Marcellus Drilling News

Heinz Funds Cornell Research – Will We See Outcry like UB?

October 8, 2012October 8, 2012

public outcry It’s interesting to MDN how a politically correct witch hunt has gone forth at University at Buffalo (UB) after the “revelation” that the authors of a new study at the university’s new shale institute had (gasp) done work for natural gas drilling companies in years gone by. Somehow the fact they have made a living outside of academe and (gasp) “in the industry” taints their ability to reason and research beyond acceptable (to the left) limits (see this MDN story).

Yet when anti-drilling organizations (like the Heniz Endowments) fund research at major universities (like Cornell and Carnegie Mellon) for millions of dollars in an effort to gin up so-called science to discredit natural gas drilling, not a peep from the same self-righteous crusaders. Why is that?

Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

Washington Post to Cuomo: Go Ahead and Frack

October 8, 2012October 8, 2012

More evidence that Gov. Andrew Cuomo is receiving media “cover” to give him room to make a decision to move forward with fracking in New York. This time it comes from none other than the editorial board of the Washington Post.

Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

AP Signals Andy: It’s OK to Frack, We Understand

October 8, 2012October 8, 2012

Is the AP attempting to give NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo media cover so he can make a pro-fracking decision? Perhaps. Cuomo and the left know that if Cuomo does not approve fracking—quickly—his political future nationally is toast. There is no way he gets elected president—ever—if he doesn’t approve fracking. His supporters know it. They don’t like it, but they know it.

It’s interesting to MDN that we’re now starting to see stories like the following that tacitly give Cuomo their blessing if he ends up “making the tough choice to move forward” with fracking:

Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

NC Startup Aims to Trace Fracking Fluid in Water Supplies

October 8, 2012October 8, 2012

A startup company in North Carolina is hoping to lay to rest (or validate) concerns that fracking fluid somehow gets from a mile underground into drinking water supplies near the surface. BaseTrace, started by a group of former Duke University students, is experimenting with a tracer chemical that can uniquely “fingerprint” fracking fluid used in each individual well and, theoretically, determine which well may be leaking—if indeed leaking ever happens.

Although similar ways of tracking drilling fluids have been done in the past, BaseTrace is different with its ability to individually encode the tracer chemical for each individual well. Here’s more background:

Air Quality | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Regulation

EPA Steps Up Enforcement Actions Against NatGas Drillers

October 8, 2012October 8, 2012

MDN reported today on the settlement of an environmental damage case in Weztel County, WV by Chesapeake Energy (see this MDN story). The story mentions that the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) got involved through the back door of the Clean Water Act. MDN has long maintained that the EPA is attempting to control more and more of natural gas drilling in the country (we believe they’re a rogue agency on this issue).

The U.S. Constitution makes it clear that regulating oil and gas drilling is not a federal function but a state function. Using the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act and other federal legislation, the camel’s nose of the EPA is not just under the flap of the tent, most of the camel is now inside the tent. Why do we say that?

Chesapeake Pleads Guilty to Enviro Damage in Wetzel County, WV

October 8, 2012October 8, 2012

Two years ago Chesapeake Energy damaged some streams in Wetzel County, West Virginia. The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) got involved because it involved violations of the Clean Water Act. Last week Chesapeake agreed to settle the case. Here’s the outcome:

About MDN | Calendar

Calendar of Events for Oct 8-21, 2012 [Free]

October 8, 2012October 8, 2012

Below are upcoming events for this week and next.

Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Mon, Oct 8, 2012

October 8, 2012October 8, 2012

The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading: