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Hydraulic fracturing

Maryland Strongly Supports Natural Gas Production

New poll finds Maryland voters, like their neighbors in New York and Pennsylvania, want to participate in the shale gas revolution

It may be news to government officials in Annapolis who have imposed a temporary pause on hydraulic fracturing, but voters throughout the state of Maryland actually support natural gas production. Big time.

A new poll by Gonzales Research & Marketing Strategies finds that an incredible 80% of Marylanders support natural gas production in the United States, including 60% who “strongly support” it. The poll finds large majority support for developing natural gas among both men and women, across all political affiliations, and in every region of the state.

As for producing natural gas specifically in western Maryland, where the Marcellus Shale could provide significant new economic opportunities for the Old Line State, nearly 75% of voters in the state express support. Production in western Maryland also enjoys majority support across all demographics polled in the state.

This poll comes as another Quinnipiac survey in New York shows a plurality of voters support Marcellus Shale development, a fact that has remained consistent in Quinnipiac’s polling over the past few months. A Siena poll from last month also found more New Yorkers supported than opposed natural gas production.

And in neighboring Pennsylvania, where the Mighty Marcellus is the source of significant job creation and the rebirth of manufacturing, voters say the economic benefits of drilling outweigh any perceived environmental issues by 62 percent to 30 percent.

Throughout the United States, natural gas development enjoys 81% support according to a recent poll by the American Consumer Institute (ACI).

READ MORE

*UPDATE* New Study Debunks Cornell GHG Paper. Again.

Maryland joins Carnegie Mellon, Wood Mackenzie, and even U.S. Dept. of Energy in locating gaping holes in Howarth/Ingraffea paper

Earlier this year, researchers from Cornell University — Robert Howarth and Anthony Ingraffea — released a study that found emissions from shale gas production are worse than coal, based chiefly on the global warming potential (GWP) of methane. Of course, the study had more holes in it than big slice of Swiss cheese (read EID’s six-times-updated rebuttal here), with its conclusions resting on such a poor foundation that even a Sierra Club funded study found its premises to be flawed.

Yet the Cornell study continues to be used by ideological opponents of shale gas production, not just in the United States but also in Canada. Which is why we feel it’s imperative to highlight that yet another top-notch study — this one from researchers at the University of Maryland — is pushing the Cornell paper even closer to the ash bin of history.

The new study, entitled “The Greenhouse Impact of Unconventional Gas for Electricity Production,” has many noteworthy conclusions, including:

And as we said, this most recent study is only the latest to join the party. But don’t just take our word for it…

August 2011, Carnegie Mellon Univ. report on life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from Marcellus shale production:

August 2011, Worldwatch Institute study points out how Howarth and Ingraffea are the exception, not the rule:

June 2011, Cornell Univ. professor Lawrence M. Cathles [report submitted for publication]:

May 2011, U.S. Dept. of Energy report: Emissions from natural gas are low compared to other fuels.

May 2011, Wood Mackenzie study “Methane Emissions from Unconventional Well Completions”

May 2011, Navigant Energy Practice, “How does the Howarth team’s report affect natural gas development?”

May 2011, Global Warming Policy Foundation, “The Shale Gas Shock“

John Hanger, former head of the Pennsylvania Dept of Env. Protection:

Natural Resources Defense Council’s Dan Lashof rejects the Cornell study’s use of a 20-year time frame:

And, just as a refresher, here are Howarth and Ingraffea discussing the flaws of their own paper:

UPDATE: (11/3/2011, 5:02 pm)

A new study from the Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Lab casts even more doubt on the Cornell study. A presentation of the study comes to the following conclusion: “Average natural gas baseload power generation has life cycle GHG emissions 53% lower than average coal baseload power generation” (p. 36). All forms of natural gas scored significantly lower on GHG emissions than coal-powered generation.

And what about the infamous 20-year time for global warming potential (GWP), which Dr. Howarth deemed “critical” for making a proper environmental impact assessment? NETL concludes: “Average natural gas baseload power generation has life cycle GHG emissions 42% lower than average coal baseload power generation on a 20-year time horizon” (p. 37). Once again, all forms of natural gas score lower than coal, even on the 20-year time frame.

READ MORE

Lenders’ Bagels?

The ‘Age of Shale’ and America’s Energy Future

With billions of dollars in new investments and global interest soaring, the shale revolution is here to stay.

Shh…don’t tell the New York Times, but it looks like America’s energy renaissance in shale — which has been fueling economic recovery from North Dakota to Texas and Louisiana to Pennsylvania — is going to last for a long, long time.

As the Wall Street Journal reports, in a story aptly stating that the “Age of Shale” has arrived:

Shale discoveries have reinvigorated U.S. oil and gas production that just half a dozen years ago was widely seen as in terminal decline. Today, there is a glut of cheap natural gas, and domestic oil production is rising for the first time in decades. Shale development is even spreading to other countries, such as Poland and Argentina.

The shale boom has already minted a half-dozen new billionaires comparable to the riches brought by the Internet.

“You certainly have to record the discovery and the exploitation of resources from both oil and gas shales as one of the great wealth creators in American history,” said Ralph Eads, vice-chairman of investment bank Jefferies & Co., which has advised on more than $75 billion worth of shale deals over the last three years. “It looks to be the economic equivalent to any of the big technology innovations.”

Recent market developments further highlight this trend. Kinder Morgan Inc. announced this past weekend that it would be buying El Paso Corporation in a deal worth approximately $38 billion. The acquisition will ultimately create the fourth-largest energy company in North America.

What prompted that enormous deal? El Paso owns the largest natural gas pipeline system in North America, with more than 43,000 miles of gas pipelines. As Reuters points out, the deal combines “the two largest natural gas pipeline operators in North America in a huge bet on the fast-growing market for that fuel.”

More from Reuters:

Despite weak natural gas prices, production of the fuel has been rising as energy companies pile into shale fields — underground formations rich in oil and gas. In the Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas, where there are scant pipelines, companies are having to rely on trucks and are building rail terminals to handle the vast field’s output.

El Paso already owned the largest natural gas pipeline system in North America, with more than 43,000 miles of pipe. The combined company would own 67,000 miles of natural gas pipe and another 13,000 miles of pipelines to move refined products and other fuels.

“We believe that natural gas is going to play an increasingly integral role in North America,” Kinder Morgan Chief Executive Richard Kinder said in a statement. “We are delighted to be able to significantly expand our natural gas transportation footprint at a time when it seems likely thatdomestic natural gas supply and demand will grow at attractive rates for years to come.”

And this is only one of stories out this week about the growing shale revolution. Statoil ASA has also announced that it is purchasing Brigham Exploration to get a piece of the mighty Bakken Shale in North Dakota. The purchase makes Statoil one of the top 10 holders of Bakken acreage, and shows how shale development is attracting massive amounts of direct investment in American energy development.

Less than a decade ago, few would have predicted that these massive investments would take place. But through the expanded use of proven technologies like hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling, the United States has completely transformed its position in the global economy, not only with respect to energy security, but also with the capacity for job creation and economic growth.

In Pennsylvania, the development of the Marcellus shale has led to a rebirth of manufacturing, especially the steel industry. A study from Penn State shows that Pennsylvanians saved more than $630 million on their utility bills thanks to shale gas production, and the oil and gas industry in the Keystone State has helped create nearly 50,000 jobs in 2011. In Texas, the Eagle Ford shale is not only creating much-needed jobs, but is also putting the state’s finances on a stronger footing: In November, more than $1 billion will be added to the state’s rainy day fund, revenue that is mostly generated from oil and gas production. And thanks to the development of the Haynesville shale in northern Louisiana, Shreveport-Bossier is now the ninth fastest growing metropolitan area in the entire country. In Ohio, developers are only just beginning to invest billions of dollars into local economies to tap the resources of the Utica Shale.

By 2017 the United States could be the largest oil producer in the world — thanks mostly to shale oil development in places like the Bakken and the Eagle Ford — and shale gas is already allowing countries in Europe to think about disentangling themselves from the Russians.

America’s energy future is perhaps brighter than it has ever been, a status that owes itself to the continued and responsible development of domestic shale resources.

NPR: Shale Development a Huge Boon to U.S. Manufacturing

Today, National Public Radio’s Morning Edition highlighted the remarkable impact that responsible shale development is having on American manufacturing, filing a short piece focusing on Marcellus development in Pennsylvania. The program highlighted how hydraulic fracturing is stimulating significant job growth for the manufacturing sector due to affordable and stable supplies of clean-burning natural gas — which is helping to create thousands of jobs during these challenging economic times. Here are several key excerpts from the story:

Energy production is stimulating growth along the supply chain. You can’t drill without steel; you can’t weld without workers. Whether an oil and gas producing state or not, domestic energy production is creating jobs in a wide array of manufacturing sectors.

And the American people are catching on! A poll released today by the American Consumer Institute Center for Citizen Research (ACI) noted that 80% of Americans support increased energy development to create jobs. Natural gas is no exception.

With the American economy currently on the ropes, natural gas development continues to be a light at the end of the tunnel (or well hole) for thousands of Americans trying to provide for themselves and their families. American innovation created hydraulic fracturing; American determination has enabled it to prosper and will continue to provide for our growing, energy-consuming nation.

Before increasing our reliance on foreign fuels and “our so-called friends in the Middle East” (CBS-21’s RJ Harris, 10/10/11), let’s look to the great domestic energy potential—right beneath our feet.

Highlights From Yesterday’s US Senate Shale Gas Hearing

US Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), Energy & Natural Resources Committee Chairman

US Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Energy & Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member

US Sen. and Fmr. Gov. John Hoeven (R-ND), Energy & Natural Resources Committee

Dr. Daniel Yergin, IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates

Dr. Stephen Holditch, Petroleum Engineering Department Head, Texas A&M University

Dr. Mark Zoback, Department of Geophysics Professor, Stanford University

Kathleen McGinty, Fmr. PA DEP sec. and White House CEQ chair to President Clinton

NOTE: A webcast of yesterday’s hearing is available here.

The Amazing Energy Future that the Federal Government Wants to Prevent

Shale oil development in places like North Dakota means ‘OPEC’s days are numbered,’ but federal regulators pursue alternative future with potentially devastating results.

In 2004, North Dakota was the ninth largest oil producing state in the country, producing less than half as much oil per year as the state of New Mexico. In 2010, a mere six years later, North Dakota had climbed to the fourth largest, surpassing energy rich Oklahoma and Louisiana. What happened?

Two words: shale oil. The Bakken formation in the western part of the state, which the U.S. Geological Survey predicted in 1995 had only 151 million barrels of oil, turned out to be one of the largest onshore oil fields ever discovered in the United States — in 2008 the USGS famously revised its estimate upward by an amazing 25-fold, projecting that the Bakken could hold more than four billion barrels of oil.

This incredible story was told in detail this weekend in the Wall Street Journal‘s weekend interview, ” How North Dakota Became Saudi Arabia,” which focused on Harold Hamm, the oil man credited with discovering the massive energy potential in the Bakken:

[S]ince 2005 America truly has been in the midst of a revolution in oil and natural gas, which is the nation’s fastest-growing manufacturing sector. No one is more responsible for that resurgence than Mr. Hamm. He was the original discoverer of the gigantic and prolific Bakken oil fields of Montana and North Dakota that have already helped move the U.S. into third place among world oil producers.

How much oil does Bakken have? The official estimate of the U.S. Geological Survey a few years ago was between four and five billion barrels. Mr. Hamm disagrees: “No way. We estimate that the entire field, fully developed, in Bakken is 24 billion barrels.”

Of course, none of this would have been possible were it not for horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, both of which are needed to unlock the vast deposits of oil and natural gas in shale deposits across the country.

Yet even with this amazing success story, the America’s ability to reduce its reliance on OPEC is far from written in stone, and indeed seems to be under attack by federal regulators whose actions could undermine this renaissance just as its getting started. As the WSJ further explains:

[Hamm's] only beef these days is with Washington. Mr. Hamm was invited to the White House for a “giving summit” with wealthy Americans who have pledged to donate at least half their wealth to charity. (He’s given tens of millions of dollars already to schools like Oklahoma State and for diabetes research.) “Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, they were all there,” he recalls.

When it was Mr. Hamm’s turn to talk briefly with President Obama, “I told him of the revolution in the oil and gas industry and how we have the capacity to produce enough oil to enable America to replace OPEC. I wanted to make sure he knew about this.”

The president’s reaction? “He turned to me and said, ‘Oil and gas will be important for the next few years. But we need to go on to green and alternative energy. [Energy] Secretary [Steven] Chu has assured me that within five years, we can have a battery developed that will make a car with the equivalent of 130 miles per gallon.’” Mr. Hamm holds his head in his hands and says, “Even if you believed that, why would you want to stop oil and gas development? It was pretty disappointing.”

Washington keeps “sticking a regulatory boot at our necks and then turns around and asks: ‘Why aren’t you creating more jobs,’” he says. He roils at the Interior Department delays of months and sometimes years to get permits for drilling. “These delays kill projects,” he says. Even the Securities and Exchange Commission is now tightening the screws on the oil industry, requiring companies like Continental to report their production and federal royalties on thousands of individual leases under the Sarbanes-Oxley accounting rules. “I could go to jail because a local operator misreported the production in the field,” he says.

The impact of the “regulatory boot” and federal delays have a greater cost than hamstringing America’s capacity to produce energy. They also undermine the type of job creation and economic growth that a struggling economy so desperately needs:

Mr. Hamm believes that if Mr. Obama truly wants more job creation, he should study North Dakota, the state with the lowest unemployment rate in the nation at 3.5%. He swears that number is overstated: “We can’t find any unemployed people up there. The state has 18,000 unfilled jobs,” Mr. Hamm insists. “And these are jobs that pay $60,000 to $80,000 a year.” The economy is expanding so fast that North Dakota has a housing shortage. Thanks to the oil boom—Continental pays more than $50 million in state taxes a year—the state has a budget surplus and is considering ending income and property taxes.

Less reliance on OPEC. More high-paying jobs. Budget surpluses. Lower tax burdens for everyone. These are undeniable benefits of responsible oil and gas production — particularly in states with significant shale resources such as Pennsylvania (Marcellus shale), Texas (Eagle Ford shale), Louisiana (Haynesville shale), and now Ohio (Utica shale) — that the federal government should be encouraging. Instead, members of Congress are pushing for the Environmental Protection Agency to ban hydraulic fracturing, thereby cutting off at the knees America’s energy revolution. The President, meanwhile, is threatening to curb domestic oil and gas production through higher taxes.

Instead of trying to shut down North Dakota’s model of more American energy production, more jobs, and more public revenue, maybe the federal government should be taking lessons from it.

Bountiful Barnett Continues To Churn Out Jobs, Revenues

In 1981, Mitchell Energy – led by legendary oilman and wildcatter George Mitchell, who’s widely considered the father or shale gas development – started drilling the Barnett Shale in an effort to unlock its enormous natural gas reserves. Today, thanks to the tireless efforts of Mitchell and others, the Barnett remains a powerful job creation machine and economic catalyst for Texas.

And it’s no surprise that a Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce-commissioned study released yesterday finds that the Barnett Shale has produced 9 trillion cubic feet of natural gas while enabling the creation of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in investment over the past decade. The study — entitled “The Impact of the Barnett Shale on Business Activity in the Surrounding Region and Texas: An Assessment of the First Decade of Extensive Development” — takes an in depth look at the Barnett’s positive effect on the Lone Star State. Here are key findings from the study:

JOBS

SALARIES

TAX REVENUES

SCHOOLS GET MAJOR BOOSTS

Some maintain that shale gas development is only a “boom” and cannot be sustained. As thePhiladelphia Inquirer reports, “Daniel Yergin, one of the most influential voices in the world of energy, says shale gas is here to stay.” And this new study reinforces that fact:

With more than 70 rigs already drilling in the Barnett Shale, the new study reconfirms the positive impact of America’s natural gas industry on local, state, and regional economies. The Dallas Business Journalspoke with Fort Worth Chamber President and CEO Bill Thorton about the positive report:

“We commissioned the study to see how or if the economic downturn had impacted past projections about the industry,” said Bill Thorton . “What we found was that it’s a bulwark of our economy.”

Bud Weinstein, associate director of the Maguire Energy Institute at Southern Methodist University, spoke to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram to further highlight Perryman Group’s findings:

“What’s important is that we have an industry in North Texas that basically didn’t exist a decade ago,” he said. “While gas prices have fallen over the last couple of years and the rig count is way down, and the Barnett may no longer be the biggest shale-producing play in the U.S., the technology of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing has clearly added a new dimension to our economy, added thousands of jobs, and helped cities, counties, school districts.”

If it wasn’t clear already, this report confirms it. Responsible shale gas development in the United States has provided millions of jobs, generated billions of dollars in revenue, and is a vital part of our domestic energy and economic security. Texas found the lucky pot of gold at the rainbow – all thanks to hydraulic fracturing.

Technological Advancements Continue to Safely Unlock More American Oil & Gas, Creating Tens of Thousands of Jobs

Hydraulic fracturing has opened the doors for the production of critical and abundant oil and gas reserves in the U.S., and abroad. With over 100 years of clean-burning natural gas now accessible in the U.S. alone, fracturing has increased our domestic energy security while creating jobs and economic opportunities from the well pad to our local hotels and diners. And there’s more good news. Technologies are advancing at breakneck rates, dramatically reducing aboveground land disturbances while heightening environmental safeguards.

Indeed, under the headline “Encana extends capacity of directional drilling,” the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel reports this about the technological advancements that our industry is continually making:

When Encana Oil & Gas (USA) was trying to figure out how to drill for the natural gas beneath a narrow box canyon north of Parachute, it was time for some out-of-the-box thinking.

The company’s solution? It drilled a remarkable 50-plus wells directionally from one well pad of just 4.6 acres. As a result, it developed about 640 acres of underground resources — the amount contained in a square mile — from a single location, based on underground well densities of as much as one every 10 acres. That’s the most wells that Frank Merendino, Encana’s drilling manager for its North Parachute Ranch property, believes has been drilled from an onshore pad anywhere in the United States.

“The reason they’re all here is to drain this massive area … without impacting the environment,” Merendino said as he surveyed the well pad. In the distance behind it, a long, thin waterfall coursed from the rim at the canyon head. It’s one of seven falls on the 45,000-acre ranch property.

The directional drilling prevented the cost and visual impact of trying to build pads on the canyon cliff sides, or drilling through a few extra thousand feet of earth from surrounding plateaus and having to locate pads near the rim, where possible spills into the canyon would be a concern.

Encana’s effort won it a Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission award this summer. It also is appreciated by state wildlife officials because of the reduced disturbance of habitat. Encana’s accomplishment reflects oil and gas technology’s continuing evolution, said Dean Riggs, assistant regional manager for Colorado Parks and Wildlife in Grand Junction.

“Many, many moons ago, we used to have one well per gas pad,” Riggs said. Riggs took over as the manager of the wildlife area that includes Encana’s North Parachute project eight years ago, and back then four wells on a pad was probably normal in the region, he said. “Eight wells per pad eight years ago was a big deal,” he said.

Similar technological advancements are on display in Wyoming. This from yesterday’s Houston Chronicleunder the headline “Remote Wyoming site could help shape fracking’s future”:

Natural gas development in the U.S. will depend not only on what happens in Washington and in statehouses across the country. It could be shaped in part by what happens in a big antelope-dotted field south of this remote valley town.

Here, Shell Oil Co. and others are taking steps – some required and others voluntary – that soon may be the norm for reducing the environmental impact of gas drilling and the extraction process called hydraulic fracturing, or fracking.

Shell, for instance, now recycles more than half the water it uses in fracturing local wells, reducing the need for locally sourced fresh water. It also has installed equipment that is sharply cutting emissions from drilling rigs and has shrunk its surface footprint by drilling more wells at a single site, rather than spacing them out checkerboard style, as is done in some other fields.

And support for America’s oil and natural gas industry – and common sense hydraulic fracturing regulations – runs as deep as the wells being drilled into shale formations. Last week, a diverse group of 119 organizations — including the National Association of Manufacturers, US Chamber of Commerce, Independent Petroleum Association of American, Ohio Grocers Association, and North Dakota Farm Bureau — sent a letter to President Obama highlighting the immense benefits of this energy revolution. This from the letter:

The shale gas and oil revolution in America today has been good news for job creation, economic growth and energy security, and it promises hundreds of thousands of more new jobs, billions of dollars more in revenue to governments, and vast supplies of domestic, affordable and clean-burning energy for generations to come.

Speaking of jobs: A new Ohio Oil and Gas Energy Education Program study highlights the potential of the emerging Utica Shale formation last week. The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports “Ohio’s natural gas and oil reserves are a multibillion-dollar bonanza that could create more than 204,500 jobs in just four years.” Here are key study experts:

And it’s not just here at home. The shale revolution — enabled by American technology and know-how — is going global. From South America to eastern Europe, vast oil and natural gas supplies are being responsibly leverage into a more stable energy supplies for consumers while generating enormous economic benefits.

ARGENTINA

“Argentina minister: Boom set in unconventional gas”: Argentina’s vast unconventional natural gas resources will become an important contributor to the South American nation’s energy matrix within the next four years, according to a top minister. …”We, together with [gas rich] Bolivia, are going to become an gigantic source of gas in South America with opportunities for industrialization,” he said.  According to recent U.S. Energy Information Administration report, Argentina ranks No. 3 in the world in terms of technically recoverable shale-gas resources with 774 trillion cubic feet of gas.”

POLAND

Shale gas “could reduce Poland’s dependence on Russia for gas, create tens of thousands of jobs and fill state coffers”: Outside the U.S., Poland is the first country where companies are making a serious effort to develop shale gas, which Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has called the country’s “great chance,” as it could reduce Poland’s dependence on Russia for gas, create tens of thousands of jobs and fill state coffers.

UNITED KINGDOM

“Firm finds shale gas near Blackpool “:A company exploring for controversial “shale gas” in the UK says it could drill hundreds of wells in Lancashire to tap into vast gas resources underground. Cuadrilla Resources, whose exploration efforts near Blackpool had to be halted earlier in the year amid concerns they were causing tremors, said there were 200 trillion cubic feet of gas under the ground in the area. A percentage of the gas could be recovered for use in the UK’s energy mix, providing up to 5,600 jobs, including 1,700 in the local area, at the peak of production, the company has suggested.

Ireland, Canada, and Bulgaria, to name a few, are also evaluating the promise of oil and natural gas development – enabled by hydraulic fracturing – from shale formations. The trend is catching on — the world wants competitive and efficient energies that can keep up with expanding global demand.

Desperation through Exaggeration

Anti-shale group claims success by misstating its own data, inflates participation rate by more than ten-fold.

If there is one thing that ties together opponents of responsible energy development, it’s the liberal use of exaggeration. While examples are numerous — and are sometimes rewarded with Academy Award nominations — the most recent comes to us from the group Food & Water Watch (FWWatch).

You see, FWWatch doesn’t like hydraulic fracturing and wants it banned. But because people enjoy affordable energy and support producing more resources domestically, the group is in a bind: How to advance a political agenda in a democratic society where the majority is not on their side?

The answer, naturally, is to send out blast emails to FWWatch members asking them to pester secretaries at the White House, who will supposedly pass along a message to the leader of the free world that he should ban hydraulic fracturing. And according to the group’s latest fundraising solicitation email, which can be found on the web here, they are having some success:

Dear Supporter,

Yesterday, President Obama heard the message loud and clear: hydraulic fracking is a dangerous practice that needs to be banned. Now, help us expand our efforts to ban fracking!

During yesterday’s call-in event that we organized, the President heard from over 6,210 concerned activists. We flooded the White House with so many phone calls that some people got busy signals or were sent to voicemail. Thank you if you called to make your concerns about fracking heard!

Making 6,200 calls to the White House in a single day sounds impressive. But one group’s activist email from yesterday appears to contradict the claim that the President “heard from over 6,210 concerned activists” from Food & Water Watch. That group is none other than … Food & Water Watch.

EID obtained an email from FWWatch that was sent to supporters yesterday (September 13th) at 2pm EDT. The full email can be found at the end of this post, but the opening paragraph reads:

We have 3 hours until the White House phone lines close here on the east coast. They’ve been hearing from us all day – with over 600 calls toward our goal of 2,000 from all of the outreach that you’re doing – and they’re getting the message. In the final stretch, we need to keep up the pressure and get all those final calls in.

Interesting. The White House’s phones are open from 9am to 5pm EDT, and after five of those eight hours FWWatch had only generated 600 calls. So, either 5,600 people suddenly decided to call the White House in just a three hour period smack dab in the middle of the work day, or FWWatch noticed this morning that it had fallen well below its goal of 2,000 calls and decided to inflate its own numbers by a factor of ten. No one will notice, right?

Of course, misstating the facts is a routine part of Food & Water Watch’s activism, and they’ve clearly turned it into an art. One need only read their hilarious “action center“ to ban hydraulic fracturing — as well as their “fact” sheet on the process — to get an idea of just how far they have strayed from reality on this important and vital technology.

Closing irony: aren’t groups like Food & Water Watch relentlessly calling for transparency and honesty?

—–

From: “Katy Kiefer, Food & Water Watch”
Date: Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:00:35 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: 3 hours left!

We have 3 hours until the White House phone lines close here on the east coast. They’ve been hearing from us all day – with over 600 calls toward our goal of 2,000 from all of the outreach that you’re doing – and they’re getting the message. In the final stretch, we need to keep up the pressure and get all those final calls in.

Now’s the time to get your network – friends, family, coworkers, neighbors, and facebook friends – to make this important call to the White House. Remember to keep track and let us know how many calls you were able to help generate at the end of the day. Here’s the information to send around to everyone you know:

Make a call to Ban Fracking on Tuesday, Sept. 13th:
http://action.foodandwaterwatch.org/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=8204
——————————————————————————
1) Call the White House at (866) 586-4069 between 9am – 5pm EST. (If you can’t get through, you’ll be transferred to a voice mail box after 30 seconds.)

2) Tell them your name, where you’re from, and then simply ask that President Obama protect all Americans by banning fracking in the United States.

Or use this script:
“Hi, my name is ____________ and I live in (City, State). As a constituent, I urge President Obama to protect all Americans by banning fracking in the United States.”

3) If you have problems getting through to the White House, call the Democratic National Committee at (866) 942-5138 and tell them the White House line was busy but you want them to give the message to President Obama to protect all Americans by banning fracking in the United States.
——————————————————————————

Thanks, and keep up the great work!

Katy Kiefer
Activist Network Coordinator
Food & Water Watch
[EMAIL AND PHONE NUMBER REDACTED]

Come Hell or (Especially) High Water

**Cross posted from EIDMarcellus.org

Most folks who post on this site are from northeastern Pennsylvania or southern New York like I am, so I’m sure I wasn’t the only one among this group refreshing local news sites every 15 seconds last week to see the latest tally on how high the Susquehanna had risen.

I’m from the Back Mountain area of Luzerne Co., far enough beyond the swollen river’s reach. But my wife’s from West Pittston, and many of her friends and family – especially those within a block or two of Susquehanna Ave. — found themselves directly in the water’s path on Thursday and Friday. Further down the river, people in Wilkes-Barre were wondering whether their levee was going to hold — and with a crest above 42 feet, whether the river might actually overtop the structure entirely.

Needless to say, these were very difficult hours for hundreds of thousands of residents in our area. And for the thousands of folks who returned on Sunday to find their homes damaged or destroyed by the flood, the really difficult times had just begun. But at least for a few anti-Marcellus activists in our area, the flood of 2011 represented a unique opportunity. On the morning of September 9, only hours after President Obama had declared a state of emergency in Pennsylvania, the following email was sent out to an activist listserv by Dick Martin, coordinator for a group that calls itself the PA Forest Coalition (after the jump).

 

—– Forwarded Message —–

From: FORESTcoalition@aol.com
Sent: Friday, September 09, 2011 10:27 AM
To: [CCNGD]
Subject: Effect of flooding on Marcellus operations

I just received a note from our former Secretary of DCNR, John Quigley.

We are looking for evidence of any frackwater ponds breached or overflowing . . . or other enviro damage from the flooding.

I read the comments on the gas forum, but we need exact locations and details. Photos also, if possible.

Could you alert the folks to do some weekend driving, with cameras and notebooks?

Dick R. Martin
Coordinator
www.PaForestCoalition.org

Set aside the fact that operators in northeast PA deploy closed-loop water management systems on site, and thus don’t have any need or use for what Mr. Martin terms “frackwater ponds.” And let’s also set aside that this reconnaissance mission was apparently ordered by John Quigley, the former DCNR chief whose actual portfolio on Marcellus issues when he was in office was incredibly limited, but who today is often quoted by reporters on the matter simply because he very often has very little nice to say about it.

Set aside all that. The truly remarkable thing here is that Mr. Martin would ask “the folks” to go out in the middle of dangerous flood conditions, all for the purpose of manufacturing a talking point – nothing more — against the responsible development of natural gas in our state.

But wouldn’t you know it? Despite braving hell and high water, “the folks” apparently didn’t come home with a whole lot about which to get excited. But that didn’t stop them from sending around pictures to reporters trumpeting the demise of a rig that had been besieged by the flood. It took about a day to figure out the picture was taken in Pakistan. The revelation had to be a disappointment to the folks over at the Sierra Club and the Delaware River Network, which issued their own joint statement — also on September 9 — using the flood as a pretext to demand that Pennsylvania “shut down all drilling now” and “immediately revise its regulations to prohibit any gas well development within the floodplains.”

Of course, a little nugget of info these anti-shale folks could have used ahead of time is that special precautions are taken to protect and safeguard wellsites residing in or anywhere near a floodplain. Those efforts start with the actual permitting of the well: Any construction in a floodplain requires a Chapter 105 permit from the state, and formal approval of that application from the Army Corps of Engineers. To those who say that no wellsites should be permitted under any circumstance within a floodplain, it’s worth asking: Do you feel the same way about setting up cities and towns in them?

It’s all pretty amazing, really. We’re talking about the largest, most devastating flood that’s hit our area since Agnes – and by some measures, it may have even been worse than that. Talking about a flood here that occurred at a time of significant natural gas exploration in our area, with a couple thousand wells in place already and more than new 500 wells developed along the northern tier in 2011 so far. And guess what? All the worst things that the anti-Marcellus crowd had hoped for, wished for and actively sought to document – unfortunately for them, none of it happened.

But of course, as we know, these folks aren’t about to let a lack of credible information get in the way of the narrative they’ve worked so hard to cultivate. Earlier today, we got word that anti-shale folks were directing reporters to a photo online showing a derailed train car in Wyalusing. Never mind that these train cars are almost certainly carrying sand. Spilled “sand” isn’t quite as sexy or compelling a news hook as spilled “frack fluids.” We’ll let you guess how the picture was pitched to the press.

The most maddening thing, of course, is that all this happening while real (and real serious) environmental threats as a result of the flood are staring us right in the face – threats that have nothing to do with drilling a damn gas well. You see the story out of Binghamton last week? Turns out the flood up there had a “fairly catastrophic” impact on the local sewage treatment facility, according to the plant’s superintendant. The upshot, as reported by the Press & Sun-Bulletin and basically no one else? “Raw wastewater is being discharged into the [Susquehanna] river until the plant can be brought back on line.”

Of course, the PA Forest Coalition’s citizen photographers were nowhere to be found up there. Guess they thought it would have made for a crappy picture.

UPDATE: Great piece in the Harrisburg Patriot News this week should; if you haven’t seen it, do yourself a favor and take a look. Here’s the lede:

The flooding from Tropical Storm Lee isn’t the fracking mess some activists thought.

The anti-drilling environmentalist group Penn Environment posted a photo of a submerged drilling rig to its Facebook page and Tweeted it saying, “Here’s more evidence Marcellus Shale drilling pads should NOT be allowed in floodplains.”

Except the rig wasn’t in the Marcellus Shale.

It wasn’t even in the United States.

“Apologies folks,” Penn Environment later admitted: the photo was of a flooded rig in Pakistan.

Rising Tide: Study Shows Natural Gas Pushes U.S. Trade and Manufacturing Growth

A recent study by the American Chemistry Council confirms a fact of which many Americans are increasingly well aware. The development of the nation’s enormous natural gas supplies would lead to an economic resurgence that could revive entire regional economies- the likes of which the nation has not seen in decades.  The study, “Shale Gas and New Petrochemicals Investment: Benefits for the Economy, Jobs and U.S. Manufacturing”, finds that responsibly developing this resource would create a “tremendous opportunity to strengthen U.S. manufacturing, boost economic output and create jobs.”

Specifically taking a look at expected investments in the petrochemical industry (and related industries) as a result of onshore exploration, the study found the development of natural gas could in itself create 400,000 jobs, generate $132.4 billion in new U.S. economic output and send nearly $43.9 billion to state, federal and local governments in the form of new tax revenue.  Given the limited scope of the study, it’s fair to assume that the longer-term benefits to the economy from continued development of our nation’s massive shale resource base would be significantly larger.

The study reached its findings by examining how a 25 percent increase in available domestic ethane supplies would impact the U.S. economy — using current trends and expected investments developed in collaboration with many key industry partners. The study found:

The study also highlighted current investments generated due to the development of natural gas, and natural gas liquids, from shale.  It showed that major U.S. petrochemical manufacturers are already realizing economic benefits from production of this valuable resource and are re-investing these benefits in areas of the country that have been hit hardest by the ongoing recession.

The discovery, and development, of shale formations throughout the United States has led to a more abundant supply of natural gas that, among other things, has significantly lowered the price of natural gas, ethane, and other commodities needed by the petrochemical sector.  The industry uses these supplies as raw material or “feedstock” to make thousands of every-day products used by Americans including items ranging from pharmaceuticals to fertilizers.  The study found,

 “[A]ccess to vast, new supplies of natural gas from previously untapped shale deposits is one of the most exciting domestic energy developments of the past 50 years” that will “create a competitive advantage for U.S. based petrochemical manufacturers leading to greater U.S. investments”.

Examples of this success can already be seen as U.S. exports of basic chemicals and plastics were up 28% in 2010 due primarily to an increase in affordable ethane supplies from shale deposits.  This fueled a trade surplus of $16.4 billion in chemicals and plastics exports from the United States. This is already leading several companies to make significant investments in places like the Marcellus Shale where this resource is being developed safely in abundant quantities.  For example, a recent San Jose Mercury News article , highlights Shell’s plans to build a world-class ethane processing facility in one of the “rust belt” states of Pennsylvania, West Virginia or Ohio. The plant would help process natural gas liquids into commodities to be exported and sold on the global market. This project alone is expected to create more than 17,000 jobs, up to $16 billion in private investment and billions in tax revenue.  There is also this recent news report from NBC’s central West Virginia affiliate WMOY which provides a succinct summary corroborating this study’s finding that “Areas in western Pennsylvania, New York and/or West Virginia could become the next petrochemical hub of the United States.”

The study and both these examples provide credence to the study’s findings that “big industry may be coming back to the northeast United States”.  Of course, continued responsible development of our nation’s natural gas resources could provide similar opportunities to other areas of the nation as well. This limited, and conservative, study proves that by focusing on just one sector of the U.S. economy.

USGS Study Finds Groundwater Contamination Due to Natural Phenomena

Nationwide examination finds high levels of trace elements in public and private water supplies, links occurrence to natural conditions.

Critics of natural gas exploration frequently assert that natural gas production — and hydraulic fracturing in particular — contaminates private drinking water supplies. Countless times they have declared, through correlative assertions and without any meaningful investigation, that hydraulic fracturing is to blame for a wide range of contaminants discovered in wells or aquifers throughout the country.

But a decade’s long study from the U.S. Geological Survey, utilizing over 5,000 samples from public and private wells, turns this idea on its head. Specifically, the USGS’s National Water-Quality Assessment Program — the nation’s preeminent unbiased water research program — finds that about one in five (20%) water wells across the country have at least one trace element of contaminants at a level that poses a risk to human health.

The study found widespread, natural occurrences of many contaminants that drilling opponents often (erroneously) link to natural gas operations.  The researchers found that naturally-occurring levels of arsenic, manganese, and uranium were the trace elements in groundwater that most frequently exceeded Environmental Protection Agency human health benchmarks.  Of the wells surveyed, high levels of arsenic were discovered in 7%, manganese in 12%, and uranium in over 4%. Side effects of over-exposure to manganese can include tremors and postural instability, symptoms many critics often wrongly attribute to nearby gas drilling.

The USGS also discovered a very high frequency of radon (Rn) gas, which is produced by the decay of naturally-occurring uranium. From the report:

Rn occurred at concentrations greater than the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) proposed maximum contaminant level of 300 pCi/L in more than 65 percent of water samples, and concentrations of Rn in 2.7 percent of samples were greater than the USEPA-proposed alternate maximum contaminant level of 4,000 pCi/L.

Most of these contaminants, according to USGS, “get into the water through the natural process of rock weathering.” This is an important conclusion, as the most acute areas of contamination were found in rural areas not served by public drinking water systems. These are also the areas where a significant amount of natural gas drilling occurs.

“Trace elements could be present in water from private wells that are considered to pose a risk to human health, because they aren’t subject to regulations. In many cases people might not even know they have an issue.” – Joe Ayotte, USGS Hydrologist and Lead Author

Put differently, people could be drinking and using contaminated water for years, but once a natural gas company begins production in the area, activists begin demanding water tests to check for contamination. If any is found, the link is made between drilling and water pollution. This USGS report shows, however, that such a link may be speculative at best.

The issue of water well contamination has been contentious in recent years with outlets like the New York Times jumping headlong into specious accusations about natural gas production being linked, for example, to radioactive drinking water. Of course, testing by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the state’s largest drinking water utility showed these claims to be unsupported by the facts, a conclusion reinforced by this most recent USGS study, which suggests nature, not natural gas drilling, is actually the major culprit in water contamination across the country.

The USGS does note that human activities can be contributing factors to water contamination. Still, the fact that many of the wells tested contained high levels of these trace elements without any nearby gas production suggests drawing a causal connection between drilling and water contamination could be based more on preconceived notions than on any legitimate, scientific assessment.

ICYMI: Popular Mechanics Busts Several ‘Myths’ about Natural Gas, HF

Seamus McGraw at Popular Mechanics recently took some time to set the record straight on natural gas production and hydraulic fracturing, a welcome change of pace from the baseless doom-and-gloom narrative that comes from opponents of American energy. While a few facts still fly under the radar, McGraw’s overall take represents another quality fact check on natural gas development.

Here are the claims as laid about by PM, followed by the magazine’s response and EID’s additional comments.

CLAIM 1: “We are the Saudi Arabia of natural gas.”  –Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., May 2010

CLAIM 2: “Hydraulic fracturing squanders our precious water resources.” –Green Party of Pennsylvania, April 2011

CLAIM 3: “Natural gas is cleaner, cheaper, domestic, and it’s viable now.”  –T. Boone Pickens, September 2009

CLAIM 4: “There’s never been one case—documented case—of groundwater contamination in the history of the thousands and thousands of hydraulic fracturing [wells].”  –Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., April 2011

CLAIM 5: “The Gas era is coming, and the landscape north and west of (New York City) will inevitably be transformed as a result.  When the valves start opening next year, a lot of poor farm folk may become Texas rich.  And a lot of other people—especially the ecosensistive New York City crowd that has settled among them—will be apoplectic as their pristine weekend sanctuary is converted into an industrial zone, criss crossed with drill pads, pipelines, and access roads.” –New York magazine, Sept. 21, 2008

CLAIM 6: “Natural gas is affordable, abundant and American.  It costs one-third less to fill up with natural gas than traditional gasoline.” –Rep. John Larson, D-Conn., March 2011

CLAIM 7: “Do not drink this water.” –Handwritten sign in the film GasLand, 2010

CLAIM 8: ”As New York gears up for a  massive expansion of gas drilling in the Marcellus shale, state officials have made a potentially troubling discovery about the wastewater created by the process: It’s radioactive.” –ProPublica, 2009

CLAIM 9: “Claiming that the information is proprietary, drilling companies have still not come out and full disclosed what fracking fluid is made of.” –Vanity Fair, June 2010

CLAIM 10: “The increasing abundance of cheap natural gas, coupled with rising demand for the fuel from China and the fall-out from the fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan, may have set the stage for a Golden Age of gas.” –Wall Street Journal, Summarizing an International Energy Agency Report, June 6, 2011.

Road Trip! College Profs. From Coast-to-Coast Confirm HF’s Clear Record

While nearly 2,600 miles separates Stanford University and eastern Ohio’s Marietta College, professors from both institutions are doing their respective parts to ensure that the public understands that hydraulic fracturing is safe, well-regulated and a critical technology to strengthening America’s energy security.

Mark Zoback, a Stanford University professor of geophysics who served on the Dept. of Energy’s shale gas panel, tells the university’s paper that “unnecessary suspicion and paranoia” surrounds this tightly-regulated process:

“According to the Energy Information Agency, natural gas deposits, both in the United States and the world, are absolutely enormous. … To me, enhanced utilization of shale gas resources provides an opportunity to transition to clean and renewable sources over the next few decades while helping to meet current and growing global energy needs.”

Zoback adds this about the hydraulic fracturing process:

“Hydraulic fracturing fluid is mainly water, with small amounts of thickening agent added – usually guar, the same thickening agent used in making ice cream. There is also some biocide, to kill bacteria in the water, as well as a little bit of a friction reducer. Fracturing fluids have not contaminated any water supply and with that much distance to an aquifer, it is very unlikely they could.”

And in the Buckeye State, Marietta College professor Bob Chase recently spoke with local residents about the hydraulic fracturing process. Chase, who chairs the college’s petroleum engineering and geology department, emphasized the natural gas industry’s long and clear safety record and host of measures taken to protect groundwater, reports WTAP-TV:

“The wells that we’re drilling today have at least two strings of pipe or casing and both string are cemented through the freshwater aquifer. So in other words its gives you 4 barriers of protection, 4 layers of protection against any contamination…Should we shut down the whole industry because there’s a 1 in 25,000 risk of something happening? You tell me.”

Maybe they live on different sides of the country, but these professors agree on one thing — hydraulic fracturing is a secure, safely regulated, and environmentally proven technology that is integral to America’s long-term energy outlook. Without it, we let over 100 years of energy potential remain untapped beneath our feet. As Reuters columnist Christopher Swann writes this week: hydraulic fracturing “is here to stay.”

Lights Out: Sierra Club-Funded Study Finally Puts Discredited Cornell Paper to Bed

Lead CMU researcher: “We don’t think they’re using credible data and some of the assumptions they’re making are biased”

Flashback

May 2011, U.S. Dept. of Energy report: Emissions from natural gas are low compared to other fuels.

June 2011, Cornell Univ. professor Lawrence M. Cathles [report submitted for publication]

John Hanger, former head of the Pennsylvania Dept of Env. Protection:

August 2011, Carnegie Mellon Univ. report on life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from Marcellus shale production.

Dueling research converges on gas

By Talia Buford
POLITICO (subs. req’d)
August 24, 2011

“Carnegie Mellon assistant researcher Paulina Jaramillo said, the Cornell paper assumed that all pre-produced natural gas is vented, not flared, and if the fugitive emissions were at the rate the Cornell study suggests, natural gas companies would be losing the majority of their product.” …

“We don’t think they’re using credible data and some of the assumptions they’re making are biased,” [Jaramillo] said. “And the comparison they make at the end, my biggest problem, is wrong.” …

Russell Jones, senior economic adviser for American Petroleum Institute, called the Carnegie Mellon study “another solid report consistent with the other reliable reports out there.” He said the study gave a more complete picture of the full life cycle associated with natural gas, and used authoritative data from the Environmental Protection Agency and other sources. …

Ingraffea apparently the last to know: “You can get any answer you want based on modeling and assumptions,” said Anthony Ingraffea, one of the researchers for the Cornell study. “You have to decide who’s righter. Not right. But who’s righter.”

More from Ingraffea/Howarth on their own paper:

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High Flies the Falcon: HF Helping to Create Jobs from Pennsylvania to Poland

What does Pennsylvania and Poland have in common other than a love for polka, a taste for haluski, and a propensity for Babushkas? Well, the responsible development of clean-burning natural gas from shale formations – enabled by hydraulic fracturing – is helping to create jobs. Thousands of them.

In fact, Dow Jones reports this today under the headline “Polish Shale Sector Needs Hands”:

If Poland is to develop its reserves of shale gas, the material that has created an energy bonanza in the U.S., one of its biggest obstacles is likely to be securing a qualified labor force, industry participants say. “There are about 1,000 shale jobs in Poland right now, but there will be 50,000 to 100,000 in the next 10 years,” says Jakub Kostecki, chief executive of New Gas Contracting, a Warsaw-based recruiting firm.

Poland has recoverable shale-gas resources of 5.3 trillion cubic meters, equal to more than 300 years of the country’s annual natural-gas consumption, the US Department of Energy says in a report.

Business is picking up, but Geofizyka Torun is facing increasing competition as rival companies set up shop in Poland, bringing their own equipment to do seismic testing and hiring young professionals, says Sylwia Kowalska, a human-resources director at the company. But Geofizyka Torun offers to pay for its employees’ lodgings and provides them with English classes, she says. “We’re seeing employees who left coming back,” Ms. Kowalska says. “They miss Poland.” She estimates that in May the company hired at least 70% more people than a year ago.

Responsible American natural gas production in Pennsylvania continues to be an economic catalyst for small businesses and those looking for work. This from today’s Sunbury (PA) Daily Item:

Dennis Hain believes in learning a trade, then being able to find a job in that trade. As director of SUN Area Technical Institute, he sees the school’s pilot program with Pennsylvania College of Technology as fitting the bill by preparing students to work in the natural gas industry. … “I can tell you I’ve never received as many phone calls from businesses asking for students. We don’t have enough to fill the positions.”

If working for a natural gas company is an ethical issue for some, for others it’s a means to a good paycheck and benefits that they wouldn’t have otherwise without leaving the state. “A high school diploma and a real good work ethic are about what you need to get hired in an entry-level job up there,” said Tracy Brundage, assistant vice president of workforce and economic development at Penn College. She noted that a good driving record and clean background also are important.

Take it a step further with more education, and a student can make a solid career with a salary two or three times what he or she would make in another industry, plus good benefits.

And in a weekend editorial, the Altoona (PA) Mirror underscores the important fact that “the Marcellus industry has pumped needed dollars into rural areas of our state.” This all, of course, helps explain why Gallup’s Chief Economist Dennis Jacobe recently said “One thing the U.S. could do to stimulate job growth going forward would be to place more emphasis on expanding the nation’s energy and commodity sectors.”

Just The Facts: University of Pitt. Prof. Sets the Record Straight on Hydraulic Fracturing

Just The Facts: University of Pitt. Prof. Sets the Record Straight on Hydraulic Fracturing
Positive benefits created by fracture stimulation technology continue to pour in from coast to coast

In an interview with KDKA radio’s Mike Pintet, Professor Radisav Vidic of the University of Pittsburgh’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, sets the record straight on hydraulic fracturing – the 60 year-old energy stimulation technology that has been safely used to produced domestic oil and gas over 1.1 million times. Dr. Vidic, who holds a Ph.D. in environmental engineering, underscores hydraulic fracturing’s tight regulations and long and clear record of environmental safety.

On Hydraulic Fracturing’s Clear, Long Record of Protecting Groundwater: “There hasn’t been any proven case”

On Hydraulic Fracturing Fluid Disclosure: “Go on the DEP’s website”

On GasLand Claims About Flaming Faucets: “It’s not caused by drilling”

What are others saying about domestic oil and natural gas production enabled by hydraulic fracturing? We’re glad you asked.

 

 

 

 

Top NY Environmental Regulator: “No Evidence” That HF Has Impacted Groundwater

There’s been a lot of buzz lately about how hydraulic fracturing — a tightly regulated procedure that has been used over one million times since the 1940s — supposedly contaminates groundwater. The claim was given new life last week when the New York Times’ anti-shale reporter Ian Urbina published yet another easy-on-the-facts story about hydraulic fracturing, this time focusing upon a 30-year old EPA assessment whose methodology had more holes in it than a slice of swiss cheese.

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Greens Beg President Obama to Ignore the Facts on HF

If a fact-free letter requesting a ban on American energy production falls on the President’s desk, does it make a difference? We’re about to find out.

An assortment of “green” groups, writing allegedly on “behalf of Americans who live in every US state and territory,” have written directly to the President to “employ any legal means to put a halt to hydraulic fracturing.” Signers include political heavyweights like Kids for Saving Earth, the anti-energy website DeSmogBlog, and a group that opposes the construction of a cement plant in North Carolina.

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EID Statement on (Latest) Joint Effort by NYT/Environmental Working Group Aimed at Attacking Natural Gas

WASHINGTON — Coming on the heels of another rebuke this past weekend from the public editor of The New York Times — the second such admonishment issued by the paper’s ombudsman in just the past two weeks — Times reporter Ian Urbina today filed the latest installment in his ongoing and increasingly controversial series attacking natural gas, this time borrowing research from the anti-shale Environmental Working Group (EWG) and a well-known opponent of oil and natural gas in an attempt to blame hydraulic fracturing for contributing to the contamination of a single water well nearly 30 years ago in West Virginia.

Notably, the EWG press release today announcing the results of its year-long, Park Foundation-funded “investigation” of the same exact well was sent two hours before the Times posted its story online – suggesting either that a mistake was made in coordinating the release with the Times, or that EWG wanted to ensure the role it played in influencing the story was properly acknowledged. Either way, the piece itself relies on poor, and at times conflicting, records and accounts to arrive at what appears to be the Times’ firm conclusion that fracturing technology “in fact” caused contamination. The reporter also draws heavily on an after-action report of the “WV-17” well from the mid-1980s written by EPA contractor Carla Greathouse, a long-time opponent of the oil and natural gas industry and a source Urbina has used previously in this series without ever mentioning her prior work and reports targeting the industry.

Lee Fuller, executive director of Energy In Depth and an engineer with more than 30 years’ experience in the industry, issued the following statement:

“We’re talking about a technology that’s been deployed more than 1.2 million times in more than 25 states over the course of more than 60 years. I think it says an awful lot about fracturing’s record of safety that the best these guys could come up with after studying the issue for an entire year is a single, disputed case from 30 years ago that state regulators at the time believe had nothing to do with fracturing. Three decades later, the technology today is better than it’s ever been, the regulations are broader and more stringent, and the imperative of getting this right, so that we can take full advantage of the historic opportunities made possible by shale, has never been more apparent. Despite the Times’ best efforts, this story does not prove that hydraulic fracturing had anything to do with the contamination of a water well 30 years ago.”

Both the EWG paper and the Times story focus on a well drilled in Jackson Co., W.V. in 1982, using old reproductions of completion reports accessed from microfiche to argue that fracturing must have contaminated the well since records indicate it was properly cased and drilled to depths below the water table. But according to a letter sent in 1987 by West Virginia’s Department of Energy specifically referencing the WV-17 well, the actual cause of any alleged issue may have been related to something entirely different.

According to Ted Streit, then the state’s deputy director of inspection and enforcement, neither regulators nor industry had known back then that a formation commonly fractured for its oil and natural gas resources – the Pittsburg sandstone – actually contained potable water resources in some parts of Jackson County. From Mr. Streit’s letter:

I would like to point out that WV Code 22B-1-20 requires an operator to cement a string of casing 20 feet below all fresh water zones. At the time the permit was issued concerning this well, the Division [of Oil and Gas] had no knowledge that the Pittsburg sand was a fresh water source. This is because in certain areas oil and gas is produced from the Pittsburg. With this case however, the division discovered the problem and took the following steps to remedy the situation: 1) We had a geologist map the Pittsburg sand in the Roane and Jackson country area so that our permits group and enforcement group knew where that sand could be found. 2) We required every well drilled in the area to have casing cemented up over the Pittsburg sand.

According to Greg Wrightstone, a geologist with decades of experience completing wells in West Virginia: “My hunch is that the operator had an idea about trying a completion in the Pittsburgh sand. We saw small shows out of it from time to time back then. They may have drilled through it, fractured it, got nothing back, and then just gave up on it and drilled down to do a standard Berea/shale completion. If that was the case and a neighbor was using the Pittsburg sandstone as a water zone, then of course there could be elements of the fracturing fluid in it because that was the zone being fractured.”

EID is currently working with producers in the state to acquire and analyze whatever records might still be available relevant to this issue nearly 30 years after the WV-17 well was drilled.

Although characterizing the WV-17 well as a “clear case of drinking water contamination from fracking” in a quote provided to the Times, EWG lawyer Dusty Horwitt adopts a more measured tone in his actual paper, admitting in one section (page 8) that “it is unclear” how fluids could have accessed the well. In another section (page 13), EWG concedes that the West Virginia-based laboratory commissioned to investigate WV-17 “did not conclude that hydraulic fracturing caused the contamination …” And in its press release, EWG admits that “it is possible that another stage of the drilling process [and not hydraulic fracturing] caused the problem.”

Finally, the Times story pulls extensively from a 1987 report written by well-known oil and gas opponent Carla Greathouse, whom Urbina actually credits with giving this story its start. But according to comments published by the American Petroleum Institute (API) contemporaneous with that report, Ms. Greathouse’s work suffered from a “lack of thoroughness” owing to the contractor’s failure “to find or disclose a substantial number of the administrative and enforcement actions by the state agencies.” API also said at the time that it wasn’t able “to find a single case where EPA’s contractor contacted the operator involved to determine their side of the story.”

According to Ms. Greathouse, one of the goals of her 1987 report was to convince EPA to start regulating things such as drill cuttings, pipe scale and produced water as “hazardous wastes,” with an eye on preventing them from being disposed of in a manner consistent with industrial waste rules under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). After reviewing the Greathouse report, EPA arrived at precisely the opposite conclusion, issuing a report to Congress in 1988 stating that “regulation as hazardous wastes under Subtitle C was not warranted and that these wastes could be controlled under other federal and state regulatory programs.” Ms. Greathouse later told CBS News that the decision was “a very difficult pill to swallow.”

Dem. Colo. Gov. on NYT Shale Gas Series: “Full of Misinformation, All Hyperbole, No Science”

FLASHBACK: Fmr. Dem. Pa. Gov. Ed Rendell on the NYT claims: If the goal of your report about natural gas drilling was to gratuitously frighten Pennsylvanians, then congratulations on a job well done. If it was to deliver an evenhanded examination of the critical balance that must be achieved between job creation, energy independence and environmental protection in regions with large natural gas deposits, then it was a mighty swing and a miss. … [Fmr. PADEP sec. John Hanger and I] strongly disagree that there is lax regulation and oversight of gas drilling there. (New York Times, 3/5/11)

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Fact-Checking Olivia Newton-John’s Hydraulic Fracturing Claims

The (Tasmanian) Devil is in the Details

In a weekend column, Olivia Newton-John – perhaps best known for her starring role in the film Grease – takes issue with hydraulic fracturing, a tightly-regulated 60-year-technology used to enhance the production of oil and natural gas. To her credit, Ms. Newton-John rightfully tells the Sydney Morning Herald that “I don’t claim to be an expert” on fracturing.

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From Calif. to Pa., American Shale Gas Strengthening US Security, Creating Thousands of Jobs

Here at Energy In Depth, as you may know, we’re tirelessly committed to getting the facts out about hydraulic fracturing, a tightly-regulated 60-year-old oil and natural gas stimulation technology. It seems that almost every day new evidence emerges in support of hydraulic fracturing’s clear record of environmental safety, as well as the positive impact the technology is having on America’s economy. Yet there are still those who choose to rely on hyperbole rather than facts when addressing this game-changing technology.

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NYT Doubles-Down on a Really Bad Bet

*** Cross-posted on MasterResource.org and EIDMarcellus.org

When New York Magazine reported earlier this month that the national editor of The New York Times had sent an internal memo laying out a “surprisingly detailed” defense of reporter Ian Urbina’s latest front-page attack on natural gas, the hope was that the memo would spur an equally detailed response by Arthur Brisbane, the Times’ public editor. That hope was realized when Mr. Brisbane’s 1,100-word piecewas posted on the paper’s website over the weekend, a column in which Brisbane takes square aim at theTimes for going “out on a limb” and “lack[ing] an in-depth dissenting view in the text.”

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Baker Institute to Russia’s Energy Monopoly: ‘If It Dies, It Dies’

In the biggest blow to Russia’s global power since the Italian Stallion landed an epic left-handed haymaker on Ivan Drago’s face, a new study from the Baker Institute [PDF] finds that America’s shale gas resources will play an enormous role in loosening Russia’s grip on global natural gas markets.

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ICYMI – Senior House Democrat to Speaker Pelosi: “Regulation of hydraulic fracturing is best left to the states”

EPA may halt oil activity
Pomeroy asks to turn down regulations
By Eloise Ogden
Minot (N.D.) Daily News
July 17, 2010

Rep. Earl Pomeroy, D-N.D., is asking House leadership to turn down any new regulations on hydraulic fracturing.

A state minerals expert also says any new regulations on hydraulic fracturing would have a catastrophic impact on the oil development in North Dakota.

Pomeroy sent a letter Friday to Speaker Nancy Pelosi urging her to reject any proposals that would place burdensome, new regulations on hydraulic fracturing in legislation

 

 

aimed at responding to the Gulf oil spill.

Some members of Congress have discussed attempting to attach new regulations on hydraulic fracturing to legislation aimed at addressing that tragedy, according to Pomeroy.

Lynn Helms, director of the N.D. Department of Mineral Resources, during a presentation in Minot in May, spoke about if the Environmental Protection Agency decides to regulate hydraulic fracturing.

“We really have got to stop that from happening,” he said. He said his department put together a document which tells how North Dakota regulates it and has gone to EPA headquarters and Gov. John Hoeven.

“If this happens, I can tell you that our Bakken and Three Forks drilling will have to stop for two to three years,” he said. He said when it happened to Alabama for coalbed methane, “they completely had to shut the door” for two years.

“By the time they got the rules written, the play had moved on and it has never been what it was before,” he said. “So that’s a huge cloud sitting over our industry a major impact. It would just reduce our activity to almost zero for two to three years.”

In his letter to Pelosi, Pomeroy said, “I believe that this would be a mistake and would find little support in the Senate. The EPA is currently undergoing a congressionally mandated study into hydraulic fracturing that is expected to be completed in 2012.”

Pomeroy called it “irresponsible” for Congress to enact new regulations

 

 

 

before the results of that study are known.

“Imposing new regulations now will do nothing to protect drinking water and will only serve to slow down development resulting in the loss of thousands of jobs and more imported oil. It is critical that any legislation related to the Gulf oil spill focus on responding to that tragedy and not include additional burdens on hydraulic fracturing,” he said.

Pomeroy pointed out that over the past two years, North Dakota has significantly increased its oil production, rising from the ninth largest oil producing state to the fourth. “This increase in production has resulted in a significant state budget surplus and the nation’s lowest unemployment rate,” he said.

Pomeroy toured oil-field operations in the Stanley area last week. “During these visits I saw firsthand the significant safeguards that are put into place to protect groundwater during hydraulic fracturing operations,” he said.

He said North Dakota currently has strong regulations on oil and gas development that more than adequately protect groundwater.

“These requirements include strict safety requirements on the storage and disposal of hydraulic fracturing fluid and on encasing the well to avoid leaks. The initial phases of wells are encased in several layers of cement from the surface to below the level of the deepest potable water source and below that level, wells are encased in an additional layer of cement to ensure that groundwater is in no danger of contamination,” he said.

Pomeroy said the regulation of hydraulic fracturing is best left to the states

 

 

 

. “Regulators in each individual state have a better idea of what steps are necessary to protect their residents and environment. Additionally, they are better equipped to implement commonsense regulations that fit their states unique needs than a catchall Environmental Protection Agency regulation,” he said.

NOTE: Click HERE to view this article online and HERE to view Rep. Pomeroy’s letter to Speaker Pelosi.

Zero Points For Originality

American Water Works Assoc. Paper Parrots Debunked Gasland Claims About Hydrofracturing

Founded in 1881, the Denver, CO-based American Water Works Association’s (AWWA) stated purpose, according to its site, is being for “the exchange of information pertaining to the management of water-works, for the mutual advancement of consumers and water companies, and for the purpose of securing economy and uniformity in the operations of water-works.”

Keep Reading »

New Barnett Shale Air Emissions Study: “No Significant Health Risks”

Yesterday, a lengthy, $1 million study evaluating air emissions associated with natural gas development from the Barnett Shale near Ft. Worth, Texas was released. The city of Ft. Worth announced this upon the study’s release: “A comprehensive evaluation of gas exploration and production sites ‘did not reveal any significant health threats.’”

Ft. Worth Mayor Betsy Price notes that “It’s good to hear that ERG didn’t find an immediate health risk from these gas production sites.” Overwhelmingly, the media reported this positive environmental news accurately, save for Bloomberg News.

Keep Reading »

Extra! Extra! Get The Latest News About American Oil, Natural Gas Production @EnergyinDepth

According to a recent Rasmussen Report survey, “Most voters continue to feel America needs to do more to develop domestic gas and oil resources. They also still give the edge to finding new sources of oil over reducing gas and oil consumption.” “Seventy-five percent (75%) [of Likely Voters] do not think the country is doing enough [to develop its own gas and oil resources],” according to the survey.

Are you one of these voters that’s concerned about America’s energy security? If so, you’ve come to the right place for up-to-date news and information about domestic oil and natural gas production. Here’s how to stay informed:

Don’t be a stranger. We look forward to continuing to hear from you.

New Govt. Data Underscores America’s Enormous Oil, Natural Gas Resources

Fmr. NH senator: “Extracting natural gas from shale is safe, economically sensible”

Late last week, the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) – an independent arm of the Energy Department which “collects, analyzes, and disseminates independent and impartial energy information to promote sound policymaking, efficient markets, and public understanding of energy and its interaction with the economy and the environment”, according to its website — released a 105-page report on America’s oil and natural gas resources found in shale formations entitled “Review of Emerging Resources: U.S. Shale Gas and Shale Oil Plays.”

While some in the media (NOTE: EIA deals in straightforward facts) and elsewhere continue to question the economical and environmental viability of oil and natural gas production from shale formations across the country, EIA’s report independently underscores the significant and growing amount of homegrown resources we have in the United States.

Here’s a key excerpt from EIA’s release:

Although the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) National Energy Modeling System (NEMS) and energy projections began representing shale gas resource development and production in the mid-1990s, only in the past 5 years has shale gas been recognized as a “game changer” for the U.S. natural gas market. The proliferation of activity into new shale plays has increased dry shale gas production in the United States from 1.0 trillion cubic feet in 2006 to 4.8 trillion cubic feet, or 23 percent of total U.S. dry natural gas production, in 2010. Wet shale gas reserves increased to about 60.64 trillion cubic feet by year-end 2009, when they comprised about 21 percent of overall U.S. natural gas reserves, now at the highest level since 1971. Oil production from shale plays, notably the Bakken Shale in North Dakota and Montana, has also grown rapidly in recent years.

Importantly, EIA also notes that “Technical advancements could lead to more productive and less costly well drilling and completion.” These technical advancements include hydraulic fracturing, a tightly regulated 60-year-old technology that’s been used to enhance the production of oil and natural gas in the United States since the Truman administration.

While many questions exist about hydrofracturing, shouldn’t the public and the media rely on subject matter experts? Well one expert, former New Hampshire senator John E. Sununu – who earned an undergraduate and master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology – writes this about the environmentally proven technology in today’s Boston Globe.

This from his column, entitled “Smart fracking: Extracting natural gas from shale is safe and economically sensible”:

Fracking uses high-pressure fluid to crack open shale rock formations thousands of feet below the surface. The resulting fractures allow gas and oil to flow more freely and be recovered economically. In their effort to stop the practice, environmental groups raised the specter of drinking-water contamination, excessive water use, and other supposed risks. The hyperbole about this method comes somewhat unexpected, given that the process has been around for over 50 years.

Almost three decades ago, I spent the summer in a hydraulic fracture lab in a musty basement a stone’s throw from the Charles River. As a rookie, I mostly cast cement blocks used to simulate the shale formations. Researchers injected fluid into the blocks at high pressure and measured the speed at which cracks would grow. Over months of trial and error, we learned to predict and even control the direction of the cracks by putting pressure on the outside of the cement blocks.

For a few weeks each year, the professor supervising the lab would head out to the field to conduct larger-scale tests on working wells. Back then, high operating costs coupled with low oil prices meant that fracking was limited to specific, high-yield areas. About five years ago, however, improvements in horizontal drilling finally came together with better simulation and monitoring of crack growth to make the entire process a big economic winner.

The results have been dramatic for production of both oil and gas. During the past three years, proven reserves of shale gas have more than tripled. Estimates of recoverable reserves in the United States have soared to over 800 trillion cubic feet – roughly 35 times America’s annual consumption – from shale gas alone. North Dakota’s Bakken oil field, a marginal producer five years ago, now pumps 400,000 barrels per day. And yet the full potential of reserves such as the Marcellus shale beneath Pennsylvania and New York still haven’t been fully measured.

…

The industry will continue to innovate, improve productivity, and reduce production costs. Consumers will benefit, the economy will grow, and America will use more natural gas. And that, in the end, will drive the environmental lobby crazy.

*UPDATE* New York Confirms Safety and Economic Benefits of Hydraulic Fracturing

“We’ve deliberated, we’ve considered the comments, we have looked at what’s gone on in other states…And at the end of this stage of the deliberations, we’ve concluded that high-volume hydrofracking can be undertaken safely, along with strong and aggressive regulations.”  – New York DEC Commissioner, Joe Martens

The New York Department of Environmental Conservation (NYDEC) recently released a preliminary Draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (dSGEIS) regarding the future development of the vast shale gas resources in the state, which includes portions of the massive Marcellus Shale formation. NYDEC confirms that shale gas production, including the use of hydraulic fracturing, can strengthen the economy while protecting drinking water supplies and local habitats.

But you already knew all of that. So let’s get to the meat, shall we? Below are key excerpts pulled directly from the report.

Strengthening the Economy

Protecting the Environment and Minimizing Impacts

Protecting Water Supplies and Using Resources Responsibly

Click the image below to see the projected water demands for production in New York

Fresh Water Use in New York (millions of gallons)

(Chapter 6, p. 6-15)

Minimizing Emissions and Protecting Air Quality

Protecting Against Methane Leaks

Protecting Workers and the General Public

Continually Improving Efficiency

The Truth about Earthquakes and Seismic Activity

UPDATE (7/11/11, 11:24am EDT) The folks across the pond at No Hot Air have also put together a great summation of the New York assessment, specifically focusing on the issue of water use. Here’s a good excerpt, though you should definitely read the whole thing:

So we can say that the impact of shale on water resources will be minimal. That is being polite. It is actually peanuts. Entirely inconsequential. One quarter of one per cent of total water use.Those concerned about depletion of water have far greater enemies than shale.

*UPDATE II* Is Hydraulic Fracturing the ‘Greatest Threat’ to New Jersey’s Water?

Last week the New Jersey legislature passed an ill-informed measure that would ban hydraulic fracturing on the dubious basis that it “represents the greatest threat to New Jersey’s water supply than anything else we face today.” Of course, as EID carefully explained in a letter to New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, hydraulic fracturing has never in its 60-year history been tied to the contamination of drinking water. The EPA’s own Lisa Jackson recently admitted that she’s not aware of a single case where the hydraulic fracturing process itself has contaminated water. (You can read more about what state regulators have said about hydraulic fracturing not impacting water by clicking here.)

Speaking of New Jersey’s water, yesterday the EPA actually announced a plan to clean up groundwater at a Superfund site in Pedricktown, NJ, where, it should be noted, there is no hydraulic fracturing taking place. Apparently even without a singled fractured well in the Garden State, the state’s water supply is so contaminated with heavy metals such as lead and cadmium that the federal government is intervening. New Jersey actually has a long history of water pollution from Superfund sites, which, dare it be said once again, has nothing to do with hydraulic fracturing.

And what does EPA plan to do about this particular site?

EPA had originally planned to pump the contaminated ground water to the surface, treat it, and discharge the treated ground water into the Delaware River. This type of treatment is no longer needed because pollutant levels in the ground water have gone down significantly as the sources of the contamination have been removed. EPA conducted a review of newer treatment methods, and is now proposing to inject a non-hazardous additive into the ground water that will absorb metal compounds such as lead and cadmium and remove the dissolved contaminants from the ground water.

Got that? New Jersey’s water is already contaminated with toxic substances, yet the legislature has declared a process that doesn’t even exist in the state — hydraulic fracturing – to be the “greatest threat” to its drinking water supplies. And now the EPA is proposing to inject chemicals into New Jersey residents’ water in the hopes that doing so will make it cleaner.

Also of note: One of the techniques that the Environmental Protection Agency commonly uses to assist in cleaning up Superfund sites is…hydraulic fracturing. Oh, the irony.

(To be fair, the New Jersey legislature’s ban is only in the context of producing natural gas, but it’s still interesting given the wild assertion that hydraulic fracturing — an environmentally sound process that the EPA uses to help clean up water — is somehow the greatest threat to the New Jersey’s available water supplies.)

UPDATE (7/8/11, 12:41pm EDT): Not to pile on, but the unrelated-to-gas-production water contamination stories in New Jersey are…piling up. And apparently so is raw sewage, according to the EPA:

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has prepared an important report, Keeping Raw Sewage and Contaminated Stormwater Out of the Public’s Water, to answer commonly asked questions about combined sewer overflows. To read or download a copy of the report, visit http://www.epa.gov/region2/water/. To see an illustration of how serious a problem this is in Brooklyn, go to: http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/29/sewage-overflow-in-new-york-believe-it/.

Many of the sewer systems in New York State and New Jersey and some in Puerto Rico are combined systems that carry sewage from homes and businesses as well as rainwater collected from street drains. When they overflow during heavy rains, the rainwater mixes with sewage and results in raw sewage being directly discharged into water bodies. These discharges are called combined sewer overflows and can pose serious environmental and public health risks.

“Clean water is vital to people’s health and our economy and is a priority for the EPA,” said EPA Regional Administrator Judith Enck. “We’ve seen improvements in water quality since the passage of the Clean Water Act forty years ago, but there is much more to be done to protect our rivers, harbors, lakes and streams. EPA’s new report provides important information on the laws that protect our waterways and the actions that can be taken to reduce water pollution.”

Keyword searches don’t always work, but it does not appear that the terms “natural gas” or “hydraulic fracturing” appear once in that release.

UPDATE II (7/11/11, 1:48pm EDT) Remember that time hydraulic fracturing created a Superfund site in New Jersey? Neither does the EPA, which announced today yet another cleanup plan for the squalid wonder that is New Jersey’s water supply:

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a proposed plan to cleanup the Crown Vantage Landfill Superfund site in Alexandria Township, Hunterdon County, New Jersey. The former landfill is contaminated with volatile organic compounds, polychlorinated biphenyls and other pollutants. Volatile organic compounds are a group of chemicals that evaporate easily into the air and have serious health effects. Polychlorinated biphenyls are potentially cancer-causing in people and build up in the fat of fish and animals. The landfill is 10 acres and a small portion sits on the eastern bank of the Delaware River. The EPA has already completed most of the cleanup work at the site, including removing over 2,450 drums and related waste from the landfill, and the site does not present an imminent risk to public health.

Inhofe Reminds Feds that States are in Charge of Hydraulic Fracturing

Last month Energy Department Secretary Steven Chu directed the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board (SEAB) — specifically its Natural Gas Subcommittee — to “make recommendations to improve the safety and environmental performance of natural gas hydraulic fracturing from shale formations.” Those recommendations, according to the official memo sent by Steven Chu on May 5th (PDF), will eventually be shared with the Department of Interior and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

But as U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) points out in a recent letter to Secretary Chu, the U.S. Department of Energy has stated that it is “not engaged in regulating [hydraulic fracturing],” and the task laid out for the SEAB “does not include making decisions about regulatory policy,” according to Chu’s official May 5th memo. “Based on these statements,” Senator Inhofe writes in his letter to Chu, “can you confirm that any report issued by DOE pursuant to this announcement will not include recommendations relating to the regulation of the hydraulic fracturing process, or any components thereof, whether by DOE or any other Federal agency?”

The question is an important one: Any attempt to sway the opinions of the EPA (or Interior) toward regulating hydraulic fracturing at the federal level would not only compromise the ongoing research inside the EPA regarding this crucial well stimulation procedure, but also upend the incredibly efficient state-based regulation that already exists. Inhofe references this last point directly, noting in his letter that many in Washington are attempting to “expand federal regulatory and permitting power to supplant State authority.”

State regulators, meanwhile, overwhelmingly believe that hydraulic fracturing is environmentally safe and effectively regulated at the state level.

You can read Inhofe’s entire letter by clicking here (PDF).

EID Lays Out the Facts on Fracturing in Letter to NJ Gov; Invites Lawmakers to Tour a Wellsite

Letter directed to Gov. Christie and primary co-sponsors of legislation in state Assembly and Senate

 

WASHINGTON – Following up on the decision this week by state legislators in New Jersey to approve legislation seeking an outright ban on the responsible deployment of hydraulic fracturing as a means of harvesting clean-burning, job-creating natural gas, Energy In Depth sent a detailed letter to Gov. Chris Christie today highlighting several important facts about the technology, along with an attachment capturing comments and insights from more than a dozen state environmental regulators from both parties testifying to the safety and efficiency of fracturing.

Also copied on the letter are the primary co-sponsors of the bill from both the General Assembly and Senate. The letter also extends an invitation to the governor, legislators, and their staff to tour a wellsite and see firsthand how a fracturing operation works, and what policies and procedures are in place to ensure it is executed safely.

The text of the letter is below; a stand-alone, electronic file can be accessed here.

July 1, 2011

Honorable Chris Christie
Office of the Governor
PO Box 001
Trenton, NJ 08625

Dear Governor Christie:

Earlier this week, the state legislature approved a bill seeking to implement a formal, statewide ban on the use of hydraulic fracturing, sending to your office legislation that refers to the technology in the text as a “drilling technique.” In fact, the process of stimulating a well via the fracturing process has nothing at all to do with drilling, but everything to do with making possible the delivery of billions of barrels of U.S. oil and trillions of cubic feet of U.S. natural gas, generating thousands of U.S. jobs and billions of dollars in annual tax revenue in the process.

Over the past 60 years, fracturing has been deployed more than 1.1 million times in at least 25 states – most often in the context of oil and natural gas, but also to stimulate flow from geothermal wells, water wells, and even by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a means of remediating Superfund sites. Over that period, fracturing has proven time and again to be a safe, efficient technology; in use since the 1940s, fracturing has never in its history been tied to the contamination of underground sources of drinking water, a fact most recently confirmed by EPA administrator Lisa Jackson, who previously served your state as commissioner of environmental protection.

The fracturing process itself involves the carefully controlled deployment of water, sand and small percentages of common, industrial materials under high pressure down-hole for the purpose of creating and sustaining small fissures in rock strata deep underground. These fissures act as conduits in otherwise impermeable rock allowing trapped natural gas to make its way to the wellbore and eventually up to the surface for collection. The process occurs after the well has been drilled, and routinely is completed in two to four days. Once the well is fractured, it’s ready to produce natural gas for years, even decades. It’s been estimated that nine out of 10 onshore energy wells in America – natural gas and oil – require fracturing technology to become or remain viable.

Of course, New Jersey is one of the few states in which fracturing technology has not been historically deployed, a function not of any political considerations, but of the state’s underlying geology. But just because New Jersey isn’t in a position to produce much natural gas doesn’t mean it doesn’t consume any.

According to the Energy Information Administration, New Jersey uses more than 620 billion cubic feet of natural gas each year, a large percentage of that produced via the use of fracturing in other states. Currently, more than half of all New Jersey residents rely on natural gas to heat their homes, benefiting significantly from low natural gas prices made possible due to the influx of new supply, which itself is made possible from fracturing. These low prices have also been a boon to New Jersey manufacturers, which rely on natural gas both as an indispensible source of energy and as a basic feedstock in just about everything they make.

While a statewide ban on this technology is not likely to have a material impact on development activities in your state, it could be used by opponents of affordable, reliable energy as a tool to push for implementing similarly destructive, ill-informed moratoria in other states. In view of that potential, we write today to express our strong opposition to the bill. We hope you will take a moment to review the attached fact sheet capturing comments and insights from environmental regulators across the country, with testimonials from each speaking to the safety of the technology and the true facts regarding its regulated use.

If this bill becomes law, New Jersey will become the first state to ban hydraulic fracturing, even as neighboring New York finalizes its plan to allow Marcellus wells to be fractured in a responsible and highly regulated way there. But before you decide how to proceed on this legislation, we would like to invite you and your staff to tour a wellsite, so you can see for yourself how the process works. It’s an invitation we’re also extending to the primary co-sponsors of the bill; those offices are copied on this letter. In the meantime, please don’t hesitate to contact me directly should you have any questions or concerns. We thank you for your time, and look forward to working with you in the future.

Sincerely,
Lee Fuller
Executive Director
Energy In Depth

(click here to view attachment)

cc: Sen. Robert M. Gordon (D-Bergen); Sen. Linda Greenstein (D-Mercer and Middlesex); Sen. Christopher Bateman (R-Morris and Somerville); Assemblywoman Connie Wagner (D-Bergen); Assemblyman Reed Gusciora (D-Mercer); Assemblywoman Valerie Vainieri Huttle (D-Bergen); Assemblyman Herb Conaway, Jr. (D-Burlington and Camden); Assemblyman Ruben J. Ramos, Jr. (D-Hudson)

What They’re Saying: 36 Hours Later

You say you want a [shale] revolution … Don’t you know it’s gonna be all right

While it was the Beatles that popularized and brought into the mainstream the idea of “a revolution”, there’s a historic revolution taking place today. In a Wall Street Journal op-ed today — under the headline “America Needs the Shale Revolution” — energy expert Robert Bryce writes this about the critical role that environmentally proven hydraulic fracturing continues to play in fueling America’s economy:

Despite the myriad benefits of the low-cost hydrocarbons that are now being produced thanks to hydraulic fracturing, the media, environmental groups and politicians are hyping the possible dangers of the process, which uses high-pressure pumps to force water, sand and chemicals into shale formations. Doing so fractures the formation and allows the extraction of natural gas or petroleum.

Thanks to hydraulic fracturing, U.S. drillers are producing lots of ethane and propane, which are key feedstocks for the petrochemical sector.

The drilling industry itself is creating jobs. Over the past 12 months, some 48,000 people were hired in Pennsylvania by companies working in the Marcellus Shale, a massive deposit that underlies several Eastern states, including Pennsylvania and New York.

While the Pennsylvania economy is getting a much-needed lift from drilling, opposition in New York may mean that the state loses out on jobs and investment. A new study by Tim Considine, an energy economist at the University of Wyoming, estimates that drilling in the Marcellus Shale could add as many as 15,000 new jobs to the New York economy by 2015.

Regardless of what happens in New York, hydraulic fracturing is unlocking huge quantities of oil from shale. In March, domestic crude production was 5.63 million barrels per day, the highest level since 2003.

A vibrant industrial base requires cheap, abundant and reliable sources of energy. The shale revolution now underway is the best news for North American energy since the discovery of the East Texas Field in 1930. We can’t afford to let fear of a proven technology stop the much-needed resurgence of American industry.

Mr. Bryce is absolutely right, and former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell – for one – agrees (we’d submit that at least 141,000 Pennsylvanians would likely also agree). Here are key experts from Gov. Rendell’s remarks at a recent Manhattan Institute forum on clean-burning, job-creating American natural gas:

“If Gov. Cuomo asked me my advice about lifting the moratorium I would tell him the moratorium should be lifted. There’s too much of an upside for New York State and too much of an upside for America.”

“Unemployment rate was 7.5% at a time when national rate is 9.0% and most industrial states are higher than the national average.  PA is the third highest creator in jobs behind Texas and California. These numbers are in a part because of shale drilling.”

And here’s what they’re saying about American oil and natural gas development enabled by tightly-regulated hydraulic fracturing:

New Study Underscores Enormous Potential Economic Benefits From NY’s Marcellus Shale

Earlier this week, New York’s state House doubled down on its bad bet of a year ago and sought to extend by another year the state’s moratorium on the use of fracturing technology — at least the kind requiring enough water to access the Marcellus. Such a proposal seeks to only further put out of reach the potentially widespread economic benefits – tens of thousands of jobs, millions in revenue – associated with shale gas production for New York State.

A recent New York Post editorial captures the contours of this debate:

“The longer fracking is verboten in New York, the longer the upstate region loses out on a promising economic boost. Indeed, new drilling operations alone could create thousands of jobs for the economically ailing area.”

Further, and perhaps even more clearly, these facts and economic potentials are echoed in a Manhattan Institute report issued this week. The report analyzed the economic and environmental impacts of shale gas development in New York State as based upon Pennsylvania’s Marcellus activity. The study indicated that a moratorium on drilling provides little environmental benefit while imposing large scale economic cost.

Data was generated on a per-well basis to create an “economic-environmental benefit-cost ratio for a typical Marcellus shale gas well.” The study further notes the importance of understanding the downstream positive externalities of natural gas potentials as an alternative to coal and oil energy generation.

Here are several key findings:

The authors also determine that “Clearly, the economic benefits of shale gas drilling far outweigh the environmental costs.” And it’s true, hydraulic fracturing has never impacted groundwater. And despite claims, EPA administrator Lisa Jackson – our nation’s top environmental watchdog – told Congress this recently when asked about fracturing:

“I’m not aware of any proven case where the fracking process itself has affected water.”

Misunderstanding and misrepresentation of the science and facts surrounding shale gas production has diluted the potential of hydraulic fracturing for New York’s energy and economic future. And New Yorkers need only to look Pennsylvania and West Virginia, where natural gas development is being done in an environmentally responsible way.

Yesterday, under the headline “Gas drilling makes millionaires in Marshall County”, West Virginia Public Broadcasting notes the positive economic benefit drilling has brought into the homes of its residents, as well as its small businesses and community:

Some residents in Marshall County are becoming rich off Marcellus shale drilling. The gas drilling boom is creating an economic upswing throughout the community. Despite the recession, Marshall County is doing better than most counties in the state. It is now the #2 coal producing county in West Virginia. It’s also become a big draw for gas companies looking to tap the natural gas in Marcellus Shale deep underground.

Marshall County Commissioner Donald Mason said this means big money for some residents. “We have seen several people in our county become instant millionaires with the signing of the leases and some of them are already producing. There are rumors that some people are getting as much as $60,000 a month from their gas wells,” Mason said.

And the money from those lease checks is trickling into the community.

Back at Auto Choice in Moundsville, John Hunnel said he’s seen the Northern Panhandle area suffer from a loss in manufacturing jobs like glass and steel over the years. He said the Marcellus shale drilling activity has him feeling pretty optimistic about the future. “Anytime you have different jobs coming in to the area it does help. It brings other businesses along with it which is good, but I think this whole area is going to change dramatically within the next probably 5 to 10 years for sure,” said Hunnel.

Modern shale gas development is a labor-intensive task, for sure, requiring continual man power and thereby generating continued and much-needed employment opportunities. According the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry, there are 141,000 Marcellus related jobs in the Commonwealth, with an average Marcellus wage of $69,996.

New York’s ongoing de facto moratorium – as well as the one passed by the General Assembly – will only continue to stifle the desperately needed economic potential of shale gas production for the state. The economic benefits are too great to be ignored.

As the Manhattan Institute study lays out, “Our analysis of Marcellus development in Pennsylvania suggests that environmentally safe development is possible in New York. Our study finds the net economic and environmental benefits from shale gas development to be considerable, suggesting that the current moratorium is far costlier than its proponents, or even its opponents, realize.”

Those in Glass Houses Shouldn’t Throw Stones: Pa. Paper Lodges Baseless Claims About Hydraulic Fracturing

Perhaps you caught the editorial in today’s Doylestown (Pa.) Intelligencer under the headline “Cawley vs. DEP: Two stories about natural gas fracking.” True to form, EID is eager to separate the facts from fiction regarding the claims made about hydraulic fracturing in this editorial.

But first, by way of background, here’s what the paper’s hard news section reported on Sunday under the headline “Cawley: No evidence of pollution from fracking”:

Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley on Friday said that there was no documented evidence of water being affected by the fracking process used in the mining of Marcellus shale natural gas.

Now back to today’s editorial, which plays fast-and-loose with the facts. This from the piece:

Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley may want to check his facts a little more closely the next time he talks about the natural gas mining technique known as fracking.

The former Bucks County commissioner and now chairman of the Governor’s Marcellus Shale Advisory Commission last week told members of the county Transportation Management Association that there “has never been a documented case of water being affected by fracking for Marcellus Shale.”

…

Cawley’s deputy chief of staff maintained what his boss said was accurate, and that the process of fracking is not in itself risky.

With all due respect, a statement like that is akin to saying coal mining is not in itself risky. Or drilling for oil is not in itself risky. Or a nuclear power plant is not in itself risky.

But as they say, facts are awfully stubborn things. So, with all due respect to the paper’s editorial board members and editors, here are the facts:

U.S EPA: Not aware of any proven case where HF has affected drinking water

Earlier today, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson testified before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform at a hearing on gas prices and the “Pain At The Pump.” So why are we posting about this on EID? Great question. At the hearing, a Congressman posed the following question to the Administrator: “Is there any evidence that hydraulic fracturing however can affect aquifers and water supplies?” Click on the following video link for the Administrator’s response, which may (or may not) surprise you.

While we often disagree with Mrs. Jackson on a number of issues, today she deserves a hat tip for setting the record straight when it comes to the history and deployment of hydraulic fracturing technology.

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Maryland Strongly Supports Natural Gas Production

Thursday, October 27th, 2011

New poll finds Maryland voters, like their neighbors in New York and Pennsylvania, want to participate in the shale gas revolution

It may be news to government officials in Annapolis who have imposed a temporary pause on hydraulic fracturing, but voters throughout the state of Maryland actually support natural gas production. Big time.

A new poll by Gonzales Research & Marketing Strategies finds that an incredible 80% of Marylanders support natural gas production in the United States, including 60% who “strongly support” it. The poll finds large majority support for developing natural gas among both men and women, across all political affiliations, and in every region of the state.

As for producing natural gas specifically in western Maryland, where the Marcellus Shale could provide significant new economic opportunities for the Old Line State, nearly 75% of voters in the state express support. Production in western Maryland also enjoys majority support across all demographics polled in the state.

This poll comes as another Quinnipiac survey in New York shows a plurality of voters support Marcellus Shale development, a fact that has remained consistent in Quinnipiac’s polling over the past few months. A Siena poll from last month also found more New Yorkers supported than opposed natural gas production.

And in neighboring Pennsylvania, where the Mighty Marcellus is the source of significant job creation and the rebirth of manufacturing, voters say the economic benefits of drilling outweigh any perceived environmental issues by 62 percent to 30 percent.

Throughout the United States, natural gas development enjoys 81% support according to a recent poll by the American Consumer Institute (ACI).

READ MORE

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*UPDATE* New Study Debunks Cornell GHG Paper. Again.

Wednesday, October 26th, 2011

Maryland joins Carnegie Mellon, Wood Mackenzie, and even U.S. Dept. of Energy in locating gaping holes in Howarth/Ingraffea paper

Earlier this year, researchers from Cornell University — Robert Howarth and Anthony Ingraffea — released a study that found emissions from shale gas production are worse than coal, based chiefly on the global warming potential (GWP) of methane. Of course, the study had more holes in it than big slice of Swiss cheese (read EID’s six-times-updated rebuttal here), with its conclusions resting on such a poor foundation that even a Sierra Club funded study found its premises to be flawed.

Yet the Cornell study continues to be used by ideological opponents of shale gas production, not just in the United States but also in Canada. Which is why we feel it’s imperative to highlight that yet another top-notch study — this one from researchers at the University of Maryland — is pushing the Cornell paper even closer to the ash bin of history.

The new study, entitled “The Greenhouse Impact of Unconventional Gas for Electricity Production,” has many noteworthy conclusions, including:

And as we said, this most recent study is only the latest to join the party. But don’t just take our word for it…

August 2011, Carnegie Mellon Univ. report on life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from Marcellus shale production:

August 2011, Worldwatch Institute study points out how Howarth and Ingraffea are the exception, not the rule:

June 2011, Cornell Univ. professor Lawrence M. Cathles [report submitted for publication]:

May 2011, U.S. Dept. of Energy report: Emissions from natural gas are low compared to other fuels.

May 2011, Wood Mackenzie study “Methane Emissions from Unconventional Well Completions”

May 2011, Navigant Energy Practice, “How does the Howarth team’s report affect natural gas development?”

May 2011, Global Warming Policy Foundation, “The Shale Gas Shock“

John Hanger, former head of the Pennsylvania Dept of Env. Protection:

Natural Resources Defense Council’s Dan Lashof rejects the Cornell study’s use of a 20-year time frame:

And, just as a refresher, here are Howarth and Ingraffea discussing the flaws of their own paper:

UPDATE: (11/3/2011, 5:02 pm)

A new study from the Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Lab casts even more doubt on the Cornell study. A presentation of the study comes to the following conclusion: “Average natural gas baseload power generation has life cycle GHG emissions 53% lower than average coal baseload power generation” (p. 36). All forms of natural gas scored significantly lower on GHG emissions than coal-powered generation.

And what about the infamous 20-year time for global warming potential (GWP), which Dr. Howarth deemed “critical” for making a proper environmental impact assessment? NETL concludes: “Average natural gas baseload power generation has life cycle GHG emissions 42% lower than average coal baseload power generation on a 20-year time horizon” (p. 37). Once again, all forms of natural gas score lower than coal, even on the 20-year time frame.

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Lenders’ Bagels?

Friday, October 21st, 2011

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The ‘Age of Shale’ and America’s Energy Future

Tuesday, October 18th, 2011

With billions of dollars in new investments and global interest soaring, the shale revolution is here to stay.

Shh…don’t tell the New York Times, but it looks like America’s energy renaissance in shale — which has been fueling economic recovery from North Dakota to Texas and Louisiana to Pennsylvania — is going to last for a long, long time.

As the Wall Street Journal reports, in a story aptly stating that the “Age of Shale” has arrived:

Shale discoveries have reinvigorated U.S. oil and gas production that just half a dozen years ago was widely seen as in terminal decline. Today, there is a glut of cheap natural gas, and domestic oil production is rising for the first time in decades. Shale development is even spreading to other countries, such as Poland and Argentina.

The shale boom has already minted a half-dozen new billionaires comparable to the riches brought by the Internet.

“You certainly have to record the discovery and the exploitation of resources from both oil and gas shales as one of the great wealth creators in American history,” said Ralph Eads, vice-chairman of investment bank Jefferies & Co., which has advised on more than $75 billion worth of shale deals over the last three years. “It looks to be the economic equivalent to any of the big technology innovations.”

Recent market developments further highlight this trend. Kinder Morgan Inc. announced this past weekend that it would be buying El Paso Corporation in a deal worth approximately $38 billion. The acquisition will ultimately create the fourth-largest energy company in North America.

What prompted that enormous deal? El Paso owns the largest natural gas pipeline system in North America, with more than 43,000 miles of gas pipelines. As Reuters points out, the deal combines “the two largest natural gas pipeline operators in North America in a huge bet on the fast-growing market for that fuel.”

More from Reuters:

Despite weak natural gas prices, production of the fuel has been rising as energy companies pile into shale fields — underground formations rich in oil and gas. In the Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas, where there are scant pipelines, companies are having to rely on trucks and are building rail terminals to handle the vast field’s output.

El Paso already owned the largest natural gas pipeline system in North America, with more than 43,000 miles of pipe. The combined company would own 67,000 miles of natural gas pipe and another 13,000 miles of pipelines to move refined products and other fuels.

“We believe that natural gas is going to play an increasingly integral role in North America,” Kinder Morgan Chief Executive Richard Kinder said in a statement. “We are delighted to be able to significantly expand our natural gas transportation footprint at a time when it seems likely thatdomestic natural gas supply and demand will grow at attractive rates for years to come.”

And this is only one of stories out this week about the growing shale revolution. Statoil ASA has also announced that it is purchasing Brigham Exploration to get a piece of the mighty Bakken Shale in North Dakota. The purchase makes Statoil one of the top 10 holders of Bakken acreage, and shows how shale development is attracting massive amounts of direct investment in American energy development.

Less than a decade ago, few would have predicted that these massive investments would take place. But through the expanded use of proven technologies like hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling, the United States has completely transformed its position in the global economy, not only with respect to energy security, but also with the capacity for job creation and economic growth.

In Pennsylvania, the development of the Marcellus shale has led to a rebirth of manufacturing, especially the steel industry. A study from Penn State shows that Pennsylvanians saved more than $630 million on their utility bills thanks to shale gas production, and the oil and gas industry in the Keystone State has helped create nearly 50,000 jobs in 2011. In Texas, the Eagle Ford shale is not only creating much-needed jobs, but is also putting the state’s finances on a stronger footing: In November, more than $1 billion will be added to the state’s rainy day fund, revenue that is mostly generated from oil and gas production. And thanks to the development of the Haynesville shale in northern Louisiana, Shreveport-Bossier is now the ninth fastest growing metropolitan area in the entire country. In Ohio, developers are only just beginning to invest billions of dollars into local economies to tap the resources of the Utica Shale.

By 2017 the United States could be the largest oil producer in the world — thanks mostly to shale oil development in places like the Bakken and the Eagle Ford — and shale gas is already allowing countries in Europe to think about disentangling themselves from the Russians.

America’s energy future is perhaps brighter than it has ever been, a status that owes itself to the continued and responsible development of domestic shale resources.

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NPR: Shale Development a Huge Boon to U.S. Manufacturing

Thursday, October 13th, 2011

Today, National Public Radio’s Morning Edition highlighted the remarkable impact that responsible shale development is having on American manufacturing, filing a short piece focusing on Marcellus development in Pennsylvania. The program highlighted how hydraulic fracturing is stimulating significant job growth for the manufacturing sector due to affordable and stable supplies of clean-burning natural gas — which is helping to create thousands of jobs during these challenging economic times. Here are several key excerpts from the story:

Energy production is stimulating growth along the supply chain. You can’t drill without steel; you can’t weld without workers. Whether an oil and gas producing state or not, domestic energy production is creating jobs in a wide array of manufacturing sectors.

And the American people are catching on! A poll released today by the American Consumer Institute Center for Citizen Research (ACI) noted that 80% of Americans support increased energy development to create jobs. Natural gas is no exception.

With the American economy currently on the ropes, natural gas development continues to be a light at the end of the tunnel (or well hole) for thousands of Americans trying to provide for themselves and their families. American innovation created hydraulic fracturing; American determination has enabled it to prosper and will continue to provide for our growing, energy-consuming nation.

Before increasing our reliance on foreign fuels and “our so-called friends in the Middle East” (CBS-21’s RJ Harris, 10/10/11), let’s look to the great domestic energy potential—right beneath our feet.

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Highlights From Yesterday’s US Senate Shale Gas Hearing

Wednesday, October 5th, 2011

US Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), Energy & Natural Resources Committee Chairman

US Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Energy & Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member

US Sen. and Fmr. Gov. John Hoeven (R-ND), Energy & Natural Resources Committee

Dr. Daniel Yergin, IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates

Dr. Stephen Holditch, Petroleum Engineering Department Head, Texas A&M University

Dr. Mark Zoback, Department of Geophysics Professor, Stanford University

Kathleen McGinty, Fmr. PA DEP sec. and White House CEQ chair to President Clinton

NOTE: A webcast of yesterday’s hearing is available here.

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The Amazing Energy Future that the Federal Government Wants to Prevent

Monday, October 3rd, 2011

Shale oil development in places like North Dakota means ‘OPEC’s days are numbered,’ but federal regulators pursue alternative future with potentially devastating results.

In 2004, North Dakota was the ninth largest oil producing state in the country, producing less than half as much oil per year as the state of New Mexico. In 2010, a mere six years later, North Dakota had climbed to the fourth largest, surpassing energy rich Oklahoma and Louisiana. What happened?

Two words: shale oil. The Bakken formation in the western part of the state, which the U.S. Geological Survey predicted in 1995 had only 151 million barrels of oil, turned out to be one of the largest onshore oil fields ever discovered in the United States — in 2008 the USGS famously revised its estimate upward by an amazing 25-fold, projecting that the Bakken could hold more than four billion barrels of oil.

This incredible story was told in detail this weekend in the Wall Street Journal‘s weekend interview, ” How North Dakota Became Saudi Arabia,” which focused on Harold Hamm, the oil man credited with discovering the massive energy potential in the Bakken:

[S]ince 2005 America truly has been in the midst of a revolution in oil and natural gas, which is the nation’s fastest-growing manufacturing sector. No one is more responsible for that resurgence than Mr. Hamm. He was the original discoverer of the gigantic and prolific Bakken oil fields of Montana and North Dakota that have already helped move the U.S. into third place among world oil producers.

How much oil does Bakken have? The official estimate of the U.S. Geological Survey a few years ago was between four and five billion barrels. Mr. Hamm disagrees: “No way. We estimate that the entire field, fully developed, in Bakken is 24 billion barrels.”

Of course, none of this would have been possible were it not for horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, both of which are needed to unlock the vast deposits of oil and natural gas in shale deposits across the country.

Yet even with this amazing success story, the America’s ability to reduce its reliance on OPEC is far from written in stone, and indeed seems to be under attack by federal regulators whose actions could undermine this renaissance just as its getting started. As the WSJ further explains:

[Hamm's] only beef these days is with Washington. Mr. Hamm was invited to the White House for a “giving summit” with wealthy Americans who have pledged to donate at least half their wealth to charity. (He’s given tens of millions of dollars already to schools like Oklahoma State and for diabetes research.) “Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, they were all there,” he recalls.

When it was Mr. Hamm’s turn to talk briefly with President Obama, “I told him of the revolution in the oil and gas industry and how we have the capacity to produce enough oil to enable America to replace OPEC. I wanted to make sure he knew about this.”

The president’s reaction? “He turned to me and said, ‘Oil and gas will be important for the next few years. But we need to go on to green and alternative energy. [Energy] Secretary [Steven] Chu has assured me that within five years, we can have a battery developed that will make a car with the equivalent of 130 miles per gallon.’” Mr. Hamm holds his head in his hands and says, “Even if you believed that, why would you want to stop oil and gas development? It was pretty disappointing.”

Washington keeps “sticking a regulatory boot at our necks and then turns around and asks: ‘Why aren’t you creating more jobs,’” he says. He roils at the Interior Department delays of months and sometimes years to get permits for drilling. “These delays kill projects,” he says. Even the Securities and Exchange Commission is now tightening the screws on the oil industry, requiring companies like Continental to report their production and federal royalties on thousands of individual leases under the Sarbanes-Oxley accounting rules. “I could go to jail because a local operator misreported the production in the field,” he says.

The impact of the “regulatory boot” and federal delays have a greater cost than hamstringing America’s capacity to produce energy. They also undermine the type of job creation and economic growth that a struggling economy so desperately needs:

Mr. Hamm believes that if Mr. Obama truly wants more job creation, he should study North Dakota, the state with the lowest unemployment rate in the nation at 3.5%. He swears that number is overstated: “We can’t find any unemployed people up there. The state has 18,000 unfilled jobs,” Mr. Hamm insists. “And these are jobs that pay $60,000 to $80,000 a year.” The economy is expanding so fast that North Dakota has a housing shortage. Thanks to the oil boom—Continental pays more than $50 million in state taxes a year—the state has a budget surplus and is considering ending income and property taxes.

Less reliance on OPEC. More high-paying jobs. Budget surpluses. Lower tax burdens for everyone. These are undeniable benefits of responsible oil and gas production — particularly in states with significant shale resources such as Pennsylvania (Marcellus shale), Texas (Eagle Ford shale), Louisiana (Haynesville shale), and now Ohio (Utica shale) — that the federal government should be encouraging. Instead, members of Congress are pushing for the Environmental Protection Agency to ban hydraulic fracturing, thereby cutting off at the knees America’s energy revolution. The President, meanwhile, is threatening to curb domestic oil and gas production through higher taxes.

Instead of trying to shut down North Dakota’s model of more American energy production, more jobs, and more public revenue, maybe the federal government should be taking lessons from it.

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Bountiful Barnett Continues To Churn Out Jobs, Revenues

Thursday, September 29th, 2011

In 1981, Mitchell Energy – led by legendary oilman and wildcatter George Mitchell, who’s widely considered the father or shale gas development – started drilling the Barnett Shale in an effort to unlock its enormous natural gas reserves. Today, thanks to the tireless efforts of Mitchell and others, the Barnett remains a powerful job creation machine and economic catalyst for Texas.

And it’s no surprise that a Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce-commissioned study released yesterday finds that the Barnett Shale has produced 9 trillion cubic feet of natural gas while enabling the creation of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in investment over the past decade. The study — entitled “The Impact of the Barnett Shale on Business Activity in the Surrounding Region and Texas: An Assessment of the First Decade of Extensive Development” — takes an in depth look at the Barnett’s positive effect on the Lone Star State. Here are key findings from the study:

JOBS

SALARIES

TAX REVENUES

SCHOOLS GET MAJOR BOOSTS

Some maintain that shale gas development is only a “boom” and cannot be sustained. As thePhiladelphia Inquirer reports, “Daniel Yergin, one of the most influential voices in the world of energy, says shale gas is here to stay.” And this new study reinforces that fact:

With more than 70 rigs already drilling in the Barnett Shale, the new study reconfirms the positive impact of America’s natural gas industry on local, state, and regional economies. The Dallas Business Journalspoke with Fort Worth Chamber President and CEO Bill Thorton about the positive report:

“We commissioned the study to see how or if the economic downturn had impacted past projections about the industry,” said Bill Thorton . “What we found was that it’s a bulwark of our economy.”

Bud Weinstein, associate director of the Maguire Energy Institute at Southern Methodist University, spoke to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram to further highlight Perryman Group’s findings:

“What’s important is that we have an industry in North Texas that basically didn’t exist a decade ago,” he said. “While gas prices have fallen over the last couple of years and the rig count is way down, and the Barnett may no longer be the biggest shale-producing play in the U.S., the technology of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing has clearly added a new dimension to our economy, added thousands of jobs, and helped cities, counties, school districts.”

If it wasn’t clear already, this report confirms it. Responsible shale gas development in the United States has provided millions of jobs, generated billions of dollars in revenue, and is a vital part of our domestic energy and economic security. Texas found the lucky pot of gold at the rainbow – all thanks to hydraulic fracturing.

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Technological Advancements Continue to Safely Unlock More American Oil & Gas, Creating Tens of Thousands of Jobs

Monday, September 26th, 2011

Hydraulic fracturing has opened the doors for the production of critical and abundant oil and gas reserves in the U.S., and abroad. With over 100 years of clean-burning natural gas now accessible in the U.S. alone, fracturing has increased our domestic energy security while creating jobs and economic opportunities from the well pad to our local hotels and diners. And there’s more good news. Technologies are advancing at breakneck rates, dramatically reducing aboveground land disturbances while heightening environmental safeguards.

Indeed, under the headline “Encana extends capacity of directional drilling,” the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel reports this about the technological advancements that our industry is continually making:

When Encana Oil & Gas (USA) was trying to figure out how to drill for the natural gas beneath a narrow box canyon north of Parachute, it was time for some out-of-the-box thinking.

The company’s solution? It drilled a remarkable 50-plus wells directionally from one well pad of just 4.6 acres. As a result, it developed about 640 acres of underground resources — the amount contained in a square mile — from a single location, based on underground well densities of as much as one every 10 acres. That’s the most wells that Frank Merendino, Encana’s drilling manager for its North Parachute Ranch property, believes has been drilled from an onshore pad anywhere in the United States.

“The reason they’re all here is to drain this massive area … without impacting the environment,” Merendino said as he surveyed the well pad. In the distance behind it, a long, thin waterfall coursed from the rim at the canyon head. It’s one of seven falls on the 45,000-acre ranch property.

The directional drilling prevented the cost and visual impact of trying to build pads on the canyon cliff sides, or drilling through a few extra thousand feet of earth from surrounding plateaus and having to locate pads near the rim, where possible spills into the canyon would be a concern.

Encana’s effort won it a Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission award this summer. It also is appreciated by state wildlife officials because of the reduced disturbance of habitat. Encana’s accomplishment reflects oil and gas technology’s continuing evolution, said Dean Riggs, assistant regional manager for Colorado Parks and Wildlife in Grand Junction.

“Many, many moons ago, we used to have one well per gas pad,” Riggs said. Riggs took over as the manager of the wildlife area that includes Encana’s North Parachute project eight years ago, and back then four wells on a pad was probably normal in the region, he said. “Eight wells per pad eight years ago was a big deal,” he said.

Similar technological advancements are on display in Wyoming. This from yesterday’s Houston Chronicleunder the headline “Remote Wyoming site could help shape fracking’s future”:

Natural gas development in the U.S. will depend not only on what happens in Washington and in statehouses across the country. It could be shaped in part by what happens in a big antelope-dotted field south of this remote valley town.

Here, Shell Oil Co. and others are taking steps – some required and others voluntary – that soon may be the norm for reducing the environmental impact of gas drilling and the extraction process called hydraulic fracturing, or fracking.

Shell, for instance, now recycles more than half the water it uses in fracturing local wells, reducing the need for locally sourced fresh water. It also has installed equipment that is sharply cutting emissions from drilling rigs and has shrunk its surface footprint by drilling more wells at a single site, rather than spacing them out checkerboard style, as is done in some other fields.

And support for America’s oil and natural gas industry – and common sense hydraulic fracturing regulations – runs as deep as the wells being drilled into shale formations. Last week, a diverse group of 119 organizations — including the National Association of Manufacturers, US Chamber of Commerce, Independent Petroleum Association of American, Ohio Grocers Association, and North Dakota Farm Bureau — sent a letter to President Obama highlighting the immense benefits of this energy revolution. This from the letter:

The shale gas and oil revolution in America today has been good news for job creation, economic growth and energy security, and it promises hundreds of thousands of more new jobs, billions of dollars more in revenue to governments, and vast supplies of domestic, affordable and clean-burning energy for generations to come.

Speaking of jobs: A new Ohio Oil and Gas Energy Education Program study highlights the potential of the emerging Utica Shale formation last week. The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports “Ohio’s natural gas and oil reserves are a multibillion-dollar bonanza that could create more than 204,500 jobs in just four years.” Here are key study experts:

And it’s not just here at home. The shale revolution — enabled by American technology and know-how — is going global. From South America to eastern Europe, vast oil and natural gas supplies are being responsibly leverage into a more stable energy supplies for consumers while generating enormous economic benefits.

ARGENTINA

“Argentina minister: Boom set in unconventional gas”: Argentina’s vast unconventional natural gas resources will become an important contributor to the South American nation’s energy matrix within the next four years, according to a top minister. …”We, together with [gas rich] Bolivia, are going to become an gigantic source of gas in South America with opportunities for industrialization,” he said.  According to recent U.S. Energy Information Administration report, Argentina ranks No. 3 in the world in terms of technically recoverable shale-gas resources with 774 trillion cubic feet of gas.”

POLAND

Shale gas “could reduce Poland’s dependence on Russia for gas, create tens of thousands of jobs and fill state coffers”: Outside the U.S., Poland is the first country where companies are making a serious effort to develop shale gas, which Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has called the country’s “great chance,” as it could reduce Poland’s dependence on Russia for gas, create tens of thousands of jobs and fill state coffers.

UNITED KINGDOM

“Firm finds shale gas near Blackpool “:A company exploring for controversial “shale gas” in the UK says it could drill hundreds of wells in Lancashire to tap into vast gas resources underground. Cuadrilla Resources, whose exploration efforts near Blackpool had to be halted earlier in the year amid concerns they were causing tremors, said there were 200 trillion cubic feet of gas under the ground in the area. A percentage of the gas could be recovered for use in the UK’s energy mix, providing up to 5,600 jobs, including 1,700 in the local area, at the peak of production, the company has suggested.

Ireland, Canada, and Bulgaria, to name a few, are also evaluating the promise of oil and natural gas development – enabled by hydraulic fracturing – from shale formations. The trend is catching on — the world wants competitive and efficient energies that can keep up with expanding global demand.

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Desperation through Exaggeration

Wednesday, September 14th, 2011

Anti-shale group claims success by misstating its own data, inflates participation rate by more than ten-fold.

If there is one thing that ties together opponents of responsible energy development, it’s the liberal use of exaggeration. While examples are numerous — and are sometimes rewarded with Academy Award nominations — the most recent comes to us from the group Food & Water Watch (FWWatch).

You see, FWWatch doesn’t like hydraulic fracturing and wants it banned. But because people enjoy affordable energy and support producing more resources domestically, the group is in a bind: How to advance a political agenda in a democratic society where the majority is not on their side?

The answer, naturally, is to send out blast emails to FWWatch members asking them to pester secretaries at the White House, who will supposedly pass along a message to the leader of the free world that he should ban hydraulic fracturing. And according to the group’s latest fundraising solicitation email, which can be found on the web here, they are having some success:

Dear Supporter,

Yesterday, President Obama heard the message loud and clear: hydraulic fracking is a dangerous practice that needs to be banned. Now, help us expand our efforts to ban fracking!

During yesterday’s call-in event that we organized, the President heard from over 6,210 concerned activists. We flooded the White House with so many phone calls that some people got busy signals or were sent to voicemail. Thank you if you called to make your concerns about fracking heard!

Making 6,200 calls to the White House in a single day sounds impressive. But one group’s activist email from yesterday appears to contradict the claim that the President “heard from over 6,210 concerned activists” from Food & Water Watch. That group is none other than … Food & Water Watch.

EID obtained an email from FWWatch that was sent to supporters yesterday (September 13th) at 2pm EDT. The full email can be found at the end of this post, but the opening paragraph reads:

We have 3 hours until the White House phone lines close here on the east coast. They’ve been hearing from us all day – with over 600 calls toward our goal of 2,000 from all of the outreach that you’re doing – and they’re getting the message. In the final stretch, we need to keep up the pressure and get all those final calls in.

Interesting. The White House’s phones are open from 9am to 5pm EDT, and after five of those eight hours FWWatch had only generated 600 calls. So, either 5,600 people suddenly decided to call the White House in just a three hour period smack dab in the middle of the work day, or FWWatch noticed this morning that it had fallen well below its goal of 2,000 calls and decided to inflate its own numbers by a factor of ten. No one will notice, right?

Of course, misstating the facts is a routine part of Food & Water Watch’s activism, and they’ve clearly turned it into an art. One need only read their hilarious “action center“ to ban hydraulic fracturing — as well as their “fact” sheet on the process — to get an idea of just how far they have strayed from reality on this important and vital technology.

Closing irony: aren’t groups like Food & Water Watch relentlessly calling for transparency and honesty?

—–

From: “Katy Kiefer, Food & Water Watch”
Date: Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:00:35 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: 3 hours left!

We have 3 hours until the White House phone lines close here on the east coast. They’ve been hearing from us all day – with over 600 calls toward our goal of 2,000 from all of the outreach that you’re doing – and they’re getting the message. In the final stretch, we need to keep up the pressure and get all those final calls in.

Now’s the time to get your network – friends, family, coworkers, neighbors, and facebook friends – to make this important call to the White House. Remember to keep track and let us know how many calls you were able to help generate at the end of the day. Here’s the information to send around to everyone you know:

Make a call to Ban Fracking on Tuesday, Sept. 13th:
http://action.foodandwaterwatch.org/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=8204
——————————————————————————
1) Call the White House at (866) 586-4069 between 9am – 5pm EST. (If you can’t get through, you’ll be transferred to a voice mail box after 30 seconds.)

2) Tell them your name, where you’re from, and then simply ask that President Obama protect all Americans by banning fracking in the United States.

Or use this script:
“Hi, my name is ____________ and I live in (City, State). As a constituent, I urge President Obama to protect all Americans by banning fracking in the United States.”

3) If you have problems getting through to the White House, call the Democratic National Committee at (866) 942-5138 and tell them the White House line was busy but you want them to give the message to President Obama to protect all Americans by banning fracking in the United States.
——————————————————————————

Thanks, and keep up the great work!

Katy Kiefer
Activist Network Coordinator
Food & Water Watch
[EMAIL AND PHONE NUMBER REDACTED]

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Come Hell or (Especially) High Water

Wednesday, September 14th, 2011

**Cross posted from EIDMarcellus.org

Most folks who post on this site are from northeastern Pennsylvania or southern New York like I am, so I’m sure I wasn’t the only one among this group refreshing local news sites every 15 seconds last week to see the latest tally on how high the Susquehanna had risen.

I’m from the Back Mountain area of Luzerne Co., far enough beyond the swollen river’s reach. But my wife’s from West Pittston, and many of her friends and family – especially those within a block or two of Susquehanna Ave. — found themselves directly in the water’s path on Thursday and Friday. Further down the river, people in Wilkes-Barre were wondering whether their levee was going to hold — and with a crest above 42 feet, whether the river might actually overtop the structure entirely.

Needless to say, these were very difficult hours for hundreds of thousands of residents in our area. And for the thousands of folks who returned on Sunday to find their homes damaged or destroyed by the flood, the really difficult times had just begun. But at least for a few anti-Marcellus activists in our area, the flood of 2011 represented a unique opportunity. On the morning of September 9, only hours after President Obama had declared a state of emergency in Pennsylvania, the following email was sent out to an activist listserv by Dick Martin, coordinator for a group that calls itself the PA Forest Coalition (after the jump).

 

—– Forwarded Message —–

From: FORESTcoalition@aol.com
Sent: Friday, September 09, 2011 10:27 AM
To: [CCNGD]
Subject: Effect of flooding on Marcellus operations

I just received a note from our former Secretary of DCNR, John Quigley.

We are looking for evidence of any frackwater ponds breached or overflowing . . . or other enviro damage from the flooding.

I read the comments on the gas forum, but we need exact locations and details. Photos also, if possible.

Could you alert the folks to do some weekend driving, with cameras and notebooks?

Dick R. Martin
Coordinator
www.PaForestCoalition.org

Set aside the fact that operators in northeast PA deploy closed-loop water management systems on site, and thus don’t have any need or use for what Mr. Martin terms “frackwater ponds.” And let’s also set aside that this reconnaissance mission was apparently ordered by John Quigley, the former DCNR chief whose actual portfolio on Marcellus issues when he was in office was incredibly limited, but who today is often quoted by reporters on the matter simply because he very often has very little nice to say about it.

Set aside all that. The truly remarkable thing here is that Mr. Martin would ask “the folks” to go out in the middle of dangerous flood conditions, all for the purpose of manufacturing a talking point – nothing more — against the responsible development of natural gas in our state.

But wouldn’t you know it? Despite braving hell and high water, “the folks” apparently didn’t come home with a whole lot about which to get excited. But that didn’t stop them from sending around pictures to reporters trumpeting the demise of a rig that had been besieged by the flood. It took about a day to figure out the picture was taken in Pakistan. The revelation had to be a disappointment to the folks over at the Sierra Club and the Delaware River Network, which issued their own joint statement — also on September 9 — using the flood as a pretext to demand that Pennsylvania “shut down all drilling now” and “immediately revise its regulations to prohibit any gas well development within the floodplains.”

Of course, a little nugget of info these anti-shale folks could have used ahead of time is that special precautions are taken to protect and safeguard wellsites residing in or anywhere near a floodplain. Those efforts start with the actual permitting of the well: Any construction in a floodplain requires a Chapter 105 permit from the state, and formal approval of that application from the Army Corps of Engineers. To those who say that no wellsites should be permitted under any circumstance within a floodplain, it’s worth asking: Do you feel the same way about setting up cities and towns in them?

It’s all pretty amazing, really. We’re talking about the largest, most devastating flood that’s hit our area since Agnes – and by some measures, it may have even been worse than that. Talking about a flood here that occurred at a time of significant natural gas exploration in our area, with a couple thousand wells in place already and more than new 500 wells developed along the northern tier in 2011 so far. And guess what? All the worst things that the anti-Marcellus crowd had hoped for, wished for and actively sought to document – unfortunately for them, none of it happened.

But of course, as we know, these folks aren’t about to let a lack of credible information get in the way of the narrative they’ve worked so hard to cultivate. Earlier today, we got word that anti-shale folks were directing reporters to a photo online showing a derailed train car in Wyalusing. Never mind that these train cars are almost certainly carrying sand. Spilled “sand” isn’t quite as sexy or compelling a news hook as spilled “frack fluids.” We’ll let you guess how the picture was pitched to the press.

The most maddening thing, of course, is that all this happening while real (and real serious) environmental threats as a result of the flood are staring us right in the face – threats that have nothing to do with drilling a damn gas well. You see the story out of Binghamton last week? Turns out the flood up there had a “fairly catastrophic” impact on the local sewage treatment facility, according to the plant’s superintendant. The upshot, as reported by the Press & Sun-Bulletin and basically no one else? “Raw wastewater is being discharged into the [Susquehanna] river until the plant can be brought back on line.”

Of course, the PA Forest Coalition’s citizen photographers were nowhere to be found up there. Guess they thought it would have made for a crappy picture.

UPDATE: Great piece in the Harrisburg Patriot News this week should; if you haven’t seen it, do yourself a favor and take a look. Here’s the lede:

The flooding from Tropical Storm Lee isn’t the fracking mess some activists thought.

The anti-drilling environmentalist group Penn Environment posted a photo of a submerged drilling rig to its Facebook page and Tweeted it saying, “Here’s more evidence Marcellus Shale drilling pads should NOT be allowed in floodplains.”

Except the rig wasn’t in the Marcellus Shale.

It wasn’t even in the United States.

“Apologies folks,” Penn Environment later admitted: the photo was of a flooded rig in Pakistan.

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Rising Tide: Study Shows Natural Gas Pushes U.S. Trade and Manufacturing Growth

Tuesday, September 13th, 2011

A recent study by the American Chemistry Council confirms a fact of which many Americans are increasingly well aware. The development of the nation’s enormous natural gas supplies would lead to an economic resurgence that could revive entire regional economies- the likes of which the nation has not seen in decades.  The study, “Shale Gas and New Petrochemicals Investment: Benefits for the Economy, Jobs and U.S. Manufacturing”, finds that responsibly developing this resource would create a “tremendous opportunity to strengthen U.S. manufacturing, boost economic output and create jobs.”

Specifically taking a look at expected investments in the petrochemical industry (and related industries) as a result of onshore exploration, the study found the development of natural gas could in itself create 400,000 jobs, generate $132.4 billion in new U.S. economic output and send nearly $43.9 billion to state, federal and local governments in the form of new tax revenue.  Given the limited scope of the study, it’s fair to assume that the longer-term benefits to the economy from continued development of our nation’s massive shale resource base would be significantly larger.

The study reached its findings by examining how a 25 percent increase in available domestic ethane supplies would impact the U.S. economy — using current trends and expected investments developed in collaboration with many key industry partners. The study found:

The study also highlighted current investments generated due to the development of natural gas, and natural gas liquids, from shale.  It showed that major U.S. petrochemical manufacturers are already realizing economic benefits from production of this valuable resource and are re-investing these benefits in areas of the country that have been hit hardest by the ongoing recession.

The discovery, and development, of shale formations throughout the United States has led to a more abundant supply of natural gas that, among other things, has significantly lowered the price of natural gas, ethane, and other commodities needed by the petrochemical sector.  The industry uses these supplies as raw material or “feedstock” to make thousands of every-day products used by Americans including items ranging from pharmaceuticals to fertilizers.  The study found,

 “[A]ccess to vast, new supplies of natural gas from previously untapped shale deposits is one of the most exciting domestic energy developments of the past 50 years” that will “create a competitive advantage for U.S. based petrochemical manufacturers leading to greater U.S. investments”.

Examples of this success can already be seen as U.S. exports of basic chemicals and plastics were up 28% in 2010 due primarily to an increase in affordable ethane supplies from shale deposits.  This fueled a trade surplus of $16.4 billion in chemicals and plastics exports from the United States. This is already leading several companies to make significant investments in places like the Marcellus Shale where this resource is being developed safely in abundant quantities.  For example, a recent San Jose Mercury News article , highlights Shell’s plans to build a world-class ethane processing facility in one of the “rust belt” states of Pennsylvania, West Virginia or Ohio. The plant would help process natural gas liquids into commodities to be exported and sold on the global market. This project alone is expected to create more than 17,000 jobs, up to $16 billion in private investment and billions in tax revenue.  There is also this recent news report from NBC’s central West Virginia affiliate WMOY which provides a succinct summary corroborating this study’s finding that “Areas in western Pennsylvania, New York and/or West Virginia could become the next petrochemical hub of the United States.”

The study and both these examples provide credence to the study’s findings that “big industry may be coming back to the northeast United States”.  Of course, continued responsible development of our nation’s natural gas resources could provide similar opportunities to other areas of the nation as well. This limited, and conservative, study proves that by focusing on just one sector of the U.S. economy.

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USGS Study Finds Groundwater Contamination Due to Natural Phenomena

Wednesday, September 7th, 2011

Nationwide examination finds high levels of trace elements in public and private water supplies, links occurrence to natural conditions.

Critics of natural gas exploration frequently assert that natural gas production — and hydraulic fracturing in particular — contaminates private drinking water supplies. Countless times they have declared, through correlative assertions and without any meaningful investigation, that hydraulic fracturing is to blame for a wide range of contaminants discovered in wells or aquifers throughout the country.

But a decade’s long study from the U.S. Geological Survey, utilizing over 5,000 samples from public and private wells, turns this idea on its head. Specifically, the USGS’s National Water-Quality Assessment Program — the nation’s preeminent unbiased water research program — finds that about one in five (20%) water wells across the country have at least one trace element of contaminants at a level that poses a risk to human health.

The study found widespread, natural occurrences of many contaminants that drilling opponents often (erroneously) link to natural gas operations.  The researchers found that naturally-occurring levels of arsenic, manganese, and uranium were the trace elements in groundwater that most frequently exceeded Environmental Protection Agency human health benchmarks.  Of the wells surveyed, high levels of arsenic were discovered in 7%, manganese in 12%, and uranium in over 4%. Side effects of over-exposure to manganese can include tremors and postural instability, symptoms many critics often wrongly attribute to nearby gas drilling.

The USGS also discovered a very high frequency of radon (Rn) gas, which is produced by the decay of naturally-occurring uranium. From the report:

Rn occurred at concentrations greater than the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) proposed maximum contaminant level of 300 pCi/L in more than 65 percent of water samples, and concentrations of Rn in 2.7 percent of samples were greater than the USEPA-proposed alternate maximum contaminant level of 4,000 pCi/L.

Most of these contaminants, according to USGS, “get into the water through the natural process of rock weathering.” This is an important conclusion, as the most acute areas of contamination were found in rural areas not served by public drinking water systems. These are also the areas where a significant amount of natural gas drilling occurs.

“Trace elements could be present in water from private wells that are considered to pose a risk to human health, because they aren’t subject to regulations. In many cases people might not even know they have an issue.” – Joe Ayotte, USGS Hydrologist and Lead Author

Put differently, people could be drinking and using contaminated water for years, but once a natural gas company begins production in the area, activists begin demanding water tests to check for contamination. If any is found, the link is made between drilling and water pollution. This USGS report shows, however, that such a link may be speculative at best.

The issue of water well contamination has been contentious in recent years with outlets like the New York Times jumping headlong into specious accusations about natural gas production being linked, for example, to radioactive drinking water. Of course, testing by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the state’s largest drinking water utility showed these claims to be unsupported by the facts, a conclusion reinforced by this most recent USGS study, which suggests nature, not natural gas drilling, is actually the major culprit in water contamination across the country.

The USGS does note that human activities can be contributing factors to water contamination. Still, the fact that many of the wells tested contained high levels of these trace elements without any nearby gas production suggests drawing a causal connection between drilling and water contamination could be based more on preconceived notions than on any legitimate, scientific assessment.

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ICYMI: Popular Mechanics Busts Several ‘Myths’ about Natural Gas, HF

Wednesday, September 7th, 2011

Seamus McGraw at Popular Mechanics recently took some time to set the record straight on natural gas production and hydraulic fracturing, a welcome change of pace from the baseless doom-and-gloom narrative that comes from opponents of American energy. While a few facts still fly under the radar, McGraw’s overall take represents another quality fact check on natural gas development.

Here are the claims as laid about by PM, followed by the magazine’s response and EID’s additional comments.

CLAIM 1: “We are the Saudi Arabia of natural gas.”  –Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., May 2010

CLAIM 2: “Hydraulic fracturing squanders our precious water resources.” –Green Party of Pennsylvania, April 2011

CLAIM 3: “Natural gas is cleaner, cheaper, domestic, and it’s viable now.”  –T. Boone Pickens, September 2009

CLAIM 4: “There’s never been one case—documented case—of groundwater contamination in the history of the thousands and thousands of hydraulic fracturing [wells].”  –Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., April 2011

CLAIM 5: “The Gas era is coming, and the landscape north and west of (New York City) will inevitably be transformed as a result.  When the valves start opening next year, a lot of poor farm folk may become Texas rich.  And a lot of other people—especially the ecosensistive New York City crowd that has settled among them—will be apoplectic as their pristine weekend sanctuary is converted into an industrial zone, criss crossed with drill pads, pipelines, and access roads.” –New York magazine, Sept. 21, 2008

CLAIM 6: “Natural gas is affordable, abundant and American.  It costs one-third less to fill up with natural gas than traditional gasoline.” –Rep. John Larson, D-Conn., March 2011

CLAIM 7: “Do not drink this water.” –Handwritten sign in the film GasLand, 2010

CLAIM 8: ”As New York gears up for a  massive expansion of gas drilling in the Marcellus shale, state officials have made a potentially troubling discovery about the wastewater created by the process: It’s radioactive.” –ProPublica, 2009

CLAIM 9: “Claiming that the information is proprietary, drilling companies have still not come out and full disclosed what fracking fluid is made of.” –Vanity Fair, June 2010

CLAIM 10: “The increasing abundance of cheap natural gas, coupled with rising demand for the fuel from China and the fall-out from the fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan, may have set the stage for a Golden Age of gas.” –Wall Street Journal, Summarizing an International Energy Agency Report, June 6, 2011.

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Road Trip! College Profs. From Coast-to-Coast Confirm HF’s Clear Record

Thursday, September 1st, 2011

While nearly 2,600 miles separates Stanford University and eastern Ohio’s Marietta College, professors from both institutions are doing their respective parts to ensure that the public understands that hydraulic fracturing is safe, well-regulated and a critical technology to strengthening America’s energy security.

Mark Zoback, a Stanford University professor of geophysics who served on the Dept. of Energy’s shale gas panel, tells the university’s paper that “unnecessary suspicion and paranoia” surrounds this tightly-regulated process:

“According to the Energy Information Agency, natural gas deposits, both in the United States and the world, are absolutely enormous. … To me, enhanced utilization of shale gas resources provides an opportunity to transition to clean and renewable sources over the next few decades while helping to meet current and growing global energy needs.”

Zoback adds this about the hydraulic fracturing process:

“Hydraulic fracturing fluid is mainly water, with small amounts of thickening agent added – usually guar, the same thickening agent used in making ice cream. There is also some biocide, to kill bacteria in the water, as well as a little bit of a friction reducer. Fracturing fluids have not contaminated any water supply and with that much distance to an aquifer, it is very unlikely they could.”

And in the Buckeye State, Marietta College professor Bob Chase recently spoke with local residents about the hydraulic fracturing process. Chase, who chairs the college’s petroleum engineering and geology department, emphasized the natural gas industry’s long and clear safety record and host of measures taken to protect groundwater, reports WTAP-TV:

“The wells that we’re drilling today have at least two strings of pipe or casing and both string are cemented through the freshwater aquifer. So in other words its gives you 4 barriers of protection, 4 layers of protection against any contamination…Should we shut down the whole industry because there’s a 1 in 25,000 risk of something happening? You tell me.”

Maybe they live on different sides of the country, but these professors agree on one thing — hydraulic fracturing is a secure, safely regulated, and environmentally proven technology that is integral to America’s long-term energy outlook. Without it, we let over 100 years of energy potential remain untapped beneath our feet. As Reuters columnist Christopher Swann writes this week: hydraulic fracturing “is here to stay.”

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Lights Out: Sierra Club-Funded Study Finally Puts Discredited Cornell Paper to Bed

Thursday, August 25th, 2011

Lead CMU researcher: “We don’t think they’re using credible data and some of the assumptions they’re making are biased”

Flashback

May 2011, U.S. Dept. of Energy report: Emissions from natural gas are low compared to other fuels.

June 2011, Cornell Univ. professor Lawrence M. Cathles [report submitted for publication]

John Hanger, former head of the Pennsylvania Dept of Env. Protection:

August 2011, Carnegie Mellon Univ. report on life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from Marcellus shale production.

Dueling research converges on gas

By Talia Buford
POLITICO (subs. req’d)
August 24, 2011

“Carnegie Mellon assistant researcher Paulina Jaramillo said, the Cornell paper assumed that all pre-produced natural gas is vented, not flared, and if the fugitive emissions were at the rate the Cornell study suggests, natural gas companies would be losing the majority of their product.” …

“We don’t think they’re using credible data and some of the assumptions they’re making are biased,” [Jaramillo] said. “And the comparison they make at the end, my biggest problem, is wrong.” …

Russell Jones, senior economic adviser for American Petroleum Institute, called the Carnegie Mellon study “another solid report consistent with the other reliable reports out there.” He said the study gave a more complete picture of the full life cycle associated with natural gas, and used authoritative data from the Environmental Protection Agency and other sources. …

Ingraffea apparently the last to know: “You can get any answer you want based on modeling and assumptions,” said Anthony Ingraffea, one of the researchers for the Cornell study. “You have to decide who’s righter. Not right. But who’s righter.”

More from Ingraffea/Howarth on their own paper:

READ MORE

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High Flies the Falcon: HF Helping to Create Jobs from Pennsylvania to Poland

Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011

What does Pennsylvania and Poland have in common other than a love for polka, a taste for haluski, and a propensity for Babushkas? Well, the responsible development of clean-burning natural gas from shale formations – enabled by hydraulic fracturing – is helping to create jobs. Thousands of them.

In fact, Dow Jones reports this today under the headline “Polish Shale Sector Needs Hands”:

If Poland is to develop its reserves of shale gas, the material that has created an energy bonanza in the U.S., one of its biggest obstacles is likely to be securing a qualified labor force, industry participants say. “There are about 1,000 shale jobs in Poland right now, but there will be 50,000 to 100,000 in the next 10 years,” says Jakub Kostecki, chief executive of New Gas Contracting, a Warsaw-based recruiting firm.

Poland has recoverable shale-gas resources of 5.3 trillion cubic meters, equal to more than 300 years of the country’s annual natural-gas consumption, the US Department of Energy says in a report.

Business is picking up, but Geofizyka Torun is facing increasing competition as rival companies set up shop in Poland, bringing their own equipment to do seismic testing and hiring young professionals, says Sylwia Kowalska, a human-resources director at the company. But Geofizyka Torun offers to pay for its employees’ lodgings and provides them with English classes, she says. “We’re seeing employees who left coming back,” Ms. Kowalska says. “They miss Poland.” She estimates that in May the company hired at least 70% more people than a year ago.

Responsible American natural gas production in Pennsylvania continues to be an economic catalyst for small businesses and those looking for work. This from today’s Sunbury (PA) Daily Item:

Dennis Hain believes in learning a trade, then being able to find a job in that trade. As director of SUN Area Technical Institute, he sees the school’s pilot program with Pennsylvania College of Technology as fitting the bill by preparing students to work in the natural gas industry. … “I can tell you I’ve never received as many phone calls from businesses asking for students. We don’t have enough to fill the positions.”

If working for a natural gas company is an ethical issue for some, for others it’s a means to a good paycheck and benefits that they wouldn’t have otherwise without leaving the state. “A high school diploma and a real good work ethic are about what you need to get hired in an entry-level job up there,” said Tracy Brundage, assistant vice president of workforce and economic development at Penn College. She noted that a good driving record and clean background also are important.

Take it a step further with more education, and a student can make a solid career with a salary two or three times what he or she would make in another industry, plus good benefits.

And in a weekend editorial, the Altoona (PA) Mirror underscores the important fact that “the Marcellus industry has pumped needed dollars into rural areas of our state.” This all, of course, helps explain why Gallup’s Chief Economist Dennis Jacobe recently said “One thing the U.S. could do to stimulate job growth going forward would be to place more emphasis on expanding the nation’s energy and commodity sectors.”

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Just The Facts: University of Pitt. Prof. Sets the Record Straight on Hydraulic Fracturing

Wednesday, August 17th, 2011

Just The Facts: University of Pitt. Prof. Sets the Record Straight on Hydraulic Fracturing
Positive benefits created by fracture stimulation technology continue to pour in from coast to coast

In an interview with KDKA radio’s Mike Pintet, Professor Radisav Vidic of the University of Pittsburgh’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, sets the record straight on hydraulic fracturing – the 60 year-old energy stimulation technology that has been safely used to produced domestic oil and gas over 1.1 million times. Dr. Vidic, who holds a Ph.D. in environmental engineering, underscores hydraulic fracturing’s tight regulations and long and clear record of environmental safety.

On Hydraulic Fracturing’s Clear, Long Record of Protecting Groundwater: “There hasn’t been any proven case”

On Hydraulic Fracturing Fluid Disclosure: “Go on the DEP’s website”

On GasLand Claims About Flaming Faucets: “It’s not caused by drilling”

What are others saying about domestic oil and natural gas production enabled by hydraulic fracturing? We’re glad you asked.

 

 

 

 

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Top NY Environmental Regulator: “No Evidence” That HF Has Impacted Groundwater

Tuesday, August 9th, 2011

There’s been a lot of buzz lately about how hydraulic fracturing — a tightly regulated procedure that has been used over one million times since the 1940s — supposedly contaminates groundwater. The claim was given new life last week when the New York Times’ anti-shale reporter Ian Urbina published yet another easy-on-the-facts story about hydraulic fracturing, this time focusing upon a 30-year old EPA assessment whose methodology had more holes in it than a slice of swiss cheese. (more…)

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Greens Beg President Obama to Ignore the Facts on HF

Monday, August 8th, 2011

If a fact-free letter requesting a ban on American energy production falls on the President’s desk, does it make a difference? We’re about to find out.

An assortment of “green” groups, writing allegedly on “behalf of Americans who live in every US state and territory,” have written directly to the President to “employ any legal means to put a halt to hydraulic fracturing.” Signers include political heavyweights like Kids for Saving Earth, the anti-energy website DeSmogBlog, and a group that opposes the construction of a cement plant in North Carolina. (more…)

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EID Statement on (Latest) Joint Effort by NYT/Environmental Working Group Aimed at Attacking Natural Gas

Wednesday, August 3rd, 2011

WASHINGTON — Coming on the heels of another rebuke this past weekend from the public editor of The New York Times — the second such admonishment issued by the paper’s ombudsman in just the past two weeks — Times reporter Ian Urbina today filed the latest installment in his ongoing and increasingly controversial series attacking natural gas, this time borrowing research from the anti-shale Environmental Working Group (EWG) and a well-known opponent of oil and natural gas in an attempt to blame hydraulic fracturing for contributing to the contamination of a single water well nearly 30 years ago in West Virginia.

Notably, the EWG press release today announcing the results of its year-long, Park Foundation-funded “investigation” of the same exact well was sent two hours before the Times posted its story online – suggesting either that a mistake was made in coordinating the release with the Times, or that EWG wanted to ensure the role it played in influencing the story was properly acknowledged. Either way, the piece itself relies on poor, and at times conflicting, records and accounts to arrive at what appears to be the Times’ firm conclusion that fracturing technology “in fact” caused contamination. The reporter also draws heavily on an after-action report of the “WV-17” well from the mid-1980s written by EPA contractor Carla Greathouse, a long-time opponent of the oil and natural gas industry and a source Urbina has used previously in this series without ever mentioning her prior work and reports targeting the industry.

Lee Fuller, executive director of Energy In Depth and an engineer with more than 30 years’ experience in the industry, issued the following statement:

“We’re talking about a technology that’s been deployed more than 1.2 million times in more than 25 states over the course of more than 60 years. I think it says an awful lot about fracturing’s record of safety that the best these guys could come up with after studying the issue for an entire year is a single, disputed case from 30 years ago that state regulators at the time believe had nothing to do with fracturing. Three decades later, the technology today is better than it’s ever been, the regulations are broader and more stringent, and the imperative of getting this right, so that we can take full advantage of the historic opportunities made possible by shale, has never been more apparent. Despite the Times’ best efforts, this story does not prove that hydraulic fracturing had anything to do with the contamination of a water well 30 years ago.”

Both the EWG paper and the Times story focus on a well drilled in Jackson Co., W.V. in 1982, using old reproductions of completion reports accessed from microfiche to argue that fracturing must have contaminated the well since records indicate it was properly cased and drilled to depths below the water table. But according to a letter sent in 1987 by West Virginia’s Department of Energy specifically referencing the WV-17 well, the actual cause of any alleged issue may have been related to something entirely different.

According to Ted Streit, then the state’s deputy director of inspection and enforcement, neither regulators nor industry had known back then that a formation commonly fractured for its oil and natural gas resources – the Pittsburg sandstone – actually contained potable water resources in some parts of Jackson County. From Mr. Streit’s letter:

I would like to point out that WV Code 22B-1-20 requires an operator to cement a string of casing 20 feet below all fresh water zones. At the time the permit was issued concerning this well, the Division [of Oil and Gas] had no knowledge that the Pittsburg sand was a fresh water source. This is because in certain areas oil and gas is produced from the Pittsburg. With this case however, the division discovered the problem and took the following steps to remedy the situation: 1) We had a geologist map the Pittsburg sand in the Roane and Jackson country area so that our permits group and enforcement group knew where that sand could be found. 2) We required every well drilled in the area to have casing cemented up over the Pittsburg sand.

According to Greg Wrightstone, a geologist with decades of experience completing wells in West Virginia: “My hunch is that the operator had an idea about trying a completion in the Pittsburgh sand. We saw small shows out of it from time to time back then. They may have drilled through it, fractured it, got nothing back, and then just gave up on it and drilled down to do a standard Berea/shale completion. If that was the case and a neighbor was using the Pittsburg sandstone as a water zone, then of course there could be elements of the fracturing fluid in it because that was the zone being fractured.”

EID is currently working with producers in the state to acquire and analyze whatever records might still be available relevant to this issue nearly 30 years after the WV-17 well was drilled.

Although characterizing the WV-17 well as a “clear case of drinking water contamination from fracking” in a quote provided to the Times, EWG lawyer Dusty Horwitt adopts a more measured tone in his actual paper, admitting in one section (page 8) that “it is unclear” how fluids could have accessed the well. In another section (page 13), EWG concedes that the West Virginia-based laboratory commissioned to investigate WV-17 “did not conclude that hydraulic fracturing caused the contamination …” And in its press release, EWG admits that “it is possible that another stage of the drilling process [and not hydraulic fracturing] caused the problem.”

Finally, the Times story pulls extensively from a 1987 report written by well-known oil and gas opponent Carla Greathouse, whom Urbina actually credits with giving this story its start. But according to comments published by the American Petroleum Institute (API) contemporaneous with that report, Ms. Greathouse’s work suffered from a “lack of thoroughness” owing to the contractor’s failure “to find or disclose a substantial number of the administrative and enforcement actions by the state agencies.” API also said at the time that it wasn’t able “to find a single case where EPA’s contractor contacted the operator involved to determine their side of the story.”

According to Ms. Greathouse, one of the goals of her 1987 report was to convince EPA to start regulating things such as drill cuttings, pipe scale and produced water as “hazardous wastes,” with an eye on preventing them from being disposed of in a manner consistent with industrial waste rules under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). After reviewing the Greathouse report, EPA arrived at precisely the opposite conclusion, issuing a report to Congress in 1988 stating that “regulation as hazardous wastes under Subtitle C was not warranted and that these wastes could be controlled under other federal and state regulatory programs.” Ms. Greathouse later told CBS News that the decision was “a very difficult pill to swallow.”

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Dem. Colo. Gov. on NYT Shale Gas Series: “Full of Misinformation, All Hyperbole, No Science”

Wednesday, August 3rd, 2011

FLASHBACK: Fmr. Dem. Pa. Gov. Ed Rendell on the NYT claims: If the goal of your report about natural gas drilling was to gratuitously frighten Pennsylvanians, then congratulations on a job well done. If it was to deliver an evenhanded examination of the critical balance that must be achieved between job creation, energy independence and environmental protection in regions with large natural gas deposits, then it was a mighty swing and a miss. … [Fmr. PADEP sec. John Hanger and I] strongly disagree that there is lax regulation and oversight of gas drilling there. (New York Times, 3/5/11) (more…)

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Fact-Checking Olivia Newton-John’s Hydraulic Fracturing Claims

Monday, August 1st, 2011

The (Tasmanian) Devil is in the Details

In a weekend column, Olivia Newton-John – perhaps best known for her starring role in the film Grease – takes issue with hydraulic fracturing, a tightly-regulated 60-year-technology used to enhance the production of oil and natural gas. To her credit, Ms. Newton-John rightfully tells the Sydney Morning Herald that “I don’t claim to be an expert” on fracturing. (more…)

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From Calif. to Pa., American Shale Gas Strengthening US Security, Creating Thousands of Jobs

Tuesday, July 26th, 2011

Here at Energy In Depth, as you may know, we’re tirelessly committed to getting the facts out about hydraulic fracturing, a tightly-regulated 60-year-old oil and natural gas stimulation technology. It seems that almost every day new evidence emerges in support of hydraulic fracturing’s clear record of environmental safety, as well as the positive impact the technology is having on America’s economy. Yet there are still those who choose to rely on hyperbole rather than facts when addressing this game-changing technology. (more…)

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NYT Doubles-Down on a Really Bad Bet

Wednesday, July 20th, 2011

*** Cross-posted on MasterResource.org and EIDMarcellus.org

When New York Magazine reported earlier this month that the national editor of The New York Times had sent an internal memo laying out a “surprisingly detailed” defense of reporter Ian Urbina’s latest front-page attack on natural gas, the hope was that the memo would spur an equally detailed response by Arthur Brisbane, the Times’ public editor. That hope was realized when Mr. Brisbane’s 1,100-word piecewas posted on the paper’s website over the weekend, a column in which Brisbane takes square aim at theTimes for going “out on a limb” and “lack[ing] an in-depth dissenting view in the text.” (more…)

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Baker Institute to Russia’s Energy Monopoly: ‘If It Dies, It Dies’

Wednesday, July 20th, 2011

In the biggest blow to Russia’s global power since the Italian Stallion landed an epic left-handed haymaker on Ivan Drago’s face, a new study from the Baker Institute [PDF] finds that America’s shale gas resources will play an enormous role in loosening Russia’s grip on global natural gas markets. (more…)

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ICYMI – Senior House Democrat to Speaker Pelosi: “Regulation of hydraulic fracturing is best left to the states”

Tuesday, July 19th, 2011

EPA may halt oil activity
Pomeroy asks to turn down regulations
By Eloise Ogden
Minot (N.D.) Daily News
July 17, 2010

Rep. Earl Pomeroy, D-N.D., is asking House leadership to turn down any new regulations on hydraulic fracturing.

A state minerals expert also says any new regulations on hydraulic fracturing would have a catastrophic impact on the oil development in North Dakota.

Pomeroy sent a letter Friday to Speaker Nancy Pelosi urging her to reject any proposals that would place burdensome, new regulations on hydraulic fracturing in legislation

 

 

aimed at responding to the Gulf oil spill.

Some members of Congress have discussed attempting to attach new regulations on hydraulic fracturing to legislation aimed at addressing that tragedy, according to Pomeroy.

Lynn Helms, director of the N.D. Department of Mineral Resources, during a presentation in Minot in May, spoke about if the Environmental Protection Agency decides to regulate hydraulic fracturing.

“We really have got to stop that from happening,” he said. He said his department put together a document which tells how North Dakota regulates it and has gone to EPA headquarters and Gov. John Hoeven.

“If this happens, I can tell you that our Bakken and Three Forks drilling will have to stop for two to three years,” he said. He said when it happened to Alabama for coalbed methane, “they completely had to shut the door” for two years.

“By the time they got the rules written, the play had moved on and it has never been what it was before,” he said. “So that’s a huge cloud sitting over our industry a major impact. It would just reduce our activity to almost zero for two to three years.”

In his letter to Pelosi, Pomeroy said, “I believe that this would be a mistake and would find little support in the Senate. The EPA is currently undergoing a congressionally mandated study into hydraulic fracturing that is expected to be completed in 2012.”

Pomeroy called it “irresponsible” for Congress to enact new regulations

 

 

 

before the results of that study are known.

“Imposing new regulations now will do nothing to protect drinking water and will only serve to slow down development resulting in the loss of thousands of jobs and more imported oil. It is critical that any legislation related to the Gulf oil spill focus on responding to that tragedy and not include additional burdens on hydraulic fracturing,” he said.

Pomeroy pointed out that over the past two years, North Dakota has significantly increased its oil production, rising from the ninth largest oil producing state to the fourth. “This increase in production has resulted in a significant state budget surplus and the nation’s lowest unemployment rate,” he said.

Pomeroy toured oil-field operations in the Stanley area last week. “During these visits I saw firsthand the significant safeguards that are put into place to protect groundwater during hydraulic fracturing operations,” he said.

He said North Dakota currently has strong regulations on oil and gas development that more than adequately protect groundwater.

“These requirements include strict safety requirements on the storage and disposal of hydraulic fracturing fluid and on encasing the well to avoid leaks. The initial phases of wells are encased in several layers of cement from the surface to below the level of the deepest potable water source and below that level, wells are encased in an additional layer of cement to ensure that groundwater is in no danger of contamination,” he said.

Pomeroy said the regulation of hydraulic fracturing is best left to the states

 

 

 

. “Regulators in each individual state have a better idea of what steps are necessary to protect their residents and environment. Additionally, they are better equipped to implement commonsense regulations that fit their states unique needs than a catchall Environmental Protection Agency regulation,” he said.

NOTE: Click HERE to view this article online and HERE to view Rep. Pomeroy’s letter to Speaker Pelosi.

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Zero Points For Originality

Friday, July 15th, 2011

American Water Works Assoc. Paper Parrots Debunked Gasland Claims About Hydrofracturing

Founded in 1881, the Denver, CO-based American Water Works Association’s (AWWA) stated purpose, according to its site, is being for “the exchange of information pertaining to the management of water-works, for the mutual advancement of consumers and water companies, and for the purpose of securing economy and uniformity in the operations of water-works.” (more…)

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New Barnett Shale Air Emissions Study: “No Significant Health Risks”

Friday, July 15th, 2011

Yesterday, a lengthy, $1 million study evaluating air emissions associated with natural gas development from the Barnett Shale near Ft. Worth, Texas was released. The city of Ft. Worth announced this upon the study’s release: “A comprehensive evaluation of gas exploration and production sites ‘did not reveal any significant health threats.’”

Ft. Worth Mayor Betsy Price notes that “It’s good to hear that ERG didn’t find an immediate health risk from these gas production sites.” Overwhelmingly, the media reported this positive environmental news accurately, save for Bloomberg News. (more…)

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Extra! Extra! Get The Latest News About American Oil, Natural Gas Production @EnergyinDepth

Tuesday, July 12th, 2011

According to a recent Rasmussen Report survey, “Most voters continue to feel America needs to do more to develop domestic gas and oil resources. They also still give the edge to finding new sources of oil over reducing gas and oil consumption.” “Seventy-five percent (75%) [of Likely Voters] do not think the country is doing enough [to develop its own gas and oil resources],” according to the survey.

Are you one of these voters that’s concerned about America’s energy security? If so, you’ve come to the right place for up-to-date news and information about domestic oil and natural gas production. Here’s how to stay informed:

Don’t be a stranger. We look forward to continuing to hear from you.

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New Govt. Data Underscores America’s Enormous Oil, Natural Gas Resources

Monday, July 11th, 2011

Fmr. NH senator: “Extracting natural gas from shale is safe, economically sensible”

Late last week, the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) – an independent arm of the Energy Department which “collects, analyzes, and disseminates independent and impartial energy information to promote sound policymaking, efficient markets, and public understanding of energy and its interaction with the economy and the environment”, according to its website — released a 105-page report on America’s oil and natural gas resources found in shale formations entitled “Review of Emerging Resources: U.S. Shale Gas and Shale Oil Plays.”

While some in the media (NOTE: EIA deals in straightforward facts) and elsewhere continue to question the economical and environmental viability of oil and natural gas production from shale formations across the country, EIA’s report independently underscores the significant and growing amount of homegrown resources we have in the United States.

Here’s a key excerpt from EIA’s release:

Although the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) National Energy Modeling System (NEMS) and energy projections began representing shale gas resource development and production in the mid-1990s, only in the past 5 years has shale gas been recognized as a “game changer” for the U.S. natural gas market. The proliferation of activity into new shale plays has increased dry shale gas production in the United States from 1.0 trillion cubic feet in 2006 to 4.8 trillion cubic feet, or 23 percent of total U.S. dry natural gas production, in 2010. Wet shale gas reserves increased to about 60.64 trillion cubic feet by year-end 2009, when they comprised about 21 percent of overall U.S. natural gas reserves, now at the highest level since 1971. Oil production from shale plays, notably the Bakken Shale in North Dakota and Montana, has also grown rapidly in recent years.

Importantly, EIA also notes that “Technical advancements could lead to more productive and less costly well drilling and completion.” These technical advancements include hydraulic fracturing, a tightly regulated 60-year-old technology that’s been used to enhance the production of oil and natural gas in the United States since the Truman administration.

While many questions exist about hydrofracturing, shouldn’t the public and the media rely on subject matter experts? Well one expert, former New Hampshire senator John E. Sununu – who earned an undergraduate and master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology – writes this about the environmentally proven technology in today’s Boston Globe.

This from his column, entitled “Smart fracking: Extracting natural gas from shale is safe and economically sensible”:

Fracking uses high-pressure fluid to crack open shale rock formations thousands of feet below the surface. The resulting fractures allow gas and oil to flow more freely and be recovered economically. In their effort to stop the practice, environmental groups raised the specter of drinking-water contamination, excessive water use, and other supposed risks. The hyperbole about this method comes somewhat unexpected, given that the process has been around for over 50 years.

Almost three decades ago, I spent the summer in a hydraulic fracture lab in a musty basement a stone’s throw from the Charles River. As a rookie, I mostly cast cement blocks used to simulate the shale formations. Researchers injected fluid into the blocks at high pressure and measured the speed at which cracks would grow. Over months of trial and error, we learned to predict and even control the direction of the cracks by putting pressure on the outside of the cement blocks.

For a few weeks each year, the professor supervising the lab would head out to the field to conduct larger-scale tests on working wells. Back then, high operating costs coupled with low oil prices meant that fracking was limited to specific, high-yield areas. About five years ago, however, improvements in horizontal drilling finally came together with better simulation and monitoring of crack growth to make the entire process a big economic winner.

The results have been dramatic for production of both oil and gas. During the past three years, proven reserves of shale gas have more than tripled. Estimates of recoverable reserves in the United States have soared to over 800 trillion cubic feet – roughly 35 times America’s annual consumption – from shale gas alone. North Dakota’s Bakken oil field, a marginal producer five years ago, now pumps 400,000 barrels per day. And yet the full potential of reserves such as the Marcellus shale beneath Pennsylvania and New York still haven’t been fully measured.

…

The industry will continue to innovate, improve productivity, and reduce production costs. Consumers will benefit, the economy will grow, and America will use more natural gas. And that, in the end, will drive the environmental lobby crazy.

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*UPDATE* New York Confirms Safety and Economic Benefits of Hydraulic Fracturing

Friday, July 8th, 2011

“We’ve deliberated, we’ve considered the comments, we have looked at what’s gone on in other states…And at the end of this stage of the deliberations, we’ve concluded that high-volume hydrofracking can be undertaken safely, along with strong and aggressive regulations.”  – New York DEC Commissioner, Joe Martens

The New York Department of Environmental Conservation (NYDEC) recently released a preliminary Draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (dSGEIS) regarding the future development of the vast shale gas resources in the state, which includes portions of the massive Marcellus Shale formation. NYDEC confirms that shale gas production, including the use of hydraulic fracturing, can strengthen the economy while protecting drinking water supplies and local habitats.

But you already knew all of that. So let’s get to the meat, shall we? Below are key excerpts pulled directly from the report.

Strengthening the Economy

Protecting the Environment and Minimizing Impacts

Protecting Water Supplies and Using Resources Responsibly

Click the image below to see the projected water demands for production in New York

Fresh Water Use in New York (millions of gallons)

(Chapter 6, p. 6-15)

Minimizing Emissions and Protecting Air Quality

Protecting Against Methane Leaks

Protecting Workers and the General Public

Continually Improving Efficiency

The Truth about Earthquakes and Seismic Activity

UPDATE (7/11/11, 11:24am EDT) The folks across the pond at No Hot Air have also put together a great summation of the New York assessment, specifically focusing on the issue of water use. Here’s a good excerpt, though you should definitely read the whole thing:

So we can say that the impact of shale on water resources will be minimal. That is being polite. It is actually peanuts. Entirely inconsequential. One quarter of one per cent of total water use.Those concerned about depletion of water have far greater enemies than shale.

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*UPDATE II* Is Hydraulic Fracturing the ‘Greatest Threat’ to New Jersey’s Water?

Wednesday, July 6th, 2011

Last week the New Jersey legislature passed an ill-informed measure that would ban hydraulic fracturing on the dubious basis that it “represents the greatest threat to New Jersey’s water supply than anything else we face today.” Of course, as EID carefully explained in a letter to New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, hydraulic fracturing has never in its 60-year history been tied to the contamination of drinking water. The EPA’s own Lisa Jackson recently admitted that she’s not aware of a single case where the hydraulic fracturing process itself has contaminated water. (You can read more about what state regulators have said about hydraulic fracturing not impacting water by clicking here.)

Speaking of New Jersey’s water, yesterday the EPA actually announced a plan to clean up groundwater at a Superfund site in Pedricktown, NJ, where, it should be noted, there is no hydraulic fracturing taking place. Apparently even without a singled fractured well in the Garden State, the state’s water supply is so contaminated with heavy metals such as lead and cadmium that the federal government is intervening. New Jersey actually has a long history of water pollution from Superfund sites, which, dare it be said once again, has nothing to do with hydraulic fracturing.

And what does EPA plan to do about this particular site?

EPA had originally planned to pump the contaminated ground water to the surface, treat it, and discharge the treated ground water into the Delaware River. This type of treatment is no longer needed because pollutant levels in the ground water have gone down significantly as the sources of the contamination have been removed. EPA conducted a review of newer treatment methods, and is now proposing to inject a non-hazardous additive into the ground water that will absorb metal compounds such as lead and cadmium and remove the dissolved contaminants from the ground water.

Got that? New Jersey’s water is already contaminated with toxic substances, yet the legislature has declared a process that doesn’t even exist in the state — hydraulic fracturing – to be the “greatest threat” to its drinking water supplies. And now the EPA is proposing to inject chemicals into New Jersey residents’ water in the hopes that doing so will make it cleaner.

Also of note: One of the techniques that the Environmental Protection Agency commonly uses to assist in cleaning up Superfund sites is…hydraulic fracturing. Oh, the irony.

(To be fair, the New Jersey legislature’s ban is only in the context of producing natural gas, but it’s still interesting given the wild assertion that hydraulic fracturing — an environmentally sound process that the EPA uses to help clean up water — is somehow the greatest threat to the New Jersey’s available water supplies.)

UPDATE (7/8/11, 12:41pm EDT): Not to pile on, but the unrelated-to-gas-production water contamination stories in New Jersey are…piling up. And apparently so is raw sewage, according to the EPA:

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has prepared an important report, Keeping Raw Sewage and Contaminated Stormwater Out of the Public’s Water, to answer commonly asked questions about combined sewer overflows. To read or download a copy of the report, visit http://www.epa.gov/region2/water/. To see an illustration of how serious a problem this is in Brooklyn, go to: http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/29/sewage-overflow-in-new-york-believe-it/.

Many of the sewer systems in New York State and New Jersey and some in Puerto Rico are combined systems that carry sewage from homes and businesses as well as rainwater collected from street drains. When they overflow during heavy rains, the rainwater mixes with sewage and results in raw sewage being directly discharged into water bodies. These discharges are called combined sewer overflows and can pose serious environmental and public health risks.

“Clean water is vital to people’s health and our economy and is a priority for the EPA,” said EPA Regional Administrator Judith Enck. “We’ve seen improvements in water quality since the passage of the Clean Water Act forty years ago, but there is much more to be done to protect our rivers, harbors, lakes and streams. EPA’s new report provides important information on the laws that protect our waterways and the actions that can be taken to reduce water pollution.”

Keyword searches don’t always work, but it does not appear that the terms “natural gas” or “hydraulic fracturing” appear once in that release.

UPDATE II (7/11/11, 1:48pm EDT) Remember that time hydraulic fracturing created a Superfund site in New Jersey? Neither does the EPA, which announced today yet another cleanup plan for the squalid wonder that is New Jersey’s water supply:

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a proposed plan to cleanup the Crown Vantage Landfill Superfund site in Alexandria Township, Hunterdon County, New Jersey. The former landfill is contaminated with volatile organic compounds, polychlorinated biphenyls and other pollutants. Volatile organic compounds are a group of chemicals that evaporate easily into the air and have serious health effects. Polychlorinated biphenyls are potentially cancer-causing in people and build up in the fat of fish and animals. The landfill is 10 acres and a small portion sits on the eastern bank of the Delaware River. The EPA has already completed most of the cleanup work at the site, including removing over 2,450 drums and related waste from the landfill, and the site does not present an imminent risk to public health.

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Inhofe Reminds Feds that States are in Charge of Hydraulic Fracturing

Tuesday, July 5th, 2011

Last month Energy Department Secretary Steven Chu directed the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board (SEAB) — specifically its Natural Gas Subcommittee — to “make recommendations to improve the safety and environmental performance of natural gas hydraulic fracturing from shale formations.” Those recommendations, according to the official memo sent by Steven Chu on May 5th (PDF), will eventually be shared with the Department of Interior and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

But as U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) points out in a recent letter to Secretary Chu, the U.S. Department of Energy has stated that it is “not engaged in regulating [hydraulic fracturing],” and the task laid out for the SEAB “does not include making decisions about regulatory policy,” according to Chu’s official May 5th memo. “Based on these statements,” Senator Inhofe writes in his letter to Chu, “can you confirm that any report issued by DOE pursuant to this announcement will not include recommendations relating to the regulation of the hydraulic fracturing process, or any components thereof, whether by DOE or any other Federal agency?”

The question is an important one: Any attempt to sway the opinions of the EPA (or Interior) toward regulating hydraulic fracturing at the federal level would not only compromise the ongoing research inside the EPA regarding this crucial well stimulation procedure, but also upend the incredibly efficient state-based regulation that already exists. Inhofe references this last point directly, noting in his letter that many in Washington are attempting to “expand federal regulatory and permitting power to supplant State authority.”

State regulators, meanwhile, overwhelmingly believe that hydraulic fracturing is environmentally safe and effectively regulated at the state level.

You can read Inhofe’s entire letter by clicking here (PDF).

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EID Lays Out the Facts on Fracturing in Letter to NJ Gov; Invites Lawmakers to Tour a Wellsite

Friday, July 1st, 2011

Letter directed to Gov. Christie and primary co-sponsors of legislation in state Assembly and Senate

 

WASHINGTON – Following up on the decision this week by state legislators in New Jersey to approve legislation seeking an outright ban on the responsible deployment of hydraulic fracturing as a means of harvesting clean-burning, job-creating natural gas, Energy In Depth sent a detailed letter to Gov. Chris Christie today highlighting several important facts about the technology, along with an attachment capturing comments and insights from more than a dozen state environmental regulators from both parties testifying to the safety and efficiency of fracturing.

Also copied on the letter are the primary co-sponsors of the bill from both the General Assembly and Senate. The letter also extends an invitation to the governor, legislators, and their staff to tour a wellsite and see firsthand how a fracturing operation works, and what policies and procedures are in place to ensure it is executed safely.

The text of the letter is below; a stand-alone, electronic file can be accessed here.

July 1, 2011

Honorable Chris Christie
Office of the Governor
PO Box 001
Trenton, NJ 08625

Dear Governor Christie:

Earlier this week, the state legislature approved a bill seeking to implement a formal, statewide ban on the use of hydraulic fracturing, sending to your office legislation that refers to the technology in the text as a “drilling technique.” In fact, the process of stimulating a well via the fracturing process has nothing at all to do with drilling, but everything to do with making possible the delivery of billions of barrels of U.S. oil and trillions of cubic feet of U.S. natural gas, generating thousands of U.S. jobs and billions of dollars in annual tax revenue in the process.

Over the past 60 years, fracturing has been deployed more than 1.1 million times in at least 25 states – most often in the context of oil and natural gas, but also to stimulate flow from geothermal wells, water wells, and even by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a means of remediating Superfund sites. Over that period, fracturing has proven time and again to be a safe, efficient technology; in use since the 1940s, fracturing has never in its history been tied to the contamination of underground sources of drinking water, a fact most recently confirmed by EPA administrator Lisa Jackson, who previously served your state as commissioner of environmental protection.

The fracturing process itself involves the carefully controlled deployment of water, sand and small percentages of common, industrial materials under high pressure down-hole for the purpose of creating and sustaining small fissures in rock strata deep underground. These fissures act as conduits in otherwise impermeable rock allowing trapped natural gas to make its way to the wellbore and eventually up to the surface for collection. The process occurs after the well has been drilled, and routinely is completed in two to four days. Once the well is fractured, it’s ready to produce natural gas for years, even decades. It’s been estimated that nine out of 10 onshore energy wells in America – natural gas and oil – require fracturing technology to become or remain viable.

Of course, New Jersey is one of the few states in which fracturing technology has not been historically deployed, a function not of any political considerations, but of the state’s underlying geology. But just because New Jersey isn’t in a position to produce much natural gas doesn’t mean it doesn’t consume any.

According to the Energy Information Administration, New Jersey uses more than 620 billion cubic feet of natural gas each year, a large percentage of that produced via the use of fracturing in other states. Currently, more than half of all New Jersey residents rely on natural gas to heat their homes, benefiting significantly from low natural gas prices made possible due to the influx of new supply, which itself is made possible from fracturing. These low prices have also been a boon to New Jersey manufacturers, which rely on natural gas both as an indispensible source of energy and as a basic feedstock in just about everything they make.

While a statewide ban on this technology is not likely to have a material impact on development activities in your state, it could be used by opponents of affordable, reliable energy as a tool to push for implementing similarly destructive, ill-informed moratoria in other states. In view of that potential, we write today to express our strong opposition to the bill. We hope you will take a moment to review the attached fact sheet capturing comments and insights from environmental regulators across the country, with testimonials from each speaking to the safety of the technology and the true facts regarding its regulated use.

If this bill becomes law, New Jersey will become the first state to ban hydraulic fracturing, even as neighboring New York finalizes its plan to allow Marcellus wells to be fractured in a responsible and highly regulated way there. But before you decide how to proceed on this legislation, we would like to invite you and your staff to tour a wellsite, so you can see for yourself how the process works. It’s an invitation we’re also extending to the primary co-sponsors of the bill; those offices are copied on this letter. In the meantime, please don’t hesitate to contact me directly should you have any questions or concerns. We thank you for your time, and look forward to working with you in the future.

Sincerely,
Lee Fuller
Executive Director
Energy In Depth

(click here to view attachment)

cc: Sen. Robert M. Gordon (D-Bergen); Sen. Linda Greenstein (D-Mercer and Middlesex); Sen. Christopher Bateman (R-Morris and Somerville); Assemblywoman Connie Wagner (D-Bergen); Assemblyman Reed Gusciora (D-Mercer); Assemblywoman Valerie Vainieri Huttle (D-Bergen); Assemblyman Herb Conaway, Jr. (D-Burlington and Camden); Assemblyman Ruben J. Ramos, Jr. (D-Hudson)

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What They’re Saying: 36 Hours Later

Tuesday, June 28th, 2011

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You say you want a [shale] revolution … Don’t you know it’s gonna be all right

Monday, June 13th, 2011

While it was the Beatles that popularized and brought into the mainstream the idea of “a revolution”, there’s a historic revolution taking place today. In a Wall Street Journal op-ed today — under the headline “America Needs the Shale Revolution” — energy expert Robert Bryce writes this about the critical role that environmentally proven hydraulic fracturing continues to play in fueling America’s economy:

Despite the myriad benefits of the low-cost hydrocarbons that are now being produced thanks to hydraulic fracturing, the media, environmental groups and politicians are hyping the possible dangers of the process, which uses high-pressure pumps to force water, sand and chemicals into shale formations. Doing so fractures the formation and allows the extraction of natural gas or petroleum.

Thanks to hydraulic fracturing, U.S. drillers are producing lots of ethane and propane, which are key feedstocks for the petrochemical sector.

The drilling industry itself is creating jobs. Over the past 12 months, some 48,000 people were hired in Pennsylvania by companies working in the Marcellus Shale, a massive deposit that underlies several Eastern states, including Pennsylvania and New York.

While the Pennsylvania economy is getting a much-needed lift from drilling, opposition in New York may mean that the state loses out on jobs and investment. A new study by Tim Considine, an energy economist at the University of Wyoming, estimates that drilling in the Marcellus Shale could add as many as 15,000 new jobs to the New York economy by 2015.

Regardless of what happens in New York, hydraulic fracturing is unlocking huge quantities of oil from shale. In March, domestic crude production was 5.63 million barrels per day, the highest level since 2003.

A vibrant industrial base requires cheap, abundant and reliable sources of energy. The shale revolution now underway is the best news for North American energy since the discovery of the East Texas Field in 1930. We can’t afford to let fear of a proven technology stop the much-needed resurgence of American industry.

Mr. Bryce is absolutely right, and former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell – for one – agrees (we’d submit that at least 141,000 Pennsylvanians would likely also agree). Here are key experts from Gov. Rendell’s remarks at a recent Manhattan Institute forum on clean-burning, job-creating American natural gas:

“If Gov. Cuomo asked me my advice about lifting the moratorium I would tell him the moratorium should be lifted. There’s too much of an upside for New York State and too much of an upside for America.”

“Unemployment rate was 7.5% at a time when national rate is 9.0% and most industrial states are higher than the national average.  PA is the third highest creator in jobs behind Texas and California. These numbers are in a part because of shale drilling.”

And here’s what they’re saying about American oil and natural gas development enabled by tightly-regulated hydraulic fracturing:

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New Study Underscores Enormous Potential Economic Benefits From NY’s Marcellus Shale

Wednesday, June 8th, 2011

Earlier this week, New York’s state House doubled down on its bad bet of a year ago and sought to extend by another year the state’s moratorium on the use of fracturing technology — at least the kind requiring enough water to access the Marcellus. Such a proposal seeks to only further put out of reach the potentially widespread economic benefits – tens of thousands of jobs, millions in revenue – associated with shale gas production for New York State.

A recent New York Post editorial captures the contours of this debate:

“The longer fracking is verboten in New York, the longer the upstate region loses out on a promising economic boost. Indeed, new drilling operations alone could create thousands of jobs for the economically ailing area.”

Further, and perhaps even more clearly, these facts and economic potentials are echoed in a Manhattan Institute report issued this week. The report analyzed the economic and environmental impacts of shale gas development in New York State as based upon Pennsylvania’s Marcellus activity. The study indicated that a moratorium on drilling provides little environmental benefit while imposing large scale economic cost.

Data was generated on a per-well basis to create an “economic-environmental benefit-cost ratio for a typical Marcellus shale gas well.” The study further notes the importance of understanding the downstream positive externalities of natural gas potentials as an alternative to coal and oil energy generation.

Here are several key findings:

The authors also determine that “Clearly, the economic benefits of shale gas drilling far outweigh the environmental costs.” And it’s true, hydraulic fracturing has never impacted groundwater. And despite claims, EPA administrator Lisa Jackson – our nation’s top environmental watchdog – told Congress this recently when asked about fracturing:

“I’m not aware of any proven case where the fracking process itself has affected water.”

Misunderstanding and misrepresentation of the science and facts surrounding shale gas production has diluted the potential of hydraulic fracturing for New York’s energy and economic future. And New Yorkers need only to look Pennsylvania and West Virginia, where natural gas development is being done in an environmentally responsible way.

Yesterday, under the headline “Gas drilling makes millionaires in Marshall County”, West Virginia Public Broadcasting notes the positive economic benefit drilling has brought into the homes of its residents, as well as its small businesses and community:

Some residents in Marshall County are becoming rich off Marcellus shale drilling. The gas drilling boom is creating an economic upswing throughout the community. Despite the recession, Marshall County is doing better than most counties in the state. It is now the #2 coal producing county in West Virginia. It’s also become a big draw for gas companies looking to tap the natural gas in Marcellus Shale deep underground.

Marshall County Commissioner Donald Mason said this means big money for some residents. “We have seen several people in our county become instant millionaires with the signing of the leases and some of them are already producing. There are rumors that some people are getting as much as $60,000 a month from their gas wells,” Mason said.

And the money from those lease checks is trickling into the community.

Back at Auto Choice in Moundsville, John Hunnel said he’s seen the Northern Panhandle area suffer from a loss in manufacturing jobs like glass and steel over the years. He said the Marcellus shale drilling activity has him feeling pretty optimistic about the future. “Anytime you have different jobs coming in to the area it does help. It brings other businesses along with it which is good, but I think this whole area is going to change dramatically within the next probably 5 to 10 years for sure,” said Hunnel.

Modern shale gas development is a labor-intensive task, for sure, requiring continual man power and thereby generating continued and much-needed employment opportunities. According the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry, there are 141,000 Marcellus related jobs in the Commonwealth, with an average Marcellus wage of $69,996.

New York’s ongoing de facto moratorium – as well as the one passed by the General Assembly – will only continue to stifle the desperately needed economic potential of shale gas production for the state. The economic benefits are too great to be ignored.

As the Manhattan Institute study lays out, “Our analysis of Marcellus development in Pennsylvania suggests that environmentally safe development is possible in New York. Our study finds the net economic and environmental benefits from shale gas development to be considerable, suggesting that the current moratorium is far costlier than its proponents, or even its opponents, realize.”

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Those in Glass Houses Shouldn’t Throw Stones: Pa. Paper Lodges Baseless Claims About Hydraulic Fracturing

Tuesday, June 7th, 2011

Perhaps you caught the editorial in today’s Doylestown (Pa.) Intelligencer under the headline “Cawley vs. DEP: Two stories about natural gas fracking.” True to form, EID is eager to separate the facts from fiction regarding the claims made about hydraulic fracturing in this editorial.

But first, by way of background, here’s what the paper’s hard news section reported on Sunday under the headline “Cawley: No evidence of pollution from fracking”:

Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley on Friday said that there was no documented evidence of water being affected by the fracking process used in the mining of Marcellus shale natural gas.

Now back to today’s editorial, which plays fast-and-loose with the facts. This from the piece:

Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley may want to check his facts a little more closely the next time he talks about the natural gas mining technique known as fracking.

The former Bucks County commissioner and now chairman of the Governor’s Marcellus Shale Advisory Commission last week told members of the county Transportation Management Association that there “has never been a documented case of water being affected by fracking for Marcellus Shale.”

…

Cawley’s deputy chief of staff maintained what his boss said was accurate, and that the process of fracking is not in itself risky.

With all due respect, a statement like that is akin to saying coal mining is not in itself risky. Or drilling for oil is not in itself risky. Or a nuclear power plant is not in itself risky.

But as they say, facts are awfully stubborn things. So, with all due respect to the paper’s editorial board members and editors, here are the facts:

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U.S EPA: Not aware of any proven case where HF has affected drinking water

Tuesday, May 24th, 2011

Earlier today, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson testified before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform at a hearing on gas prices and the “Pain At The Pump.” So why are we posting about this on EID? Great question. At the hearing, a Congressman posed the following question to the Administrator: “Is there any evidence that hydraulic fracturing however can affect aquifers and water supplies?” Click on the following video link for the Administrator’s response, which may (or may not) surprise you.

While we often disagree with Mrs. Jackson on a number of issues, today she deserves a hat tip for setting the record straight when it comes to the history and deployment of hydraulic fracturing technology.

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