Category:marcellus shale
>Let’s look before we leap when it comes to Marcellus shale gas
>To the Editor:
The Cumberland Times-News Sun Feb 27, 2011, 08:00 AM EST
Have you ever seen an orange stream in Allegany or Garrett County? Have you ever stood beside one? Did you ever drink the water? Have you ever gone fishing in one of these streams?
For most Allegany-Garrett County residents, the answers to these questions are “yes,” “yes,” “no,” “no” respectively. Our orange, acidified, lifeless waterways are an ever-present reminder of the long-term impacts of uninformed resource extraction.
Acid-mine drainage is caused by runoff from coal mines depleted and abandoned oftentimes more than one-hundred years ago.
Yet, we still live with the negative impacts today and our state has spent millions of dollars trying unsuccessfully to remediate the problem.
Next quiz questions: “How long ago did the Marcellus shale deposit form beneath the land of our counties?” Answer: “Millions of years ago.” “How long will the supply fuel our nation?” Answer: “15-20 years.”
“How will the price of natural gas change over the next 50 years?” Answer: “It will likely increase.”
“What are the negative impacts of gas fracking and how long will we live with those negative impacts upon our drinking water, streams, farms, and landscape?” Answer: “Nobody really knows yet.”
So, what are we to conclude? The lessons of acid-mine drainage tell us that if we can “look before we leap” then we should. Pennsylvania has moved quickly on gas fracking over recent years and there are many wells being actively pumped.
We can learn much from our nearby predecessor who has already “leaped.”
Scientists are closely analyzing the impacts of these wells and others around our region. The EPA will be publishing a report on this topic in 2012.
I suggest that we “look” at what happens from a safe distance of 50-plus miles and then decide after five years or more how we in Maryland should proceed.
The supply and demand economics of Marcellus shale tell us that it has been there for millions of years, that it will not disappear, and that the price for the resource will continue to rise.
While I know that our economy could use a boost now, I am confident that the extraction of natural gas from the shale will provide a similar or better financial return 5 to 10 years from now.
The good news about resource extraction today, compared to the coal-mining days of 100 years ago, is that we have the benefits of data gathering methods, environmental analysis and other scientific tools that were unheard of at that time. We should use these tools.
As one who is concerned about the well-being of local friends and family, I am excited about the potential for local cleaner-burning natural gas. Yet, I think we should only proceed after we have taken the most careful measures to protect our citizens for the long-term.
I don’t think we should “leap” just yet. I support a moratorium on gas fracking and encourage our citizens, council members, commissioners, representatives, senators, and governor to do the same.
Tom Kozikowski
Frostburg
AP Environmental Science Teacher
Mountain Ridge High School
>U. of Md. Extension study values state's natural gas reserves at $5.9 billion to $49 billion
>CUMBERLAND, Md. (AP) – A study of natural reserves in western Maryland puts the prospective lifetime value at $5.9 billion to $49.1 billion.
University of Maryland Extension workers who crunched the numbers said Friday that Garrett County has about twice the production potential of neighboring Allegany County.
The study was done to educate public officials and private citizens about untapped reserves of natural gas in the Marcellus Shale, a mineral-rich geological formation that extends from New York to Virginia.
>Beitzel's Marcellus Shale Bill To Be Heard Next Week
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Feb. 17, 2011
House Bill 411, a measure sponsored by Del. Wendell R. Beitzel (R–Dist, 1A), will be heard before the General Assembly’s House Environmental Matters Committee next Wednesday, Feb. 23, in Annapolis at 1 p.m. The measure would require the Maryland Department of Environment (MDE) to submit regulations to the Administrative, Executive, and Legislative Review Committee by Dec. 31.
Sen. George Edwards has submitted a companion bill, SB 422, in the Senate. The proposed legislation has been assigned to the Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs Committed, which has scheduled a hearing for Thursday, March 3, at 1 p.m.
“This bill allows those who have the technical know-how to establish commonsense regulations regarding drilling that would ensure safeguards for the citizens of Garrett and Allegany counties,” said Beitzel.
This measure is modeled after a similar proposal approved by the House Environmental Matters Committee during the 2009 legislative session regarding coal combustion byproducts.
Beitzel noted that MDE already has many regulations in place to deal with natural gas and well drilling generally. These regulations give the department the authority to set permit conditions for each well application on a case-by-case basis.
The bill, as presented, tackles the issue on two fronts, the delegate noted. First, it gives the department the authority to promulgate regulations generally dealing with the Marcellus shale.
“Such enumerated power has been the focus of many who have expressed their concerns regarding the possibility of Marcellus shale drilling in Maryland,” Beitzel said.
Secondly, the bill specifically enumerates five aspects that the department must address in the regulations.
“MDE has broad authority in the state to regulate drilling for natural gas, both though statute and regulations found in COMAR,” Beitzel said. “However, there is no specific provision for horizontal drilling into the Marcellus shale. That is why Senator Edwards and I believed it was best to pursue legislation to require the department to move forward in a timely fashion to promulgate specific regulation for this purpose. The aspects specifically covered in the bill are also things that we have been told the department is already examining.”
Because the Beitzel/Edwards bills require regulations to be established, they same must go through a through a public comment process.
>Don’t rush to allow Marcellus shale drilling - opinion
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Anonymous Cumberland Times-News The Cumberland Times-News Wed Feb 16, 2011, 08:00 AM EST
— Maryland lawmakers would do well to heed the advice of a former top Pennsylvania official to go slow in allowing drilling for natural gas in Marcellus shale deposits in Western Maryland.
John Quigley, who until recently was secretary of Pennsylvania’s Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, was in Annapolis last week to urge members of the House Environmental Matters Committee to “take a deep breath” when it comes to natural gas drilling.
His concern is that there is still much to learn about the environmental and social impacts such drilling may have. A method known as “fracking” involves injecting water and lubricating chemicals thousands of feet underground to fracture rock layers and release gas trapped there.
Even before Quigley made his visit to the capital, legislators expressed concerns. Delegate Wendell Beitzel of Garrett County is sponsoring a bill requiring the Maryland Department of Environment to submit regulations regarding natural gas exploration and production in Marcells shale by the end of the year.
Another measure by Montgomery County lawmakers would impose an outright ban of all drilling until a further study is done and new regulations are adopted.
The drilling is a topic of a session set Thursday at 7 p.,m. at the Allegany County Fairgrounds. The session is called “Natural Gas Drilling in Our Community” and is sponsored by the University of Maryland Extension and will be an opportunity for the public to learn more about the issue.
This go-slow approach in Maryland is the responsible way to proceed. While there is great economic potential in tapping into the natural gas under our mountains, it has to be done in a way that will not have harmful economic effects.
Maryland officials seem to realize this already.
>Beitzel, Edwards Propose Marcellus Shale Legislation
>Feb. 10, 2011
After hearing the concerns voiced by constituents and meeting with industry groups and state officials, Del. Wendell R. Beitzel (R- Dist. 1A) and Sen. George C. Edwards (R-Dist. 1) have introduced a measure in the General Assembly regarding the establishment of regulations on Marcellus shale natural gas exploration.
“Our goal is to put in place a clear framework for permitting so the drilling and fracturing operations are properly regulated to minimize environmental risks,” Beitzel said.
The proposed legislation (House Bill 411/Senate Bill 422) would require the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) to submit regulations to the Joint Committee on Administrative, Executive, and Legislative Review regarding natural gas exploration and production in the Marcellus shale formation no later than Dec. 31.
“Gov. O’Malley spoke today (Feb. 3) of the need to streamline the permitting process without compromising our environment,” Edwards said. “This bill is accomplishing the exact balance the governor spoke of in his State of the State.”
The bill outlines a number of issues that MDE would have to address. These issues include requirements relating to the following:
1. A water testing plan to ensure drinking water resources are protected, including requirements for surface well casing, grouting, and inspections.
2. The containment and disposal of fluid used in hydraulic fracturing processes.
3. The identification of all chemicals and materials used in hydraulic fracturing processes.
4. Prohibiting the unregulated discharge of drilling materials and fluids into streams, ponds, and other bodies of water for which the discharge has not been approved by the department.
5. Site reclamation and bonding.
The Marcellus shale runs from West Virginia to New York and is located in Garrett and Allegany counties.
>Maryland county caught up in fight over energy extraction method
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Todd Owen of Sandusky, Mich., maintains a natural gas drilling rig for Range Resources in 2008 on farmland in Amwell, Pa., just southwest of Pittsburgh. Heavy industry has invaded the countryside because of drilling opportunities for the Marcellus Shale to extract natural gas. (Jahi Chikwendiu)
By Darryl Fears
Monday, February 7, 2011
In their sliver of western Maryland, Garrett County residents like to boast of night skies so clear that you can see satellites lumber across the heavens, a picturesque deep creek that is the state’s largest inland body of water, and adventure tourism that Indiana Jones types love.
But land speculators who showed up in the county in 2008 with offers to lease farm acres had other interests. Their eyes were set on a valuable resource deep underground: natural gas deposits buried in thick layers of Marcellus Shale, a black, organic-rich shale found under the Appalachian region.
And just like that, Garrett County, population 29,000, became fully engaged in the nation’s debate over hydraulic drilling for natural gas and its risk of contaminating drinking water, joining another Washington-area local government, Rockingham County, Va.
The American Petroleum Institute maintains that hydraulic drilling is safe, “a tried-and-true technology that promises thousands of new jobs and vast and indispensable supplies of clean-burning energy,” said Carlton Carroll, a spokesman.
>Chamber Opposes A Marcellus Shale Drilling Moratorium
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Jan. 27, 2011
The Garrett County Chamber of Commerce board of directors recently completed its 2011 Legislative Agenda. Members plan to present these issues to state lawmakers and other officials during this evening’s Mountain Maryland PACE Reception in Annapolis.
Among the agenda items is “Oppose Moratorium on Marcellus Shale Drilling.”
“Marcellus shale drilling could have an enormous economic impact on Garrett County,” a chamber newsletter stated. “With this taken into consideration, we must also become more educated on the environmental issues associated with drilling.
“We feel that it is not necessary to impose a moratorium on drilling. Since no permits have been issued as of yet, an informal moratorium has been in place, and we have adequate time to inform the regulatory pro-cess to ensure all precautions and appropriate measures are taken.
“It is clear that we must approach the prospect of drilling in Garrett County responsibly.”
Other chamber legislative agenda items and PACE “talking points” include “Support Tourism Promotion Funding,” “Support Mountain Maryland Recreational Trails/Garrett Trails,” “Oppose Minimum Wage Increase,” “Support Responsive/Responsible Government,” “Support Restoration of Highway User Funds,” “Support North/South Appalachian Highway,” “Oppose Comparative Fault,” and “Support Maryland Broadband.
More information about the agenda is available at www.visitdeepcreek.com/pages/legislative
2nd firm seeks Md. natural gas drill permit
© 2011 The Associated Press
Jan. 14, 2011, 3:36PM
Share Del.icio.usDiggTwitterYahoo! BuzzFacebookStumbleUponEmail Close [X]FRIENDSVILLE, Md. — The Maryland Department of the Environment says a second firm has applied to extract natural gas from the Marcellus Shale geological formation underlying parts of far western Maryland.
A spokesman said Friday that Dallas-based Chief Oil & Gas LLC is seeking a permit for a well in the Friendsville area of Garrett County.
Samson Resources of Tulsa, Okla., has applied for drilling permits at four sites, but MDE says it’s actively pursuing only one, in Garrett County, just south of Pocahontas, Pa.
The gas is obtained through hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, which has been blamed water contamination and reduced property values in parts of Pennsylvania.
Yough River Watershed Board Votes To Support Gas Drilling Moratorium
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Jan. 6, 2011
The Youghiogheny River Watershed Association board, at its monthly meeting on Tuesday, unanimously adopted a position supporting a moratorium on Marcellus gas drilling in Maryland “until additional information is obtained and actions have been taken,” according to board chair James “Smokey” Stanton.
Stanton said that the board members believe there is “insufficient information about the impact of Marcellus drilling, and believe development of this resource should be delayed.”
He said that their concerns are “on several fronts,” including the effect that the practice may have on air quality, ground water quality, surface water, water appropriations, transport, discharge, and disposal of fracking water, geologic information, and adoption of state and local regulations including, but not limited to, bonding, permitting, and monitoring.
He said that the board believes baseline information must be obtained in order to better understand the positive and negative effects of drilling over time.
“We do not oppose eventual drilling in the watershed and in Garrett County,” he said, “but we believe there must be protections, accountabilities, and oversight in place before development is allowed.”
He said that the board supports the various educational efforts that are ongoing and spearheaded by the Garrett County commissioners’ Marcellus gas advisory committee, the University of Maryland Extension, and other watershed associations and groups.
Noting that the Yough-iogheny River Watershed encompasses approximately two-thirds of Garrett County, Stanton said that the board encourages each member of the YRWA to: immediately communicate their concerns about Marcellus shale gas drilling to the Garrett County commissioners; to attend and support moratorium legislation at the Garrett County Delegation pre-legislative meeting with Sen. George Edwards and Del. Wendell Beitzel this Saturday, Jan. 8, at Garrett College; and to attend the various upcoming public education programs on this topic.
Edwards, Beitzel Blast Co-Legislator About Marcellus Shale Drilling Fears
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Jan. 6, 2011
Maryland District 1 Sen. George Edwards and Del. Wendell Beitzel joined forces this week to pen a letter directed toward their co-legislators, which was published in Tuesday’s Baltimore Sun, criticizing the discussion and possible plans to pass a moratorium on Marcellus shale drilling. Del. Heather Mizeur, a Democrat representing Montgomery County, is currently drafting legislation for a statewide moratorium on drilling to provide time for more study and regulation. Edwards and Beitzel apparently feel that she and other “downstate” officials should not be involved.
“Just shortly before Christmas, the op-ed section of this fine newspaper was used to perpetuate a message of fear and to spread half-truths regarding a real opportunity for Maryland,” the letter states. “Del. Heather Mizeur, our esteemed colleague from Montgomery County, implied, as her central thesis, that if Maryland does not follow New York’s lead and pass a ‘moratorium’ on a certain technique for natural gas drilling in the state, then the Chesapeake Bay would likely be set ablaze.
“Putting a moratorium on natural gas drilling for fear that some may eventually find its way into the Chesapeake Bay would be akin to eliminating Maryland’s burgeoning bio-tech industry as a way to prevent bio-terrorism,” the letter states.
The prospect of Marcellus shale drilling has become a “hot button issue” in Garrett County over the past many months with elected officials and residents alike. Two major gas companies have made plans to drill within Garrett County, with some of those plans scrapped and others still in progress.
To review, the process consists of hydraulic fracturing of rock in order to reach new reservoirs of natural gas. The drills go down to the shale, which is located 7,000 to 9,000 feet below the surface, and horizontally through it. Then drillers pump water, sand, and chemicals into the rock at high pressure to crack it and release the gas so it can be pumped out. The process has been dubbed “fracking.”
Persons in favor of the process have lauded the economic boon that could take place, should drilling be successful in the county. Landowners can lease their property to gas companies and receive payment for all gas extracted from their land. The potential income is significant, according to gas company representatives.
However, concerns about the actual process, chiefly the fear of contaminated ground water, continue to be voiced. Critics point to Pennsylvania, where Marcellus shale drillers have committed more than 1,600 violations of state regulations in the past two years. According to a database of violations kept by the University of Pittsburgh, two gas companies have accrued a total of 210 violations at 85 wells. Company representatives maintain that the offenses are minor, but reports of serious damages to homeowners’ properties have also been reported.
However, Edwards and Beitzel have asserted confidence that the process is safe, and that it should be left to the Western Maryland lawmakers and residents to decide whether or not to pursue it.
“The Marcellus shale rests under our homes, our family’s homes, and the homes of our constituents. It is not present in any other part of Maryland and is only found in Garrett and Allegany counties,” the letter states. “Natural gas has been drilled in Garrett County since the 1950s. Though hydraulic fracturing technology has not yet been used, other more traditional methods of natural gas extraction have, to our knowledge, not caused any environmental damage. Further exploration into the Marcellus shale could have a positive impact on our local economy by providing much needed jobs and added revenue.”
Beitzel himself has noted that he owns property that he hopes to lease to a gas company for drilling. He discussed this during a public forum held before last year’s general election.
The legislators expressed in their letter that local farmers could benefit greatly from the process, and this is especially key since many have struggled with the farming industry for years.
“Many of our local farmers are beginning to find they can no longer make a living selling their crops. They are often left with two options. They could either sell their land to developers, or just ‘keep on keeping on’ and hope for the best. Yet, with increased governmental regulations and interference, these desperate farmers may never see that brighter day for which they hope.
“A report released by the U.S. Department of Energy asserts that the Marcellus shale ‘is the most expansive shale gas play’ in the nation. It covers 95,000 square miles across six northeastern states. Within this shale formation, there is an estimated 262 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. To give you a basis of comparison, according to Department of Energy’s figures, the United States consumed 22 to 23 trillion cubic feet annually between 2004 and 2009,” the legislators wrote.
