The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) yesterday fined Chesapeake Energy a total of $565,000 for major violations at three Marcellus Shale wells in Potter and Bradford counties in 2010 and 2011.
From the DEP press release:
Day: February 10, 2012
The Massive Shift Underway from Dry to Wet Gas Drilling
An article on the SNL Financial website about the “massive shift” from drilling in dry gas (methane only) shale gas areas to the natural gas liquids (NGLs) areas begins this way:
DOE Sec. Chu Goes to Pittsburgh, Promotes Shale Gas Drilling
Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Steven Chu, visited Pittsburgh on Wednesday. Part of his visit was to (sort of) promote shale gas drilling. Among other things, Mr. Chu said hydraulic fracturing can be done “in an environmentally responsible way.”
Pro & Anti Drilling Increasingly Divides Along Party Lines
With the new Pennsylvania law to regulate Marcellus drilling about to be signed by Gov. Tom Corbett, counties are already gearing up to vote on whether or not to accept the new impact fee provided for in the legislation. Although support or lack of support for Marcellus and Utica drilling cuts across political party lines, increasingly it tends to be Republicans in favor of drilling, and Democrats against. Take Centre County (State College area, smack in the very middle of PA) as an example, where commissioners are already planning a vote.
NE PA Town Votes to Prohibit Drilling, Approve Wind Farms
Officials in Spring Brook Township (Lackawanna County), PA voted last night to prohibit shale gas drilling in half of the township while at the same time they approved designated areas for commercial wind farms. Those same officials acknowledged their vote to ban gas drilling may be meaningless under the newly passed Marcellus drilling state law about to be signed by Gov. Corbett, but they went ahead and voted anyway, having worked a year-and-a-half on the new zoning changes.
Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Fri, Feb 10, 2012
The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading: