Petition Asks W.Va. Govenor Not to Allow Drilling Under Ohio River

Govenor Earl Ray Tomblin received a petition with 3,820 signatures requesting he disallow horizontal drilling under the Ohio River.

Robin Mahonen, founder of an activist group called the Wheeling Water Warriors, created the petition. It asks both the governor and the head of the state’s Department of Environmental Protection, Randy Huffman, to reconsider plans to permit the horizontal gas drilling under the river. The petition says the risk of contaminating the river is too high considering it provides drinking water for roughly 3 million people in six states.