Posts Tagged ‘Rendell’

• 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)

MSC president cites need for commonsense TDS regulations

Canonsburg, Pa. – The responsible use, treatment and stewardship of the Commonwealth’s water resources are among the most important considerations involved in the development of clean-burning natural gas from shale. As a result, the Marcellus Shale Coalition (MSC) – whose members represent 100 percent of the shale gas producers throughout Pennsylvania – counts among the industry’s major accomplishments the tremendous increase in recycling of shale water. Today’s meeting at Reserved Environmental Services facility features one example of the many facilities the industry is using to achieve its high recycle rates, reducing the amount of water used at each Marcellus well and decreasing the overall discharge volumes.

“Protecting the Commonwealth’s rivers, streams and tributaries remains a top priority for the MSC. New technologies allow our members to recycle on average nearly 60 percent of the produced water used in this tightly regulated process. And because of these technologies – which continue to advance by the day – some MSC members are recycling nearly 100 percent of their water,” said Kathryn Klaber, president and executive director of the MSC.

New regulations sought by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) call for an “end of pipe”, 500 milligrams per liter cap on the concentration of total dissolved solids (TDS) in the disposal of produced water. These proposed regulations, which are now pending before the Independent Regulatory Review Commission, could create a host of unintended consequences — as virtually no water treatment facilities across the Commonwealth could meet this threshold.

In fact, the Reserved Environmental Services facility is not currently capable of treating produced water at the discharge standards in the pending regulation, and will not have that capability before the effective date of the that regulation. For context, San Pellegrino Mineral Water’s TDS concentration is nearly twice the level of what these proposed regulations would require.

“As the safe and steady development of the Marcellus Shale continues to generate jobs, revenue and opportunity for the Commonwealth, the MSC stands ready, willing and eager – as always – to partner with DEP, the governor and the General Assembly to ensure this opportunity is seized upon in the safest, most beneficial manner for residents of the state and for our environment,” Klaber said. “Unfortunately, the new TDS rules represents a bump in that road and require more work to actually solve the TDS issues they are purported to address — but one we hope will be smoothed out along the path to an energy future to which we will continue to contribute, and of which we can be proud.”

READ MORE

• Gov. Rendell: “The technology in treating [produced] water is improving rapidly.” (CNBC’s Squawk Box, 6/9/10)
• Release: Marcellus Shale Coalition Releases the Facts on Flowback Water Treatment
• Study: Evaluation of High TDS Concentrations in the Monongahela River (Tetra Tech)
• Release: Environmental Firm Finds Marcellus Shale Drilling Activity Had Minimal Impact On Total Dissolved Solids

Copyright: Marcelluscoalition.org

Saying plan likely will be revived in 2010, Rendell adds that he wants industry to get off to a good start.

AMY WORDEN and MARIO F. CATTABIANI The Philadelphia Inquirer

HARRISBURG – Gov. Rendell said Monday after meeting with industry officials that he would agree to delay his push to impose a tax on natural gas extracted from the Marcellus Shale.

“It won’t be in the mix this year,” he said, adding that he would likely revive the proposal next year. “We felt we should let the industry get off to a good start, and that surpasses our need for money.”

For months, Rendell had lobbied for the tax on the gas-rich Marcellus Shale reserve. At one point, the administration estimated it could produce $100 million in revenue in the first year.

But the Democratic governor said on Monday that he reconsidered the idea after watching natural gas prices plummet to near-record lows and meeting with industry representatives who have invested millions to explore the natural gas reserve hundreds of feet beneath the ground.

The Marcellus Shale is a vein of rock containing vast reserves, running hundreds of feet below ground from New York to Virginia. Its exploration and extraction – estimated to be worth billions – has been made possible in recent years by advances in technology.

Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi, R- Delaware County, said it was no surprise that Rendell had abandoned the effort, noting that taxing an industry in its infancy was an unpopular move even among some members of Rendell’s own party.

“The governor has recognized the realities of the situation,” Pileggi said.

Although Rendell said he was no longer interested in the tax this year, Democrats who control the state House said it remained among the mix of possible revenue sources.

“It is definitely not off the table,” said Johnna A. Pro, press secretary to House Appropriations Chairman Dwight Evans, D-Philadelphia.

Other so-called niche taxes still on the table include higher cigarette taxes and a new levy on smokeless tobacco. Also under consideration is the elimination of a slew of long-standing sales-tax exemptions on such items as candy and gum, land-based phones, and basic cable. Rendell has said the removal of exemptions on all items except food and clothing and certain services could generate $1 billion.

Copyright: Times Leader