Marcellus Drilling News

Housing | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Washington County

Developer Lawsuit Over Denied Marcellus Boarding House Project
July 17, 2014July 17, 2014

As MDN told you a month ago, Washington, PA City Council would rather have a long-abandoned eyesore and former convent stay that way rather than have it improved and used as housing for Marcellus Shale workers (see Washington, PA Votes to Reject Marcellus Boarding House). The developer of the property is not taking City Council’s “no” answer lying down in the gutter, like those who hang around the abandoned convent. Lawyers for the developer have filed a lawsuit to force the issue…
Read More “Developer Lawsuit Over Denied Marcellus Boarding House Project”
Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Thu, Jul 17, 2014
July 17, 2014July 17, 2014

The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading:
Read More “Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Thu, Jul 17, 2014”
Energy Companies | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | New York | Norse Energy | Regulation | Statewide NY

JLCNY Says Appeal of Article 78 Lawsuit Decision is “Very Likely”
July 16, 2014July 16, 2014

New Yorkers continue to react to the dismissal of a court case brought by the 70,000-member Joint Landowners Coalition of New York (JLCNY) and Norse Energy against state officials to force them to release six-year-delayed fracking regulations (see NY Pro-Drillers Lose 2nd Important Shale Drilling Court Case). Below we have reaction from the JLCNY, which says it’s “very likely” to appeal the ruling from the lower NY court in Albany County, along with copies of the court decisions…
Read More “JLCNY Says Appeal of Article 78 Lawsuit Decision is “Very Likely””
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Regulation

EPA Extends Public Comments for Frack Chemical Disclosure Rule
July 16, 2014July 16, 2014

In May MDN told you that the federal EPA is making another power play to regulate fracking via the back door–by potentially requiring drillers to disclose chemicals used in drilling to the EPA, using the federal Toxic Substances Control Act as its excuse (see Rogue Federal EPA Tries New Power Play to Regulate Fracking). In May, the EPA issued an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) which included a 90-day public comment period. The agency has just extended it another 30 days–to 120 days of public comment…
Read More “EPA Extends Public Comments for Frack Chemical Disclosure Rule”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

PA Fish & Boat Commission Wants $1M for Marcellus Investigators
July 16, 2014July 16, 2014

The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission wants its own Marcellus Shale pollution police force and its asking PA lawmakers to cough up $1 million to make it happen. For that $1M the Commission would hire seven people, one chief and six Indians–who would be tasked with investigating suspected cases of pollution related to drilling activities…
Read More “PA Fish & Boat Commission Wants $1M for Marcellus Investigators”
Industrywide Issues | Lackawanna County | Landfills | Pennsylvania | Regulation

Scranton Landfill Gets Permission to Process Liquid Frack Waste
July 16, 2014July 16, 2014

MDN has long covered stories about PA’s third busiest landfill, the Keystone Sanitary Landfill, near Scranton. Why? Because they accept drill cuttings (leftover rock and dirt) from shale drilling. In March 2012 the landfill was allowed to increase their daily intake of Marcellus drill cuttings from 600 to 1,000 tons per day (see Scranton Landfill Request for More Shale Cuttings Approved). Then in October 2012 they filed to double capacity again, from 1,000 to 2,000 tons per day (see Scranton Landfill Wants to Double (Again) Shale Cuttings). The PA Dept. of Environmental Protection approved that request as well. In April of this year Keystone filed a request that they be allowed to accept liquid fracking waste–so they can separate and landfill the solids, and return the water to the driller to be reused. That request has just been approved too…
Read More “Scranton Landfill Gets Permission to Process Liquid Frack Waste”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

DEP Sec. Abruzzo Says Budget Bill Means Delay in New Drilling Regs
July 16, 2014July 16, 2014

On Monday, MDN asked the question and explored the issue of whether or not the recent language slipped into the PA budget bill (that was passed and signed by Gov. Corbett) to separate conventional and unconventional drilling regulations would require the Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) and their Environmental Quality Board (EQB) to go back to the drawing board with new regulations stipulated by the Act 13 law (see Is PA’s Act 13 Law on Last Legs with Passage of PA Budget?). DEP Secretary Chris Abruzzo tackled that issue head-on yesterday…
Read More “DEP Sec. Abruzzo Says Budget Bill Means Delay in New Drilling Regs”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Health Impacts | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Research | Statewide NY

NY Antis Release So-Called Compendium of Fracking Health Risks
July 16, 2014July 16, 2014

Apparently anti-drillers in New York State are tired of waiting for the State Dept. of Health (DOH) to release its findings on public healthy implications from proposed new fracking rules from the Dept. of Conservation (now six years overdue). So a group of anti-drillers calling themselves Concerned Health Professionals of New York (mostly it’s New York’s own anti-drilling diva Sandra Steingraber) put a couple of summer interns to good use and compiled a so-called “report” of alllllll the damage done by shale drilling–a compendium of its evil, nasty, vile effects. (Just don’t tell anyone in PA, WV, OH, TX, OK, CO, CA, ND or any other state where shale drilling is heavily done–those residents don’t realize they’ve been damaged)…
Read More “NY Antis Release So-Called Compendium of Fracking Health Risks”
Allegheny County | Education | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania

PTI Welcomes First Class of Welding Associate Degree Students
July 16, 2014July 16, 2014

Responding to the urgent and ongoing need for skilled welders in the Marcellus and Utica Shale, Pittsburgh Technical Institute announced yesterday a new associates degree in welding to train pipe and structural welders. The first class in the new degree program will begin on July 21 and another cohort will begin in October. PTI says they expect both classes to be filled to capacity…
Read More “PTI Welcomes First Class of Welding Associate Degree Students”
Best of the Rest

Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Wed, Jul 16, 2014
July 16, 2014July 16, 2014

The “best of the rest” – stories that caught MDN’s eye that you may be interested in reading:
Read More “Marcellus & Utica Shale Story Links: Wed, Jul 16, 2014”
Energy Companies | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | New York | Norse Energy | Regulation | Statewide NY

NY Pro-Drillers Lose 2nd Important Shale Drilling Court Case
July 15, 2014July 15, 2014

Yet another defeat for shale drilling in anti-drilling New York. First, the most important case that will hamper drilling in the Empire State was lost just a few weeks ago (see Shale Drilling in NY is Over – High Court Upholds Town Bans). Yesterday, a lower court decided to toss out the “Article 78” lawsuit brought by the 70,000-member Joint Landowners Coalition of New York and Norse Energy against Gov. Andy Cuomo, DEC Sec. Joe Martens, and former Dept. of Health Sec. Nirav Shah (see D-Day: JLCNY Files Lawsuit Today Against Cuomo, Martens, Shah). The Article 78 lawsuit would have forced them to finally release new drilling rules as they are obviously colluding to stop the release. Other states take two years or less to review and allow shale drilling (see today’s story about North Carolina). It’s been over six years in New York, and with this decision, there is literally no end in sight…
Read More “NY Pro-Drillers Lose 2nd Important Shale Drilling Court Case”
Accidents | CNX Resources | CONSOL Energy | Energy Companies | Greene County (PA) | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania

Fire at CONSOL Well Pad Site in Greene County, PA
July 15, 2014July 15, 2014

CONSOL Energy experienced a small fire yesterday around 3:30 pm at their Green Hill 11 drill pad near Waynesburg (Greene County), PA. There are precious few details, but we know that no one was injured, and the fire was out and the fire department left the scene within two hours–meaning it was fairly minor…
Read More “Fire at CONSOL Well Pad Site in Greene County, PA”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Regulation

North Carolina Shames New York: Fracking Begins in 2015
July 15, 2014July 15, 2014

It’s taken six long years and New York State still has no regulations in place to allow high volume hydraulic fracturing–to it’s utter shame and the shame of Gov. Andrew Cuomo. When it is allowed (and it will be allowed at some point, you can bank on it), the fight will go local because of a bone-headed decision by the state’s highest court (see Shale Drilling in NY is Over – High Court Upholds Town Bans). By this time next year, North Carolina will have active fracking and shale drilling. How long did it take that state? Two years from the time they placed a moratorium on fracking (in 2012) until last week when the Republican governor of North Carolina signed a law to allow it by next year…
Read More “North Carolina Shames New York: Fracking Begins in 2015”
Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies

Chesapeake Sells Off Another 162 Compressor Plants for $135M
July 15, 2014July 15, 2014

In February of this year, Chesapeake sold off a boatload of compressor plants. They sold 103 “compression units” in the Marcellus/Utica to Access Midstream (Access is now being bought by Williams). At the time, they sold another 334 compressors to Exterran Partners. Proceeds of that fire sale were $520 million for Carl Icahn’s pocket (see Chesapeake Fire Sale Continues: Marcellus/Utica Compressor Plants). Word came yesterday that Chessy isn’t done with selling off their compressor plants. They’ve now sold another 162 units for $135 million to Exterran…
Read More “Chesapeake Sells Off Another 162 Compressor Plants for $135M”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | CNG/LNG | Crime | Exporting | Industrywide Issues

24 Anti-Drilling Protesters Arrested by Homeland Security in DC
July 15, 2014July 15, 2014

MDN reported yesterday on the massive flop of a protest in Washington, DC against the Cove Point, Maryland LNG export facility (see Anti-Cove Point LNG Protest in DC Flops Bigtime). The so-called protest literally got no coverage from the media–except for the terrorist-loving Al Jazeera America network. What to do? Some of the more virulent protesters desperately craved some media attention, so they did what they often do–break the law. More than 30 anti-drilling “protesters” locked arms and blocked the entrance to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission building in downtown DC yesterday. Homeland Security arrested 24 of them…
Read More “24 Anti-Drilling Protesters Arrested by Homeland Security in DC”
CNG/LNG | Dominion Energy | Energy Services | Exporting | Industrywide Issues | Maryland | Statewide MD

Dominion to Begin Cove Point LNG Construction in Next 2 Mos
July 15, 2014July 15, 2014

Despite the best protest efforts by anti-drillers against the Cove Point, Maryland LNG export facility in Washington (see our stories from yesterday and today), Dominion waits for final approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory commission (FERC) to begin construction. Dominion previously got a green light from the Dept. of Energy last September (see Celebrate! Dominion Wins DOE Approval for MD LNG Export Facility). Dominion also got an initial green light from FERC (see FERC Final EIS: Cove Point Won’t Hurt Environment). However, Dominion needs a final approval from FERC before they can begin construction. They expect that approval very soon…
Read More “Dominion to Begin Cove Point LNG Construction in Next 2 Mos”