Arrests now total 279 at Crestwood

READING--Seven people were arrested Monday morning, June 1, during a protest outside the gates of Crestwood along Seneca Lake in the Schuyler County town of Reading. There have now been a total of 279 protesters arrested blockading the gates since the We Are Seneca Lake movement began in October of 2014.
The protesters prevented traffic from entering or leaving the site before 7:30 a.m., according to a news release from We Are Seneca Lake. The seven were each charged with trespassing and disorderly conduct. They were processed by the Schuyler County Sheriff's Office and released. According to the group, the We Are Seneca Lake protests are to stop the expansion of methane gas storage, a separate project from Crestwood's proposed liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) storage project, which is pending review by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC).
Those arrested Monday were Marie Ely Baumgardner, 67, Burdett, Schuyler County; Monica Daniel, 54, Enfield, Tompkins County; Jacke Jablonski, 69, Ithaca, Tompkins County; Denise Kooperman, 68, Trumansburg, Tompkins County; Mary Menapace, 55, Skaneateles, Onondaga County; Susan Soberoff, Ulysses, Tompkins County and Louise Sullivan-Blum, 54, Corning, Steuben County. None had been previously arrested as part of the We Are Seneca Lake campaign, the group stated in its news release.
Arrests have continued throughout the spring, with 37 arrests coming in the month of May. Following a brief lull in action throughout most of February, March and April, the arrests picked up once more with the arrest of 19 protesters Earth Day, April 22. The Schuyler County District Attorney's Office had previously offered dismissals in many of the trespassing cases during the lull in exchange for the defendants agreeing to no longer engage in illegal activity at the site. However, following the Earth Day arrests, the District Attorney's Office withdrew the offer to dismiss the cases. According to We Are Seneca Lake, those involved in the Earth Day protest had not been previously arrested at the Crestwood gate.