Penn State Professor Discusses Marcellus Shale and Water Quality
Bryan Swistock, Ph.D., spoke at the Lehigh Valley Watershed Conference at Lehigh University March 11.
Bryan Swistock, Ph.D.
Although the Lehigh Valley does not sit atop the Marcellus Shale, the extraction of natural gas from this geological formation in other parts of Pennsylvania was a hot topic at the recent Lehigh Valley Watershed Conference.
The conference, held at Lehigh University’s Packard Lab March 11, attracted dozens of environmentalists, naturalists, elected officials, fishermen, academics and businesspeople to hear speakers like Bruce Swistock, Ph.D., who delivered a “Report on Marcellus Shale and Water Quality Across Pennsylvania.”
Introduced by Lehigh professor of earth and environmental science Frank Pazzaglia, Ph.D., Swistock is a professor with Penn State University’s Water Resources Extension and a leading authority on the impact of fracking on water quality in the Keystone State.
That impact has grown as the number of gas wells has grown exponentially since 2007, he pointed out.
In 2007, there were just 27 wells in Pennsylvania. In 2008, there were 161 wells; in 2009, there were 785 wells; and in 2010, there were 1,213 wells, primarily throughout rural central and northern Pennsylvania.
“It’s really our old gas drilling on steroids,” he said. “Everything is much, much bigger.”
In some parts of the state, where the Marcellus Shale formation is very thick, some residents have literally become “overnight millionaires” from selling drilling rights to natural gas extraction companies, with lease rates of $6,000 to $7,000 per acre and royalties of 20 to 25 percent, Swistock said.
Along with the direct impacts from drilling, emotion over the benefits versus the environmental consequences of natural gas drilling has increased dramatically, Swistock told his audience.
“In the last three years I’ve done dozens of programs where there are police,” he said, adding that in areas where drilling isn’t permitted people tend to be angry that they’re forbidden from tapping into the voluminous natural gas reserves 5,000 to 10,000 feet beneath their properties. In areas where gas drilling is permitted, people tend to be angrier over the prevalence and impact of drilling, he said.
“People who have their own water supplies are very concerned about what Marcellus might do to their groundwater,” he said. “Nobody knows exactly how many wells will be drilled when this is all said and done.”
In terms of regulations, Pennsylvania lags behind, with many of its regulations for Marcellus Shale drilling dating from 1984, Swistock said.
For example, the bonds required to cover the cost of water supply replacement are only equal to $2,500, he said.
There are no regulations on seismic testing in Pennsylvania and 3D seismic testing with dynamite is allowed without setbacks, he added.
When it comes to water quality in the areas surrounding where drilling is occurring, the issues related to Marcellus Shale are numerous, he continued.
Sediments and detergents may be used in the fracking process–a process which can result in waste fluids containing “very high” levels of radionuclides, including radium and uranium, being brought to the surface, Swistock said.
Benzine–a carcinogen–has also been found in waste fluids associated with fracking, with an average of four to five million gallons of fresh water needed for each horizontal well drilled, Swistock said.
In many cases access to the water needed for fracking is under landowner control, and although property owners can’t legally sell their water in Pennsylvania, they can charge a trespass fee to individuals accessing it, Swistock explained.
Of the 50 states, Alaska and Pennsylvania “are the only two states that don’t regulate private water systems at all,” Swistock said, referencing the wells from which most people in rural parts of the state obtain their drinking water. “We find that only about 5 percent of the water wells we tested have sanitary construction that would be required in 48 other states.”
For residents whose private wells are located near fracking sites “the only way you can really prove a water supply problem is if you have pre-drilling and post-drilling data,” he added.
This is especially true because many wells were never tested before Marcellus Shale drilling began and may have had “pre-existing” problems such as methane contamination, making it difficult to know if the methane in them is the result of methane gas migration from nearby fracking operations, he said.
For wells located within 1,000 feet of a gas well and tested within six months of drilling, there is a “presumed responsibility” on the part of those drilling for gas, he said.
Swistock cautioned against pulling YouTube-type stunts such as lighting a faucet on fire, which he said can be done if high levels of methane are contaminating the water supply.
“It’s a very dangerous thing to do,” he commented.
For homeowners who want to test and monitor their wells there are devices available, but they can be expensive, he added.
“I’ve had a lot of people at programs crying because they want to protect their water but they can’t afford testing,” he said. “They feel very helpless.”
“There are no easy answers,” he concluded, before answering questions from audience members.
Among the entities sponsoring the watershed conference were the Watershed Coalition of the Lehigh Valley, the Northampton County Conservation District, Wildlands Conservancy the Lehigh County Conservation District, the Saucon Creek Watershed Association, Lower Macungie Township and Lower Saucon Township.
By Josh Popichak
March 21, 2011
http://hellertown.patch.com/articles/penn-state-professor-discusses-marcellus-shale-and-water-quality
State penalizes drilling waste firms
HARRISBURG — State environmental regulators took action Monday against a pair of southwestern Pennsylvania businesses operated by a man charged last week with dumping gas drilling waste and sludge illegally.
The Department of Environmental Protection issued administrative orders against R. Allan Shipman, Tri County Waste Water Service Inc. and Allan’s Waste Water Service Inc.
The orders suspended operation of Tri County’s wastewater facility and suspended the authorization of Allan’s Waste to collect, transport or store solid waste.
Shipman, 49, and Allan’s Waste Water Service of Holbrook were both charged last week with dozens of criminal counts for, among other things, allegedly dumping millions of gallons of wastewater into streams and mine shafts.
The administrative order against Allan’s Waste and Shipman said they were responsible for the illegal depositing of gas well production water, sewage sludge, grease trap water and other wastewater onto the ground, underground or in state waterways.
Christopher Capozzi, a lawyer for Allan’s Waste, declined to comment.
March 22, 2011
http://www.timesleader.com/news/State_penalizes_drilling_waste_firms_03-22-2011.html
Lautenberg Supports Natural Gas Fracking Bill
Both Senate and House lawmakers have offered versions of the legislation that was introduced in 2009.
U.S. Sen. Frank R. Lautenberg (D-N.J.) has joined Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) in introducing legislation, S.587, to establish basic health protections that must be met when gas companies use hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, to extract underground natural gas.
The large number of gas drilling operations in Pennsylvania’s Delaware River Valley could threaten the source of drinking water for millions of New Jersey residents.
“There have been too many reports of contamination by fracking operations to let the practice continue without better oversight,” stated Lautenberg. “When it comes to our drinking water, safety must be the top priority. People have a right to know if chemicals are being injected into the ground near their homes and potentially ending up in the water supply. This bill will ensure that the Environmental Protection Agency has the tools to assess the risks of fracking and require appropriate protections so that drinking water in New Jersey and other states is safe.”
Security Products 2011 Virtual Event
Reps. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.), Jared Polis (D-Colo.), and Maurice Hinchey (D-N.Y.) sponsored the House version of the bill (H.R. 1084) with 31 cosponsors.
The “Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act,” introduced in the Senate on March 15, would:
* amend the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) definition of “underground injection” to include the underground injection of fluids used for hydraulic fracturing operations related to oil and gas production activities; and
* require public disclosure of the chemicals used in the fracturing process.
The fracking process involves injecting millions of gallons of water, sand, and chemicals into underground rock formations to blast them open and release natural gas. Fracking chemicals themselves can be hazardous, and the process can release naturally occurring hazardous substances such as arsenic and mercury as well as other heavy metals and radioactive materials from underground. The drilling wastewater, which has been found to contain radioactive substances, is often released into rivers that supply drinking water.
Similar legislation was introduced in 2009. According to Earthworks, the practice of fracking has expanded to 34 states since then.
“Energy development doesn’t have to threaten our drinking water and our communities’ health,” said John Fenton, a rancher from Pavillion, Wyo., where the U.S. EPA has warned some residents to stop drinking water from wells contaminated with arsenic and other chemicals associated with drilling and fracking. “We just want the oil and gas industry to follow the rules like everyone else,” said Fenton, a board member of the Powder River Basin Resource Council.
“How can we allow drillers to use hundreds of thousands of gallons of fluids with cancer-causing chemicals near our homes and schools without even telling us what they’re using?” asked Gwen Lachelt, director for Earthworks Oil and Gas Accountability Project, which is working nationwide in communities impacted by drilling. “The public deserves to know what chemicals are used so they can protect their families and industry can be held accountable when problems occur. Without the FRAC Act, drillers will continue to get a free ride.”
Source: Sen. Frank Lautenberg, Earthworks
Mar 21, 2011
http://eponline.com/articles/2011/03/21/lautenberg-supports-natural-gas-fracking-bill.aspx
Pa. citizens have constitutional right to clean air, pure water
JOHNSTOWN — “We have met the enemy and they is us,” said the comic character Pogo.
Ed Smith
Both political parties sponsored candidates for governor who accepted campaign money from the gas drilling industry – an industry they would be required to regulate if elected.
The Republican candidate, Tom Corbett, received more than $1 million from 15 or more gas drillers and was elected. He then appointed an owner of a drilling company to head his transition team and has appointed his own man as secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection.
He has said he intends to reopen state forests and parks to more gas drilling, reversing the decision of his predecessor. The DEP’s website says that the department wants to be a “partner” with those it regulates. (Imagine an IRS examiner telling a taxpayer he wants to be a “partner,” or the building inspector telling the building contractor, whose work he inspects, that he wants to be a “partner.”)
Pennsylvania is said to be the only state that does not tax the gas drilling industry, the only state that permits gas drilling frack waste (said to be one of the most dangerous substances on Earth) to go into municipal sewage treatment plants – that cannot treat the highly toxic rock-dissolving chemicals and acids – which is then discharged to rivers and streams, and is anticipating more than 50,000 new gas wells in the next 20 years.
People of both parties must demand more than simply victory at the polls. Pennsylvania deserves better. Political leaders and the political process have failed to provide ethical, responsible government.
The New York Times, in a recent Sunday front page story titled “Regulation Lax as Gas Well’s Tainted Water Hits Rivers,” reveals that Environmental Protection Agency scientists warn that drilling waste is a threat to drinking water in Pennsylvania. The Times has learned that the level of radioactivity in frack wastewater is many hundreds or thousands times the maximum allowed by federal standards for drinking water, and that there is no testing for radioactivity at water treatment plants or sewage treatment plants.
Drinking water intakes are often downstream from sewage treatment plants.
The Times calls Pennsylvania “ground zero” and said the state is “overwhelmed and under-prepared.” The Times quotes Corbett’s reason for not taxing the drilling industry, “Regulation (of the gas drilling industry that has been charged with polluting wells, streams, rivers and water tables) has been too aggressive.”
The governor’s webpage lists housing, family services, jobs, economic development, education and senior care – all of which are valid concerns but none of which are constitutional law requirements of the governor’s office.
Environmental protection is the only constitutional mandate of the governor, and it is omitted from the webpage.
Pennsylvania is one of four states that have an Environmental Bill of Rights adopted as amendments to their constitutions. The others are Illinois, Montana and Hawaii.
Pennsylvania’s Environmental Bill of Rights was approved by bipartisan majority vote of two successive sessions of the Legislature and was overwhelmingly approved by the citizens. It became law on May 18, 1971. Gas drilling with fracking is the biggest environmental threat since.
Article I, Section 27 of the Pennsylvania Constitution provides: “The people have a right to clean air, pure water, and to the preservation of the natural scenic, historic and aesthetic values of the environment. Pennsylvania’s public natural resources are the common property of all the people, including generations yet to come. As Trustees of these resources, the Commonwealth shall conserve and maintain them for the benefit of all the people.”
This amendment was adopted because Pennsylvania citizens, who still live with the mining impact of 100 years ago, believed that destruction of the environment was an unacceptable price for economic gain. It still is. The intent of the amendment was to prevent environmental harm – not measure and manage it.
When Corbett took the oath of office on Jan. 18, 2011, and became the 46th governor of Pennsylvania, he said, “I do solemnly swear that I will support, obey and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of this Commonwealth and that I will discharge the duties of my office with fidelity.”
As a lawyer and former attorney general, he understands the oath and duty. So do legislators and judges.
John C. Dernbach, a professor at Widener University’s School of Law and constitutional researcher, points out that Pennsylvania’s environmental constitutional amendment makes environmental protection part of the constitutional purpose of state government. The environment is given the same legal protection afforded to individual property rights and, balanced against those rights, is directed toward environmentally sustainable development.
The public trust part obliges the state to conserve and maintain public natural resources for the benefit of all people. The state is obligated to ensure that consideration and protection of constitutional values concerning the environment are made part of all state decision-making.
Constitutional law is there to prevent environmental degradation.
State officials, especially the governor, have a moral, ethical, legal and fiduciary responsibility, as trustees of state resources, to protect those resources for the beneficiaries – and that is the highest duty under the law.
Pennsylvania citizens, and future generations, are the beneficiaries – not foreign gas drilling companies, their stockholders or those they fund. A fiduciary is legally bound to act within the law in the best interests of the beneficiaries. Citizens are entitled to a state government that accepts, as its first responsibility, the duty to carry out constitutional law.
Natural resources are the common property of all the people, now and forevermore. The governor’s legal constitutional duty is to conserve and maintain those resources for all – not just for the gas drilling industry.
Pennsylvania is not for sale.
March 21, 2011
Ed Smith of Jackson Township is a retired city and county manager.
http://tribune-democrat.com/editorials/x449496875/Pa-citizens-have-constitutional-right-to-clean-air-pure-water
Natural gas tax could hurt Pa
Gov. Tom Corbett sloughed off a poll Thursday that shows Pennsylvanians opposed to his steep education funding cuts and in favor of taxing the natural gas industry, arguing the tax would not end state budget woes but could alienate “a cornerstone of the future.”
“We didn’t campaign based on polls; we’re not governing based on polls,” Corbett said during a news conference after an appearance at the Greater Scranton Chamber of Commerce. “It’s not what we were elected to do.”
Corbett opposes the natural gas severance tax and his proposed 2011-12 budget cuts funding for public schools, higher education, public libraries and other education-related entities by $1.5 billion, or 15 percent.
A Franklin & Marshall College poll released Wednesday showed more than three-fifths of residents favor taxing natural gas production while more than three quarters oppose the education cuts.
Critics of Corbett’s budget argue a natural gas tax would not chase away the industry because Pennsylvania is the only state with no local or state severance tax and companies will not leave billions of dollars in potential profits in the ground.
But Corbett said he fears the industry will transfer gas well-drilling equipment and money for investment to other states where severance taxes on gas extraction might be lower if Pennsylvania imposes a severance tax on gas.
“It’s important to get this industry rooted in Pennsylvania,” he told reporters.
“I want them building their headquarters here,” he said during his speech to about 50 chamber members.
Corbett specifically defended the higher education cuts, which Penn State University President Graham Spanier has said could lead to higher tuition and closing of some Penn State satellite campuses.
“It’s Spanier that’s taking the fight to the students,” Corbett said. “He’s the one that, when hearing the budget, immediately said, ‘We’re going to put this on the backs of the students,’ where he’s been putting it the entire time.”
Over the last decade, Penn State has received $3.5 billion in state money while more than doubling tuition, the governor said.
“Who’s putting it on the back of the students?” he said.
Corbett said the painful cuts are necessary because of the $4.3 billion budget deficit he inherited from Gov. Ed Rendell, whose natural gas tax proposal, he noted, would have produced only $170 million next year.
“I think people lose sight of that,” he said of the inherited deficit. “That’s what I can’t lose sight of.”
Corbett reminded the chamber audience his budget is only a proposal and said he would listen to amendments, but said the bottom line for spending will be his proposed $27.3 billion.
“The final number of spending will not be above $27.3 billion or I will not sign the budget,” he said.
Corbett dismissed the argument that he did not ask businesses and corporations to sacrifice in his budget.
“First off, businesses and corporations have been sacrificing,” he said. “Their business has been so far down that they haven’t been able to employ people. … I’m not sure what you mean by them sacrificing. Does that mean more taxes? Well, you know where I am on more taxes.”
Corbett pointed to the elimination in his budget of legislative initiative grants – legislators’ money for special projects – that often went to companies.
Corbett’s budget reduces funding for the Department of Economic and Community Development – the source of many grants and loans for corporate and business development by $114 million, or more than a third of its 2010-2011 level. Much of that was money provided by one-time federal economic stimulus money.
“We have many corporations that come to us that are always asking us for more money,” the governor said. “We’re going to look at those very carefully. We have to reduce the spending there. And we have to let the free enterprise system work.”
Corbett told the chamber audience no one should be surprised that he opposes raising taxes because he promised that while campaigning for the office.
“I came straight out with what I said I’m going to do,” he said.
Corbett said the $20 million in funding that Rendell promised for renovating Lackawanna County remains under review. He declined to say if there is reason to think he would not approve the money.
“I’ve been so busy with this budget, that’s one that I haven’t really sat down and looked at,” he said.
Corbett also said he will name a transportation task force to examine ways of paying for transportation projects and mass transit within 30 days.
March 18, 2011
by Borys Krawczeniuk (Staff Writer)
bkrawczeniuk@timesshamrock.com
http://citizensvoice.com/news/corbett-natural-gas-tax-could-hurt-pa-1.1120478#axzz1GxRsqoZJ
Frack Water Safety Debated
Bill to require drillers to disclose chemicals goes before Congress
WHEELING – Federal legislators Robert Casey and Diana DeGette believe hydraulic fracturing may contaminate drinking water during the natural gas drilling process.
But Marcellus Shale Coalition President Kathryn Klaber said Congress has no business regulating drilling via the Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act.
The bill, commonly known as the FRAC Act, was introduced by U.S. Sen. Casey, D-Pa., and Congresswoman DeGette, D-Colo., in each chamber this week. The legislation is similar to a bill of the same name that died last year.
“Pennsylvanians have a right to know the chemicals used in fracking that could make their way into drinking water and other water sources,” said Casey.
“The FRAC Act takes necessary but reasonable steps to ensure our nation’s drinking water is protected, and that as fracking operations continue to expand, communities can be assured that the economic benefits of natural gas are not coming at the expense of the health of their families,” added DeGette.
The bill’s sponsors say the FRAC Act would:
• Require disclosure of the chemicals used in fracking, but not the proprietary chemical formula. This would be similar to how a soft drink producer must reveal the ingredients of their product, but not the specific formula;
• Repeal a provision added to the Energy Policy Act of 2005 exempting the industry from complying with the Safe Drinking Water Act. Some anti-fracking advocates have commonly referred to this 2005 provision as the “Halliburton Loophole.”
The act would also provide power to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to require drillers to have an employee, knowledgeable in responding to emergency situations, present at the well at all times during the exploration or drilling phase.
Klaber, though, said state officials are best equipped to regulate fracking and drilling. However, the West Virginia Legislature did not adopt proposed regulations for natural gas drilling – including chemical disclosures for fracking – in the recently concluded regular session.
“Because of tight regulations and laws in place, coupled with the commitment from industry to protect the environment, there’s never been a single case of groundwater contamination associated with fracturing …,” Klaber said.
Lee Fuller, executive director of Energy In Depth, went further than Klaber, saying the FRAC Act is “based on fundamentally incorrect information,” noting the Safe Drinking Water Act was never used to regulate fracking.
“Its backers say it’s about forcing companies to disclose the composition of the … solution that’s not water and sand, even though just about every state regulatory agency in the country will attest that such information is already available,” Fuller added.
Officials with Chesapeake Energy said about 99.5 percent of the 5.6 million gallons of fluid used to frack a typical well consists of water and sand.
However, if 0.5 percent of the 5.6 million gallons used for a normal well consists of materials other than water and sand, that means 28,000 gallons of chemicals found in products such as antifreeze, laundry detergent and deodorant are pumped deep into the ground at high pressure for each fracking job the company performs.
According to Chesapeake, the company’s most common fracking solution contains 0.5 percent worth of chemicals. These include:
• hydrochloric acid – found in swimming pool cleaner, and used to help crack the rock;
• ethylene glycol – found in antifreeze, and used to prevent scale deposits in the pipe;
• isopropanol – found in deodorant, and used to reduce surface tension;
• glutaraldehyde – found in disinfectant, and used to eliminate bacteria;
• petroleum distillate – found in cosmetics, and used to minimize friction;
• guar gum – found in common household products, and used to suspend the sand;
• ammonium persulfate – found in hair coloring, and used to delay the breakdown of guar gum;
• formamide – found in pharmaceuticals, and used to prevent corrosion of the well casing;
• borate salts – found in laundry detergent, and used to maintain fluid viscosity under high temperatures;
• citric acid – found in soft drinks, and used to prevent precipitation of metal;
• potassium chloride – found in medicine and salt substitutes, and used to prevent fluid from interacting with soil;
• sodium or potassium carbonate – found in laundry detergent, and used to balance acidic substances.
March 17, 2011 – By CASEY JUNKINS
http://www.news-register.net/page/content.detail/id/553099/Frack-Water-Safety-Debated.html?nav=515
Bill regulating fracking draws mixed reaction
Legislation introduced Tuesday by U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., to regulate aspects of natural gas drilling provoked mixed reactions from environmental groups and the industry.
The Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals — or FRAC — Act “would increase disclosure and regulation of chemicals that could enter Pennsylvania’s drinking water supply,” according to a statement from the senator.
“We think the FRAC Act is a great first step,” said Jessica Ennis, legislative associate for Earthjustice, an environmental law firm. “I think it would put more accountability into the drilling process.”
Drillers, meanwhile, oppose the attempt to bring hydraulic fracturing — also known as fracking — under federal regulation.
“This is really a Washington solution in search of a problem,” said Travis Windle, spokesman for the Marcellus Shale Coalition. “This is something the states ably, aggressively and effectively regulate every day.”
Fracking, a fundamental step in Marcellus Shale drilling, involves injecting a mixture of water, sand and chemicals into the ground under high pressure to break apart rock and aid in releasing trapped natural gas.
Congress exempted fracking from regulation under the Safe Drinking Water Act in 2005.
The bill was one of three Mr. Casey introduced Tuesday pertaining to natural gas drilling. A companion bill to the FRAC Act was introduced in the House of Representatives by U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette, D-Colo.
March 16, 2011
By Jonathan D. Silver, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Jonathan D. Silver: jsilver@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1962
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11075/1132238-113.stm
Events at Lehigh Gap Nature Center
There are several events and volunteer days coming up at Lehigh Gap Nature Center. Some of the programs require REGISTRATION. Read on.
March 26 — Spring Clean-up. 9:00 a.m. to noon. This is a big volunteer day for working on lots of spring chores at the Refuge. We depend greatly on our volunteer base and this is a great opportunity to help us out. (Rain Date — April 2)
April 23 — Earth Day Celebration
7:00 a.m. Bird Walk at LGNC. All are welcome.
9:00 a.m. to noon. Native Plant workshop. REGISTRATION REQUIRED. This is a 3-hour workshop designed to teach you about native plants and how to create habitat gardens. We will be both indoors for a presentation and outside in the gardens. Come prepared to do some weeding and also to learn about the native plants. Each participant will receive a book, a plant to take home and use in your garden, and a gift certificate to Edge of the Woods native Plant Nursery. This workshop is FREE to LGNC members and you have first chance to register. Please register as soon as possible — space is limited to 15 people. If more than one person in the same immediate family is coming, that will count as one registration. (See May 4 for another date for the same workshop).
April 30 — Natural History Workshop
8:00 a.m. Birding Workshop for beginners and families. Binoculars are available for those who do not own them. Come out and learn how to identify our local birds and learn about their ecology and behavior.
10:00 a.m. Fly fishing Demonstration by LL Bean. REGISTRATION REQUIRED. This is an opportunity to learn about the ecology and art of catch and release fly fishing. LL Bean will bring fly rods and you will have a chance to try out your casting skills.
May 4 — Native Plant Workshop
6:00-9:00 p.m. REGISTRATION REQUIRED. (Same workshop as April 23 — see description above.)
May 7 — Natural History Hike
9:00 a.m to about noon on the Charcoal Trail. Moderately difficult hike. We will climb over the top of the mountain looking for signs of spring.
May 14 — Second Saturday Bird Walk
7:00 a.m. Good time for warblers and other spring migrants and arrivals.
May 22 — LGNC and LV Audubon Birds Walk at Lehigh Gap.
7:00 a.m. Led by Corey Husic.
All of these events begin at the Osprey House. For the events requiring registration, be sure to register if you intend to come, and be sure to come if you register. If you register and do not attend, you take the place of someone else who wanted to attend – space is limited.
Contact:
Dan Kunkle
Lehigh Gap Nature Center
P.O. Box 198
Slatington, PA 18080
610-760-8889
http://lgnc.org
U.S. Rep. Mark Critz of Johnstown helps form Marcellus caucus
The boom in Marcellus Shale gas drilling has created an abundance of economic opportunities.
But it also has spurred questions about technology, regulation and environmental impact.
Now, several members of Congress are banding together in a new Marcellus Shale Caucus. Co-founded by Democratic U.S. Rep. Mark Critz of Johnstown, the caucus will serve as a “bipartisan educational forum” that also could provoke discussion about potential federal regulation.
“Our goal is to have a conversation so we can discuss and learn about the effects that developing the Marcellus Shale will have on each of our congressional districts,” Critz and U.S. Rep. Tom Reed wrote in a letter to House members.
Critz said he and Reed, a New York Republican, first discussed the idea in January. They issued their joint letter last month.
So far, nine other representatives have signed up. The caucus’ membership now includes eight Republicans and three Democrats from four states – Pennsylvania, Ohio, New York and West Virginia.
Critz stressed the educational aspect of the caucus, saying members want to hear from the drilling industry, environmental groups and governmental representatives.
Field hearings could be held in some congressional districts, though no such sessions have been scheduled at this point.
“We’re going to try to move it along quickly,” Critz said.
The congressman, who is serving his first full term, has talked often about gas drilling’s economic potential. During his campaign last year, Critz said coal mining and Marcellus Shale drilling could help make western Pennsylvania the “energy capital of the world.”
But in a Monday interview, Critz also noted the need for “balance between industry and the environment.” And he said members of the new caucus could talk about regulating the drilling industry.
“What is the best way forward?” Critz said. “When do we need to regulate?
“When do we need to not regulate?”
The letter from Critz and Reed notes that “concerns do exist regarding the development of the Marcellus Shale, particularly over groundwater contamination.”
Members of the U.S. House of Representatives Marcellus Shale Caucus:
Jason Altmire, D-Pa.
Lou Barletta, R-Pa.
Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.
Mark Critz, D-Pa.
Richard Hanna, R-N.Y.
Bill Johnson, R-Ohio
David McKinley, R-W.Va.
Tom Reed, R-N.Y.
Tim Ryan, D-Ohio
Bill Shuster, R-Pa.
Steve Stivers, R-Ohio
March 15, 2011
Mike Faher
mfaher@tribdem.com
http://tribune-democrat.com/local/x977550329/Critz-helps-form-Marcellus-caucus
Well water users will get financial aid
Seminars will provide low interest loan information to rural households.
Rural household owners using well water – pull out your calendars and red pens. Four seminars are planned to introduce a Household Water Well Assistance Program.
Brian Oram, Wilkes University professor and Director of the Center for Environmental Quality, said the goal of the seminars is to educate the public.
The Pocono Northeast Resource Conservation and Development Council, a nonprofit organization, has acquired $130,000 in grant money and will lend it out as low interest loans to low- and moderate-income households to repair and improve their quality of well water.
A seminar is scheduled from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on March 21 at the Lake Township Municipal building. Other seminars are scheduled for today at the Monroe County Conservation District, Stroudsburg; March 22 at the Columbia County AG Center, Bloomsburg; and March 23 at the Wayne County Park Street Complex, Honesdale.
Anyone unable to attend any of the meetings can obtain information by contacting the Pocono Northeast Resource Conservation and Development Council, Mayfield, by calling 570-282-8732, extension 4, e-mailing to sue@pnercd.org, or visiting the RC & D website www.pnesolutions.org.
RC & D chairman Brian Oram said the goal of the seminars is to educate the public on what minerals and their amounts are normally found in well water, private well and drinking water issues, and the specifics of the RC & D Household Well Water Program.
The terms of the loan are simple. Well water home owners must live in a rural area with an average of fewer than 274 people per square mile, proof of ownership and full-time residence, must qualify as low-to-moderate income, well water must already be tested to show existing problems, and applicants must prove ability to repay the loan.
According to the guidelines of the RC & D, low income in Luzerne County starts at $31,700 for one person to $52,550 for six people in one household. A chart is available at the RC & D website.
Oram, a geology professor and laboratory manager for the Center of Environmental Quality at Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, said loans will not exceed $11,000, will have 1 percent interest, and recipients will have a maximum of 20 years to repay.
Applications will be accepted starting March 1. Oram said beginning April 25, applications will be reviewed every two weeks.
Some of the uses of the loan would include drilling a new well for an existing home, and closing off an old well. Oram said the loan would not cover drilling a well for new construction, water testing, to pay for home plumbing systems, or for a home sewer or septic systems.
In his 20 years of experience in studying area water supplies, Oram found the biggest well water problems involve bacteria and solids. He said unlike reservoir water which is tested daily, well water users do not test their water frequently.
“The Environmental Protection Agency advises well water should be tested annually,” he said.
Lately, rural homeowners have been testing their well water, due to the invading Marcellus Shale natural gas industry. Hidden pre-existing quality problems are being found. The loan could help them increase the quality of their water, Oram said.
“Almost everybody uses well water,” Oram said. “Thirty percent of reservoir water comes from ground water. We all have a vested interest in maintaining quality ground water.”
EILEEN GODIN Times Leader Correspondent
March 14, 2011
http://www.timesleader.com/news/Well_water_users_will_get_financial_aid_03-14-2011.html