DEP Lab Chief Reveals Possibility of Intentionally Undisclosed Health Risks from Marcellus Drilling
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
State Rep. Jesse White – www.pahouse.com/White
White calls on state, federal authorities for investigation of DEP over deceptive Marcellus Shale water-quality testing practices
HARRISBURG, Nov. 1 – State Rep. Jesse White, D-Allegheny/Beaver/Washington, today called for state and federal law enforcement agencies to investigate the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection for alleged misconduct and fraud revealed by sworn testimony given by a high-ranking DEP official.
White said he received a letter and corresponding documents highlighting the sworn …
DEP Alters Policy on Foul-Water Notifications
Don Hopey Pittsburgh Post-Gazette October 14, 2012
The state Department of Environmental Protection has a new review policy for water contamination cases related to Marcellus Shale gas well operations that lets department administrators in Harrisburg instead of field offices decide whether residential water users should receive letters notifying them about problems.
The month-old policy hasn’t stopped, held up or altered any contaminated-water determination letters. And the DEP said in response to questions that it would not result in …
Amid Fracking Boom, Unlicensed Middlemen Often Closing the Deals – Reuters Investigates
Reuters October 2, 2012
INVESTIGATIVE REPORT: Drilling companies are hiring and dispatching brokers to cut deals with local land owners for their mineral rights. The mission of these so-called “land men”: Close the deal quickly.
Reuters travelled to Carroll County, Ohio, to find out more about this unregulated aspect of the hydraulic fracturing boom.
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Homeowners, Banks Look At Local Gas Industry Land Leases
Kevin Begos Associated Press September 2, 2012
PITTSBURGH — When Donald Yost tried to refinance his home about 30 miles north of Pittsburgh in January, he met a roadblock. It wasn’t his credit score – he had a solid rating – or the appraisal he’d paid almost $500 for – that was good, too.
Instead, it was the lease he has that allows a company to drill for gas about a mile underneath his property, similar to leases that …
Gas Drilling Research Suffers From Lack of Funding
The Associated Press August 01, 2012
Is gas drilling ruining the air, polluting water and making people sick? The evidence is sketchy and inconclusive, but a lack of serious funding is delaying efforts to resolve those pressing questions and creating a vacuum that could lead to a crush of lawsuits, some experts say.
A House committee in June turned down an Obama administration request to fund $4.25 million in research on how drilling may affect water quality. In the spring, …
Living With Methane Migration
Scott Detrow StateImpactPA/NPR July 31, 2012
Michael Leighton of Leroy Township, Bradford County, has been dealing with methane gas seeping into his water well and onto his property for more than two months.
Yesterday, StateImpact Pennsylvania documented Leroy Township’s ongoing methane migration problems, which the Department of Environmental Protection has linked to a Chesapeake Energy well.
What’s it like to live with stray natural gas bubbling into your water well? Leighton gives StateImpact Pennsylvania a tour of some of the …
Study Examines Ownership With Marcellus Development
Jeff Mulhollem The Express July 27, 2012
Ownership of the land in Pennsylvania counties with the most Marcellus Shale natural-gas drilling activity is concentrated among relatively few residents and people living outside the counties, according to a study by researchers in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences.
The majority of residents in these counties together own little of the total land area and, therefore, have relatively little “voice” in the critical leasing decisions that affect whether and how Marcellus Shale …
Insurance Companies Are Slow to Cover Risks of Drilling
Erich Schwartzel Pittsburgh Post-Gazette July 25, 2012
As gas drilling expands across Pennsylvania and into neighboring states, the insurance industry is trading memos expressing trepidation and uncertainty over how to assess the risk involved in covering the controversial development.
One company has written an exclusion that forces clients working with oil and gas companies to obtain additional coverage. An industry group drafted a memo encouraging brokers to brush up on potential liabilities, even including knowledge of the rare earthquakes said …
Nationwide Insurance Co. Statement Regarding Hydraulic Fracturing
PRESS RELEASE Nationwide Insurance Company – July 13, 2012
Contact: Media Relations Hotline 614-249-6349
Nationwide issued the following statement today regarding insurance coverage concerns related to hydraulic fracturing, better known as “fracking”.
Gas and oil drilling has been going on in this country for many years in the west and southwest. Fracking is another variation of the gas and oil business. In recent years, oil and gas exploration has come to New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio.
Nationwide has not changed …
Report: 3rd largest natural gas reserves on East Coast are in Bucks, Montgomery counties
Jaccii Farris wfmz.com Jun 22 2012
Bucks and Montgomery counties are sitting on the 3rd largest natural gas reserves on the East Coast, according to a new report by the U.S. Geological Survey.
The report now has residents and environmental activists worried what will happen should gas companies start drilling.
Nancy Alessi, a Nockamixon Township supervisor, said the recent report will be a magnet for drilling companies.
“We know drilling is going to come here. We had it in the …
