Posts Tagged ‘gas rush’

What They’re Saying: MSC Applauds PA Budget Agreement, Stands Ready to Work with Lawmakers on Comprehensive Framework for Developing the Marcellus

  • MSC President Kathryn Klaber: “[W]e need an updated and modernized regulatory and legislative framework, and a fair tax strategy that keeps our state ahead of the curve in attracting the investment needed to bring these resources to the surface
  • [Severance] tax should not be set in a “vacuum” but as part of a “comprehensive evaluation” of laws and regulations governing the industry.

Shale Coalition Wants “Fair Tax” & Modernized Rules. Marcellus Shale Coalition President Kathryn Klaber says the fiscal code language about the severance tax proposal includes a commitment by elected leaders to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of “how best to seize on the opportunities of the Marcellus in the future, and do so in a manner that benefits all Pennsylvanians.” Klaber called on state lawmakers not to look at the severance tax in a vacuum, that there is more at stake than putting a little extra money in state coffers…..”we need an updated and modernized regulatory and legislative framework, and a fair tax strategy that keeps our state ahead of the curve in attracting the investment needed to bring these resources to the surface.” (WDUQ Radio, 7/7/10)

Pennsylvania needs to stay “ahead of the curve in terms of investment”: “The Marcellus Shale is not the only shale play that is under development in the United States, said Kathryn Klaber, president and executive director the Marcellus Shale Coalition.”There is a lot of competition for dollars” to develop gas wells, she said. Pennsylvania needs to stay “ahead of the curve in terms of investment” in gas drilling, Klaber said in a conference call with reporters on Tuesday. (Towanda Daily Review, 7/7/10)

Marcellus Shale represent[s] a tremendous opportunity: “The rich natural gas deposits in the Marcellus Shale represent a tremendous opportunity in the form of new jobs and economic stimulus to mostly rural communities across the commonwealth,” said Governor Rendell. “We have a responsibility to ensure that the economic benefits are balanced with the need to protect the local environment and the residents of communities where the work is being done.” (Pocono News, 7/7/10)

Gas rush has generated a frenzy: In some corners of the energy industry, tapping the shale gas has become every bit as enticing and adventurous as exploring in the Arctic and the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico. The gas rush has generated a frenzy in the region over the past two years. In some corners of the energy industry, tapping the shale gas has become every bit as enticing and adventurous as exploring in the Arctic and the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico. (New York Times, 7/7/10)

Comprehensive Evaluation of State Natural Gas Laws Needed: Now that the legislature has agreed in principle on the tax, energy industry leaders are hoping to influence the debate on the tax and regulation in coming months. The Marcellus Shale Coalition, an industry group, said on Tuesday the tax should not be set in a “vacuum” but as part of a “comprehensive evaluation” of laws and regulations governing the industry. Klaber argued that a “fair tax strategy,” coupled with laws and regulations that recognize the industry’s recent technological gains, would allow Pennsylvania to compete for new investment in the booming industry. (Reuters, 7/7/10)

For Mom, it’s just overwhelming: On a farm north of this old timber town that stretches out along the banks of the Susquehanna River, Perry Landon’s 82-year-old mother confronts the promises and trepidation of a new era of energy wealth. “For Mom, it’s just overwhelming,” Landon says. “She grew up in the Depression. Her parents were very poor. It’s hard for her to get her mind around this amount of money, and that you would get it for doing nothing.” Gas is testing oil’s position as the most sought-after energy commodity, as the global hunt for black gold faces technological limits, environmental risk and relentless political instability in oil-rich regions. (New York Times, 7/7/10)

Marcellus Shale gets upgraded sevenfold

ALBANY, N.Y.

Marcellus Shale gets upgraded sevenfold

A geologist says the Marcellus Shale region of the Appalachians could yield seven times as much natural gas as he earlier estimated, meaning it could meet the entire nation’s natural gas needs for at least 14 years.

Penn State University geoscientist Terry Engelder says in a phone interview Monday that he now estimates 363 trillion cubic feet of natural gas could be recovered from the 31-million-acre core area of the Marcellus region, which includes southern New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and eastern Ohio.

Engelder and geologist Gary Nash of the State University of New York at Fredonia touched off a gas rush in the region last January with their study estimating that the Marcellus could yield as much as 50 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

LANCASTER, Pa.

Man gets 2 DUIs in five-hour period

Police say a central Pennsylvania man was arrested on drunken driving charges twice in less than six hours.

Michael Hufford’s first arrest came just before 11 a.m. Sunday. Police say his car hit the back of a stopped vehicle in Manheim Township, Lancaster County.

Hufford was arrested for suspected DUI. After he was processed, he was released to his girlfriend.

Hufford was arrested again just before 4 p.m. Police say the second accident happened after he turned left in front of another vehicle.

The 50-year-old was arraigned by a magisterial district judge after the second crash. Police say he was sent to Lancaster County Prison.

YORK, Pa.

Man kills wife, toddler and then himself

A suburban York man killed his wife and 2-year-old son before committing suicide inside their home, police said Monday.

John D. Goodman, 39, did not leave a note before he shot his wife, Julia, multiple times and shot their son, Langon, early Sunday morning, said Spring Garden Township Chief George Swartz.

Swartz said investigators were still trying to determine what happened and why. He said there is no evidence that the couple was divorcing or that any protective orders were in place.

York County Coroner Barry Bloss Sr. told the York Dispatch that John Goodman may have been recently laid off from his job as a surveyor in Lancaster. Bloss also said his office would try to confirm reports that 39-year-old Julia Goodman was pregnant.

The Goodmans had lived in the neighborhood near York Hospital since 2003, and before that they lived elsewhere in Spring Garden Township.

ERIE, Pa.

Freight-train death perplexes coroner

A Pennsylvania coroner is hoping toxicology tests and more investigation will help him figure out why a man was killed by a passing freight train.

Erie County Coroner Lyell Cook says the body of 23-year-old Timothy Villa, of Erie, was found near the CSX railroad tracks in the city Sunday about 2 a.m.

Cook says the investigation indicates Villa may have left a Halloween party shortly before he was struck and killed by the train. An autopsy Sunday confirmed the man died of massive trauma.

Cook says police are trying to contact the train’s crew. Cook is waiting for toxicology tests on Villa’s body before ruling whether the death was an accident, but says it does not appear to be foul play.

Copyright: Times Leader