Regulation

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    Does PA Supreme Court Act 13 Decision Affect NY Cases?

    Apparently there’s been some concern, confusion and downright misleading information circulating since the recent PA Supreme Court decision that grants municipalities in PA the right to continue zoning where shale drilling can and cannot take place (see PA Supreme Court Rules Against State/Drillers in Act 13 Case). Some have tried to draw parallels between the “Dryden” and “Middlefield” cases now before the NY Court of Appeals (NY’s highest court) and the decision by the PA Supreme Court, because both involve issues of home rule or the right of localities to impose zoning on oil and gas drilling.

    Even though both the PA Act 13 and the NY Dryden/Middlefield cases are both home rule cases, they are nothing alike and the PA case in no way impacts or affects the NY case. Perhaps the biggest difference between the PA and NY cases is this: In PA even though municipalities can now legally zone for oil and gas drilling, they must still allow oil and gas drilling in at least one zone. In NY, towns have completely banned drilling throughout the entire (rural) township. Huge difference. And there are other differences. Because of the ongoing confusion, the pro-drilling attorney for the Middlefield case, Scott Kurkoski, issued the following statement on the JLCNY website to clear the air and set the record straight…
    Read More “Does PA Supreme Court Act 13 Decision Affect NY Cases?”

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    NY’s Albany Anti-Frack Protest – Made Possible by Natural Gas

    Not only are the crazies marching in Maryland (see today’s story Maryland Anti-Fracking “Madness” Continues – Crazies on the March), they’re also about to descend on Albany, NY. MDN friend and occasional guest blogger Vic Furman, a retired IBMer and one of the leaders of the Joint Landowners Coalition of New York, provided the article below pointing out the hypocrisy of those who oppose shale drilling. Vic says that in nine days when anti-drilling protesters arrive in Albany (many from out of state), they will do so because natural gas and oil from shale drilling made it possible for them to be there.

    Take time to read Vic’s post and consider the salient points he makes:
    Read More “NY’s Albany Anti-Frack Protest – Made Possible by Natural Gas”

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    Maryland Anti-Fracking “Madness” Continues – Crazies on the March

    The anti-drilling crazies in Maryland are on the march, literally! A coalition of extremist so-called “environmental” groups plan to march on Annapolis on the opening day of the General Assembly session to urge legislators to ban shale drilling. No, they are not demanding a moratorium–they are demanding an outright and permanent ban on fracking. How do you reason with unreasonable people? You don’t. You defeat them. And that’s what pro-drilling and clear-thinking people must do in Maryland. There is no sane debate with a crazy people.

    Here’s a Maryland “madness” update:
    Read More “Maryland Anti-Fracking “Madness” Continues – Crazies on the March”

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    PA Town in Poconos Symbolically Votes to Condemn Fracking

    The day before the PA Supreme Court ruled that towns must allow fracking but can impose their own zoning rules about where it is and isn’t used, the Stroudsburg Borough Council voted, unanimously, to pass a resolution (or depending on your news source, ordinance) that “condemns” fracking. Stroudsburg is located about five miles from the Delaware Water Gap in Monroe County, PA. It’s debatable whether or not there’s anything to frack under Stoudsburg. Because the borough is in the Delaware River Basin the DRBC doesn’t yet allow drilling there anyway–so the vote was purely symbolic.

    The ring leader seems to be outgoing councilwoman Kathleen Lockwood who has proven her ignorance on the subject of fracking with her public comments on the matter (see below). Since this was a symbolic vote, we nominate Ms. Lockwood to symbolically remove herself from using all natural gas–she should quit heating her home with it, quit using it to cook her food, and quit using electricity in her home produced by using natural gas–you know, to show the rest of us her resolve in opposing fracking. If fracking is so bad and evil, surely she would want to quit using the results of that fracking–natural gas–right? What’s that? Not so fast? Let’s not be hasty now! Yeah, that’s what we thought…
    Read More “PA Town in Poconos Symbolically Votes to Condemn Fracking”

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    Fitch Ratings Says PA Court Decision Translates to Less Production

    Elections–and court cases–have consequences. You tax something more, you get less of it. You regulate something more, you get less of it. When there’s less of something, prices for it go up. Fitch Ratings–one of the largest and most prestigious rating agencies in the world–has just weighed in on the ruling by the PA Supreme Court that throws out portions of the Act 13 drilling law (see PA Supreme Court Rules Against State/Drillers in Act 13 Case). According to Fitch, more local regulation of PA’s oil and gas drilling will result in less production. You don’t normally think of Fitch as being in the oil and gas production prediction game–that’s more the purview of the Energy Information Administration (EIA). However, Fitch says the recent PA ruling will almost certainly mean less production coming out of PA–a sobering observation.

    Fitch’s opinion counts because investors make decisions based on it. Less gas, higher prices. It also means less tax money will flow to municipalities. Pretty simple economics and Fitch is just stating the obvious. Here’s what Fitch said earlier this week about the PA court decision…
    Read More “Fitch Ratings Says PA Court Decision Translates to Less Production”

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    Rochester Poll: Cuomo Wrong to Delay, Begin Fracking Now

    Unscientific opinion survey? To be sure. But the results from a recent Rochester (NY) Business Journal poll that asks the question of whether or not Gov. Andrew Cuomo should continue to delay a decision on fracking is enlightening. Some 540 RBJ readers participated in the web-based snap poll that asked two questions about fracking. It will be no surprise to you that the vast majority of RBJ readers believe Cuomo should make a decision now–and that the decision should be to allow fracking to commence.

    Most people who read the RBJ are small business people–entrepreneurs and managers and people who make things happen. In other words, they are producers–the opposite of the government-dependent leeches we tend to turn out in NY in large numbers. Producers are clear-headed–they know how to evaluate information and come to a logical conclusion. And the conclusion reached in “liberal” Rochester is this: fracking is safe, it’s time to start. Get off the pot Cuomo! Here’s the details from the RBJ snap poll:
    Read More “Rochester Poll: Cuomo Wrong to Delay, Begin Fracking Now”

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    Chu to the Rescue: Former DOE Sec Profits from Regs He Made

    Let’s see, ascend to a powerful, important position in Washington, DC–one where you have your hands on the levers of power. Pull those levers to put in place some of the most onerous regulations imaginable that will make companies pay out the nose to (unbelievably) “capture carbon” so the carbon doesn’t escape, like a fugitive criminal, into the atmosphere. Then create low interest loans and outright government grants to companies to create the technology that companies will need to meet the strict new standards. Oh, and after you help create those new rules and the programs to fund the technology, leave that position and go to work for a tech company that happens to provide a solution to meet the new regulations you just created. All very cozy, don’t you think? That’s what former Sec. of the Dept. of Energy Steven Chu has done.

    Canadian carbon capture company Inventys Thermal Technologies announced last week that Chu will join their board for undisclosed boatloads of money and stock options to “advise them” in their quest to dominate the carbon capture market, playing off fears of global warming and strict government regulations that will require companies to do something to (unbelievably) capture carbon. The only word we can think of that’s appropriate is: “incestuous”…
    Read More “Chu to the Rescue: Former DOE Sec Profits from Regs He Made”

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    Maryland Update: Marcellus Drilling a Distant & Ellusive Dream

    A periodic check on the state of shale drilling in Maryland shows that like New York, Maryland has all but killed drilling in their state with a long, drawn-out, so-called “review” of fracking. The price of gas is so low, and the prospects and ease of drilling in neighboring states like PA, WV and OH is so convenient, that most energy companies have simply said “bye bye” to the two counties in western MD that contain recoverable Marcellus Shale gas.

    Will there ever be drilling in MD? Oh perhaps one day, if Maryland politicians (mostly Democrats) ever get off the metaphorical pot and get regulations adopted to allow it. However, at this point the prospects are pretty grim. Energy companies are letting years-old leases lapse, writing them off as losses and not re-signing, which is bad news for Maryland landowners in Garrett and Allegany counties. All four companies that had previously filed for permits to drill shale wells have withdrawn those permits. In other words, Marcellus drilling in MD is, at this point, dead as a door nail. Here’s an update on the MD situation from the “helpful” AP:
    Read More “Maryland Update: Marcellus Drilling a Distant & Ellusive Dream”

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    EQT Gathering Gets USACE Green Light for Armstrong County Pipeline

    EQT Gathering wants to install an 8.1 mile gathering pipeline in Armstrong County, PA. Some of the pipeline crosses federal lands and requires the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to conduct an environmental assessment and judge whether or not the project would significantly impact “natural and cultural resources.” The Corps has done their investigation and has issued an FONSI–a Finding of No Significant Impact. Which means sometime after a 30-day public comment period (during which shrill anti-drillers will no doubt wail and moan), EQT will be able to move forward with the project. A happy ending!

    The statement issued by the Corps:
    Read More “EQT Gathering Gets USACE Green Light for Armstrong County Pipeline”

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    Middlesex Bans Fracking – A Tad Ironic, Wouldn’t You Say?

    Does anyone else see the irony that a place with the word “sex” as part of its name has banned something called “fracking”? (Yes that observation is juvenile, but sometimes you need a bit of juvenile fun.) The story is this: a bunch of hepped up lefties, egged on by the odious and misnamed Food & Water Watch, got enough people to the polls to ban fracking in a place where there isn’t any interest in fracking–Middlesex County, NJ. The vote is an empty symbol to be sure, but important all the same because the people of Middlesex County are sending a very loud message to the shale drilling industry: drop dead.

    Perhaps the good people of Middlesex would like to quit using natural gas to heat their homes, heat their water and cook with–you know, just to be consistent with their “strong beliefs” on fracking–because the majority of their natural gas now comes from fracking. What’s that? Not on your life? Take your filthy hand away from that gas shut-off valve! Yeah, hypocrites often operate that way…
    Read More “Middlesex Bans Fracking – A Tad Ironic, Wouldn’t You Say?”

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    Anti-Fracking Slottjes Use Norse Energy NY Lawsuit as Fundraiser

    The husband and wife legal team of David and Helen Slottje are using the Article 78 lawsuit filed by Norse Energy against Gov. Cuomo, and Commissioners Martens and Shah as a shameless fundraiser. The Slottjes have made a career out of touring cities and towns in upstate NY, attempting to convince innocently ignorant town board members to illegally ban fracking, thereby denying the Constitutional rights of landowners throughout entire municipalities. The Slottjes have been doing it for years now. (See our initial impression of Helen Slottje from February 2010 in this article: DISH, Texas Mayor Calvin Tillman Visits Binghamton – Marcellus Drilling News was There.)

    All of that traveling and “pro bono” work needs to be funded somehow. So whatever the Park Foundation won’t pay them, they have to raise themselves, which they do by using a front organization called the Community Environmental Defense Council (Incorporated). The Slottjes are rather shameless in the yarns they spin, all the while sticking their hands out. Here’s the latest example of “never let a good crisis (or lawsuit) go to waste”…
    Read More “Anti-Fracking Slottjes Use Norse Energy NY Lawsuit as Fundraiser”

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    JLCNY Sends Gov. Cuomo a Lump of Coal for Christmas

    This one put a smile on our faces. The Joint Landowners Coalition of New York (JLCNY) sent around an email that encourages those who support drilling to print out and send a copy of the postcard we’ve embedded below. It shows a picture of a lump of coal and tells Cuomo he’s on the naughty list this year–but he still has a chance to redeem himself and make the nice list for next Christmas. Love it! It’s funny yet serious at the same time. The JLCNY hopes drilling supporters will print it out and send it (multiple times) over the next 30 days. We add our voice to theirs and encourage you to do just that.

    Here’s the message (and postcard) from Santa and the JLCNY:
    Read More “JLCNY Sends Gov. Cuomo a Lump of Coal for Christmas”

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    What Does PA Supreme Court Decision on Act 13 Mean?

    what does it all mean?MDN reported the sad news on Friday that PA’s Supreme Court gutted big and important parts of the Act 13 legislation passed in early 2012 (see PA Supreme Court Rules Against State/Drillers in Act 13 Case). The natural, follow-on question is, what does this decision mean for drillers and landowners? The honest answer is, in the short-term, not much. Until now we have lived under existing local/municipal zoning rules while the lawsuit worked its way through the court system. We remain under a crazy quilt patchwork of different rules for different towns. The drillers have, for the most part, learned to live with it and likely will continue doing so.

    As MDN pointed out on Friday, there are some towns with boards packed with anti-drillers that will make drilling so miserable in that area (cough *Robinson* cough) drillers will likely just leave them alone–meaning landowners lose out, local businesses lose out, taxpayers will certainly lose out. Everyone’s a loser. But that’s the definition of victory for anti-drillers–everyone loses. So where do we go from here?…
    Read More “What Does PA Supreme Court Decision on Act 13 Mean?”

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    Iron Eagle Frack Wastewater Plant in Carroll County Goes Online

    A month ago MDN told you about a new frack wastewater recycling plant about to start operation in Carroll County, OH (see New Frack Wastewater Recycling Plant Opens in Carroll County, OH). We’re happy to report the plant is now up and running–even though OH has yet to approve new regulations that oversee such operations.

    Question: How can Iron Eagle Enterprises build and open the plant without fear it may be shut down again after the new regs are in place? Answer: Iron Eagle consulted with ODNR officials all along the way to be sure the plant they were building in Carroll County would comply with the draft regulations ODNR was writing…
    Read More “Iron Eagle Frack Wastewater Plant in Carroll County Goes Online”

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    PA Supreme Court Rules Against State/Drillers in Act 13 Case

    court gavelNo doubt most MDN readers have already heard the earth-shattering news from yesterday that Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court has sided with the seven towns who sued the state to retain their right to regulate (zone) where drilling and related activities can and cannot happen in their communities. MDN has long covered this story and worried that a split decision after one of the justices resigned would lead to an unresolved situation. As fate would have it, one of the Republicans on the bench, Chief Justice Ron Castille, sold out and turned against the industry, so it ended up being a 4-2 decision with (predictably) all three Democrats voting against the industry plus RINO Castille.

    What was the decision? For different reasons (they couldn’t agree among themselves), the justices said localities should be able to write their own rules for where drilling can and can’t go. Which is certainly not a bad thing (the right to determine), except in some communities local town boards are packed with anti-drillers that make life a living hell for anyone or anything related to drilling. Ultimately innocent landowners and taxpayers are the ones who lose out because drillers will walk away from areas where unreasonable people pack town boards (no drilling, no leases, no jobs, no tax revenue). That’s exactly what will now start to happen in PA.

    Anti-drilling groups like The Sierra Club, Delaware Riverkeeper and PennEnvironment were positively orgasmic in their reaction. They now get to kill drilling in at least some locations in PA. The Marcellus Shale Coalition said it’s a truly a sad day for PA. We agree. Below we bring you what we consider the “best of” coverage of the opinion. We have not had time to thoroughly research it ourselves, so we’ll rely on others to analyze it. We’ve also embedded the full 162-page decision filed by the Supreme Court so you can read it for yourself…
    Read More “PA Supreme Court Rules Against State/Drillers in Act 13 Case”

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    EPA Makes Chesapeake Pay $9.7M for Spilling Dirt in Creeks & Swamps

    The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced yesterday that they’ve slapped Chesapeake Energy with a $3.2 million fine, and a requirement that Chessy spend another $6.5 million to clean up 27 sites in West Virginia that the EPA says were “damaged by unauthorized discharges of fill material into streams and wetlands.” That is, Chessy got sloppy and dumped some dirt in a few creeks and swamps (the horror!). The EPA used the federal Clean Water Act to extract their multiple pounds of flesh out of Chesapeake. The EPA is all proud of themselves that this is “one of the largest” fines ever levied by the EPA using the CWA.

    Here’s the announcement direct from the belly of the rogue beast itself:
    Read More “EPA Makes Chesapeake Pay $9.7M for Spilling Dirt in Creeks & Swamps”