EPA Proposes New Air Pollution Regulations for ONG Industry

July 29, 2011

Some very exciting news just came out of the EPA.   In Ken Ward Jr.’s blog, Sustained Outrage, there is a July 28 post that informs us that the EPA just released Proposed Amendments to Air Regulations for the Oil and Natural Gas Industry (ONG).  An 8-page  Fact Sheet on the document is available on [...]

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Marcellus Executive Order was Weakened within Hours of Public Announcement

July 29, 2011

Ken Ward Jr of the Charleston Gazette reported that, based upon records obtained under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), the draft executive order for emergency Marcellus rules was revised within hours of the press conference making it final and public.  The report notes that the draft order was provided in advance to media outlets [...]

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Marcellus Shale Hearings Conclude in Clarksburg With Over 800 Attending

July 28, 2011

First there was Wheeling last week where 150 attended, then Monday in Morgantown there were 300, and last night in Clarksburg over 800 people attended the public hearing at the Robert C. Bird High School Auditorium; it was full. Tim Miley, Chair of the House Judiciary Committee, joined four other Delegates on the panel to [...]

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Rine Suit Settled with Chespeake

July 28, 2011

The Dominion Post reported today that Larry and Jana Rine Have settled their suit against Chesapeake for an undisclosed sum and agreed to confidentiality.  The couple charged Chesapeake with deliberately allowing water containing toxic substances to contact unprotected land.  See FrackCheckWV, April 14 for background story Chespeake is a defendant in 3 other cases.  The [...]

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Tomblin Denies Gazette’s FOIA Request for Correspondence with ONG Industry

July 27, 2011

The Charleston Gazette reported on July 26 that the governor’s office has refused a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request from that newspaper to release records of correspondence between Acting Governor Earl Ray Tomblin and the oil and gas industry relating to Marcellus shale gas regulation. Letters from individuals and environmental groups were shared with [...]

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Commissioners Sign Resolution Seeking Local Cracker Plant in N. Panhandle

July 27, 2011

The Wetzel Chronicle reported today that a press conference was held to announce that county commissioners from six Northern Panhandle counties had signed a joint resolution to bring an ethane cracker plant to that panhandle.  Commissioners from Ohio, Tyler, Wetzel, Marshall, Brooke and Hancock counties signed a joint resolution committing to “secure maximum investment for [...]

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Packed House at Morgantown Public Hearing; Advocates for Regulation in Majority

July 26, 2011

Over 50 people were lined up at the  doors to the auditorium at the WVU Law School an hour before the 7:30PM meeting.  The meeting started about 15 minutes late as 70-8o people signed-in as speakers and the rest of the crowd numbering around 250 in total found seats.  Thus began a meeting originally scheduled [...]

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Select Marcellus Committee to Meet in Morgantown and Clarksburg

July 24, 2011

The Legislature’s Select Committee on Marcellus Shale held its first public hearing last week in Wheeling.  Some 150 people attended, and of the nearly 40 speakers, the majority supported stronger regulations. You can read and watch coverage of that hearing here, here and here. Concerns that have been raised include:   § Air pollution from drilling sites and [...]

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WV Man Killed at Gas Well Site in Greene County, PA

July 24, 2011

Kerry Edward Duncan of Roane county in WV was pronounced dead at a gas well drilling site in Franklin Township, Greene County, by Coroner Greg Rohanna just after 5 AM on July 22rd. It appears that he was electrocuted by a fuel pump at the site, though the exact cause of death will be determined [...]

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Pennsylvania Governor’s Shale Panel Issues Blueprint for the Future

July 23, 2011

The Marcellus Shale Advisory Commission appointed by the Governor of Pennsylvania has now reported with 96 recommendation aimed at encouraging gas companies to invest in Pennsylvania, protecting environmental resources and helping local governments manage the industry that is remaking their communities. Key recommendations in the Report are as follows: Enact a drilling impact fee that [...]

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