons or entities conducting these activities in New

York State have adequate prior experience. The Department should require sufficient information on previous safety-related incidents to assure that persons or entities conducting these activities in New York State have not been cited for safety violations. Yours truly,