Marcellus Shale Newswire 02/03/2012
Vol. 2, Issue 43
A Collection of Marcellus Shale and Gas Drilling Articles from Pennsylvania and Beyond
PennEnvironment
The Times Leader
Landowners fight eminent domain in Pa. gas field
By Associated Press
January 31, 2012
http://www.timesleader.com/news/Landowners_fight_eminent_domain_in_Pa__gas_field_01-31-2012.html
(AP) When federal regulators approved a 39-mile natural gas pipeline through northern Pennsylvania’s pristine Endless Mountains, they cited the operator’s assurances that it would make sparing use of eminent domain as it negotiated with more than 150 property owners along the pipeline’s route.
Capitol Ideas Blog
With Timer Ticking, Shale Talks Continue
By John L. Micek
January 30, 2012
http://blogs.mcall.com/capitol_ideas/2012/01/with-timer-ticking-shale-talks-continue.html
HARRISBURG – Operators of Marcellus wells, drilling rigs and compressor stations are being notified by state officials to provide air emissions data by March 1, highlighting an issue activists want more attention given in pending impact fee legislation.
The Times-Tribune
Drillers must provide air emissions data
By Robert Swift
January 31, 2012
http://thetimes-tribune.com/news/drillers-must-provide-air-emissions-data-1.1264918#axzz1l2MPZQvA
This is a story about water, the land surrounding it, and the lives it sustains. Clean water should be a right: there is no life without it. New York is what you might call a “water state.” Its rivers and their tributaries only start with the St. Lawrence, the Hudson, the Delaware, and the Susquehanna. The best known of its lakes are Great Lakes Erie and Ontario, Lake George, and the Finger Lakes.
Slopefarms.com Blog
CDC letter on Ohio shale gas drilling and public health. First publication of full text letter
By Ken Jaffe
January 29, 2012
The CDC’s Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ADSRD) has weighed in on a three-year history of drinking water contamination in Medina, OH. They recommended that immediate action be taken to avoid explosion in homes. The problems developed within a week of two gas wells being drilled within 3000 feet of the homes with contaminated drinking water.
Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center
Gas Drilling Tax Impasse Costs Pa. $300 Million
By Chris Lilienthal
January 31, 2012
http://wallaby.telicon.com/PA/library/2012/2012013193.HTM
HARRISBURG, PA (January 31, 2012) – Legislative inaction on a natural gas drilling tax has cost Pennsylvania $300 million in lost revenue, according to the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center.
The Intelligencer, Wheeling News-Register
Industry, Professors at Odds on Gas
By Casey Junkins
January 30, 2012
ST. CLAIRSVILLE – Professors from Cornell University believe methane released by natural gas drilling activities may be worse for the environment than burning coal, but gas industry officials disagree.
Canon-McMillan Patch
Corbett Signs Marcellus Shale Emergency Response Plan Bill
By Amanda Gillooly
February 03, 2012
http://canon-mcmillan.patch.com/articles/corbett-signs-marcellus-shale-emergence-response-plan-bill
The location of some Marcellus Shale sites makes a bill that Gov. Tom Corbett signed into law Thursday that much more important.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Obama’s backing of shale gas aimed at voters in Marcellus region
By Erich Schwartzel
January 29, 2012
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/12029/1206758-176.stm
President Barack Obama’s early valentine to the natural gas industry in his State of the Union address Tuesday spurred activist anxiety and industry infatuation, but the lengthy section dedicated to domestic energy was also an appeal to the millions of voters living above the Marcellus Shale formation.
Brighton-Pittsford Post
Guest View: New group eyes fracking safety
By Corinne Coon
February 03, 2012
http://www.brightonpittsfordpost.com/opinion/x1087080830/GUEST-VIEW-New-group-eyes-fracking-safety
MPNnow.com —The newly formed Citizens’ Alliance for a Pristine Perinton, CAPP is an organization of Fairport and Perinton residents that alliance of citizens concerned about the health and welfare of our children, grandchildren and generations to come. Put simply, the group has been formed to address the current “gold rush to drill” mentality of politicians and energy companies eager to capitalize on the potential of drilling for natural gas contained in the Marcellus and Utica shale layers.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Texas law requires disclosure of drilling cocktails
By Erich Schwartzel
February 02, 2012
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/12033/1207621-28-0.stm
Texas has more gas drilling than any other state and on Wednesday it started requiring drillers to release the list of chemicals used on each well — everything from the tetrakis hydroxymethyl-phosphonium sulfate that eliminates bacteria in water to the formic acid used to prevent pipe corrosion.
WJAC TV
New website tracks Marcellus shale drilling records
By WJAC Web Staff
January 30, 2012
http://www.wjactv.com/news/news/new-website-tracks-marcellus-shale-drilling-record/nHKyB/
A new website now allows people to better track the progress of Marcellus shale drilling. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection launched the website two weeks ago, and it makes it easier for people to access permit records, drilling dates, inspections and other information