An additional exit on I-79 would serve the M.I.P. Build an Exit and new companies will come.

To: Morgantown City Council, Tuesday, 2/15/22

My name is Duane Nichols, Coordinator for the Mon Valley Clean Air Coalition. We have been concerned about the air quality in this region since the Longview coal fired power plant was proposed back in 2003. I’m here to talk about a proposal from the Marion Energy Partners, LLC. These are the same people at the same address as Northeast Natural Energy that has drilled one vertical well and four frack gas wells in the Morgantown Industrial Park (MIP).

[They call the well that is only vertical a “science well” because it was used for only research as part of a seven year ($25,000,000) project called the Marcellus Shale Energy & Environment Laboratory (MSEEL). What have we learned from this project that makes for a better environment? The answer is elusive.]

A ‘Science Facility’ has now been proposed that would burn excess frack gas from existing vertical+horizontal wells. The only justification provided thus far is that surplus frack gas exists so Northeast Natural Energy wants to burn it to make electricity. (Anyone can make their own electricity anytime and anywhere? But, what if you pollute the neighborhood or region and create other nuisances like noises, vapor plumes, truck traffic, etc.)

I need to tell you that because of the location in the valley, near the Caperton trail, the Deckers Creek Trail, the Westwood and Skyview schools and even residential Morgantown, this facility could generate serious health effects. It will be running 24 hours per day 365 days per year. There would be four large engines of 3,000 horsepower each. The exhaust stacks would only be 20 feet tall with essentially no monitoring of the pollutants.

I have talked to Glen Adrian, manager of the Industrial Park and to Mike John, CEO of Northeast Natural Energy as well as twice speaking before the County Commission. I went to Charleston and met with the Secretary of the WV-DEP. They all are unaware of the actual purpose and seem to be in a state of confusion. Any of these individuals could stop this project by publicly stating what is obvious to me. This project is unacceptable at this particular location. It could easily be moved to the Boggess pad or another of the Northeast Natural Energy locations, if they would only do it.

The window of time for the WV DEP to evaluate and grant a “final air permit” has been exhausted, but DEP is still working thru all the public comments received at the public hearing on January 11th. If a revised permit is released, there will then be a 30 day period open for appealing this permit to the WV Air Quality Board (AQB).

I am here today to recommend that the City of Morgantown consider making such an appeal, a rather straight forward process that is outlined on the AQB web-site. A number of reasons to appeal exist, given that the proposed facility may well become a substantial nuisance due to excess air pollution, on-going noises, toxic and hazardous chemical emissions, excess greenhouse gases and unsightly vapor plumes from the four stacks. (It would generate 55,000 tons per year of carbon dioxide.)

Here are a few of the responsibilities of the WV-DEP that they appear to have neglected: WV Code § 22-1-1, b-10, viz. “ To promote pollution prevention by encouraging reduction or elimination of pollutants at the source through process modification, material substitutions, in-process recycling, reduction of raw material use or other source reduction opportunities.” Moreover, this project appears to not be in the public interest.

Thank you for this opportunity to address the Morgantown City Council.

Duane Nichols, Mon Valley Clean Air Coalition (MVCAC)

Leases are already being finalized!

WJU to Host Forum On Fracking Under Ohio River in WV

From an Article by Casey Junkins, Wheeling Intelligencer, January 31, 2015

Wheeling, WV — Wheeling Jesuit University biology professor Ben Stout is eager to hear Gastar Exploration Senior Vice President Mike McCown explain how the driller can safely frack beneath the Ohio River to retrieve Marcellus and Utica shale natural gas.

Stout and McCown are slated to speak on the matter during a public forum at 1 p.m. February 7th inside the Recital Hall at the Center for Educational Technologies building.

Gastar is one of several companies making deals with the West Virginia Department of Commerce to extract oil and natural gas from state-owned minerals lying thousands of feet below the riverbed. Noble Energy recently bid to drill on 1,400 acres beneath the river, while Statoil is also making plans to bore under the river.

Combining the lease payments with the 20 percent worth of production royalties each company will render once gas starts flowing would give the state a steady stream of millions of dollars over several years.

“This is a great opportunity for us and for the state,” McCown said. “We are confident, with our track record for working in Marshall County, that we can do this. We have fracked close to 70 wells with no incidents.”

However, Stout said there is too much unknown about fracking to proceed with the plans. “I am not a big fan of fracking,” Stout said. “Bu air pollution and water disposal – those are the things that concern me more so than the river. To me, frack water being stored in old tanks along the river is more of a concern than putting a pipeline under the river.”

According to West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection records, Gastar had one violation for “pollution of waters of the state” on March 1, 2012, though it does not list additional details. The company resolved the situation by April 30, 2012, the DEP shows.

“I am willing to take Mike on his word about that,” Stout said. “The biggest thing we need is more dialogue between the industry and the community.” By comparison, DEP data show several other drillers with significantly more violations.

Beth Collins, director for the Appalachian Institute at WJU, said the forum will be a chance for the community to express concerns regarding fracking beneath the river, but also in general. “There are a lot of concerns about hydraulic fracking around the state of West Virginia. Our drinking water comes from that body of water, and I’m glad that Mike and Dr. Stout will be on hand to give clarity to these major concerns,” she said.

State legislators invited to attend include Sens. Ryan Ferns, R-Ohio, and Jack Yost D-Brooke, as well as Delegates Ryan Weld, R-Brooke; Erikka Storch, R-Ohio; Shawn Fluharty, D-Ohio; Dave Evans, R-Marshall; and Mark Zatezalo, R-Hancock.

McCown believes because the Marcellus Shale is more than one mile deep in Marshall County, the horizontal drilling bores will be so far beneath the surface that nothing Gastar is doing would impact the river. “What is on the surface has no bearing on the success of our operations,” he said. “You can drill under the city of Wheeling, for that matter, and not have any issues at all.”

>>>>>  Ohio River in Wetzel County, WV <<<<<

Hannibal Locks & New Martinsville Bridge

See the initial “prospectus” for bidding on leases for drilling and fracking under the Ohio River.  What about the possible earthquake damages to the locks & dams, to the bridge abutments, to the hydropower facilities, to the water quantity and quality?  Plenty of questions but no definitive answers.