WVDEP Shuts Down Dangerous Wellpad and Cites an Illegal Flare

December 16, 2011

Chesapeake Ordered to Stop Operating Well Pad “Citing an “imminent danger” to people, the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection ordered Chesapeake Energy to stop operating at the Ray Baker well pad in southern Marshall County,”reports Casey Junkins of The Intelligencer. “This is the same pad the DEP and the Army Corps of Engineers are [...]

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Legislature Passes Governor’s Marcellus Bill

December 15, 2011

“After four days and only minor tweaks, Tomblin’s bill was approved 92-5 in the House and 33-0 in the Senate on Wednesday,” the Charleston Daily Mail reported. Mike Manypenny (D-Taylor) was one of the two Democrats who voted against the bill.  Manypenny addressed the House, stating, “”This sacrifices our land, our water and our air [...]

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WV Sierra Club Issues Action Call as Marcellus Bill Passes to the House

December 14, 2011

The West Virginia Sierra Club is urging citizens to contact their Delegates and call for stronger Marcellus shale legislation after the Governor’s anemic version of the bill was passed from the Senate to the House chamber of the WV legislature on Tuesday.  Chuck Wyrostok, WV Sierra Club Outreach Director, issued an email stating, “It is citizen [...]

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Marcellus Bill Moves Forward in WV Senate

December 12, 2011

Today the Marcellus Shale Bill (SB4001) advanced on the Senate side of the Legislature in the Special Session, moving from the Senate Judiciary Committee to the Senate Finance Committee. Governor Earl Ray Tomblin watered down the bill that resulted from the labors of the 10-person Select Committee before it was introduced to the Legislature.  ”The bill [...]

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Marcellus Special Session Begins Sunday, Completion Possible Next Week

December 10, 2011

Governor Earl Ray Tomblin has called a special session to send the draft bill written by the Select Committee on Marcellus Shale  through the full legislative process on Sunday.  Tomblin says he believes the legislation could be completed by the end of next week. The governor’s office did make a few adjustments to the draft [...]

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How’s this for an Example of Groundwater Contamination?

December 9, 2011

According to an article in the USA Today, the EPA announced yesterday that groundwater beneath the town of Pavillion, WY, was polluted with compounds associated with fracking chemicals.  Residents complain that the water reeks of chemicals, and were advised last year not to drink the water after it was found to contain hydrocarbons. Peer reviewed studies of [...]

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Ethane Cracker Topic Dominates WV Governor’s Energy Summit

December 6, 2011

The WV Governor’s Energy Summit was held Tuesday, December 6th at the Stonewall Jackson Resort in central West Virginia.  The theme this year was “Energy Powering Economic Development”. The primary topic was the possibility of an ethane cracker chemical plant being located in West Virginia.  The keynote speaker was Cal Dooley, President of the American [...]

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Bromide Levels in Rivers Remain High, Despite Changes in Brine Disposal

December 5, 2011

Bromides, a salt found in brine from oil and gas drilling, create a carcinogen called trihalomethanes when they are chlorinated in drinking water.  It is because of high levels of bromides in source rivers, such as the Ohio and Monongahela, that dozens of drinking water treatment plants in West Virginia and Pennsylvania have violated EPA standards for [...]

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Scramble for Jobs in the Marcellus Shale Gas Industry

December 4, 2011

The level of unemployment in Wetzel county is about 12%, the highest in WV, with Marshall (8.5%), Ohio (7.5%), Brooke (9%), and Hancock (10.5%) being close behind.  Overall, the State of West Virginia has been at about 8%, and all these numbers would be higher if those no longer looking for work were included.  Gas [...]

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Earth on Course to See 11 Degree Temperature Increase by 2100

December 3, 2011

This year is very unusual for natural disasters, with economic losses of $265 billion, by the end of June, which exceeds that for 2005. Given that the Earth has already warmed 0.8 degrees Celsius (1.4 degrees F) so far, a goal to keep the temperature rise within 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees F) has been [...]

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