Hydraulic Fracturing

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Third NY Town Wins Court Approval to Ban Fracking
March 20, 2013March 20, 2013

Tomorrow, the Appellate Division (court) in Albany, NY will hear arguments in the twin cases of Dryden and Middlefield—two New York towns that illegally seized the property rights of all their citizens by completely banning fracking (see Important Developments in NY Fracking Ban Court Cases for background).

A third town, Livingston, has just won a court case that allows them to also illegally ban fracking. Lenape Resources had sued Livingston after the town passed a ban in 2012, claiming the ban affects their conventional/vertical drilling in the town, which has been going on for decades (see Lenape Sues Avon, NY & DEC over Fracking Ban – Seeks $50M). An “acting” judge didn’t agree, and cited Dryden and Middlefield to support his opinion…

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Energy Companies | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Range Resources Corp | Regulation | Washington County

Judge Refuses to Recuse Himself from Range v Robinson Twp Case
March 19, 2013March 19, 2013

Last week MDN told you about the lawsuit filed by Range Resources against Robinson Township (Washington County), PA for rejecting their request to build two drill pads in the township (see Range Takes Robinson Twp, PA to Court over Permit Rejections). Range has asked the judge in the case, John F. DiSalle, to recuse himself from the case because his wife, Diane DiSalle, is a big-time anti-driller. Unfortunately for Range, the judge has said “no”…

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About MDN | Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

MDN Discovers New Disorder: FDS (Fracking Derangement Syndrome)
March 19, 2013March 19, 2013

This post is purely for your reading pleasure and enjoyment—unless you’re anti-drilling.

Surgeon General’s Warning: If you’re anti-drilling, this post will incite feelings of outrage and perhaps momentary confusion and reflection…

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Statewide OH

The Non-Issue of Water “Disappearing” in the Fracking Process
March 18, 2013March 18, 2013

As the number of Utica Shale wells drilled in Ohio increases, so too does the need for water. Each well fracked uses, on average, about 5 million gallons of water. Some of that water is recycled, but most of it (80%) stays in the ground. Anti-drillers try to use the issue of water “disappearing” from the hydrologic cycle to scare the hoi polloi, but a Gannett article does a nice job of laying those fears to rest.

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Research | Statewide WV | Wastewater | West Virginia

WVU Study Finds Potential Problems with Frack Wastewater Pits
March 18, 2013March 18, 2013

As part of the West Virginia Natural Gas Horizontal Well Control Act passed and signed into law in December 2011, the state legislature directed the WV Dept. of Environment Protection to conduct several studies. One of those studies, due by Dec. 31, 2012, was the Impoundment and Pit Safety Study. The study was done on Dec. 17, but only recently released to the public (February 15, 2013).

Details are now emerging from the study (full copy of the study is embedded below), including a warning there may be problems with the way oil and gas drillers are building waste pits for shale drilling, and with how state inspectors are checking them:

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Energy Companies | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Seneca Resources | Statewide PA

PA Enviro Groups Oppose Using Acid Mine Water for Fracking
March 18, 2013March 18, 2013

The Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection and elected officials want Marcellus drillers to help them with a big problem in the state: acid mine drainage. To solve two “problems” at once—lessen the amount of acid mine water that drains into PA waterways and supply water for fracking—PA encourages drillers to use acid mine water with the Environmental Good Samaritan Act and with a Consent Order and Agreement (see PA Wants Drillers to Use Acid Mine Water in Fracking – Will They?). PA’s efforts have started to pay off. Seneca Resources and at least 10 other drillers have started to use acid mine water for fracking.

However, just like a bad Western movie, extremist environmental organizations have ridden in to ruin the day. Legislation to encourage more use of acid mine water for fracking was recently introduced by a Democrat (!) Senate member. PennEnvironment and other “environmental activists” have sidelined the legislation…

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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

Are Celebrities Breaking NY Law in Anti-Fracking Activities?
March 18, 2013March 18, 2013

Are anti-drilling one-percenters like Yoko Ono, Sean Lennon and Susan Sarandon breaking the law because they haven’t registered as lobbyists in New York State? According to the AP, maybe…

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Broome County | Chenango County | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Research

USGS: Best Places in NY Southern Tier to Get Water for Fracking
March 15, 2013March 15, 2013

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has identified three large-scale groundwater supply sources along the Susquehanna River in Broome and Chenango counties (New York State) in an announcement about a newly completed study (full copy of the study is embedded below). The USGS says these three potential groundwater supply locations are in areas where there may be future shale gas drilling activities.

Essentially, the USGS has provided the drilling industry and regulators at the DEC and SRBC with a helpful “best places to get water for fracking” guide…

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

JLCNY Issues Update, Begins Fundraising to Finance NY Lawsuit
March 14, 2013March 14, 2013

The Joint Landowners Coalition of New York (JLCNY), an organization representing 77,000 landowners with over 1 million acres, issued an extensive update late yesterday on: the status of their lawsuit (which is proceeding); their need for fundraising to finance the lawsuit; and the rationale/strategy for the lawsuit. Even though recent comments by Gov. Cuomo offer a “tease” that he may soon approve fracking, the JLCNY says it’s moving forward with the lawsuit anyway, essentially telling Cuomo “we’ll believe it when we see it.”

Landowners in NY have had too many broken promises and too much double-speak from Albany politicians (see NY Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo: Fracking Friend or Foe?). Through the JLCNY, landowners are now acting to protect their Constitutional property rights. It seems Cuomo, Lupardo and other Democrats have miscalculated when it comes to NY landowners and they will now pay the political and economic price. Here’s the entire update from the JLCNY, worth the read:

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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Forced Pooling | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

Bloomberg Tries to Stir-up NY over Compulsory Integration Issue
March 14, 2013March 14, 2013

Mainstream media sources, like Bloomberg, often tip their hand as to which way they think the wind is blowing on an issue. You just have to take time to observe. For example, someone at Bloomberg believes New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is about to decide in favor of fracking. How do we know they think that? Because they run hit pieces that try to scare readers as a tactic to “stir-up the natives” so they’ll make noise.

The latest stir-up-the-natives-against-fracking hit piece from Bloomberg is on the topic of compulsory integration. If 60% of your neighbors sign a lease in New York, and fracking is allowed, and if your property is in a drilling unit (640 acres or one square mile), your land may be included in the fracking operation. Nothing would be built on top of your land, but drilling may be done under it—a mile or more down—even if you don’t want it. Bloomberg found an anti-driller—someone who has bought the lies from the anti-drilling left hook, line and sinker—and they’ve milked it (or should we say slaughtered it) for all it’s worth…

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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Maryland | Statewide MD

Love Canal Mom Uses Fracking Issue for Second 15 Min of Fame
March 14, 2013March 14, 2013

In a pathetic and transparent attempt to tie the miracle of hydraulic fracturing (i.e. “fracking”) to the 1970s issue of chemical contamination at Love Canal in Niagara Falls, NY, anti-drillers in Maryland held a protest rally yesterday in the state capitol of Annapolis. The featured speaker at the rally was Lois Gibbs, the mom who made Love Canal a household name in the 1970s. Her actions indirectly led to the eventual creation of the EPA Superfund program. Just like Yoko Ono and the manifestly untalented Sean Lenon, she’s back for her second 15 minutes of fame and believes she can grab it by riding the coattails of the fracking issue.

Of course, fracking doesn’t contaminate and has nothing whatever to do with the kind of chemical contamination that was found in the Love Canal toxic waste dump—but confusion, obfuscation and deceit is a favorite tactic of the environmentalist left…

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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

PA House Dem Introduces Bill to Ban New Drilling on State Land
March 14, 2013March 14, 2013

Pennsylvania Democrat State Rep. Greg Vitali introduced a bill last week (H.B. 950, full copy embedded below) that would permanently ban the leasing of any additional state land for Marcellus Shale gas drilling.

Here’s Vitali’s announcement about the bill, with his reasons for introducing it (complete with obligatory eco-nut language like “old growth forests” and “fragile ecosystems”):

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania

Phelim McAleer and FrackNation Come to Philly on April 10
March 14, 2013March 14, 2013

MDN friend Phelim McAleer will be on hand at the Philadelphia premiere screening of his marvelous new documentary FrackNation on April 10 at the Bryn Mawr Film Insititute. The Delaware Valley Marcellus Association (DVMA) is sponsoring the screening.

The announcement (and details for how you can attend), from the DVMA:

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Air Quality | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Regulation

Senators Wants Answers from EPA Nominee about “Crucify Them” Al
March 13, 2013March 13, 2013

The ranking Republican member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, U.S. Sen. David Vitter (Republican from Louisiana), and several of his Senate colleagues, are “demanding answers” from Gina McCarthy, Obama’s choice to head the EPA, over her involvement with the discredited and fired Al “Crucify Them” Armendariz (see EPA Administrator Al Armendariz Resigns over Crucify Comment). Seems a colleague at EPA emailed old Al when he was under fire and Al responded at the time essentially “don’t worry about me” and made mention of Gina McCarthy’s new EPA air pollution rules as “icing on the cake.”

Clearly Armendariz saw McCarthy’s efforts as dovetailing nicely with his own strategy to “crucify” several oil and gas companies as examples to scare the rest of the “villagers” into falling into line. Sick and sleazy. (Armendariz went to work for the Sierra Club after leaving EPA.) Vitter and other Republicans are rightly concerned over the tight relationship between Armendariz and McCarthy—specifically on the matter of Armendariz’s action in outlawing Las Brisas Energy Center (LBEC) in Corpus Christi, Texas—and they want answers. Vitter issued the following press release yesterday:

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Maryland | Statewide MD

UMD Issues 172-Page Report on Marcellus Drilling Best Practices
March 13, 2013March 13, 2013

In the past MDN has been critical of the Marcellus Shale Advisory Commission appointed by Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley. There were supposed to provide a set of best practices for hydraulic fracturing to the state legislature and have repeatedly missed their stated deadlines to do so (see Maryland Shale Commission Misses Second Deadline for Report). The first deadline that slipped by was August 1, 2012. Then it was Dec. 31, 2012. Then they (wisely) didn’t commit but said some time in the spring of 2013.

We don’t know for sure, but perhaps their recommendations are late in coming because they’ve been waiting on the University of Maryland (UMD) to complete a report on best practices. Three weeks ago, the UMD Center for Environmental Science Appalachian Laboratory in Frostburg, Maryland, submitted a 172-page report (full copy embedded below) of recommendations for drilling and fracking best practices to the Maryland Dept. of the Environment (MDE).

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

IOGA of NY Goes to Albany to Engage in “Hallway Chatter”
March 13, 2013March 13, 2013

One day after Gov. Andrew “the Ditherer” Cuomo verbally slapped around landowners and those who favor fracking by saying they ought to refrain from lobbying and “hallway chatter” (see The Gall: Cuomo Lectures Landowners on How to Play Politics), the Independent Oil & Gas Association of New York held their annual lobbying day in Albany to, well, engage in hallway chatter…

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