Posts Tagged ‘geologist’

U.S. Senate candidate Joe Sestak holds a meeting at Misericordia University.

By Sherry Long slong@timesleader.com
Staff Writer

Published on June 13, 2010

DALLAS TWP. – Property owners concerned about the effects of Marcellus Shale drilling on water reservoirs made their views clearly known Saturday afternoon during a packed town hall meeting at Misericordia University’s library.

They wanted a moratorium enacted immediately on all gas drilling throughout the state until more is known on how to safely drill natural gas wells without using dangerous chemicals in the hydrofracturing process. The process uses between 1 million to 1.5 million of gallons of water per well laced with chemicals and dirt under high pressure to force the ground open to release natural gas, geologist Patrick Considine said.

Considine and Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Joe Sestak, whose campaign organized the town hall forum, said that during President George W. Bush’s administration, requirements on oil and gas companies were dramatically lifted. Considine, president of Considine Associates and forum panel member, explained that federal and state officials are not entitled to know what mixtures of chemicals each gas drilling company uses because it is considered a trade secret formula.

He warned that the federal and state governments need more officials to oversee the drilling processes, so the companies are not tempted to cut corners when disposing of the water after the fracking.

“Oil and gas companies need to be held to the same standards as other companies. We don’t need more regulations; we need to find ways to enforce the regulations we have,” Considine said.

People wanting the moratorium drowned out the drilling supporters, including business owner, economist and farmer Joe Grace of Morris in Lycoming County, who sees this industry being one of the biggest Pennsylvania has ever experienced by bringing 88,000 jobs to the state just this year and generating millions in revenue.

Worried about the environment and safety of area water systems, local podiatrist Dr. Thomas Jiunta adamantly disagreed with Grace, pointing to the recent gas well drilling incident in Clearfield County and a gas pipeline accident that killed one worker in Texas.

“This is not a safe activity as we know how to do it right now. We need to stop it first. We are putting the cart before the horse when you are talking about economic boom. You can’t drink gas,” said Jiunta of Dallas, a Gas Drilling Awareness Coalition founding member.

Jiunta added more focus should be put jobs that will support and grow green and renewable energy sources.

Sestak told people he sees gas drilling as an economic boon to the state, yet it needs to be done in a responsible way.

“I think this would be a good way to yes, exploit our resources, but not our communities. Business has to pause. Harrisburg has to stop until we get it right,” Sestak said, adding that he supports enacting a 5 percent severance tax on the drilling companies. He said is in favor of a moratorium

No representatives from the campaign of Sestak’s opponent, former U.S. rep. Pat Toomey, attended the forum.

A statement from the Republican candidate’s campaign staff said Sestak’s plan for taxing the drilling will backfire by pushing those companies to focus on other states.

“Marcellus Shale has the potential to provide Pennsylvania with over 200,000 new jobs and millions of dollars in added revenue, but Joe Sestak’s plan to tax natural gas extraction will chase these jobs out of Pennsylvania. A recent study warned that a tax on Marcellus natural gas output would very likely divert investment to other states like Colorado and Texas. This is further proof that Joe Sestak’s ‘more government, less jobs’ approach is bad for Pennsylvania,” Toomey’s Deputy Communications Director Kristin Anderson said.

State Rep. Karen Boback, R-Harveys Lake, did not attend the forum, but issued a statement Friday stating she was working to develop legislation to protect drinking water from gas drilling practices. Knowing that will take time to become law, she is urging Gov. Ed Rendell to issue an executive order implementing four additional rules before permits can be issued.

Her opponent, Richard Shermanski, a Democrat, attended the meeting, telling people he would not support any form of drilling if he knows it will damage water reservoirs.

Many attending the forum reside in Luzerne County, but some people, including Leslie Avakian of Greenfield Township in northern Lackawanna County, drove an hour to voice their views.

She believes the state’s Department of Environmental Protection needs to be spilt up into two separate agencies because DEP currently issues the permits and regulates the gas companies.

Lynn Hesscease of Dallas told her story of how she became deathly sick after three years of oil leaking in her cellar from a rusted pipe.

She explained how she can’t use any type of products made from petroleum – polyester clothing, petroleum jelly or use plastic cups.

“We have to be very careful it is not near our drinking water and we are not exposed to the chemicals or fumes because if we are, people will get sick,” Hesscease said.

Sherry Long, a Times Leader staff writer, may be reached at 829-7159.

Copyright: The Times Leader

U.S. Senate candidate Joe Sestak holds a meeting at Misericordia University.

By Sherry Longslong@timesleader.com
Staff Writer

DALLAS TWP. – Property owners concerned about the effects of Marcellus Shale drilling on water reservoirs made their views clearly known Saturday afternoon during a packed town hall meeting at Misericordia University’s library.

They wanted a moratorium enacted immediately on all gas drilling throughout the state until more is known on how to safely drill natural gas wells without using dangerous chemicals in the hydrofracturing process. The process uses between 1 million to 1.5 million of gallons of water per well laced with chemicals and dirt under high pressure to force the ground open to release natural gas, geologist Patrick Considine said.

Considine and Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Joe Sestak, whose campaign organized the town hall forum, said that during President George W. Bush’s administration, requirements on oil and gas companies were dramatically lifted. Considine, president of Considine Associates and forum panel member, explained that federal and state officials are not entitled to know what mixtures of chemicals each gas drilling company uses because it is considered a trade secret formula.

He warned that the federal and state governments need more officials to oversee the drilling processes, so the companies are not tempted to cut corners when disposing of the water after the fracking.

“Oil and gas companies need to be held to the same standards as other companies. We don’t need more regulations; we need to find ways to enforce the regulations we have,” Considine said.

People wanting the moratorium drowned out the drilling supporters, including business owner, economist and farmer Joe Grace of Morris in Lycoming County, who sees this industry being one of the biggest Pennsylvania has ever experienced by bringing 88,000 jobs to the state just this year and generating millions in revenue.

Worried about the environment and safety of area water systems, local podiatrist Dr. Thomas Jiunta adamantly disagreed with Grace, pointing to the recent gas well drilling incident in Clearfield County and a gas pipeline accident that killed one worker in Texas.

“This is not a safe activity as we know how to do it right now. We need to stop it first. We are putting the cart before the horse when you are talking about economic boom. You can’t drink gas,” said Jiunta of Dallas, a Gas Drilling Awareness Coalition founding member.

Jiunta added more focus should be put jobs that will support and grow green and renewable energy sources.

Sestak told people he sees gas drilling as an economic boon to the state, yet it needs to be done in a responsible way.

“I think this would be a good way to yes, exploit our resources, but not our communities. Business has to pause. Harrisburg has to stop until we get it right,” Sestak said, adding that he supports enacting a 5 percent severance tax on the drilling companies. He said is in favor of a moratorium

No representatives from the campaign of Sestak’s opponent, former U.S. rep. Pat Toomey, attended the forum.

A statement from the Republican candidate’s campaign staff said Sestak’s plan for taxing the drilling will backfire by pushing those companies to focus on other states.

“Marcellus Shale has the potential to provide Pennsylvania with over 200,000 new jobs and millions of dollars in added revenue, but Joe Sestak’s plan to tax natural gas extraction will chase these jobs out of Pennsylvania. A recent study warned that a tax on Marcellus natural gas output would very likely divert investment to other states like Colorado and Texas. This is further proof that Joe Sestak’s ‘more government, less jobs’ approach is bad for Pennsylvania,” Toomey’s Deputy Communications Director Kristin Anderson said.

State Rep. Karen Boback, R-Harveys Lake, did not attend the forum, but issued a statement Friday stating she was working to develop legislation to protect drinking water from gas drilling practices. Knowing that will take time to become law, she is urging Gov. Ed Rendell to issue an executive order implementing four additional rules before permits can be issued.

Her opponent, Richard Shermanski, a Democrat, attended the meeting, telling people he would not support any form of drilling if he knows it will damage water reservoirs.

Many attending the forum reside in Luzerne County, but some people, including Leslie Avakian of Greenfield Township in northern Lackawanna County, drove an hour to voice their views.

She believes the state’s Department of Environmental Protection needs to be spilt up into two separate agencies because DEP currently issues the permits and regulates the gas companies.

Lynn Hesscease of Dallas told her story of how she became deathly sick after three years of oil leaking in her cellar from a rusted pipe.

She explained how she can’t use any type of products made from petroleum – polyester clothing, petroleum jelly or use plastic cups.

“We have to be very careful it is not near our drinking water and we are not exposed to the chemicals or fumes because if we are, people will get sick,” Hesscease said.

Sherry Long, a Times Leader staff writer, may be reached at 829-7159.

Copyright: Times Leader

April 5, 2010

EILEEN GODIN Times Leader Correspondent

Well-water testing in advance of natural gas drilling operations in parts of Luzerne County could give homeowners with wells knowledge, a baseline for future testing and a legal leg to stand on if their water becomes tainted, some experts say.

Marcellus Shale gas drilling is coming into Luzerne County this summer. EnCana Oil and Gas USA Inc., based in Denver, Colo., will be starting a site in Lake Township off Zosh Road in June or July.

Drilling could also be coming to other mostly Back Mountain area communities. Some area groups have voiced strong opposition to the drilling, and some landowners in counties where drilling is already taking place have said their water wells have been inversely affected by gas drilling activities.

EnCana Community Relations Adviser Wendy Wiedenbeck said her company has drilled 8,700 gas wells and has not had “any instance of well water becoming contaminated.” She said EnCana takes great pains not to damage water wells.

“It is in our best interests not to impact water supplies,” she said. Wiedenbeck said that besides using the standard cement casing at the gas-drilling site to protect underground water sources, a second cement casing will be used for added protection.

She said the casings are inspected regularly throughout the life of the well.

Encana’s zero tolerance of spills means its employees are specially trained for operating valves at drilling operations or transporting liquids, she said.

All spills are reportable, and the federal Environmental Protection Agency has a toll-free line to report them at (877) 919-4372.

“We are very proud of our environmental record,” she said.

To be prepared, residents within a mile radius of the drilling sites are advised to have their well water tested, Wiedenbeck said.

The trick is knowing what kind of testing is needed and the proper way to take a sample.

Aqua-Tech Laboratory Director Joseph F. Calabro, Mountain Top, said well water owners should have a state Department of Environmental Protection-certified lab do the testing. Someone who is certified with the lab should draw the water and a chain of custody for the water sample should be followed, he said.

A chain of custody for the sample is a log that is signed and dated by the person taking the water sample and given to the lab, where it is signed and dated upon receipt. Calabro said this log will stand up in court.

A listing of state-certified labs, by county, can be found at http://water.cas.psu.edu. Click on “information” on water issues related to Marcellus drilling. Then, on the right side of the screen, click on “find a lab.”

Calabro said homeowners should know what is normally in their well water. He said small amounts of minerals such as barium, sodium, manganese and iron, are already in well water, along with many other minerals.

He said that once this baseline for what’s in the water is established, then testing for industry-specific indicators can be performed.

He advised that if homeowners notice a change in taste, clarity or smell of their water, they should have it tested right away.

Concerned that nervous residents could be charged for more testing that what is really needed, he said he is willing to attend municipal meetings to discuss minerals and industry-specific indicators to watch for.

Wilkes University geologist Brain Ora said he is hoping homeowners will be willing to share their testing results to compile a database, by zip code, to show water quality history. He said that over time the database will track changes of water quality.

Copyright: The Times Leader

EILEEN GODIN Times Leader Correspondent

Well-water testing in advance of natural gas drilling operations in parts of Luzerne County could give homeowners with wells knowledge, a baseline for future testing and a legal leg to stand on if their water becomes tainted, some experts say.

Marcellus Shale gas drilling is coming into Luzerne County this summer. EnCana Oil and Gas USA Inc., based in Denver, Colo., will be starting a site in Lake Township off Zosh Road in June or July.

Drilling could also be coming to other mostly Back Mountain area communities. Some area groups have voiced strong opposition to the drilling, and some landowners in counties where drilling is already taking place have said their water wells have been inversely affected by gas drilling activities.

EnCana Community Relations Adviser Wendy Wiedenbeck said her company has drilled 8,700 gas wells and has not had “any instance of well water becoming contaminated.” She said EnCana takes great pains not to damage water wells.

“It is in our best interests not to impact water supplies,” she said. Wiedenbeck said that besides using the standard cement casing at the gas-drilling site to protect underground water sources, a second cement casing will be used for added protection.

She said the casings are inspected regularly throughout the life of the well.

Encana’s zero tolerance of spills means its employees are specially trained for operating valves at drilling operations or transporting liquids, she said.

All spills are reportable, and the federal Environmental Protection Agency has a toll-free line to report them at (877) 919-4372.

“We are very proud of our environmental record,” she said.

To be prepared, residents within a mile radius of the drilling sites are advised to have their well water tested, Wiedenbeck said.

The trick is knowing what kind of testing is needed and the proper way to take a sample.

Aqua-Tech Laboratory Director Joseph F. Calabro, Mountain Top, said well water owners should have a state Department of Environmental Protection-certified lab do the testing. Someone who is certified with the lab should draw the water and a chain of custody for the water sample should be followed, he said.

A chain of custody for the sample is a log that is signed and dated by the person taking the water sample and given to the lab, where it is signed and dated upon receipt. Calabro said this log will stand up in court.

A listing of state-certified labs, by county, can be found at http://water.cas.psu.edu. Click on “information” on water issues related to Marcellus drilling. Then, on the right side of the screen, click on “find a lab.”

Calabro said homeowners should know what is normally in their well water. He said small amounts of minerals such as barium, sodium, manganese and iron, are already in well water, along with many other minerals.

He said that once this baseline for what’s in the water is established, then testing for industry-specific indicators can be performed.

He advised that if homeowners notice a change in taste, clarity or smell of their water, they should have it tested right away.

Concerned that nervous residents could be charged for more testing that what is really needed, he said he is willing to attend municipal meetings to discuss minerals and industry-specific indicators to watch for.

Wilkes University geologist Brain Ora said he is hoping homeowners will be willing to share their testing results to compile a database, by zip code, to show water quality history. He said that over time the database will track changes of water quality.

Copyright: Times Leader

A few years ago every geologist involved in Appalachian Basin oil and gas knew about the Devonian black shale called the Marcellus. Its black color made it easy to spot in the field and its slightly radioactive signature made it a very easy pick on a geophysical well log.

However, very few of these geologists were excited about the Marcellus Shale as a major source of natural gas. Wells drilled through it produced some gas but rarely in enormous quantity. Few if any in the natural gas industry suspected that the Marcellus might soon be a major contributor to the natural gas supply of the United States – large enough to be spoken of as a “super giant” gas field.

Copyright: Geology.com

Community partnership members worry about road deterioration, water supplies.

By Rebecca Briarbria@timesleader.com
Staff Writer

DALLAS TWP. – Lehman Township Supervisor Doug Ide informed members of the Back Mountain Community Partnership Thursday afternoon at Misericordia University about the latest natural gas drilling news in the area.

The BMCP is an inter-municipal group composed of Dallas, Franklin, Jackson, Kingston and Lehman townships and Dallas Borough.

Ide attended a public information session by EnCana Oil and Gas Tuesday at Lake-Lehman Junior/Senior High School. He and the other Lehman Township supervisors have also met with EnCana representatives.

Ide says he learned WhitMar Exploration Company has leased 24,000 acres of property in the northwestern part of Luzerne County, mainly on the north side of Route 118 in Fairmount, Ross, Lake and Lehman townships.

“The gas drilling is going to be here in the Back Mountain,” said Al Fox, BMCP president. “I thought it was quite alarming to hear the other day that 800 people signed up.”

According to Ide, EnCana, which will do the drilling, hopes to form two exploration wells in the county – one in Fairmount Township and one in Lehman Township – if they receive the required permits. The wells will prove whether there is natural gas in the area.

Ide says EnCana is willing to bond any road the township requests. Road deterioration and traffic from heavy trucks and machinery has been a common concern among the BMCP.

“We’re going to set some conditions on some roads we do not want traveled, specifically Old Route 115, Hillside Road,” Ide said.

BMCP officials decided to invite representatives from EnCana to speak at the group’s January meeting.

In February, the BMCP will invite back Brian Oram, a geologist and Wilkes University professor, to discuss what the municipalities should do to safeguard their drinking water and other issues related to drilling.

Oram spoke at the BMCP’s September meeting and briefly touched on water’s involvement in natural gas drilling.

In other news, the BMCP approved each member municipality to contribute $300 each to the group’s proposed 2010 operating budget. The budget is to cover general government administration costs.

Copyright: Times Leader

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

By Tom Veneskytvenesky@timesleader.com
Sports Reporter

Private landowners aren’t the only group being eyed by natural gas companies as potential lease partners.

Companies are also targeting two of the largest landowners in the region – the Pennsylvania Game Commission and state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, hoping to develop the vast gas deposits they suspect sit below the surface.

Officials with both agencies say interest in their property – which totals thousands of acres in the region — is extremely high. Royalties and payments that companies are willing to offer to lease the land are also high, but that doesn’t mean the agencies are ready to sign on the dotted line.

Both agencies control their own destinies on those properties where they own the surface and subsurface mineral rights. When some of the properties were purchased years ago, the seller held onto the mineral rights. But on those state game lands where the Pennsylvania Game Commission owns the gas rights, numerous drilling companies have contacted the agency about its property in the northeast. The attempts have been aggressive, according to Mike DiMatteo, a geologist with the Game Commission’s oil, gas and mineral recovery program.

“Some of them came in and drew a circle from Tioga County down to Centre and over to Wayne and Pike,” DiMatteo said. “They are interested in leasing large areas.”

And the Game Commission is interested in what they have to offer … with conditions.

DiMatteo said the presence of the Marcellus shale layer under the surface of Northeastern Pennsylvania is believed to hold significant deposits of natural gas. The companies want the gas, which is at a record high price, but they need the land to access the layer of shale thousands of feet below the surface.

State Department of Environmental Protection spokesman Mark Carmon said his office has issued less than a half dozen permits for gas drilling in the Northeast and most of the interest is in Susquehanna, Wayne and Wyoming counties.

Despite the high interest, the Game Commission has so far entered into one lease agreement in the Northeast (State Game Lands 123 in Bradford County). DiMatteo said two more agreements are in the works and they are looking at more.

He added it’s too early to tell how much revenue natural gas wells would generate for the agency because the process is in the exploratory stage.

Game Commission spokesman Jerry Feaser said the agency receives an average of $2 million to $3 million a year, up significantly from an annual average of $300,000 a couple years ago. Most of that revenue is generated from active wells in the southwest and north central parts of the state.

“There hasn’t been enough development in the Marcellus formation yet to know what a typical well will produce. The companies are pretty tight-lipped about what’s there, so it’s hard to put a dollar value on the potential reserve,” DiMatteo said.

Based on the agency’s experience with wells drilled on game lands in other areas, they know what to include in a lease to protect wildlife and habitat. The agency prefers companies utilize existing timber and maintenance roads to access their wells, and areas such as wetlands, unique habitats and places holding threatened or endangered species are avoided.

Before a lease is signed, the agency conducts a resource recovery questionnaire of the game lands to assess the pros and cons. Leases typically last for five years or as long as the well is producing.

“In some areas we find we can’t take a risk with the habitat, so we won’t have any activity there,” DiMatteo said.

When the well is taken out of production, it must be capped and the area and access road must be seeded as a wildlife food plot or used as forest cover.

Like the Game Commission, the DCNR is open to the prospect of natural gas drilling on its property – just not right now. According to Teddy Borawski, minerals section chief with the Bureau of Forestry, the agency isn’t entering into any lease agreements until it completes an internal study on the matter.

The agency has wells operating from past lease agreements, and when it determines which properties it wants to make available for additional leases they will be put out for bids.

“There’s a very large amount of interest in state forest and state park land in the northeast,” Borawski said.

State park lands are off limits to gas drilling because the practice would conflict with the recreational use of the property, he added.

Borawski said leases entered into with his agency carry the strongest environmental stipulations in the state. They include a stringent environmental review, an exceedance of DEP regulations, safeguards against surface and groundwater contamination and significant setbacks from streams.

State forest and state game lands are attractive to gas companies because it is more efficient to lease large, contiguous blocks of land. Stephen Rhoads, president of the Pennsylvania Oil and Gas Association, said drilling goes as deep as 8,000 feet and extends horizontally several thousand feet, which can cover a few acres. Companies also conduct seismic exploration before they drill, and a large area is needed for the research.

Rhoads criticized DCNR’s move to wait to enter into lease agreements, because it benefited financially from the practice in the past.

“The impact of oil and gas development on the surface is trivial. There is no chronic environmental impact,” he said. “There is a more significant impact to DCNR putting wind turbines on their ridge tops.”

While DCNCR continues to study the matter, DiMatteo said the Game Commission may be ready to seek more bids in the next few months. To wait for the price of gas to increase, he said, is too much of a risk because the Marcellus formation may prove not to be profitable once drilling commences.

“These wells could be a boom or a bust. We’re willing to listen and explore, but we’ll approach it with caution,” Feaser said.

Properties breakdown

Mike DiMatteo said most of the interest in gas drilling has been for Game Lands located in Bradford, Pike, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Wayne and Wyoming counties. Here is a breakdown of how much property the Game Commission owns in those counties:

Bradford County: 53,429 acres

Columbia County: 21,532 acres

Pike County: 24,467 acres

Sullivan County: 57,752 acres

Susquehanna County: 14,358 acres

Wayne County: 20,637 acres

Tom Venesky, a Times Leader outdoors writer, can be reached at 829-7230

Copyright: Times Leader