Pennsylvania DEP Launches the Marcellus Shale Examiner

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has launched the “Marcellus Shale Examiner,” a weekly e-newsletter to chronicle the latest news on Marcellus Shale activities.  The DEP states, “In the past three years, Pennsylvania has become the epicenter of natural gas exploration with dozens of companies seeking to capitalize on the abundant natural resources in the Marcellus Shale formation. The consequences of this rapidly growing industry affect us all.”

The DEP will use the Examiner to follow the work related to drilling in Pennsylvania the policy makers will be focusing on in the coming months.  The policies will range from enacting a severance tax so large drilling firms pay their fair share, to writing laws that could affect landowners’ rights when it comes to drilling on or under their property.

If you are a property owner whose property has been harmed by natural gas exploration, talk to an attorney who is experienced in Marcellus Gas drilling issues.  […]

Natural Gas Company Boosts Production

With the help of the Marcellus Shale natural gas wells, Range Resources boosted their second quarter natural gas production by close to 10 percent.  The gas company based in Fort Worth, Texas, produced an average of 472 million cubic feet of natural gas per day, largely driven by production from the Marcellus shale region.

Range Resources focuses their drilling on “unconventional resource plays targeting shales, coal bed methane and tight oil and gas reservoirs.”  The company began drilling in the Marcellus Shale region, which covers parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, West Virginia and Virginia, in 2004, and by mid-2009, Range Resources completed their  50thhorizontal well in the Marcellus Shale.  To date, there are 146 wells drilled in the region.

Range Resources estimates that the Marcellus wells are as good as, and potentially better than the production in the North Texas Barnett Shale.

If you or a loved one has been harmed by Marcellus Shale drilling, […]

Hearings to Focus on Marcellus Shale Drilling Moratorium

The Delaware River Basin Commission will hold public hearings in northeast Pennsylvania to determine whether or not to strengthen its moratorium on drilling for natural gas in the river basin.  The debate centers on landowners that say they should be able to lease the mineral rights to their land, versus the environmentalists that say the process of drilling for natural gas could pollute groundwater.

The vast Marcellus Shale formation and its lucrative natural gas deposits underlie much of the covered region of the Delaware River basin areas of New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.  The agency has legal authority over water quality and quantity issues in the basin.

The drilling moratorium is in effect until the commission adopts gas drilling regulations.

If you are a property owner whose property has been harmed by natural gas exploration, talk to an attorney who is experienced in Marcellus Gas drilling issues.  […]

Gas Drilling in Williamsport Featured in New York Times

The gas industry has brought big changes to some of the small towns in our area. One such town is Williamsport, PA, the subject of a recent New York Times story about how the drilling industry has affected the people who live there. Many residents are experiencing immediate economic benefits, but are concerned about the long-term effects.

Williamsport and several neighboring communities have attracted gas companies interested in drilling into Marcellus Shale, a geographic region rich with natural gas that stretches through West Virginia, eastern Ohio, Pennsylvania and into southern New York. The shale contains enough natural gas to meet much of the energy needs of the entire Northeast region.

Drilling could bring much-needed money and jobs into the region, but the industrial process of extracting natural gas has raised concerns about the environmental impact, the New York Times reports, as well as questions about the need for greater regulation of the drilling operations in the area. […]

Uneasiness Persists About Marcellus Shale Operations

Some Pennsylvania property owners don’t like the idea of living next to a drilling rig and want their local governments to use zoning regulations to prevent the development of natural gas wells.

But local government leaders’ hands are tied to a great extent by a state law called the Pennsylvania Oil and Gas Act. The state law preempts local regulation of gas wells and extraction and gives the regulatory authority to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. Local regulations may not apply to the location of a well, well site safety or even protection of  the water supply.

The pressing questions of  which local municipal regulations still apply and which are preempted are still being sorted out by the courts.

Natural gas drilling and extraction from the Marcellus Shale poses rewards and hazards for Pennsylvania communities. While there is the potential for significant economic benefit, […]