Marcellus Drilling News

Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Patriot Water Treatment | Trumbull County | Wastewater

Patriot Water Permit Renewal in Jeopardy in Northeastern Ohio
June 21, 2011June 21, 2011

Patriot Water operates a Marcellus Shale wastewater treatment plant in Warren, Ohio—in the northeastern part of the state, not far from the border of PA. Patriot pre-treats drilling wastewater and then sends it to the Warren municipal sewage treatment plant where it is further processed and released to the Mahoning River. Patriot has invested $3 million and has hired 45 people to operate the plant.

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA) has told the Warren municipal sewage treatment plant their permit to accept Patriot’s treated wastewater will not be renewed when it expires in July 2012, even though there has not been a single “finding” or violation issued by the OEPA to Patriot.

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About MDN

MDN Needs Your Feedback to Continue Publishing
June 20, 2011June 26, 2011

Periodically someone will email me privately, or leave a comment on an article, and ask if the MDN website is sponsored by a drilling company or pro-drilling group of some kind. My answer, which is the truth, is always the same: No! I receive no compensation of any kind whatsoever, either in money or trade or services, for what I write on this site. Zippo. Nada.

There are those who don’t believe me. I’m not sure how I can convince you, but I am telling the truth. I think, if you read this site long enough, you’ll know that I always attempt tell the truth. I share my opinions, and from time to time I even own up to some mistakes.

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Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Pennsylvania | Statewide OH | Statewide PA | Wastewater

PA Marcellus Drilling Wastewater Going to Ohio
June 20, 2011June 20, 2011

Millions of barrels of fracking fluid—wastewater often referred to as “brine” because of the heavy salts in it—are being imported from Pennsylvania Marcellus Shale drilling operations into Ohio, and it has some Ohioans concerned. Fracking fluid/wastewater/brine is what comes back out of the bore hole after sending water, sand and some chemicals down the hole during drilling.

Many larger drillers now recycle 100 percent of the wastewater for reuse in other drilling. For those who do not recycle it, it must be disposed—either by treating it at special facilities where it is then safe for release back into streams and rivers, or by storing it in underground wells, known as injection wells.

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Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

“Monumental” Water Withdrawal Legislation Will Soon Become Law in NY – DEC Gets Big Tool to Tightly Control Gas Drilling
June 20, 2011June 20, 2011

It’s looking quite likely that legislation requiring a permit from the Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC) for any water withdrawals from a lake, river or stream in New York State exceeding 100,000 gallons will soon become law. As MDN previously reported (see here), the NY Assembly passed a bill in May governing water withdrawals from state waterways. Now, the NY Senate has joined them in unanimously passing the same bill. It now goes to Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s desk for signature.

Marcellus drilling operations, which have not yet begun in New York State due to a moratorium, require large amounts of water per well drilled—some 3 to 4 million gallons per well. This new law requiring permits for water withdrawals is one of the important tools that the DEC will use to control drilling in the state when drilling finally begins. No water—no drilling. Or, “Take your time approving that permit,” to slow things down. It’s a powerful tool that the DEC can (and assuredly will) use to keep tight control over gas drilling in the state.

Read More ““Monumental” Water Withdrawal Legislation Will Soon Become Law in NY – DEC Gets Big Tool to Tightly Control Gas Drilling”
Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA | Taxation

New Quinnipiac Poll: PA Voters Want Marcellus Drilling to Continue, and an Extraction Tax
June 20, 2011June 20, 2011

According to a new poll by Quinnipiac University, nearly two-thirds of PA voters want Marcellus Shale gas drilling to continue. Slightly more than two-thirds of PA voters also want a drilling (or extraction) tax on gas drilling.

Read More “New Quinnipiac Poll: PA Voters Want Marcellus Drilling to Continue, and an Extraction Tax”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Washington County

Energy Dept Hearing in Western PA Draws Big Crowd For & Against Hydraulic Fracturing and Gas Drilling
June 14, 2011June 14, 2011

President Obama recently instructed Secretary of Energy Steven Chu to form the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board (SEAB) Natural Gas Subcommittee, a group of six experts from academe, industry and environmental groups to advise President Obama on how to improve the safety of shale gas development, with a focus specifically on hydraulic fracturing. No doubt the “advising” part will turn into federal regulations at some point, so both sides of the debate are anxious to make their voices heard.

Read More “Energy Dept Hearing in Western PA Draws Big Crowd For & Against Hydraulic Fracturing and Gas Drilling”
Dominion Energy | Energy Services | Exporting | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Statewide PA

PA Residents: Gas Drilling? Yes. Gas Exporting? No.
June 13, 2011June 13, 2011

Many Pennsylvania residents are in favor of shale gas drilling, but exporting the gas makes them mad.

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Economic Impact | Industrywide Issues | Marshall County | West Virginia

Marshall County, WV Feeling the Positive Effects of Marcellus Gas Drilling
June 13, 2011June 13, 2011

Marshall County, West Virginia is feeling the positive effects of Marcellus Shale drilling as money paid to landowners and workers is spent and creates economic ripples through the local economy.

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Guernsey County | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Utica Shale

Ohioans Take a Field Trip to Pennsylvania to Observe Gas Wells & Farms Safely Co-existing
June 13, 2011June 13, 2011

Representatives from Guernsey County, Ohio took a field trip last week to Pennsylvania to have a look at how gas drilling can safely be done—even in the midst of farming operations.

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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues

New York Post: The Real Reason Environmentalists Don’t Like Natural Gas
June 10, 2011June 10, 2011

A column in yesterday’s New York Post talks about the recent flurry of bans against gas drilling and hydraulic fracturing by local municipalities like the cities of Buffalo, NY and Pittsburgh, PA. The columnist speculates on why environmental groups are so viciously opposed to natural gas, when just a few short years ago they were in favor of it. The writer comes to the same conclusion that MDN has written about before: At the heart of the debate is a philosophical worldview that because natural gas is a “fossil fuel” and based on carbon, an abundance of it will slow down the adoption of “alternatives” (like wind and solar) and therefore it must be defeated. And the way to defeat it is to demagogue it and scare people into believing their water supplies will be poisoned.

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Carrizo Oil & Gas | Energy Companies | Pennsylvania | Susquehanna County | Wyoming County (PA)

Carrizo Oil & Gas Operations Update: Wells in Susquehanna County, PA Due Online in August
June 10, 2011June 10, 2011

Carrizo Oil & Gas recently provided the following operations update on their Marcellus Shale drilling activities in Susquehanna and Wyoming Counties in Pennsylvania:

Read More “Carrizo Oil & Gas Operations Update: Wells in Susquehanna County, PA Due Online in August”
Bradford County | Chief Oil & Gas | Energy Companies | Pennsylvania

MDN In-depth: Bradford County, PA Mother Claims Barium Poisoning from Nearby Gas Drilling Activity
June 9, 2011June 9, 2011

The following happened at an anti-gas drilling rally in Harrisburg, PA on Tuesday:

A boisterous anti-gas drilling rally turned quiet Tuesday as Bradford County resident Crystal Stroud described how her family’s health has suffered this spring following the discovery that their water well was contaminated with toxic substances.

Speaking in a soft voice, Stroud, a 29-year-old wife and mother from Granville Summit, said tests by a commercial water analysis firm show the well has been contaminated with barium, strontium and radon. She experienced barium poisoning as a result with classic symptoms of heart palpitations, hair falling out and shortness of breath, she added. Her 4-year-old son has high barium levels too.

Stroud places the responsibility for the well contamination on nearby drilling activities by Chief Oil & Gas Co. The driller has disputed her claim, saying none of the elements she cited were used in drilling a nearby well, which had not been hydraulically fractured.

Stroud criticized the state Department of Environmental Protection and Health Department for inaction after being alerted about the contamination problem. "It sickens me that nothing is being done," she told a crowd of several hundred in the Capitol Rotunda. "Every day, I struggle with the fact we cannot trust our government to protect the people."*

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Energy Companies | Exxon Mobil | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

ExxonMobil Continues Expansion in the Marcellus, Buys Two More PA Drillers for $1.69 Billion, Adds Another 317K Acres of Leases
June 9, 2011June 9, 2011

ExxonMobil has just picked up another 317,000 acres of gas leases in the Marcellus Shale by purchasing two privately held Pennsylvania drilling companies for $1.69 billion. Since last year, ExxonMobil has become the largest producer of natural gas in the U.S.

Read More “ExxonMobil Continues Expansion in the Marcellus, Buys Two More PA Drillers for $1.69 Billion, Adds Another 317K Acres of Leases”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

Is the Anti-Drilling Crowd Losing Steam? Low Numbers Turn Out for Josh Fox Rally in Harrisburg
June 8, 2011June 8, 2011

Perhaps the real question should be: Did the anti-drilling crowd ever really have a head of steam to begin with? The mainstream media certainly wants you to think so. A relatively small group of people who oppose drilling in the Marcellus—indeed people who are demanding a total ban on gas drilling—seem to get a lot of press coverage, while a majority who support it get relatively little press coverage.

MDN’s observation and the reason for this post…

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Economic Impact | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

New York Will See $11.4 Billion in New Investment, $1.4 Billion in New Tax Revenue, and 18K New Jobs if the Fracking Moratorium is Lifted
June 8, 2011June 8, 2011

New York State will see a huge $11.4 billion in economic investment by 2020, with state and local governments receiving $1.4 billion in new tax revenues, as well as 15,000-18,000 new jobs created if the current moratorium preventing Marcellus Shale drilling is lifted, according to a report released yesterday by the award-winning think tank Manhattan Institute for Policy Research.

The report, titled “The Economic Opportunities of Shale Energy Development,” projects an additional (and astonishing) 75,000-90,000 jobs would be created if the Utica Shale is tapped. (The Utica Shale requires horizontal hydraulic fracturing as does the Marcellus Shale.)

Read More “New York Will See $11.4 Billion in New Investment, $1.4 Billion in New Tax Revenue, and 18K New Jobs if the Fracking Moratorium is Lifted”
Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

Former PA DEP Secretary John Hanger: If You Say “No” to Gas, You Say “Yes” to Coal & Oil
June 8, 2011June 8, 2011

Former Pennsylvania DEP Secretary, John Hanger, spoke about the advantages and potential pitfalls of Marcellus Shale drilling at a meeting last night in Ligonier, PA:

Read More “Former PA DEP Secretary John Hanger: If You Say “No” to Gas, You Say “Yes” to Coal & Oil”