Marshall County Hosts Marcellus Shale Community Education and Information Meeting

February 5, 2011

The West Virginia University Extension Service is sponsoring an education and information meeting as a way to help community members obtain factual information on issues related to Marcellus Shale Drilling and the natural gas industry. The free presentation is open to the public, and starts at 6:30 pm on Wednesday, February 9th at Sherrard Middle [...]

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Watershed Groups Push for 500 ppm TDS Water Standard

February 4, 2011

The West Virginia and Pennsylvania Monongahela Area Watersheds Compact is asking state lawmakers to consider legislation regarding water quality. Representatives handed out letters to State legislators this week  in Charleston describing the crisis in the Monongahela watershed and other streams state-wide. The Compact includes about 50 organizations which share a concern about drinking water quality.  [...]

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Environmental Groups Suing DRBC Over Exploratory Wells

February 2, 2011

Damascus Citizens for Sustainability and The Delaware River Keeper Network filed a federal lawsuit against the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC), the interstate commission overseeing drilling along the river.  According to the two environmental groups, the commission wrongfully allowed exploratory wells to be drilled in the river basin without its approval and despite its own [...]

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DEP Finds no Health Concerns with Air in Northeast Pennyslvania

February 2, 2011

An air monitoring study by Pennsylvania’s DEP concluded that emissions from Marcellus Shale natural gas operations in Northeast Pennsylvania do not pose a risk to human health in the short term.  Potential cumulative impacts, like a lifetime cancer risk analysis, require a long-term study of at least one year. The study was conducted at four [...]

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Probe asserts Diesel used in Fracking in Violation of Safe Drinking Water Act

February 1, 2011

A January 31, 2011 letter to the EPA from the Committee on Energy and Commerce,  a Democratic committee, lays out the case for the assertion that over 32 million gallons of diesel was used in hydrofracking between 2005 and 2009.  The letter concludes that this practice was in violation of the Safe Drinking Water Act [...]

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Where are the Gas Jobs? More Drilling Rigs, Pipelines and Separation Plants Promise New Jobs

January 30, 2011

Chesapeake has been under the eye of Senator Joe Manchin and others;  but,  claims of over 700 local workers provides few clues about the number of local workers in the future.  Are qualified local workers hard to find, or does it depend upon what qualifications are required?  Drilling rigs and fracking crews are still in demand, [...]

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Working to Keep the Money at Home

January 30, 2011

Are the majority of gas industry paychecks staying in state, or are they going out-of-state to workers imported from Texas and Oklahoma? Senator Joe Manchin recently criticized the drilling industry, saying he was looking into why some West Virginia workers could not find employment with natural gas companies. In response, Chesapeake Energy announced that it [...]

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Gas Prices Down: CONSOL Trims Rig Fleet–But Has Success in Utica

January 29, 2011

J. Brett Harvey, CEO of CONSOL Energy, Inc., says the only disappointing thing about drilling gas in 2010 was the prices: an oversupplied market, partially the result of increased production from Marcellus Shale plays, has kept gas prices low.  Consequently, the company has trimmed its horizontal drilling fleet for the Marcellus Shale.  Until April 2011, [...]

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“Hydraulic Fracturing and Horizontal Gas Drilling Act” introduced into WV Senate and House

January 28, 2011

The staff of the Joint Judiciary Committee prepared this bill, which is one of the two major fracking bills to be considered this year in Charleston.  This one is Senate Bill SB-258 with 10 sponsors, equivalent to House Bill HB-2878 with 9 sponsors.  The other bill, known as the WV-DEP bill was prepared at the [...]

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Considering Obama’s SOTU: Will Natural Gas be Part of a “Clean” Energy Strategy?

January 27, 2011

President Obama, in his State of the Union Address, set a goal for the United States to be powered by 80% clean energy by 2035.  Of course, “clean” does not mean “renewable.” The President listed clean coal as a viable option in reaching this goal, which leaves the door open for gas industry lobbyists.  Recent [...]

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