Mainstream Media 5 Years Late Reporting Lithium-from-Shale Story
We’ve had more than a few MDN readers pass along links from recent mainstream media stories about the treasure trove of lithium available “beneath Pennsylvania” in the state’s brine (shale wastewater) production. Which makes us a little bit crazy and amuses us at the same time because we’ve been reporting on this story since 2019! In October 2019, Eureka Resources, which operates three frack wastewater treatment facilities in the Marcellus Shale (and is building a fourth facility in Dimock, PA), began extracting lithium from Marcellus wastewater at one of its plants in Bradford County, PA (see Marcellus Wastewater Plant in PA Extracts 1st Batch of Lithium). In 2020, the company said its plants could theoretically supply up to 25% of the country’s annual lithium demand — solely with lithium recovered from Marcellus wastewater (see Eureka Can Supply 25% of US Lithium Demand from Marc. Wastewater). The recent spat of news stories about lithium from shale comes as a result of a new study published in April quantifying just how much lithium could be produced from PA’s brine. We reported on the study as soon as it was released (see How Much Lithium (for EVs) is Sitting in PA Marcellus Brine?).
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The switch from coal to natural gas in power generation has led to historic emissions and air pollutant reductions equaling $450 billion to $1.04 trillion in public health benefits for Pennsylvanians, according to a Marcellus Shale Coalition (MSC) analysis. The analysis leverages emissions data from the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) and applies U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) methodologies to assign a dollar value to each ton of NOx and SOx reduced. As shale gas development became prevalent across PA and in-state natural gas electric generation increased from 5% to 59% between 2005-2022, criteria emissions contributing to respiratory ailments — nitrogen oxides (NOx) and sulfur oxides (SOx) — are down 81% and 93%, respectively, yielding a range of $7.9-$18.4 billion in NOx and $445.1 billion – $1.02 trillion in SOx cumulative public health benefits for Pennsylvanians.
Anti-fossil fuel fanatics have a tried-and-true playbook in Pennsylvania. They appeal *every single inch* of new pipeline, no matter where it’s located, whether that pipeline flows natural gas, NGLs, oil, or petroleum products like gasoline. Want to replace an existing pipeline in an area? Antis are against it, saying it will saddle ratepayers with “stranded assets” in a few unspecified years’ time (when “renewables” take over). Want to build a new pipeline? God forbid! They go berserk with all sorts of wild claims about pipelines being racist (being built in places where poor folks of color can’t fight back to stop them). It’s disgusting what these liars will do to oppose a new pipeline. One of their favorite legal tactics in Pennsylvania is to appeal a permit issued by the Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) to the Environmental Hearing Board (EHB), a special court in PA that hears appeals of DEP decisions. However, antis are abusing the PA court system.
The “sue-till-green” strategy sweeping the nation began in 2012 when the radicalized Climate Accountability Institute (CAI) hosted a conference in La Jolla, California. The gathering discussed a new approach to climate activism, mirroring the campaign against Big Tobacco — but this time targeting the oil and gas industry. The goal of the radicals is to effectively revoke the oil and gas industry’s “social license to operate.” Ultimately, this approach buries oil and gas companies with legal fees and, together with other “green” policies, artificially raises the cost of reliable energy and subsidizes the production of unreliable alternative energy sources. Disgusting. And now this strategy has come to Pennsylvania.
In March, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro traveled to Scranton, PA, to announce a proposal to “immediately pull Pennsylvania out of a multi-state carbon cap-and-trade program” (the so-called Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, or RGGI) and instead enroll PA in its very own RGGI-like carbon tax program (see 
Last week, the Baker Hughes U.S. rig count lost another two rigs, down to 603, the lowest the count has been since January of 2022. Since last October, the national count had gone as low as 616 and as high as 629, and that was it — a fairly narrow band. That is, until three weeks when it crashed through the floor and went lower, down to 613. Then, two weeks ago, it was down to 605. And now, it has gone even lower, down to 603. Will we see it go lower than 600?
The environmental left is now attempting to co-opt the term “Evangelical Christian,” defined as protestants who tend to be pro-life and conservative in their political views. We’re here to expose them for who they really are. We’re talking about the so-called Evangelical Environmental Network (EEN) that keeps trying to pressure Pennsylvania to adopt unreliable renewable energy (by government fiat) and to force residents to dump their use of fossil energy. The EEN claims to be “pro-life” and “conservative” in their press releases. We question those statements. Our observation over the years is that EEN supports extreme leftwing Democrat policies ONLY, and they NEVER support any Republican energy policies in Harrisburg. NEVER. We don’t know about their use of the word “Christian” (that’s between them and God), but we can assure you they aren’t conservative. They certainly aren’t Evangelical in the traditional sense of that word.
Two days ago, MDN brought you an extensive article from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that delves into the thorny issue of who should pay to plug some of the 200,000+ orphaned and abandoned wells in Pennsylvania (see 
Yes! It’s about time!! Pennsylvania State Senator Gene Yaw (Republican from Lycoming County) is about to introduce a new bill that will cut off millions of dollars in tax revenues that flow from shale drilling to any municipality (county, town, village, city) that launches a lawsuit against “Big Oil,” as recently happened with Bucks County, a Philadelphia suburb (see 
According to a new article by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, abandoned oil and gas wells can be found “everywhere” in Pennsylvania. An influx of new federal funding gives the state Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) new urgency in finding and plugging them. However, it is the thorny issue of who pays or should pay when the owner is known that caught our attention. In some cases, producers (and speculators) buy leases and land, knowing that new drilling (in particular shale drilling) may one day happen on the property, but the new owners didn’t sign up for the financial responsibility to plug old/existing wells on the property. Should they (instead of taxpayers) be on the hook to pay?
Last week, the Baker Hughes U.S. rig count lost another eight rigs, down to 605, the lowest the count has been since January of 2022. Since last October, the national count had gone as low as 616 and as high as 629, and that was it. No higher and no lower. That is, until two weeks when it crashed through the floor and went lower, down to 613. And now, it has gone even lower, down to 605. The Marcellus/Utica remained even at 40 rigs after losing one rig two weeks ago. Pennsylvania operates 21 rigs; Ohio operates 11 active rigs; and West Virginia operates 8 rigs.
UGI, a diversified energy company with midstream (pipeline) operations in the Marcellus and one of PA’s largest utility companies, hinted last summer that it was looking to sell or spin off its propane subsidiary into a new company (see 
Private companies create jobs and economic stimulus, not “the government,” as the left convinces you. Companies, especially manufacturing companies, locate where there is cheap energy. In Pennsylvania, there is abundant cheap (and CLEAN) energy from Marcellus gas in the northeastern part of the state. And indeed, that is exactly what is happening. Businesses are locating in what locals call the “Inland Triangle” of PA — seven counties with numerous major interstate highways running through them in the heart of the Marcellus.
When the Bidenistas announced a $750 million “investment” of taxpayer money would flow to the Philadelphia region (actually Delaware and New Jersey, and a little bit of Philly) for a “green” hydrogen hub, wackadoodle antis pitched a fit (see