Part 2: Pre-drill Water Quality Data Demonstrates the Importance of Private Water Supply Testing
May 14, 2012 at 6:00 AM by Gant Team · Leave a Comment
By Mark Madden, Penn State Educator Many people who have private water wells have never or seldom have their well water tested. Pre-drilling water testing provides homeowners with useful information on their water wells as well as helpful research data. Part 2 provides some of the data found. As mentioned last week, the collective water quality data provided by the industry correlates closely with...
Read More...Local Collection of State Taxes Rises in Marcellus Shale Counties
May 10, 2012 at 6:39 AM by Gant Team · Leave a Comment
UNIVERSITY PARK – Natural-gas development appears to be having a positive effect on the local collection of state taxes in Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale region, according to an analysis by researchers in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences. “Because it’s still early in the development of Marcellus Shale, there’s a lot we can’t know yet about its...
Read More...Part 1: Pre-drill Water Quality Data Demonstrates the Importance of Private Water Supply Testing
May 7, 2012 at 6:00 AM by Gant Team · Leave a Comment
By Mark Madden, Penn State Extension Educator Many people with private water wells have never or seldom have their well water tested. Pre-drilling water testing provides homeowners with useful information on their water wells as well as helpful research data. Water testing by the natural gas industry in the Marcellus Shale region is affirming the need for all rural Pennsylvanians to regularly test...
Read More...MSC Releases First Recommended Practices for Responsible Natural Gas Development
April 28, 2012 at 6:01 AM by Gant Team · Leave a Comment
CANONSBURG – Since its founding in 2008, the Marcellus Shale Coalition (MSC) has worked collaboratively with key stakeholders to achieve a set of common goals: enhance the region’s economy, responsibly develop natural gas, and advocate for increased use of this clean-burning energy source. The MSC’s Guiding Principles make this commitment clear while also committing the coalition and its...
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PUC Delays Action on Impact Fee Final Implementation Order Due to Court Injunction
April 27, 2012 at 1:00 PM by Gant Team · Leave a Comment
HARRISBURG – Due to an ambiguity with an injunction imposed by the state’s Commonwealth Court, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) has temporarily delayed issuing a Final Implementation Order on Act 13 of 2012, which, among other things, authorized counties to adopt an impact fee related to unconventional natural gas well drilling. The commission voted 5-0 to postpone finalizing its...
Read More...DEP Fines Ultra Resources for Operating Illegal Transfer Station
April 27, 2012 at 6:29 AM by Gant Team · Leave a Comment
WILLIAMSPORT – The Department of Environmental Protection has fined Ultra Resources Inc. of Wellsboro, Tioga County, $40,000 for operating an illegal transfer station at a well pad in West Branch Township, Potter County. DEP staff inspected the site in late February 2011 and found 47 wheelie storage tanks on-site that were holding more than 760,000 gallons of raw flowback fluid that Ultra was...
Read More...Drought Conditions Suspend PA Fracking Operations
April 20, 2012 at 6:39 AM by Gant Team · Leave a Comment
STATE COLLEGE – AccuWeather.com reports low stream flows have forced officials to suspend water usage for the natural gas development (fracking) in portions of Pennsylvania. A lack of snowfall this winter and a lack of rain this spring were the major players in abnormally low stream flows, low ground water levels and depleted soil moisture. According to a report published by the Susquehanna...
Read More...Fractionator? Cracker? What Are They?
April 17, 2012 at 6:45 AM by Gant Team · Leave a Comment
With the recent report that a site has been selected along the Ohio River in the Beaver County community of Monaca for a “cracker plant,” what does that mean? Shell Oil has indicated that they are going to begin the process of the feasibility of construction, to perform the due diligence to determine if an “ethane cracker” might be situated at this industrial site. This is all the result...
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Platt Road Residents Get Update on Mining Concerns
April 17, 2012 at 6:11 AM by Steven McDole · Leave a Comment
DUBOIS – Residents of Platt Road returned to the Sandy Township Supervisors’ meeting Monday night. They had been told at the last meeting the Supervisors would investigate the issue of truck traffic on Platt Road related to Marcellus water pumping. Citizens on Platt Road had asked the township supervisors if they could do something with truck traffic at the water pumping station along their...
Read More...Hydrologist to Discuss Natural-gas-drilling Related Topics April 24
April 15, 2012 at 6:00 AM by Gant Team · Leave a Comment
Garth Lewellyn, principal hydrogeologist with Appalachia Hydrogeologic and Environmental Consulting Inc., will present a talk from 12:30 – 1:30 p.m. April 24 in Room 301 of the Steidle Building on the University Park campus. The talk will be titled ”Hydrogeologic Conceptual Modeling and Geochemical Considerations for Evaluating Groundwater Flow and Gas-Drilling Impacts Throughout Susquehanna...
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