Hydraulic Fracturing

Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Regulation

Update: Which Obama Enviros are Going, Which Staying?
December 20, 2012December 20, 2012

Three federal officials (beside Obama) who have the most influence and can possibly cause the most damage to our energy independence as a county are the Secretary of Energy, Secretary of Interior and the Administrator of the Environment Protection Agency. The people who currently hold those positions are, respectively: Steven Chu, Ken Salazar and Lisa Jackson.

Immediately following the November election, the Washington rumor mill started, speculating that all three of them would not serve in a second Obama administration (see this MDN story). The latest thinking is that one of them is gone for sure, one is likely to stay, and one is on the fence. Which is which?…

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

Anti-Drilling Groups Demand Copy of DEC Health Study
December 19, 2012December 19, 2012

Just a few days in to a 30-day public comment period in New York State for revised fracking rules, a collection of the same old anti-drilling groups with the same old agenda (delay indefinitely in hopes of a ban) sent a letter to State Health Commissioner Nirav Shah and Environmental Conservation Commissioner Joseph Martens demanding an advance copy of the “health review study” being reviewed by three outside health experts.

The letter (full copy embedded below) says in part:

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

Esquire Magazine: Thank You for Fracking
December 19, 2012December 19, 2012

A surprisingly balanced human interest article written about the issue of hydraulic fracturing has just appeared in Esquire magazine (yes, that Esquire). The story takes a look at Curt Coccodrilli, who used to work for Bonnie Raitt before she fired him because he supports fracking. Must be she didn’t want to give them something to talk about. (Yeah, you saw that groaner coming!)

The article begins this way:

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

Forbes Exposes Who’s Behind Newest Anti-Drilling Group
December 18, 2012December 18, 2012

The Forbes magazine website pries open the lid to reveal who’s really behind a new organization called Physicians, Scientists and Engineers for Healthy Energy (PSEHE). PSEHE was formed specifically to oppose shale drilling. And guess who’s behind it? The Ithaca, NY-based Park Foundation (funder of Gasland, Earthworks, Earth Justice and other rabidly anti-drilling causes), and Cornell professor Tony Ingraffea (co-author of a discredited anti-fracking study). In other words, PSEHE is a sham—a useful tool for mainstream media to use in creating the illusion that scores of “smart people” are opposed to fracking.

The Forbes exposé begins this way:

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Maryland | Regulation | Statewide MD

Maryland Shale Commission Misses Second Deadline for Report
December 18, 2012December 18, 2012

The “Keystone Cops” Marcellus Shale Advisory Commission appointed by Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley to study natural gas drilling and produce a set of best practices for hydraulic fracturing will miss their second deadline to produce a draft report. The first deadline was August 1, 2012 (see this MDN story). At that time, they said “we’ll get ‘er done by end of the year.” Oops. That won’t happen either. Now they’re saying they need extra time and will produce the report “sometime this spring.” Anyone up for a betting pool on when?

Here’s the latest (sad) news from Maryland:

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

Gas Drilling Lingo: Pumpjacks, Yellow Dogs & Gushers, Oh My!
December 17, 2012December 17, 2012

If you stop by a diner along Route 29 in Susquehanna County, PA on any given day, you may hear the patrons using words you’re not familiar with. Words like pumpjack, yellow dog, and kick down. You may also hear them talking about a Christmas tree—but it’s probably not the one you’re thinking about that stands in your living room this time of year.

Time for a vocabulary update, to define some of the terminology you may hear next time you go out to eat in a community where there’s active shale drilling:

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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Mahoning County | Ohio | Wastewater

Anti-Driller Attempts Fraud at Youngstown, OH Meeting
December 14, 2012December 14, 2012

A loud-mouthed anti-driller tried to disrupt a recent “Oil & Gas 101” meeting being held in Youngstown, Ohio. The 30-year old woman started screaming over top of speaker Rhonda Rheda. She claimed to have a jar of fracking fluid with her, which she left on the table when she was arrested and removed from the meeting. The anti-driller then called 911 to report there was “hazardous material” at the meeting. Thing is, it was all a fraud. Wastewater is not hazardous material, but more to the point, Rheda had the contents of the jar tested and found it to be cider vinegar with chewing tobacco mixed in. A complete fraud and hoax by the anti-driller.

Welcome to a debate where the other side doesn’t play by anyone’s rules and will lie, cheat and commit fraud in the name of their “cause”—the elimination of all fossil fuels as a source of energy.

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Public Opinion | Statewide NY

Drill in NY? Republicans Say Yes, Democrats Say No
December 14, 2012December 14, 2012

Quinnipiac University has been busy polling. First they released a new poll of Ohioans and their attitudes toward higher taxes for drilling in that state (see this MDN story), and a day later, they released a poll of New Yorkers asking them whether or not drilling should even be allowed in that state. The results (full copy embedded below) provide the most striking example yet that the entire drilling issue has become politicized in New York.

The poll results, released yesterday, show that 70% of New York’s Republicans support drilling for shale gas and oil (17% are opposed), while only 29% of Democrats support drilling (and 55% are opposed). Overall, the state remains pretty evenly split with 44% supporting drilling and 42% opposed to it.

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Broome County | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Statewide NY

NY Attorney General Investigates Towns Who Won’t Ban Fracking
December 13, 2012December 13, 2012

The out-of-control New York State Attorney General’s office (Eric Schneiderman, AG) continues to be, well, out-of-control. We’ve just learned that in October Schneiderman’s office launched an ethics investigation against board members of several townships in Broome County, NY—board members who voted on a resolution that says, in essence, “We’ll wait for the DEC before we make any decisions about whether or not to allow fracking in the town.” Those resolutions are widely seen as pro-drilling, even though the language is neither pro- nor anti-drilling.

What makes the actions of AG Schneiderman’s office so outrageous is that he has not launched any investigations of board members for towns who have voted to illegally ban fracking, even though those board members have “conflicts of interest” by siding with the environmental groups who have contributed money and manpower to their campaigns! This action by Schneiderman’s office in targeting pro-drillers is detestable, arrogant, and (MDN would argue) an abuse of power. More details…

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

Where to Submit Your Comments on NY’s Revised Fracking Regs
December 13, 2012December 13, 2012

The New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is now accepting comments on proposed revised new rules (click here to view the revised new rules). They will accept comments through Jan. 11, 2013.

The DEC is accepting comments both online and through mail. Here’s how to submit your comments:

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

WSJ Devastating Critique of “Promised Land” Movie
December 13, 2012December 13, 2012

There is a must-read opinion piece in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal (free access for the article), titled, “Good Will Fracking.” It is, of course, about the upcoming January release of the anti-fracking movie “Promised Land,” starring Matt Damon. Apparently the movie is (thankfully) a stinker, according to early reviews, so it likely won’t be seen by many people.

Here’s how the WSJ piece begins:

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Air Quality | Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | New York | Statewide NY

7 States Threaten EPA Lawsuit over Methane Emissions
December 12, 2012December 12, 2012

An out-of-control New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is the ring leader for seven northeastern states who say they plan to sue the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to force the EPA to enforce even stricter air emissions rules (if such a thing is possible) to reduce methane emissions from oil and gas drilling. Earlier this year the EPA introduced far stricter rules that require drillers to install expensive new equipment to trap leaking (so-called “fugitive”) methane—perhaps driving some of them out of business in two years when the new rules are fully implemented.

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Regulation

Feds ‘Hope’ States will Use BLM Rules for ALL Fracking
December 12, 2012December 12, 2012

We are on a very dangerous and slippery slope. The federal government, under Barack H. Obama, has its sights set on usurping individual states’ rights (guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution) to regulate oil and gas drilling. MDN has pointed out for more than two years that the EPA wants to regulate fracking—an illegal act in our considered opinion. More recently the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) at the Dept. of Interior has gotten in on the act by issuing draft rules for fracking on federal lands. Word came yesterday from the Obama administration that the new BLM rules slated to be finalized this year will now be delayed until early 2013.

In addition to the delay from BLM comes word (an edict?) from the Obamadroids that they “hope” the states will use BLM’s finalized rules as a “template” to regulate all fracking and shale drilling—even on private land. It’s an awfully short step from “hope” to “demand” when it comes to Washington politicians and an out-of-control federal government.

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Chenango County | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation

Oxford, NY Tables Consideration of Fracking Moratorium
December 12, 2012December 12, 2012

Village leaders for Oxford (Chenango County, NY) tabled consideration of a fracking moratorium at a contentious meeting last night:

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Westchester County

Westchester County, NY Bans Fracking Wastewater
December 12, 2012December 12, 2012

The Westchester County Board of Legislators voted on Monday (unanimously) to ban fracking fluids from the county. The ban specifically disallows treatment of fracking fluid wastewater in municipal treatment plants (already illegal under DEC rules) and a ban on using the salt from fracking wastewater to treat roadways during the winter.

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

NY Begins 30-Day Public Comment Period Wednesday
December 11, 2012December 11, 2012

The starter pistol is ready to be fired. On Wednesday, the New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation will begin a 30-day public comment period as part of a 90-day extension on proposed new rules to allow hydraulic fracturing (fracking) for horizontal drilling in the state.

Both sides of the drilling debate are pulling out the big guns to try and influence the outcome:

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