Tracking Marcellus Money and Other Drilling Updates

Transcript

For The Allegheny Front, I'm David Hoedeman with updated Marcellus news.

As Ann's interview mentions, the Pennsylvania legislature is working on a bill for a severance tax on natural gas. The October 1st deadline is looming. Yet there are still sticking points of the structure of a tax and what provisions would be tacked on to the bill. Senate Republicans want to include industry-friendly provisions like limiting municipal zoning on drilling and allowing forced pooling where a land owner could be forced to lease gas rights if their surrounding neighbors sign on. Democrats want only a severance tax in the bill.

Meanwhile, Pennsylvania House Republicans announced a package of legislation they're calling Ôø?Marcellus WorksÔø? as a way to increase the use of natural gas in the state and create jobs. They want the state to transition its fleet to natural gas, and create incentives to convert private and cities and other communities' fleets and mass transit to natural gas. They also want natural gas refilling stations constructed along the Pennsylvania turnpike.

Tom Corbett, Republican candidate for Pennsylvania governor, released HIS environnmental plan. While he supports strengthening drilling regulations and disclosure of chemicals used in fracking, he doesn't support a severance tax, saying it would reduce jobs, revenue and other economic benefits of drilling. His democratic opponent, Dan Onorato supports the tax.

Also this week, environmental groups rallied in Pittsburgh and lobbied lawmakers in Harrisburg for greater protections for Marcellus drilling. Groups in Pittsburgh including the Sierra Club, Clean Water Action and Penn Environment released a 13-point platform for state action. The Pittsburgh Post Gazette reports that their demands include a state-wide moratorium on deep drilling, passage of a severance tax and distance requirements between wells, so they can't be clustered together.

Among those rallying in Pittsburgh were families from the Pennsylvania community where a
A private lab reported finding toxic chemicals in the drinking water. The community's already dealing with methane contamination from natural gas drilling.

West Virginia Public Broadcasting's Ben Adducchio has that story.

A private lab reports finding toxic chemicals in the drinking water of a Pennsylvania community already dealing with methane contamination from natural gas drilling.

Daniel Farnham tells The Times-Tribune of Scranton that his tests found ethylene glycol, propylene glycol and toluene in the well water of "almost everybody" living on Carter Road in Dimock Township, Susquehanna County.

The chemicals are among dozens used to hydraulically fracture, or frack, shale deposits to release natural gas.

The wells are in the heart of the gas-rich Marcellus Shale.

Dimock residents sued Houston-based Cabot Oil and Gas Corp. last year, alleging the drilling company polluted their wells with methane gas and other contaminants.

On Tuesday, 13 families in Lenox Township, Susquehanna County, sued another Houston driller, Southwestern Energy Co., claiming their wells were also contaminated with fracking fluids.