Posts Tagged ‘Bob Casey’

Experts say area should prepare because drilling is not far off

SCRANTON — Drilling for natural gas in Marcellus Shale in Monroe and Pike counties? It’s not a question of if, but when.

That was the word from around the state Thursday at a forum at Marywood University, where experts said the region is rich in the valuable fossil fuel.

The bulk of the drilling now in northeast Pennsylvania is along the northern tier but could eventually extend into the Poconos.

Kathryn Zuberbuhler Klaber, president and executive director of the Marcellus Shale Coalition, said areas more conducive to the entire operation — including roads and pipeline — are the first areas that will be drilled. Once more companies get involved and more money is available, drilling could expand to other parts of the state that haven’t seen it yet.

“There’s only so much capital right now,” she said. “By its nature, you’re going to see that concentrated development.”

Currently, there are no Marcellus Shale drilling operations in Monroe or Pike counties. There is only one in Wayne County.

One roadblock from local drilling right now is the Delaware River Basin Commission, which stopped issuing drilling permits in 2009 until it can formulate a list of regulations gas companies must meet.

Clarke Rupert, spokesman for the DRBC, said the commission hopes to have those regulations finalized by the end of the summer and adopted by the end of the year, admitting that’s an “optimistic” schedule.

Marcellus Shale is found in most of Pennsylvania and parts of New York and West Virginia, about 5,000 to 8,000 feet below the surface. It had been considered too expensive to drill, but advances in technology and the rising cost of natural gas made it more attractive, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.

The new method of drilling — hydraulic fracturing, known as “fracking” — uses large amounts of water mixed with sand and other items to fracture the shale and allow the gas to flow, according to the DEP. The water used is then treated before it is released back into the water system.

However, residents near some drilling operations have complained that local water supplies have been damaged. That’s led to some in the state to wonder if this is another coal industry, which ravaged the land of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area before it was gone.

U.S. Rep. Paul E. Kanjorski, D-11, called the shale movement “our second chance” to correct the mistakes of the coal industry.

“Don’t exploit us, and we’ll work with you,” he said our message should be to gas companies. “Exploit us, and you don’t know the (bother) we can be to you.”

John Quigley, secretary of the state’s Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, said about half of Pennsylvania’s state parks are in areas where Marcellus Shale is thought to be present, and about 700,000 of the 2.1 million acres of state forest land already is leased by gas companies.

He called for the state to stop issuing permits to gas companies until there is more known about the industry.

“Frankly, I think we need to take more than a timeout, we need to take a stop,” he said.

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., encouraged local government leaders who may not have many avenues of protecting themselves to write and even pressure their state and federal representatives to make sure the Marcellus Shale industry is regulated.

“There is almost no area that can look and say, ‘That’s someone else’s problem,’” he said. “We all have to do what we can to make sure this is done the right way.”

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Copyright:  Pocono Record

Barnstorming Pa., MSC Continues to Educate, Engage “Friends of Marcellus”

The positive and overwhelming benefits associated with the responsible development of the Marcellus Shale’s abundant, homegrown, clean-burning natural gas know no county lines or state borders. Considered to be the world’s second largest natural gas field – second only to one in Iran – the Marcellus Shale’s potential to generate jobs, revenue and opportunity for all Pennsylvanians is real. And it’s a story worth taking on the road.

And so this week, that’s what the Marcellus Shale Coalition and its growing grassroots network did – traveling the length and width of the Commonwealth to continue to educate and engage the 12 million folks that proudly call Pennsylvania home. Along the way, we also took some time to  highlight the economic, supply-chain and job growth opportunities that continue to be created for the local workforce — efforts that will continue at an aggressive pace as the responsible exploration of clean-burning natural gas in Pennsylvania continues to expand.

Here’s a quick snapshot of the ground that the MSC has covered in just the past couple days, along with a run-down of where we’re headed next:

We Started in Philadelphia

The MSC joined the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) to educate local businesses last week of the enormous opportunities that exist up and down the Marcellus Shale supply chain. MSC president Kathryn Klaber also met with elected leaders in Philadelphia to discuss the merits of natural gas-powered vehicles, and other benefits that the Mighty Marcellus will continue to deliver to the city’s residents.

Click here to view the embedded video.

• “There’s a lot of safeguards in place…that make sure Pennsylvanians have safe drinking water,” said Marcellus Shale Coalition president Kathryn Klaber. Klaber is also here to talk about the economic benefits of expanding drilling, mainly the estimated 200,000 jobs that would be created in Pennsylvania. (ABC6 TV, 8/13/10)

Then We Headed Back to Pittsburgh

At the Pittsburgh Business Times’ Energy Inc. conference yesterday afternoon, Gov. Tom Ridge – as reported by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette – highlighted the benefits of responsible Marcellus development, as well as the safeguards in place and the commitment from the industry to protect the environment.

Click here to view the embedded video.

• Gov. Tom Ridge

o    “I think this is a potentially a transformational opportunity for our state. At the same time, we have to – we must – do it in a way consistent with our commitment to retain the beauty and the bounty, and the pristine condition of Pennsylvania.”

o    “I was on site today that 80 or 90 folks working that at the that site, and about 80 percent of them were local residents from Pennsylvania. Of course, the economic sustainability is real. They call it the ‘Marcellus Multiplier.’

o    “At the end of the day, facts are stubborn things. And we just have to get some facts out there so people can better understand what the industry can do – and will do – to build a sustainable economic model and be true to our commitment to the environment.”

And Now We’re Headed to State College – And Beyond

In an effort to further underscore the benefits responsible that Marcellus Shale development is generating for family farmers and Pennsylvania’s agriculture economy, the MSC will attend Penn State University’s Ag Progress Days today. And tomorrow, MSC president Kathryn Klaber will discuss ways that local business can join the growing Marcellus supply chain network with the Small Business Development Centers (SBDC) at Lock Haven University; she will also participate in a shale gas forum at Marywood University, alongside U.S. Sen. Bob Casey.

Interested in learning more, and joining our fight for a stronger economy and a cleaner and more secure energy future? Become a “Friend of Marcellus” today.

BY BORYS KRAWCZENIUK (STAFF WRITER)
Published: July 29, 2010

A provision to require disclosure of all chemicals used in fracturing Marcellus Shale to extract natural gas could wind up as part of the scaled-down national energy bill the U.S. Senate might consider soon.

Sen. Bob Casey said he convinced Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to fold disclosure provisions of his Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act into the energy bill.

“It’s a great breakthrough,” he said. “It’s a substantial step forward. … It gives people information they wouldn’t have otherwise about what’s happening underneath their property.”

Senate leaders are hoping to pass the bill before the summer recess Aug. 6, after realizing they did not have the votes to pass a more comprehensive energy bill. Even if the smaller energy bill gets through the Senate, the House would have to pass it before President Barack Obama can sign it. Neither is assured.

Industry groups said the fracturing chemicals are already well known to the public and state regulators, and further disclosure would harm the development of natural gas.

“We fundamentally believe that regulation of hydraulic fracturing is best addressed at the state level, and we have been unable to reach a consensus with congressional advocates on how this program would be overseen by the federal government,” America’s Natural Gas Alliance said in a statement.

Congress and the federal Environmental Protection Agency are studying whether the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing of shale contaminate drinking water.

Energy In Depth, an industry group, argues regulation should be left to states, which “have effectively regulated hydraulic fracturing for over 40 years with no confirmed incidents of groundwater contamination associated with (fracturing) activities.”

At public meetings on gas drilling, local residents regularly dispute the claim.

Though the industry argues the chemicals it uses are well known, a Times-Tribune investigation determined that DEP scientists who analyzed spilled fracturing chemicals at a Susquehanna County well site in September found 10 compounds never disclosed on the drilling contractor’s material safety data sheet.

None of the 10 was included in a state Department of Environmental Protection list of chemicals used in fracturing, a list developed by the industry. When DEP posted a new list earlier this month, none of the 10 was on it.

Mr. Casey dismissed the industry criticism.

“That’s why I called it a substantial step forward, if they’re attacking it,” he said. “If they’re feeling that this is giving information to people that they are reluctant to disclose, that’s why I think it’s an important change, and it’s progress on an issue that some would have thought would have taken years to get done.”

Mr. Casey’s legislation would amend the federal Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act, which requires employers to disclose what hazardous chemicals they use.

The amendments would require:

– Well-drilling operators to disclose to state regulators and the public a list of chemicals used in fracturing, commonly known as fracking. The requirement would cover chemical constituents but not chemical formulas whose manufacturers are allowed by law to keep the formulas secret, according to Mr. Casey’s office.

– Disclosure to be specific to each well.

– Disclosure of secret formulas or chemical constituents to doctors or nurses treating a contamination victim in an emergency.

– An end to thresholds for reporting chemicals normally required by law so all amounts of chemicals are reported.

In an analysis of the legislation, Energy In Depth said it would “chill” investment in innovations in fracturing and place “unrealistic burdens” on natural gas producers by requiring them to disclose secret chemical compounds whose composition they legally can know nothing about.

In an interview, DEP Secretary John Hanger said he welcomed the federal legislation, argued Pennsylvania already requires more disclosure than his bill and believes companies should disclose the volume and mix of chemicals they use in fracking.

Contact the writer: bkrawczeniuk@timesshamrock.com

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Copyright:  The Scranton Times