Marcellus Drilling News

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.

Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA | Wildlife

Penn State Wildlife Official Says Marcellus Drilling and Wildlife Can Co-exist, Urges Caution

March 25, 2011March 25, 2011

Penn State wildlife resources professor Margaret C. Brittingham was one of the officials who addressed a group of 20 people attending the Cambria County Conservation District’s Marcellus Shale forum on Thursday. She was there to urge caution and raise awareness that some PA wildlife can be threatened by drilling operations. She also said there’s no reason drilling and the state’s wildlife cannot co-exist.

Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

Penn State Looking for PA Landowners with Private Water Wells Near Marcellus Drilling for Research Study

March 25, 2011March 25, 2011

Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences wants owners of private drinking-water wells located near completed natural-gas wells in the Marcellus shale region to participate in a study of the impact of gas development. The study will assess the potential impacts of Marcellus gas drilling on rural drinking water wells, according to Bryan Swistock, extension water resources specialist. The data collected from the study is for research purposes and for the education of each homeowner.

Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA | Taxation

PA Gov. Corbett Says Municipal Fees (Not Taxes) for Marcellus Drilling May be OK

March 24, 2011March 24, 2011

Gov. Tom Corbett has been a steadfast opponent of extra taxes on the Marcellus Shale drilling industry in PA. Such opposition was part of his platform when running, and now in office, he has remained opposed, even under withering criticism. In Corbett’s opinion, taxing the industry and dumping that money into the general fund to be used for whatever purpose politicians want to use it is a bad idea (politicians always find uses for other people’s money).

But on Wednesday, Corbett opened the window to the possibility that local municipalities could assess fees to cover expenses associated with Marcellus development in their communities.

Chesapeake Ordered to Stop Work on Drilling Pad in Potter County, PA Because of Erosion

March 24, 2011March 24, 2011

Chesapeake Energy has been ordered to stop work on preparing a drilling site in north central PA because the work they’re doing at the site is causing dirt to runoff into a local stream which in turn is the water source for a local township.

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

Motives of Anti-Drilling Groups Exposed in NY Post Editorial

March 24, 2011March 24, 2011

The headline of a recent editorial in The New York Post says “Frack, baby, frack!” in a play on the oft-quoted phrase “drill, baby, drill.” It is a short but good piece, summarizing where New York stands on drilling in the Marcellus Shale. It encourages newly elected Gov. Andrew Cuomo to either lift the drilling moratorium immediately, or let it expire in July, so drilling can (finally) go forward.

One of the interesting points made in the editorial is that the motives of environmental groups in opposing drilling are not 100 percent pure as the wind-driven snow, which is what they want you to believe. The truth is, opposing Marcellus drilling is “good for business.”

Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Roads | Statewide PA

PA State Police Target Marcellus Drilling Truckers, Take 131 Trucks Off the Road in Just Two Days

March 24, 2011March 24, 2011

On March 14 and 15 the Pennsylvania State Police conducted spot inspections of trucks involved in Marcellus Shale drilling activities—most of them hauling wastewater from drilling sites.