OH Congressman Says Let State Governments Regulate Fracking
Politics in shale gas drilling is an unfortunate fact because the environment has been politicized. But that’s the reality. Anyone who thinks the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is not a political animal has their head in the sand. From its beginning, MDN has pointed out that the EPA is making a power grab—attempting to regulate oil and gas drilling via the back door by using legislation like the Clean Water Act.
Some on Capitol Hill, like Congressman Bob Latta (R-Ohio) who serves on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, agree. Rep. Latta posted an editorial on the Politico website last night that says, in part:
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Interest in Ohio’s Utica Shale gas is booming as evidenced by the ramp up in the number of drilling permits issued. More than half of all permits issued have come in the last three months.
A rather generic story put out by Reuters yesterday refers to Exxon Mobil’s interest in acquiring acreage in the Utica Shale in Ohio as a new source of oil drilling. Details are sparse about Exxon’s plans, but it points out the white-hot interest there is in Ohio’s Utica Shale since Chesapeake announced in July they have struck oil, as well as natural gas and gas liquids, in Eastern Ohio (
Chesapeake Energy CEO Aubrey McClendon on Monday appeared on Jim Cramer’s Mad Money show on CNBC to talk about the company’s new, oil-rich discovery in the Utica Shale of eastern Ohio. He had some fascinating things to say, including that he expects there to be some 25,000 wells drilled in the Ohio Utica Shale, and that there will be $10 billion per year for at least 20 years (or $200 billion) of investments in the Ohio Utica Shale alone. Yikes! No wonder Gov. John Kasich is “gushing” about Chesapeake’s discovery. An investment of 1/5 of a trillion dollars is a major big deal for Ohio—not only for landowners but also for businesses and for those who will be employed by drilling and associated industries. You cannot overstate how important this discovery is.