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NY Antis Resort to Violence After Vote Supporting Propane Facility

the new lowWhere to begin? New York’s anti-drillers have sunk to a new low in their irrational quest to eliminate fossil fuels. They’ve resorted to intimidation, threats and now violence against public officials. For extra good measure, they’re poisoning the minds of New York’s school children–using them as props because they can’t get traction from the public for their own bizarro ideas. Let us explain the latest outrage in the antis’ fight to prevent a badly-needed liquid propane storage facility in Schuyler County, NY…
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Third Time the Charm? Hilcorp PA Hearing on Forced Pooling Resched

In Pennsylvania, there is no forced pooling law for Marcellus Shale wells. Forced pooling laws typically say if a majority of landowners are leased in a drilling unit (640 acres, or one square mile), the driller can “force” the other landowners not signed to allow drilling under (not on) their land. However, there’s a loophole in PA for Utica wells. Because Utica wells sit below the Onondaga formation, a 1961 PA law allows forced pooling for Utica wells. Hilcorp is attempting to use that loophole in Lawrence County, PA to force a few recalcitrant landowners to allow drilling (see Hilcorp Lawrence County, PA Forced Pooling Case Update). Hearings on Hilcorp’s forced pooling request have been scheduled and canceled–twice (first in March, then in May). We now have a third date for the hearings–in September…
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PA Gov Corbett Cuts Deal with Enviro Devil on Forest Drilling

Last week MDN told you that the litigious anti-drilling group Pennsylvania Environmental Defense Foundation (PEDF) waited all of about two hours after PA Gov. Tom Corbett signed the 2014 PA budget before filing a lawsuit to prevent the use of money from leasing more state forestland and parks for drilling under, not on (see Anti-Drilling Group Sues PA over Budget and $ from State Leases). The litigious PEDF sought an immediate injunction against the use of any lease money from new leases flowing to the PA budget–a lawsuit that could have screwed up the entire budget for the Dept. of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR). With the gun of a lawsuit aimed at his head, PA Gov. Tom Corbett cut a deal with the devil PEDF to not lease any new state forest land until the lawsuit is heard–this fall at the earliest…
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LNG Facility Planned for PA/NY Border Area Close to Binghamton

This is a “how cool is that” story. A Scranton newspaper is reporting that Gulf Oil is planning to build a liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility in Great Bend (Susquehanna County), PA–about 15 minutes from MDN’s home base–just over the border from Greater Binghamton. The Great Bend facility, if built, will use gas from a Williams’ Windsor-Montrose-Washington gathering pipeline and compress it for storage and delivery as a liquid. For what purpose? Ah, there’s the beauty of it…
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Good Move: PA Budget Cuts DRBC Contribution in Half

In February MDN told you about PA Gov. Tom Corbett’s plan to trim Pennsylvania’s contribution to the Delaware River Basin Commission’s budget (see PA Dems, DRBC Squeal over Proposed Cut to DRBC Budget). The DRBC has been unfairly benefiting from PA residents for years. The other states that are part of the DRBC have cut back on their contributions leaving PA holding the bag. No more. As part of the recently passed state budget, PA has cut DRBC funding–in half…
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Anti-Drilling Group Distributes Air Monitors, Calls it Research

The Southwest Pennsylvania Environmental Health Project (SWPA-EHP) is an anti-drilling organization with a mission to prove what no one has been able to prove (after thousands of shale wells have been drilled): that Marcellus drilling makes you sick. They tried once before with a statistically invalid “survey” of 27 people (see Health “Study” of Whopping 27 People Blames Drilling for Symptoms). They’re back, trying again. This time they’ve handed over “over 100” air monitoring devices around Washington County, PA in another laughable attempt to “prove” that drilling makes you sick…
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Marcellus Money Funds Farm Land Preservation in Lebanon County PA

Oh the delicious irony. For some time now MDN has poked fun at irrational anti-drillers in Lebanon County, PA who pretend the sky is falling if Williams runs a natural gas pipeline under the ground through their county (see this list of recent stories). Most of those opposed are garden-variety anti-drillers who want all Marcellus drilling stopped. It’s all about “land preservation” for the people in Lebanon Pipeline Awareness. So imagine our delight to learn that for the second year running, Lebanon County has helped fund the Lebanon County Agricultural Land Preservation Board with money from the Marcellus Shale Act 13 Impact Fee money–money from Marcellus drilling in other parts of the state, not even from Lebanon County…
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MDN Misfire – List of Stories Published Fri, Jul 18 [FREE]

For whatever reason, every now and again our email provider (Mailchimp) screws it up and doesn’t send headlines–or sends only some headlines–in our daily email. That happened last Friday. Two headlines came through, but not the rest, including our lead stories. To compound Mailchimp’s screw-up, we didn’t notice until later in the day–so we screwed up too. Forthwith is the complete list of stories published on Friday, so you’re aware of them…
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