WV Governor Tomblin Will Regulate Marcellus Shale Drilling on His Own

March 15, 2011

The WV Legislature did not pass bills in the 60 day Session just completed for the regulation of the new horizontal drilling and hydrofracking of deep shales for natural gas production. So, the acting Governor Tomblin proposes to proceed administratively.  [This would have many shortcomings, according to many of our Senators and Delegates].  “Unfortunately, the [...]

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Acting Governor Tomblin Recording Requests for Special Session on Marcellus Bill

March 14, 2011

Acting Governor Tomblin’s office is keeping a list of callers requesting a special session for legislation on Marcellus Shale gas drilling.  Concerned citizens can leave a message with his secretary at (304) 558-2000.

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Regulatory Bill Fails in West Virginia Legislature

March 13, 2011

Delegate Bonnie Brown summed it up, “We are just giving them tax breaks before we even regulate the industry.” In the final hours of the last day of the legislative session Saturday night, SB 424, which would have increased the allowed distance between a residence and a rig, required gas inspectors to be hired by [...]

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Committees Send Gas Well Legislation To House Floor

March 11, 2011

The bill to create the Natural Gas Horizontal Well Control Act (Senate Bill 424) has passed through two House of Delegates committees this week and now goes to the full House floor for a vote.  The bill was passed by the both the House Judiciary Committee and the House Finance Committee.  Amendments to strengthen the [...]

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Get a Marcellus Shale bill passed this week in the West Virginia Legislature

March 8, 2011

>>>>> Hoppy Kercheval’s Commentary for March 7th on MetroNews is summarized below: “There are predictions of a significant economic windfall for the state from the deep well drilling  [for natural gas in the Marcellus shale]—thousands of new jobs, more revenue for state and local governments, big money for mineral rights owners and a significant energy [...]

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WV Legislative Session Ends This Saturday, March 12th at Midnight

March 6, 2011

With a week remaining in the 2011 West Virginia Legislative Session, almost everything dealing with water is still up in the air.  Will there be consideration for the public water supplies, for surface land owners, for the conservation of our watersheds, for the quality of life in West Virginia’s hills? Regulation of Marcellus Shale drilling [...]

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Considering the Evidence: Can the EPA Properly Study and Police Drilling for Gas?

March 4, 2011

In the third article in a series about the dangers of hydraulic fracturing, Ian Urbana of the New York Times tracks 25 years of government officials and industry influence has not only limited the scope of EPA research, but kept results of those studies secret. “It was like the science didn’t matter,”said Carla Greathouse, author [...]

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Senate Bill 424 Crosses Over to House

March 3, 2011

The West Virginia Legislature website has been updated to reflect that SB424, The Natural Gas Horizontal Well Control Act, has survived the crossover date and passed to the House. This is the only bill of four major bills designed to bring protections related to hydrofracking to continue through the Legislature. The bill states: “Existing laws [...]

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Recycling Improved, But Disposal Still an Issue

March 2, 2011

Recycling of frack wastewater has been a hot topic lately since the  2/26 New York Times story hit the news which raised questions about the safety of of the disposition of frack wastewater and the potential for threats to drinking water (FrackCheckWV, 2/28).  A March 1st Pittsburgh Post-Gazette story touted how far recycling has come while a [...]

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Midstream Activities and Challenges in the Marcellus Natural Gas Industry

March 2, 2011

COMPRESSOR STATION ACTIVITIES HAVE BEEN GROWING RAPIDLY.  RECENT FIRE QUICKLY CONTAINED. The MarkWest Midstream company provides intermediate services to the natural gas industry between the so-called upstream activities of drilling and fracking versus the downstream activities of transmission and distribution.  Services include gathering lines, processing (incl. drying), fractionation (separation of compounds),  compressor facilities, transport and [...]

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