Hydraulic Fracturing

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

Retired NY DEC Director Pans Cuomo Fracking Plan
July 20, 2012July 20, 2012

In a letter to the editor of the Albany Times Union, the retired director of Natural Resources Planning for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), Charles Morrison, comes down squarely on the side of anti-drillers. His letter says the rumored plan by Gov. Cuomo to allow test drilling in five Southern Tier counties is a “checkerboard plan” that’s “like something out of a Cracker Jack box.” Sounds to MDN like perhaps retirement is driving Mr. Morrison a little bit crackers himself.

Here’s his letter:

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Statewide NY

Alec Baldwin’s Rank Hypocrisy on NY Fracking
July 20, 2012July 20, 2012

Not long ago, Alec Baldwin went to visit his mom in Syracuse (as he often does, like a good boy), and while he was there, he lent his star power to promoting Josh Fox and his anti-fracking propaganda film Gasland at a local screening (see this MDN story).

Alec likes telling everyone else what they can do with their own private property. But what’s this? He doesn’t want to be told what to do with his private property? Hmmm.

It seems Alec wants to build a great big windmill at his home in the Hamptons on Long Island. Problem is, he needs a development permit to build the $100,000 windmill that may save him $2,000 in electric bills (this is how the mind of the liberal works folks). But he’s hit a snag with getting permission to build it. Anyone see the rank hypocrisy here? What’s good for thee is not what’s good for me, when it comes to anger-challenged Alec.

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

Food & Water Watch Uses Fracking Fear for Fundraising
July 20, 2012July 20, 2012

Rabid anti-drilling group Food & Water Watch (F&WW), based in Washington, D.C., needs money. How do we know? Because they’re circulating a petition to the rich, liberal residents of Johnston and Cranston, Rhode Island, telling them they need to support a statewide ban on fracking. Wait, Rhode Island? Yeah, Rhode Island—where there is no shale to frack! So why circulate a petition there? You’ve got it—it’s a sleazy tactic to get names and addresses for F&WW fundraising campaigns.

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Statewide OH | Statewide PA

US Chamber Launches PR Initiative to Support Shale Drilling
July 20, 2012July 20, 2012

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce this week launched a major new initiative—a public relations campaign—to support shale gas drilling, particularly in the Utica and Marcellus Shale. The Chamber rolled out their “Shale Works for US” campaign on Tuesday in Ohio, and yesterday (Thursday) in Pennsylvania. According to the press release (see below), the campaign’s purpose is to “build support for the vast economic and energy security benefits of natural gas and oil produced from shale.” The chief driver of the new PR effort is the Chamber’s Institute for 21st Century Energy—the energy policy “arm” of the Chamber.

The Chamber is touting the massive number of jobs being created by the shale energy industry—rightfully so. The real shame? That such an effort is even needed. It should be obvious shale jobs are good jobs and the shale drilling industry a good industry. It’s sad but true that organizations like the Chamber have to spend massive amounts of money to counter the constant drumbeat of mainstream media against clean and safe natural gas. Go figure.

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Columbiana County | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Ohio

Columbiana Port Authority Sells Water for Fracking
July 19, 2012July 19, 2012

The Columbiana Port Authority (Columbiana County, OH) has voted to sell water to Aqua Terra Asset Management who will in turn sell it to Marcellus and Utica Shale drillers for use in hydraulic fracturing. The deal calls for Aqua Terra to withdraw the water from two fire hydrants in East Liverpool, to be charged $9 per 1,000 gallons.

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Energy Services | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | OriginOil | Wastewater

OriginOil Uses Algae to Clean Frack Wastewater
July 19, 2012July 19, 2012

OriginOil, Inc., based in Los Angeles, is a biomass company that produces and markets a patent-pending commercial system using algae to produce crude oil. Think of it as a renewable fossil fuel! Their system is also used to clean water, using algae as a pollution absorber.

A new application for OriginOil is using their algae system to process flow back water—wastewater from hydraulic fracturing of shale oil and gas wells. OriginOil announced today they have created a new oil and gas division and appointed the former President of Exxon Arabian Gulf as an advisor to the business.

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Commodity Price | Economic Impact | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

Harvard Study: Shale Drilling Means Oil Prices Heading Lower
July 18, 2012July 18, 2012

A Harvard University study published in June takes a look at oil and makes the bold prediction that world oil prices will go down, substantially, by 2020. Why? You guessed it—the miracle of hydraulic fracturing of shale, particularly in the U.S.

The study, titled “Oil: The Next Revolution – The Unprecedented Upsurge of Oil Production Capacity and What it Means for the World,” (see below), says the Bakken/Three Forks play in North Dakota and Montana “could become a big Persian Gulf producing country within the United States.” And that’s just one play, out of 20!

Although this Harvard study is focused on oil, and MDN is largely focused on natural gas, the study highlights the critical role played by shale formations, and drilling in shale, sometimes the same well bore, delivers not only natural gas but natural gas liquids and oil. So this study and it’s conclusions are well worth your time to review. Notice the chart on page 13 of the PDF file (page 3 of the report): It shows the U.S. pulling very close to Saudi Arabia in oil production by 2020. Astonishing!

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

NRDC Publishes Recycled Scare Tatics on Fracking & Water
July 18, 2012July 18, 2012

The National Resources Defense Council (NRDC), which once-upon-a-time was at least partially open minded to drilling for natural gas, has been subsumed by the anti-fracking mania that seems to inhabit those on the political left. NRDC has left the realm of reasonable and thoughtful awareness on issues concerning the environment and has descended into political hucksterism (which is no doubt more profitable for fundraising).

A few days ago the NRDC published a “fact sheet” on water and hydraulic fracturing. It’s recycled no-thought-necessary-stoke-the-wacko-left-faithful pabulum. But MDN brings it to you because you need to “know thine enemy” and what they’re saying. A copy of “Water Facts” is embedded below.

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Crawford County | Energy Companies | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Range Resources Corp | Utica Shale

Crawford County, PA First Utica Shale Well Fracked
July 18, 2012July 18, 2012

Crawford County, PA, a county in the northwest corner of the state bordering Ohio, is about to have its first Utica Shale well (in fact, its first shale well of any kind) fracked by the driller who started the shale revolution in the Marcellus: Range Resources.

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Energy Services | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Smart Sand

Wisconsin Frack Sand Heading to Marcellus/Utica Shale
July 18, 2012July 18, 2012

Wisconsin frack sand is on the way to the Utica and Marcellus Shale region, thanks to a new long-term partnership between Smart Sand and Canadian Pacific Railway. The partners announced their first initiative will be to build a new frack sand transloading facility in Makoti, North Dakota.

Canadian Pacific is the only railroad in North America that services both the Bakken formation and the Marcellus Shale.

From the joint press release issued today:

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Chemung County | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

SRBC Restricts Fracking Water Withdrawals in 64 Locations
July 17, 2012July 17, 2012

The Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC), charged with overseeing the rivers and streams that flow into the Susquehanna River, which in turn runs all the way to the Chesapeake Bay, is responsible for issuing permits in their jurisdiction that allow Marcellus Shale drillers to withdraw water for use in hydraulic fracturing. The SRBC takes its job seriously and closely monitors streamflow levels. When the levels get too low due to drought conditions, the water withdrawals stop.

Such was the case yesterday when the SRBC suspended water withdrawals for 64 companies—the vast majority related the shale industry. That’s the most withdrawal restrictions issued by the SRBC since they started permitting for shale water withdrawals in 2008. (The full list, detailed by driller and county, is embedded below).

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Broome County | Guest Post | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York

Guest Post: Media Ignores Major NY Pro-Drilling Event (FREE)
July 17, 2012July 17, 2012

MDN note: The following guest post was submitted by Victor Furman, head of the Sapbush Road Group, a New York landowner coalition in northern Broome and southern Chenango counties. He writes about a major landowner rally in Broome County called Vote4Energy, held at the Broome-Tioga Sports Park near Whitney Point on Sunday, July 15. The rally turned out thousands, dwarfing recent anti-drilling rallies held in the area. The media was invited, but they were a no-show. Vic does a great job of pointing out the hypocrisy.

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

Yoko Ono and Son Sean Lennon Go on Anti-Fracking Tirade
July 16, 2012March 11, 2015

This one is just too delicious to pass up. It seems that John Lennon’s widow, Yoko Ono, and their 37 year-old son Sean, have launched a website and campaign of so-called celebrities against fracking. And they appeared on Jimmy Falon’s show last Friday night to make horses’ rear-ends of themselves (and they did so in spades, see the video below).

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BP | Economic Impact | Energy Companies | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Jobs | Ohio | Statewide OH

BP CEO Visits Ohio to Talk About Shale Drilling
July 16, 2012July 16, 2012

The CEO of BP, Bob Dudley, visited Cleveland last Friday to talk about BP’s massive investment in Ohio’s Utica Shale—and what that investment will mean in the way of jobs for Ohio. He also had an eye-opening statement about just how much energy is currently being produced from shale plays in the U.S.

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Bucks County | Energy Companies | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Turm Oil

SE PA’s First Shale Gas Well Stopped by New Moratorium
July 16, 2012July 16, 2012

The new moratorium on shale gas drilling in southeastern Pennsylvania, instituted as a last-minute political ploy by none other than Republicans in the latest state budget (see this MDN story), has claimed its first victim. An exploratory gas well in the South Newark Basin (Bucks County) due to be drilled by Turm Oil has been denied a permit by the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection.

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

Battle Royale in NY Townships – Support or Ban Fracking?
July 13, 2012July 13, 2012

Many townships in the Southern Tier area of New York State want Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the Department of Environmental Conservation to know they support responsible gas drilling. Tuesday night the town board in Bainbridge (Chenango County) voted to adopt a resolution supporting drilling (if by support you mean let’s wait until the DEC issues its new rules). The towns of Preston and Guilford, also Chenango County, both voted to approve the resolution Wednesday night. The resolution was slated for a vote in both Afton and Oxford townships (again, Chenango County), but MDN does not have details yet on the outcomes there—although it was likely positive.

A copy of the resolution as adopted in May by the Town of Windsor, in Broome County, NY, is embedded below. That same resolution, more or less, is what the other towns are adopting.

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