Kent State: No Fracking Plans for Airport

Here's some good news for neighbors and environmentalists — Kent State University officials say there are no plans for hydraulic fracturing at the Kent State Airport or other university owned land.

The question of whether or not fracking for oil and gas wells can or should be allowed on university land — essentially public property — is one that's been raised multiple times, particularly in neighboring Kent, as area residents and communities seek to prevent harmful side effects sometimes associated with the drilling practice.

For now, it's an issue Stow residents living near the 300-acre airport don't have to worry about.

"Unless otherwise determined by the state, the university's current administration has no plans to initiate drilling on our campus," Kent State spokesperson Eric Mansfield said.

Ohio House Bill 133, approved by state legislators in May 2011, establishes rules and guidelines for state entities such as public universities to make their land available for drilling in consultation with the state's oil and gas commission.

Section 1509.73 of the bill specifically states public entities such as Kent State may lease such land "that is owned or controlled by the state agency for the exploration for, and development and production of, oil or natural gas."

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Heidi Hetzel-Evans, spokesperson for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, which oversees oil and gas well management in the state, said Kent State's eight campuses and airport in Northeast Ohio may be state property but the university is still considered the property owner.

That means university officials at the local level, and not state administrators, would have the final say to permit or deny fracking on university campuses.

"So they would be the entity moving forward with offering their land for oil and gas leasing," Hetzel-Evans said. "Certainly as the managers of the land, the university would have all the say on whether to move forward with offering the land for leasing."

Still, Mansfield said the university would confer with state administrators, such as the state's oil and gas commission per House Bill 133, in making that decision.

"As a state university, Kent State University land is owned by the state of Ohio and, therefore, we must rely on their guidance with respect to fracking and the potential for fracking on public land," Mansfield said.

As for the airport, Stow Mayor Sara Drew said she at least would expect some kind of notice if the university decided to offer its close to 300 acres on the city's eastern edge for oil and natural gas drilling.

"I would be surprised if they were going to do that because of the (Federal Aviation Administration) regulations involved at the airport," Drew said.