Marcellus Drilling News

Those Opposed to Marcellus Gas Drilling Get Creative – Claim Drilling is a Human Rights Violation

March 31, 2011March 31, 2011

Those who oppose drilling are trying a new tactic. Their argument is that (a) gas drilling pollutes the air and the water, (b) clean air and water are basic human rights, therefore (c) gas drilling must be banned in order to protect human rights. Here is an example of that argument from a town meeting in Newton Township (Lackawanna County), PA, convened for the purpose of organizing against drilling:

Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA | Wastewater

Anti-Drilling Protestors in PA Break the Law (Again), This Time Disrupting a Meeting

March 30, 2011March 30, 2011

The Marcellus Shale Environmental Summit was held this week at the Renaissance Hotel in downtown Pittsburgh. Inside were some 120 people listening to speakers talk on the topic of using technology to treat drilling wastewater so that the wastewater doesn’t end up in Pennsylvania’s waterways. Most people would agree that’s a good thing.

Outside the hotel was a small group of 30 anti-drilling protestors. And as we saw a few weeks ago in Harrisburg (Anti-Drilling Protestors Get Nasty at Shale Coalition Building in Harrisburg, PA), these protestors were not content to peaceably and respectfully march and make their statement. They decided they were above the law:

Belmont County | Jefferson County (OH) | Monroe County | Ohio | Statewide OH

Marcellus Shale Drilling Heats Up in Ohio – “Few Thousand Wells” to be Drilled in Next Several Years

March 30, 2011March 30, 2011

Drillers who have been active in both Pennsylvania and West Virginia are now turning their sites on Eastern Ohio where a slice of the Marcellus Shale formation sits.

"The economies around us are benefiting from drilling. You see it in Pennsylvania, it’s real; you see it in West Virginia, it’s real. Now it’s here, and we have to grasp the opportunity," said state Sen. Wilson, D-Columbiana. "I think this is the biggest opportunity for job growth for eastern Ohio we have seen in a generation."

"This is really an enormous opportunity for us," said Wilson, who represents Belmont, Jefferson, Harrison and Columbiana counties. "I know we could be looking at a few thousand wells being drilled over the next several years – that creates a lot of work and economic activity.*

Bradford County | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania

Sen. Bob Casey Wants Feds to Investigate PA House Explosions in Bradford Township

March 30, 2011March 30, 2011

U.S. Senator Bob Casey (Democrat, Pennsylvania), keeps wanting to get the feds involved in gas drilling in his state, and he looks for any excuse to do so. The latest excuse involves two house explosions in Bradford Township, PA, one on Dec. 12, the other on Feb. 28. Casey claims both explosions are due to natural gas drilling in the area, even though the state police fire marshal is still investigating and has not yet come to that conclusion.

In a letter to U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu, Sen. Casey pins the blame on migrating methane gas from nearby wells.

Statewide WV | West Virginia

Polish Delegation Visits WVU to Learn About Drilling for Natural Gas

March 30, 2011March 30, 2011

Representatives from Poland visited the National Research Center for Coal and Energy at West Virginia University on Tuesday to learn more about drilling for shale gas. Poland recently discovered a shale layer in their country similar to the Marcellus Shale layer in the Eastern U.S., and they want to get help with tapping it.

Allegheny County | Economic Impact | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh Jobs Up, Housing Prices Up, Bankruptcies Down – Why? Hydraulic Fracturing

March 30, 2011March 30, 2011

Although the entire U.S. remains mired in slow growth, perhaps even a double-dip recession, there are places in the country that are seeing rapid job and economic growth. One of those places is the Bakken Oil fields of North Dakota. Another place is Pittsburgh. Why have those two areas seen such growth and economic prosperity? Hydraulic fracturing. In the case of North Dakota, it’s hydraulic fracturing of oil wells. In the Pittsburgh area, it’s hydraulic fracturing of Marcellus Shale gas wells.

Below is an recent email sent by PittsburghTODAY speaking about Pittsburgh’s economic comeback:

Industrywide Issues | Lancaster County | Pennsylvania | Wastewater

Lancaster, PA Water District Wants Testing for Radioactivity in Susquehanna River

March 29, 2011March 29, 2011

The city of Lancaster, PA supplies drinking water for 110,000 people in the city and surrounding suburbs. The drinking water comes from both the Conestoga and Susquehanna Rivers, with more of it coming from the Conestoga. But the city is planning to change the mix and start drawing a majority of its water from the Susquehanna River—and that has them concerned about potential radioactivity from Marcellus Shale drilling.

Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

New Interactive Map Shows Marcellus Gas Wells in PA

March 29, 2011March 29, 2011

MDN recommends a new online interactive map that shows Marcellus Shale gas wells in Pennsylvania. In fact, there are many such mapping applications out there, but this one stands apart. Bear in mind it is brand new and is still “in development” with plans from its creator to be further developed in the coming few years. But MDN found it to already be a solid and useful tool for anyone with an interest (for or against) Marcellus Shale drilling.

The map can be found at //www.fracktrack.org. Here are the steps MDN took to find the map you see embedded below in this article.

Allegheny County | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

Attend (or Watch Online) a Free Public Debate: “Should Pittsburgh Permit Marcellus Shale Drilling?”

March 29, 2011March 29, 2011

MDN received the following press release about a Marcellus Shale debate that will be held in Pittsburgh on Wednesday, April 6th. The debate will be in the classical forensic style of debating where each side gets a certain amount of time to make it’s arguments and to respond to the opposition’s arguments. Should be an interesting event!

From the release:

Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Statewide WV | Wastewater | West Virginia

West Virginia’s Policy on Disposing Marcellus Drilling Wastewater: Injection Wells

March 29, 2011March 29, 2011

West Virginia’s policy on the wastewater produced from hydraulic fracturing is to dispose of it by pumping it into injection wells.

Encana Energy | Energy Companies | Luzerne County | Pennsylvania

Encana Abandons Two Non-Producing Marcellus Gas Wells in Luzerne County, PA

March 28, 2011March 28, 2011

Not every property that’s leased gets drilled on. But “the rest of the story” as Paul Harvey used to say, is that not every Marcellus Shale well that is drilled actually produces. If a company decides to drill, landowners are excited, with good reason. But best to temper that excitement with the statistic that a certain percentage (MDN has heard as high as 10%) of the wells drilled never end up producing. That was the case recently in Luzerne County, PA where Encana has abandoned two wells—the “Salansky” and “Buda” wells.

BLX-Redmill Gas | Butler County | Energy Companies | Lease & Royalty Payments | Pennsylvania

Township in Western PA Offered $4500 per Acre for Marcellus Drilling Lease

March 28, 2011March 28, 2011

Winfield Township supervisors are mulling over an offer from BLX-Redmill Gas to lease a park in Butler County, PA for Marcellus drilling. But it’s a complicated offer involving re-selling the drilling rights by packaging them with other properties in the area, and also selling the rights to install pipelines to a third party.

Industrywide Issues | Marshall County | Roads | West Virginia

Road Damage from Marcellus Drilling Activity in Marshall County, WV

March 28, 2011March 28, 2011

In parts of Marshall County, WV, the roads are in bad condition due to the heavy truck traffic from Marcellus drilling activity in the area.

Commodity Price | Industrywide Issues

Shale Gas Keeps Heating Prices Low for Homeowners

March 28, 2011March 28, 2011

Is it time for homeowners to switch from heating with oil to heating with natural gas? More and more are doing just that.

MDN Weekly Update

MDN Weekly Update – Mar 27, 2011

March 27, 2011March 28, 2011

MDN is pleased to announce that our latest headlines (with links to the full articles) are now available at the NaturalGasPA.com website. You can see MDN’s page on that site here: //naturalgaspa.com/page/marcellus-drilling-news. Our thanks to Art West who created and manages the NaturalGasPA.com website. The stated purpose of the site is: “A website dedicated to PA residents and the natural gas industry. We connect businesses, residents and places to the Marcellus gas play!” MDN encourages our readers to check out Art’s excellent site and the many resources available in it.

Below you’ll find the “top 5” lists and this week’s calendar listings.

Happy reading,
Jim Willis, Editor

Landowner Coalition News | Pennsylvania | Westmoreland County

Westmorland County, PA Joins Local Landowner Coalition with Aim to Allow Drilling on County-Owned Land

March 25, 2011March 25, 2011

Commissioners for Westmoreland County in western Pennsylvania have voted to join a local landowner coalition with the very real prospect of negotiating a lease that will allow drilling on county property that includes an historic site dating to 1773.