Last night at the Maplewood Career Center in Ravenna, Portage County, a public forum was held to address concerns, answer questions and provide information to the public on Utica shale development.  The event drew about 50 people who learned about the history of the oil and gas industry in Ohio, the oil and gas production process and the economic and energy security opportunities associated with Ohio’s shale development. Energy in Depth was proud to moderate and our team enjoyed interacting with our neighbors and friends in Portage County.

The first speaker was Rhonda L. Reda. Ms. Reda serves as Executive Director of the Ohio Oil and Gas Energy Education Program and the Ohio Oil and Gas Energy Education Foundation. She helped form the organization in 1997. Prior to OOGEEP, Ms. Reda served as Vice President of Internal Affairs and Public Information for the Ohio Oil and Gas Association for more than a decade. She knows a thing or two about oil and natural gas production as she’s worked in the industry for more than twenty-five years.

Rhonda discussed the history of the industry and how crude oil and natural gas provides thousands of products we use in our  everyday lives.

The second speaker was David R. Hill. Mr. Hill is President of David R. Hill, Inc., which is an oil and natural gas producer in Ohio and West Virginia. He graduated from Muskingum College in 1980, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree majoring in Geology. Mr. Hill is Vice President of the Ohio Oil & Gas Association and is a past Chairman of the Ohio Oil & Gas Association Energy Education Program. Mr. Hill has served under Governors Taft, Strickland, and Kasich on the State of Ohio Technical Advisory Council and has been a member of the American Association of Petroleum Geologist for 31 years.

David talked about the process of developing an oil and gas well and the state regulations that are enforced during the entire process of production. David also discussed waste water disposal and class II injection wells and explained what an injection well is and why we use them.

“The water that we inject into the ground in Ohio represents 1/2 of 1% of all of the water that is injected in the United States.” — David Hill (1:19)

This educational forum was co-sponsored by Lakeside Sand and Gravel, Therm-O-Link, Kimble Companies, the Ohio Energy Resource Alliance, and the Ohio Shale Coalition. These are local companies that are seeing a direct benefit from the exploration and production of Utica shale resources. Since Energy in Depth is an active part of the Ohio Energy Resource Alliance it is important to be present in communities all across Ohio talking about oil and gas development with co-sponsors like these local businesses.