Chesapeake Energy and Statoil ASA are making a major commitment to drilling in the Marcellus Shale over the next two decades:
Another Pennsylvania University is now offering training for those who want a job working in the Marcellus Shale, this time in Western PA.
Those in Pennsylvania who oppose drilling in the Marcellus Shale have gotten a bit desperate. They’re unhappy with new Gov. Tom Corbett, especially since the budget he introduced earlier this week contains budget cuts to education and calls for a layoff of state workers in order to plug a massive multi-billion dollar shortfall, without also including a severance tax on Marcellus Shale drilling in the state. Pennsylvania, like New York, California, Wisconsin, Ohio and a number of other states is essentially bankrupt from years of overspending and one-time gimmicks and budget patches. The chickens have finally come home to roost and now state governments have to make some hard decisions. It is in that context that anti-drilling protestors got nasty and thug-like yesterday:
Read More “Anti-Drilling Protestors Get Nasty at Shale Coalition Building in Harrisburg, PA”
Anti-drilling forces are becoming vocal in Ohio, but the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, which oversees drilling in the state, says they’re prepared to ensure Marcellus drilling is done safely.
Read More “Marcellus Shale Drilling Debate Heats Up in Ohio”
Seneca Resources has sold off its Gulf of Mexico oil and gas properties in order to concentrate more on the Marcellus Shale. From a press announcement yesterday:
Seneca Resources Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of National Fuel Gas Company, announced that it has entered into an agreement to sell its offshore Gulf of Mexico oil and natural gas producing properties for $70 million.
Another example of how drilling in the Marcellus Shale brings more money into communities, in the form of taxes and jobs, this time in Washington County, PA.
To answer the question posed in the headline with brutal honesty: Maybe.
Disturbing Observation #1: Yesterday the New York State Senate unanimously confirmed Joe Martens to lead the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). The DEC, for those who don’t live in New York, is the agency charged with overseeing drilling in the Marcellus Shale—in fact oversight for all oil and gas drilling in the state. New York has been caught in a holding pattern on Marcellus Shale drilling for over two years, and New York’s landowners are growing weary of the delays in adopting new regulations for drilling in the Marcellus, meaning no permits for drilling in the Marcellus have been issued.
Read More “Has New York Already Missed the Marcellus Shale Drilling Boom?”
In yesterday’s budget address, new Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett announced the formation of a 30-member Marcellus Shale Commission. The members of the commission (listed below) come from a cross-section of government officials, representatives from the drilling industry, and representatives from environmental organizations. The new commission, which will be headed up by Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley, is a balanced cross section representing all interests in the drilling debate. The commission is charged with taking a close look at the issue of Marcellus Shale drilling and producing a report with recommendations for development and regulation of the industry in PA. The report is due on the Governor’s desk on or before July 22.
Administrators of North Huntingdon Township, PA (Westmoreland County), are attempting to control drilling in the Marcellus Shale within their borders. They acknowledge that Pennsylvania state courts have already ruled local municipalities cannot outright ban drilling, so the North Huntingdon planning commission is attempting to place restrictions that would greatly curtail drilling in the Township. The current draft regulations—yet to be voted on—focus on noise:
Even though extensive testing done by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has proven Marcellus Shale wastewater does not increase levels of radioactivity in its waterways (see here), that doesn’t stop the over-reaching federal Environmental Protection Agency from interfering in PA’s business:
Read More “U.S. EPA Tries to Tell PA DEP How to Do It’s Job – PA Pushes Back”
It seems that The New York Times’ contention that Pennsylvania is poisoning waterways with radioactivity from Marcellus Shale wastewater was fiction and not science, as is now proven by test results from the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). The DEP conducted tests over the past four months at key locations where wastewater is treated and released into area waterways. Here’s what they found with respect to radioactivity:
Read More “New York Times Proven Wrong – Marcellus Shale Wastewater Has Not Increased Radioactivity Levels in PA Waterways”
At the conclusion of the meeting titled “Marcellus Shale in Our Community: What’s in it for All of Us” held on Friday evening March 4th at the West Middle School auditorium in Binghamton, NY, the audience of about 200 people was encouraged to ask questions of the panel. Below is a list of the questions asked, and the answers received. The answer to the last question of the evening was an eye-opener for MDN, and should be for any landowner in New York.
MDN, along with about 200 other people, attended a meeting titled “Marcellus Shale in Our Community: What’s in it for All of Us” on Friday evening March 4th at the West Middle School auditorium in Binghamton, NY. The audience was, for the most part, composed of landowners and those generally in favor of drilling in the Marcellus Shale in New York. The meeting was sponsored by the Joint Landowners Coalition of New York (JLCNY).
Late last year, the City Council of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania rejected drilling for natural gas inside the city limits. But another city of similar size, Arlington, Texas, allows it within city limits. In an article talking about the pros and cons of “urban drilling” we get this information about the Arlington experiment:
Read More “The Impact of Shale Gas Tax Revenue for Local Municipalities”
Drilling in West Virginia is heating up, but according to state Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Randy Huffman, it’s not “out of control”—yet. Huffman and others do see a critical need for more inspectors, something they hope will soon be approved by the WV legislature.
This is a new, regular post on MDN. Below I list the five most viewed stories from last week, two weeks ago and the past 30 days. There is also a list of any events MDN is aware of happening this coming week (from the MDN Calendar). Be sure to send your event announcements to jim@marcellusdrilling.com.
Coming this week! A new special report exclusively from MDN titled: Will There Be Marcellus Shale Drilling Near Me? Subtitled, Drilling Permits for Marcellus Shale Gas Wells from January 2010 to February 2011. This new report, created by MDN, shows how many permits have been applied for or issued by county and in most cases by local municipality for New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The report not only details the number of well permits, but also lists the numbers by drilling company. Leases are being signed in many locations—landmen are on the move. Although signing a lease can yield a good source of income now, the real money is when an energy company drills on or near your property. You need a permit in order to drill, so permits are a good barometer of the intentions of drilling companies. If you’re a landowner, you can use this special report to see who’s “serious” about drilling near you. If you’ve already signed a lease, use this report to see if drilling may be coming in your area in the near future. Many other interested parties will use this report as well, to see when and if drilling is happening in their communities (local business owners, government officials, residents concerned about traffic, etc.). Keep watching this week for how you can get your copy of this important new special report.
Also coming this week: MDN attended an informational meeting hosted by the Joint Landowner Coalition of New York. Some of the things that came out of the Q&A session at the end are important for landowners in New York State. Watch for a post on Monday.
Happy reading,
Jim Willis, Editor