Westmoreland Marcellus Citizens’ Group Updates
March 6, 2014
To receive updates which includes photos, please email jan at westmcg@gmail.com
* For articles and updates or to just vent, visit us on facebook;
* To view permanent documents, past updates,
reports, general information and meeting information
http://westmorelandmarcellus.blogspot.com/
* Our email address: westmcg@gmail.com
*
To discuss candidates: http://www.facebook.com/groups/VoteProEarth/
* To contact your state
legislator:
For the email address, click on the envelope
under the photo
* For information on PA state gas legislation
and local control: http://pajustpowers.org/aboutthebills.html-
WMCG
Thank You
* Thank you to contributors to our Updates: Debbie Borowiec, Lou
Pochet, Ron Gulla, the Pollocks, Marian Szmyd, Bob Donnan, Gloria Forouzan, Elizabeth
Donahue, and Bob Schmetzer.
Calendar
***
WMCG Meeting We meet the second Tuesday of every month at
7:30 PM in Greensburg- next meeting March 11.
Email Jan for directions. All are very welcome to attend.
***The Climate Marchers Are Coming!
“They left Los Angeles March 1st and have Pittsburgh, Irwin,
Greensburg, Ligonier etc on their itinerary.
I've already sent a welcome to them to count on warm hospitality in
Greensburg. Dates are not firm yet, but
I suspect it to be early May.”
Visit:
www.climatemarch.org
B. Survil, Ph:
724-850-1616
*** Act 13 Forum – You Can
Participate On-Line
We are invited to attend in Philadelphia (with
pre-registration), or we can view the live webcast:
To view the live webcast on or after March 13th, please
visit: http://whyy.org/hamiltoncommons/ustream/delriver.html
(Registration is only
required for those attending the event in-person)
Our Water, Our Air,
Our Communities - And Forced Gas
Drilling?
The Inside story on the landmark court case that overturned
the pro-drilling Act 13
and recognized our constitutional right to a healthy
environment.
MARK YOUR CALENDARS!
***Triple Divide Showing-- Fracking, With Liberty & Justice For
All
Wednesday, March 12
6:30 PM
$15
To order tickets:
Only 96 seats are available.
A special screening of investigative documentary Triple Divide and
discussion about fracking
PITTSBURGH—Catch a special screening and discussion
of Triple Divide, an investigative documentary about the impacts from fracking
in Pennsylvania, on March 12th, 6:30 PM at Bricolage. It’s a film about the
complex subject of fracking and has been called “a bombshell that could
reverberate across the state" by Wilkes-Barre Times Leader.
This
debut documentary by journalists Joshua Pribanic and Melissa Troutman reveals
how the state’s "world-class regulations” fall short in protecting people,
communities, and the environment. “We
wanted to look at what impacts are occurring and how they’re being
handled," says Pribanic. "If the state and industry say fracking’s
under control, we wanted to see how. It’s only when we see the evidence that we
can cast the stone."
“Pennsylvania
has some of the best environmental laws in the country, but they aren't being
enforced," says Troutman. "In addition, we’ve found during our
investigation that basic freedoms which are supposed to be guaranteed to all
Americans are being stripped from communities faced with fracking.”
Academy Award-nominated actor
Mark Ruffalo co-narrates the documentary, which is named after the triple
continental divide in Potter County, Pennsylvania, one of four unique
watersheds in North America where three major rivers begin—including the
Allegheny River—and flow to separate parts of the continent.
Discussion
with the filmmakers and expert panelists will be moderated by Bill Flanagan,
host of “Our Region’s Business” on WPXI-TV. Panelists for discussion include
attorney John Smith, who led the case that deemed key provisions of
Pennsylvania’s oil and gas law Act 13 unconstitutional,
Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald,
engineer John Detwiler, who’s active in the group Marcellus Protest calling for
a halt on fossil fuel extraction, and Dr. Kent Moors, director of the Energy
Policy Research Group at Duquesne University.
“We
believe informed citizens are better citizens”, says Jeffrey Carpenter, artistic
director at Bricolage. “With so many critical issues facing our community it's
important that we create a space to ask questions and hear from thought leaders
to help broaden perspectives and promote problem-solving. We believe using art
as a crowbar to open the door to dialogue can make those conversations easier
to begin and less intimidating to participate in."
“The
boom in unconventional gas extraction has created the same debate that we see
here in PA in communities around the world,” said Dr. Steven E. Sokol,
President and CEO of the World Affairs Council of Pittsburgh. "On the one
hand, there are proponents of fracking because of the
opportunities offered by gas. On the other hand,
people are concerned about the environmental and health impacts. This is both a
local and a global issue."
Refreshments
will be served before the screening which starts at 6:30 PM. Doors open at 6:00
PM and tickets are $15. The Fifth Wall Series is sponsored by World Affairs
Council. For more information call Bricolage at 412-471-0999. For previews of
the film see TripleDivideFilm.org.
Bios:
John Detwiler
John Detwiler earned a PhD in engineering and is a
Registered Professional Engineer in Pennsylvania. He is now retired from a career in strategic
business consulting and in project management of large-scale engineering
works. As an entrepreneur, he was the co-founder,
co-owner and chief operating officer of a privately held engineering company
with profit-and-loss responsibility for multi-million dollar capital
projects. Mr. Detwiler has served in
many sectors and industries, including:
manufacturing, defense, energy and public utilities, local government,
banking and health care. He is an active
member of Marcellus Protest, a citizen group working for a total halt to
hydrofracturing of fossil fuel deposits. Marcellus Protest has been a driving
force behind the City of Pittsburgh's ban on fracking and is now part of the
campaign to keep oil and gas operations out of Allegheny County Parks.
County Executive Rich Fitzgerald
Rich Fitzgerald grew up in Pittsburgh’s
Bloomfield-Garfield neighborhood. He
earned his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering with a business minor from Carnegie
Mellon University. Rich started a small
business, Aquenef, which provides water treatment equipment and services for
industry in the Western Pennsylvania region.
Rich worked on the campaign to change the form of
government in Allegheny County. In 1999,
he ran for one of the district council seats on the newly-formed County Council
and was elected to represent a district that included suburban municipalities
and city neighborhoods. He held the seat
for twelve years and was elected as Council President four times before leaving
to run for the office of County Executive.
As County Executive, he is focused on economic
development of the region and job creation and works with companies on a weekly
basis to address the issues that are priorities to them in growing and being
supported in the county. That focus
includes making our airport better, ensuring our public transit system is
reliable and sustainable, and providing a climate where a skilled workforce is
a key component of our growth. Rich’s
interest in making government more effective and efficient began with the
consolidation of row offices when he was on Council, has expanded to include a
top to bottom review of county departments and functions by the County Manager
and direction to make changes to ensure that county government is responsive to
taxpayers and protects their interests.
Dr. Kent Moors
Dr. Moors is the Executive Chair of the Global
Energy Symposium, founder and editor of The Oil and Energy Investor, and
President of oil and gas consultant ASIDA, Inc. An internationally recognized
expert in oil and gas policy/finance and risk assessment, Dr. Moors, has
advised 27 world governments and been a consultant to private companies,
financial institutions, civic movements/organizations and law firms in 29 countries.
In addition to conventional oil and gas, he has experience dealing with shale
gas, coal bed methane, tight gas, tight/shale oil and oil sands projects
throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Poland, Australia, and North
Africa.
John Smith
Attorney John M. Smith, Esq. is a Partner and
Founder of the law firm of Smith Butz located in Southpointe, Washington
County, Pennsylvania. Attorney Smith is lead counsel for the local
municipalities in the Robinson v. Commonwealth (Act 13) case, where the
Pennsylvania Supreme Court declared provisions in the Pennsylvania Oil and Gas
Act unconstitutional. The Act would have required all zoning districts,
including residential to allow drilling and fracking operations as well as
waste water impoundments with a minimum setback of 300 feet from homes and
schools. Smith focuses his practice on oil and gas, land use, local governments
and litigation matters, and he is currently the Solicitor for several
municipalities including Peters and Cecil Townships. Attorney Smith is involved
with several litigation matters representing clients who have alleged harm from
oil and gas activities, including contaminated water. He's also filed civil
actions against the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection alleging
the Departments failure to properly enforce Pennsylvania law.
TAKE Action!!
***Letters to the editor are important
and one of the best ways to share
information with the
public. ***
Everyone Must Do This To
Have An Impact
EQB Comments-DUE
MARCH 14—That’s Friday- if you haven’t yet submitted your comments you can
still do so.
Many of us braved the cold to testify at hearings in
Indiana and Washington PA. Others attended hearings in other parts of the
state. The industry is out in full force. They have paid employees at every
hearing-actually they have the same people sometimes reading the same
statements at every hearing. It is up to us, to you, to speak for the air and
water quality and property values that we feel need to be protected. My award
for most unbelievable comment of the night goes to the representative from
Dogwood Energy who said that the regs should be established without the input
of citizens’ groups. So
apparently the democratic process to drillers means only the industry speaks
and they write their own rules.
We have more wells going in every day. I receive, on
average, a call a week from a distraught area resident whose neighbor sold out
to the industry. PA doesn't have a moratorium as do more cautious states, so
these regs are critical. Zoning can help to restrict the placement of gas
operations but not the "how they operate aspect”. If fracking occurs
anywhere near you, these are the regulations that govern much of that process,
that, for example, allow a toxic frack pit near your home or school or
radioactive drill cuttings to be stored or buried on site.
The
PA oil/gas regs were never meant to regulate fracking. They were written for
shallow gas wells and do not protect the public. Below are links to comments.
You can rephrase and add your thoughts to send in a statement of your concerns.
jan
To view what other people wrote thus far: http://www.irrc.state.pa.us/full_list.aspx?IRRCNo=3042&type=1
To view what we presented:
Online Comments
The public is being invited to submit comments to the EQB regarding the
proposed rulemaking by March 14. Along with their comments, people can submit a one-page
summary of their comments to the EQB. Comments, including the one page summary,
may be submitted to EQB by accessing the EQB’s Online Public Comment System at http://www.ahs.dep.pa.gov/RegComments.
Written Comments
Written comments and summaries should
be mailed to Environmental Quality Board, P.O. Box 8477, Harrisburg, PA
17105-8477.
The summaries and a formal
comment and response document will be distributed to the EQB and available
publicly prior to the meeting when the final rulemaking will be considered.
Email Comments
Online
and email comments must also be received by the EQB on or before March 14.
If an acknowledgement of comments submitted online
or by email is not received by the sender within two business days, the
comments should be re-sent to the EQB to ensure receipt.
To view materials for the
proposed regulation, visit www.dep.state.pa.us and click
the “Proposed Oil and Gas Regulations” button.
Petitions to DEP To Ban Frack
Pits:
***1. Petition From Penn
Environment
Here
in Pennsylvania, fracking is one of the biggest threats to our communities and
our environment. In 2012 alone, the
fracking industry created 1.2 billion gallons of fracking wastewater--laced
with cancer-causing chemicals, contaminated with radioactivity, and polluted
with heavy metals.
This
toxic waste sits in exposed pits, which often leaches into our rivers and
contaminates our air.
It's
both disgusting and frightening.
The DEP is taking public comment
right now on a proposal to manage this fracking waste. This is our best chance
to end this dangerous practice and limit fracking's damage.
Submit
your comment right now to tell the DEP: Ban all fracking waste pits today.
When a wastewater pit caught
fire in Hopewell Township, flames shot 100 feet into the air and block smoke
spread across the countryside. It was so bad that days later, nearby residents
still couldn’t stay in their homes.
With
stories like this, you would think these toxic sites would have already been
banned. Leaks from pits can contaminate drinking water supplies, and
evaporation of these chemicals threatens our air quality. The pollutants pose risks for acute and chronic
health impacts, from dizziness to rashes and even cancer.
There's
no way to get around it: These pits are dangerous.
We need thousands of
Pennsylvanians telling the DEP to ban them all.
Take
action now to ban all toxic and dangerous fracking waste pits in Pennsylvania.
Sincerely,
David
Masur
PennEnvironment
Research & Policy Center Director
PS.
If you have friends or family who are concerned about fracking, please forward
this to them. We need to get 10,000 comments in to the DEP by the end of the
comment period if we’re going to ban all fracking waste pits.
***2. Petition by Ron to Ban Frack Pits To the DEP Environmental
Quality Board
Hello
everyone,
Frack pits are a source of toxic
waste-waters and cancer causing agents and pollute our environment through
leakage, spillage, and evaporation of toxic VOCs, thus contaminating water,
soil, and the air we breathe.
Frack
pits are a danger to animal, plant, and human life and have no place in our
Commonwealth.
In
place of the frack pit, all gas operators should be required to use some form
of a closed loop system for waste storage.
We,
the undersigned, demand an end to the open impoundment or frack pit and demand
PA place the health and welfare of its citizens above all other interests.
That's why I created a petition
to PA DEP's Environmental Quality Board, which says:
"
This petition will be forwarded to the PA DEP's Environmental Quality Board
that is accepting comments on proposed regulations and will demand an end to
open impoundments or frack pits as they are commonly known. "
Will you sign my petition? Click here to add your name:
Thanks!
Ron Slabe
***WESA Public
Radio
from Briget Shields
WESA Pittsburgh's public radio
is having their listener drive now.
Instead of renewing my membership I have sent this statement. I think it
would help if others vocalize our mission to divest in anyone promoting the
fossil fuel industry. Here is my pledge
comment. Don't know if they will print
it in the comment section I posted it in but wanted to share in hopes others
will relay the message. You can promote your own organization and put it in
your own words but while the membership drive is going on is a good time to let
them know we are not happy with the Range Resource ads we are constantly
hearing.
I
have always supported public broadcasting. BUT....there is a well fire in Greene
County where people are being exposed to toxic fumes, 300,000 people in WV
living with contaminated water from chemicals used in the fossil fuel industry
including fracking , hundreds of people without any water for over 5 years
because of the fracking industry in SWPA thousands in PA. Are you reporting
this? NO. Imagine my surprise when I hear many times a day your station
promoting the very industry that is the cause of this destruction.
Instead
I am giving my membership dollars to those organizations that promote clean
renewable energy and those that work to educate the public to stop the toxic
fossil fuel industry like: Shalefield
Stories, Marcellus Protest, PennEnvironment, Sierra Club, The Thomas Merton
Center.
Public broadcasting like all media outlets is
failing us.
Briget
shields
WESA Facebook page
***Help Needed for Pittsburgh Parks!!
From Doug Shields
DEAR FRIENDS:
Thanks for signing the petition to stop fracking
Allegheny County Parks! Over 3,600 have
signed!
Things are heating up in Allegheny County Council
with regard to drilling under and around Deer Lakes Park.
We need you help more than ever! I ask that you sign up at the local PROTECT
OUR PARKS web page here:
http://www.protectparks.org/petition_signer_list
UPDATE
Numerous meetings have been held between citizens
and County Council Members. While these discussions have been cordial, the
County Council, as of yet, has taken any action to conduct public informational
meetings. It is also unclear if they appreciate their Constitutional
obligations as outlined in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision related to
Article I, Section 27, of the PA Constitution.
There were four (4) major well fires two weeks ago,
notably the Chevron well blowout in Greene County where, tragically, one worker
was killed and another injured. It is time we put a stop to this risky
business!
ACTION
Please take the time to contact the Council and let them know you are
opposed to leasing of drilling rights in Deer Lakes Park. All are invited to communicate with the
Council. They truly do want to hear your opinions. Please be courteous. Here is a link for Allegheny County residents
to determine who your County Council member is:
Frack Links
***Concerned about the air quality in
your community due to drilling?—Speaker Available
Southwestern Pennsylvania
Environmental Health Project will provide a professional speaker if you host a community
meeting. “Tyler Rubright is available throughout the next couple of weeks to
come to meetings and present and/or help to facilitate and answer any
questions.”
Contact Jessa Chabeau
***To sign up for notifications of
activity and violations for your area:
*** List of the Harmed--There
are now over 1600 residents of Pennsylvania who have placed their names on the
list of the harmed when they became sick after fracking began in their area. http://pennsylvaniaallianceforcleanwaterandair.wordpress.com/the-list/
*** Link to the Duquesne Seminar:
Mediasite presentation -- Facing the
Challenges Conference, Duquesne University, November 2013
List of Presentations:
Bain - Establishing a
Water Chemistry Baseline for Southwest Pennsylvania: The Ten Mile Creek Case
Bamberger, Oswald - Impacts of gas
drilling on human and animal health: updates
Boufadel - The potential for air
migration during pneumatic drilling: Recommendations for best performance
Brittingham - The effects of shale
gas development on forest landscapes and ecosystems
Brown - Understanding exposures from
natural gas drilling puts current air standards to the test
Capo, Stewart - Isotopic signatures
as tracers for shale gas fluids
Christopherson - Why local
governments take action in response to shale gas development
Collins - Regulatory structures for
reuse and disposal of shale gas wastewater
Drohan - How fracking technology is
changing landscapes compared to past resource extraction disturbance
Grant - Marcellus shale and mercury: assessing
impacts on aquatic ecosystems
Howarth - Shale gas aggravates global
warming
Ingraffea - A statistical analysis of
leakage from Marcellus gas wells in Pennsylvania
Jackson - Water interactions with
shale gas extraction
Jansa - Gas Rush Stories
Kelso, Malone - Data inconsistencies
from states with unconventional oil and gas activity
Porter - Impact of Marcellus
activities on salamanders and fish populations in the Ten Mile Creek watershed
Rabinowitz - Health complaints, water
quality indicators, and proximity to gas wells in Washington County PA
Robinson - Air Quality and Climate
Issues with Natural Gas Development and Production
Stolz - The Woodlands: a case study
of well water contamination related to unconventional shale gas extraction
Stout - Wheeling, West Virginia
Experience with Frackwater: What "Brinewater" and "Residual
Waste" Trucks are Really Carrying
VanBriesen - Challenges in assessing
effects of shale gas produced water on drinking water treatment plants
Ward - Measuring the human and social
service impacts of natural gas development
Ziemkiewicz - What does monitoring in
the three rivers tell us about the effects of shale gas development?
*** Southwest PA
Environmental Health Has Air Monitors
From
Ryan Grode at the SWPA-EHP:
“I
am beginning a distribution of new air
quality monitors for individuals who are living near any type of drilling
activity. If you know of anyone who
would want to have one of these monitors at their home I would visit them and
set up the monitor for them, then come back in a few weeks to pick up the
monitor and perhaps our nurse practitioner will join me and conduct an exposure
assessment on the family.
If
you hear of anyone who would like help dealing with issues because of drilling
please refer them to me. The office number is 724-260-5504. As mentioned I'll
personally be able to go out to see the family and speak with them and possibly
set up air quality, water quality, and possibly in the future soil quality
monitors.”
From Jan:
At
our last WMCG meeting, SWPA-HEP provided information about the air and water
monitors. “Speck” is the air monitor developed by Carnegie Mellon. It is used
indoors, plugged into an outlet, and detects particulate matter. These monitors
are being used within about 3 miles of fracked wells. The device is not calibrated in a way to be
used in a court of law. It is used to
give the homeowner an idea of the level of pollution they are being exposed to,
and it registers a continuous read. The
dylos monitor could detect 2.5 particulate but had no continuous read.
The
water indicator, called “Catfish”, is
placed in the back of a toilet and measures conductivity which is related to general
water quality of water. Further testing can be done if conductivity is
abnormal.
***Isaak Walton Presentations--
A series of presentations on how shale gas drilling can affect water, air, and
property, as well as citizens' rights and state laws like Act 13.
1 - Ken DeFalla - Henry Enstrom Chapter - Water Quality
2 - Dr John Stolz - The Woodlands
3 - Dr Ben Stout - Charleston MCHM spill
4 - Dr Dorothy Basset - Energy Independence falsehoods
5 - John Smith, Esq - Act 13 Updates
6 - Raina Rippel, SWPA-EHP - Health Effects and Air Testing
7 - Ron Gulla - What to expect from the industry
8 - Linda & David Headley - Living close to drilling
9 - Joe Bezak - Jailed for stopping pollution of his land
*** Mat Trewern
Broadcast Is Posted
Dr Walter was
interviewed by Mat Trewern. They visited fracking sites and frack- affected
sites, discussing environmental issues.
Trewern wrote to Dr
Walter: “Just to let you know that my
radio report is going out this week on various local BBC radio stations around
the UK - at various times.
Thanks again for all your help.
Mat Trewern
BBC Radio
Fracking News
1. Gas Industry Asks To intervene In Act 13 Case
“Pennsylvania’s three major gas
industry trade groups have filed a petition to intervene in the ongoing court battle
over the state’s oil and gas law, known as Act 13.
In December, the state Supreme Court
struck down portions of the 2012 law that restricted the ability of local
governments to zone oil and gas development, but the justices left a number of
matters unresolved and sent the case back to the lower Commonwealth Court.
The court is now
reviewing, among other things, whether the rest of Act 13 can stand without the
sections that were struck down.
The case is primarily between local governments who challenged
the law and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. However, attorneys representing
the Marcellus Shale Coalition, the
American Petroleum Institute, and the Pennsylvania Independent Oil and Gas
Association filed a petition today arguing they should also be part of the
case.
“Because key provisions of Act 13 were struck down, there
are significant questions regarding the certainty of investments and ability
for the natural gas industry to develop across the Commonwealth that
necessitated our motion to intervene,” says Stephanie Catarino Wissman,
Executive Director of API’s Pennsylvania’s division.
The petition points out that oil and gas operators have
paid over $400 million so far in Act 13 impact fees. The attorneys argue the
industry has a “distinct and unique interest” in whether the court upholds the
fee.
“This Court’s decision will materially affect the legal
landscape for the oil and gas industry,” they write. “No current party to this
case must actually plan for, finance, and comply with Act 13′s extensive list
of regulatory requirements.”
Jordan Yeager is an
attorney who represents local governments who challenged Act 13. He says he
would be surprised if the court allows the trade groups to be a party to the
case.
“It’s really a lot of lawyering,” he says. “The industry
tried this before, and the court said no. There are no new claims in the case.
They don’t get to revisit questions the court has already decided.”
In January, the Corbett administration asked the state
Supreme Court to reconsider its decision, but the court recently denied the
request.”
http://stateimpact.npr.org/pennsylvania/2014/03/05/gas-industry-groups-seek-to-intervene-in-act-13-case/#more-25454
2. Mars Area Residents Plead with Board To Not Drill Near Schools
“Mar 4 – Mars Area
School District residents urged school board members to reject Rex Energy's
proposal to conduct horizontal drilling for oil and gas underneath district
property along Route 228. About 60 residents attended a school board meeting in
which Rex representatives outlined their proposal: The company would pay just
over $1 million in a five-year lease for the right to drill under the property
and share 15 % of the royalties from any oil or gas extracted. “If there are
any risks whatsoever, the school district shouldn't be doing this,” said Amy
Nassif of Adams, who has two children in the district.
Duane
Maust, manager of land for Rex Energy, said the company would drill
horizontally from property in Middlesex off Denny Road — about 4,000 feet from
the district's property, which encompasses about 175 acres. The grassroots group Protect Our Children —
which is partnering with members of Marcellus Outreach Butler and Marcellus
Outreach Middlesex — cited the Feb. 11 explosion of a natural gas well site in
Dunkard in Greene County. The group called for Mars Area directors to
reject the proposal. The explosion killed one gas worker, and it took crews
until Feb. 25 to cap the second well at the site and stop leaking gas.”
http://triblive.com/news/butler/5702952-74/gas-drilling-district#axzz2v5arnmLx
3. Does Refuse To Cross Pipeline
BY JEFF MULHOLLEM EDITOR
“Harrisburg — Game commissioners handled a wide range of important
business at their recent meeting here, and yet the most memorable episode did not
require their action.
It came during the
report presented by the agency’s chief deer biologist Chris Rosenberry, who
among other topics, summarized ongoing deer research efforts.
“Last year, we conducted field studies in three areas of Pennsylvania,”
he said.
“We continued our second year of a three-year study on deer survival and
mortality in Wildlife Management Unit 5C and we started the Deer-Forest Study
on the Bald Eagle, Rothrock and Susquehannock state forests.”
In both studies,
radio-collared and ear-tagged deer provide important survival and movement
information, Rosenberry noted.
These animals are captured, marked with radio-collars and ear tags, and
then released at the capture site.
“Throughout the life of
the deer or collar, we can track their movements and survival,” he explained.
It was the example of a GPS-
collared doe he offered that had folks talking afterward.
He showed commissioners a slide
exhibiting more than 2,600 data points, clearly delineating the deer’s
territory.
“This slide provides an
example of the movements of an adult female on one of our state forest study
areas,” Rosenberry said.
“The boundaries of this
deer’s home range are interesting for a number of reasons. There appears to be
a distinct clumping of locations along the southern and western boundaries.
The reasons for these
boundaries makes more sense when we look at a topo map, Rosenberry pointed out.
First, looking at the
southern boundary, one notices that it tends to follow a road. “This is not completely
unexpected, as we have seen roads influencing deer home ranges in past
studies,” he said.
But the western boundary, where there are no obvious terrain features
or roads that would explain a sharp, linear boundary for the doe was
unexpected. That is until one notices a faint dashed line, that runs north to
south.
It is a buried pipeline.
“I am sure most of us would never
think a pipeline would be such a significant factor for deer movements,
Rosenberry said. “But, in this case, this deer rarely crossed into the woods on
the other side of the pipeline.”
For Game Commission
deer biologists, it is just another example of the interesting things they see
when they put a GPS unit on a deer and follow its movements.
“That’s one of the
advantages of radio-collared deer in that we can collect a lot of data and
change the frequencies in which the data is collected and create a large data
set,” Rosenberry said.
“I don’t know that too
many folks would have guessed offhand that the pipeline would have had that
much impact on a deer in a forested environment.”
http://www.outdoornews.com/February-2014/Why-didnt-the-doe-cross-the-pipeline/
4. Colorado Adopts
Sweeping New Air Pollution Rules for Oil / Gas Industry
“Clean air and climate advocates across
Colorado are celebrating a major victory this week, after air quality officials
approved an unprecedented plan to reduce air pollution stemming from oil and
gas drilling across the state.
The plan includes the nation’s first
statewide limit on emissions of methane, a component of natural gas that, when
released directly in the atmosphere rather than being burned, becomes a potent
smog-creating greenhouse gas.
The new
rules were adopted by the Colorado Air Quality Control Commission on Sunday,
Feb. 23, following a public hearing in Aurora.
State
officials say the rules will dramatically reduce emissions of the gases that
contribute to ozone pollution, by among other things, requiring a comprehensive leak detection and repair program for oil and
gas facilities to cut down on so-called fugitive emissions of methane, a
byproduct of fracking.
Members of
the Ridgway Ouray Community Council successfully sought local and county
government support for the adoption of the new rules, which they argued,
represented a balance between industry interests and environmental interests to
protect Colorado’s air.
The rules
were originally conceived as a smog-busting measure for the Front Range, where
federal air quality standards are routinely violated, particularly for ozone.
But, ROCC Energy Committee Chair Al Lowande pointed out to the Ouray Board of
County Commissioners at a recent presentation, the Western Slope is hardly
immune to the problem of polluting methane emissions, particularly in counties
that have a lot of oil and gas drilling.
Ironically,
a coalition of these counties, bolstered by the Colorado Oil and Gas
Association and Colorado Petroleum Association, advocated against having the
new regulations apply to the Western Slope, saying that they would hurt small
drillers. In the end, their concerns were overruled. Meanwhile, three of the
state’s largest oil and gas drilling companies threw their weight behind the
effort to get the rules passed.
ROCC member
Jon Esty was among the legions of environmental advocates across the state who
sent in comments to state air quality officials, urging the commission to adopt
the new rules. He applauded the commission’s decision to implement the
regulations statewide.
“The new rules are part of the cost of doing
business,” he said. “If we are going to have that kind of development here, it
is important to remember how it impacts people. Oil and gas do need to
integrate local concerns, and if it costs a couple of pennies more to the gallon
to implement the new rules, so be it. We can’t afford to lose our environmental
quality through fracking.”
Gov. Hickenlooper, well-known for his
pro-fracking stance, helmed the effort at the state level to pass the new
rules, calling for further action to minimize potential negative air quality
impacts associated with oil and gas development.
Highlights of the rules include:
• The most
comprehensive leak detection and repair program for oil and gas facilities
in the country.
• Regulation of
a range of hydrocarbon emissions that can contribute to harmful ozone
formation as well as climate change. The
rules include first-in-the-nation provisions to reduce methane emissions.
•
Implementation of the rules will reduce more than 92,000 tons per year of
volatile organic compound emissions. VOC emissions contribute to ground
level ozone that has adverse impacts upon public health and environment,
including increased asthma and other respiratory ailments.
• Implementation of the rules also will reduce of more than 60,000 tons per year of methane emissions.
• Expanded
control and inspection requirements for storage, including a
first-in-the-nation standard to ensure emissions from tanks are captured and
routed to the required control devices.
• Expands ozone
non-attainment area requirements for auto-igniters and low bleed pneumatics to
the rest of the state.
• Require
no-bleed (zero emission) pneumatics where electricity is available (in lieu of
using gas to actuate pneumatic).
• Require gas
stream at well production facilities either be connected to a pipeline or
routed to a control device from the date of first production.
• Require more
stringent control requirements for glycol dehydrators.
• Require use
of best management practices to minimize the need for – and emissions from –
well maintenance.
• Many
operators will use infrared (IR) cameras, which allow people to see emissions
that otherwise would be invisible to the naked eye. Colorado obtained IR
cameras for the Colorado Department of Public Health and the Environment and
the Department of Natural Resources inspectors last year. They are an effective
tool in identifying leaking equipment and reducing pollution.
• Comprehensive
recordkeeping and reporting requirements to help ensure transparent and
accurate information.
• Adoption of
federal oil and gas standards that complement the state-specific rules.
http://www.watchnewspapers.com/view/full_story/24661845/article-Colorado
1
Dr Ned Ketyer
“…And
toluene — a solvent and potent neurotoxin — has long been suspected in causing
birth defects. In fact, a recent study
by the National Institute of Environmental Health (part of the NIH) implicates toluene (and benzene and
polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and other toxins) — chemicals used in
natural gas development: drilling, fracking, extracting, and transporting —
with specific birth defects in its succinct conclusion:
In this large
cohort, we observed an association between density and proximity of natural gas
wells within a 10-mile radius of maternal residence and prevalence of CHDs
[congenital heart diseases] and possibly NTDs [neural tube defects].
The first thing we could all do is
at least acknowledge there is a problem.
We could talk amongst ourselves — maybe find some middle ground —
instead of putting our heads in the sand.
As stewards of the earth, are we really okay poisoning nature,
ourselves, and our offspring? Are we?
It seems as
if plenty of people are. People who
think the air smells fine and the water tastes good. (Let’s not kid ourselves: air should have no
smell — or at least no bad smell; water should have no taste.) People who promise that fracking is safe, or
that coal is clean, or that poisonous chemicals in a fetus’s cord blood is the
price we must pay for living in the twenty-first century. A good friend (whose opinion I do trust)
warns me this type of “progress” is bringing its poison to my own town:
With
probably 800+ leased properties in Peters Township, we are definitely close to
our first wells. EQT and Rice Energy
have purchased more leases in the past year.
First comes the seismic testing, then the
drilling, then the pipelines, then the compressor stations. After seeing for
myself all the huge processing plants being built in eastern Ohio, it all
became crystal clear: this will be one huge oil and gas patch with rapidly
deteriorating air quality. I worry about the kids the most.”
http://www.thepediablog.com/2014/02/21/children-pre-polluted/
6. Range Resources Appeals Mt. Pleasant’s Decision
( Range Resources v. Mt Pleasant
Twp…
“Remember when Range said they
weren’t going to drill there anymore? Imagine having one of Range’s huge
stink pits in your backyard, along with everything that comes with it. Skip the
cholesterol level in your blood test, how about some benzene & toluene?” Bob Donnan)
“Mar
3 – Nearly nine months after Mt. Pleasant Township Zoning Hearing Board issued
notices of violation related to four Marcellus Shale water impoundments, the
matter will head to court for deliberation. Range Resources, which owns and
operates the four impoundments, is appealing a Jan. 30 decision by the zoning
board that upheld the
Photo
us shale.us
four notices of violation. Range
attorney Shawn Gallagher filed the complaint in Washington County Court Friday.
Range
has contended in numerous zoning board hearings that all four impoundments –
Stewart, Klingerman, Cowden and Carter – are principal nonconforming uses and
thus are permitted within the township. Zoning board members ultimately
decided that Range violated township zoning ordinance by failing to restore the
impoundments after completing all nearby frack wells. Range expressed its
long-term plans for the impoundments and stated there are 19 to 25 wells
located within the township on Range’s current drilling schedule.”
http://www.observer-reporter.com/article/20140303/NEWS01/140309805#.UxWqISKYbcs
7. More Monitoring Of Oil and Gas Needed
(And
that isn’t going to happen in PA with $2 million cut that was to investigate
health issues. Jan)
“Nearly 200 people
had gathered at the University of Pennsylvania last month for what one of the
organizers, Trevor Penning, director of Penn's Center of Excellence in
Environmental Toxicology, said was likely a first - a summary of the current
science.
It wasn't pretty. Speaker after speaker spoke of gaps and
uncertainties. Even when they had results to share, they cautioned that the
conclusions were preliminary, the limitations many.
The monitoring, they said, has not kept up with the pace of
development.
Penning thought
some of the strongest results came from studies described by Lisa McKenzie, a
Colorado School of Public Health research associate.
One found an elevated risk for
neurological effects among people living close to natural gas drilling. Another
found a higher incidence of congenital heart defects in children of mothers
living close to wells.
Similarly, comparing health-care use in
Pennsylvania counties which have natural gas development with neighboring
counties without it, Penn medicine
professor Reynold Panettieri Jr. found "signals" of neurologic
effects and decreased "normal newborn rates."
But as Penning noted, these were broad epidemiological studies. What's
missing, so far, are "good exposure data to support cause and
effect."
At one point, Joseph
Minott, executive director of the Philadelphia-based Clean Air Council, left
the auditorium, shaking his head. "If you live in the community, you don't
have the answers," he said.
Instead, the
communities have anecdotal reports - sickened livestock, dead pets, various
human health maladies.
A residents' group,
Breathe Easy Susquehanna County, is turning to citizen science. "Mediocre
data is better than no data," wrote a group founder, Rebecca Roter, in a
statement she sent because she couldn't attend.
So when Minott got to the podium, he was angry. He said health and
environmental impacts "have not been a high priority" in the state.
Studies are lacking, and "there seems to be little interest" by
officials to provide funds.
As State Rep. Greg Vitali (D.,
Delaware County) noted earlier in the day, $2 million for investigating health
problems from natural gas development was cut from the 2012 state natural gas
law, Act 13.
` As Penning pointed out
later, science takes time. It costs money. "People who are living near
this on a daily basis have what they perceive as real concerns . . . . But we have
to make sure the answers we give them are credible and trustworthy."
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/science/20140302_GreenSpace__The_uncertain_state_of_gas_drilling_and_health.html#qL54Btt4VhOOwlHR.03
8. MSNBC On Exxon CEO’s Fracking Lawsuit
(To watch the videos, use the link at the end of the article. jan)
“Last week, as
reported on EcoWatch, the Wall Street Journal broke a story about ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson joining a
lawsuit that cites the consequences of fracking operations as reason to block
the construction of a 160-foot water tower next to his Texas home. The tower
would supply water to nearby fracking operations and the plaintiffs argue
the project could lead to increased noise and traffic at the drilling site.
Last night, MSNBC’s
All In With Chris Hayes went in-depth on the story, clarifying some of the
controversy surrounding the lawsuit.
“This is not about
the technical definition of fracking, it’s about whether we’re going to have an
honest, reality-based, debate about the costs of our energy policies,” said
co-host Ari Melber. “And look, those
costs can get pretty ugly: unsightly water towers, fracking wells, strange
smells and the kind of air and noise pollution just about anyone would avoid if
they could afford it.”
Former mayor Calvin
Tillman of Dish, TX—an area strongly affected
by fracking—joined the show to talk about the health impacts of
fracking, including nosebleeds, which forced his family to leave their home.
Then, Chris Hayes
discussed the issue with Josh Fox, the director and producer of the movies
Gasland and Gasland 2.
Also weighing in is former ExxonMobil executive Lou Allstadt, with
an open letter to Rex Tillerson,
published on No Fracking Way:
Dear Rex,
We have never met, but I worked for your company
for six months immediately after the ExxonMobil merger, the implementation of
which I coordinated from the Mobil side. That was after thirty years with Mobil
Oil Corporation, where just prior to the merger I had been an Executive Vice
President and Operating Officer for Exploration and Producing in the U.S.,
Canada and Latin America. I now live in upstate New York. For the past five
years, I have been actively trying to keep your company and the rest of the
industry from fracking here. I understand from several press articles that you
have fracking issues of your own, with a fracking water tower and truck traffic
possibly detracting from your view and the value of your home.
In
response to the prospect of fracking ruining our communities, many New York
towns have passed zoning laws that prohibit heavy industry, including any
activities associated with drilling for oil and gas. Those laws, along with
very little prospect for economic gas production in New York, mean that we
probably will not have to look at fracking water towers, let alone live next to
fracking well pads. I say probably, because your industry is still fighting
those zoning laws in the courts.
Ironically,
your reasoning at the Bartonville, Texas town council meetings is virtually
identical to the reasoning that I and many other citizens used to convince our
local town councils to pass laws that prohibit the very problem you have
encountered, plus all of the other infrastructure and waste disposal issues
associated with fracking.
No one should have to live near well pads,
compression stations, incessant heavy truck traffic, or fracking water towers,
nor should they have their water or air contaminated. You and I love the places
where we live, but in the end, if they are ruined by fracking or frack water
tanks, we can afford to pack up and go someplace else. However, many people
can’t afford to move away when they can no longer drink the water or breathe
the air because they are too close to one of your well pads or compressor
stations.
My
efforts to prevent fracking started over water — not the prospect of having to
see a water tank from my home, but rather regulations that would allow gas
wells near our sources of drinking water, in addition to well pads next to our
homes, schools, hospitals and nursing homes. These issues are legitimate, but
they are localized. I am now much more concerned with the greenhouse gas
impacts of fossil fuels in general, and particularly the huge impact of methane
emissions from natural gas production and transportation. These are global problems that local zoning
cannot protect against. Only a major shift toward renewable energy sources can
begin to mitigate their catastrophic climate impacts.
Before
closing, I should explain why I have referred to ExxonMobil as “your company.”
For several years after retiring I thought of ExxonMobil as “my company.” I
thought that the company’s rigor and discipline in investing in sound projects
was as good as it gets, and ExxonMobil was my largest single investment. I no
longer own any shares of ExxonMobil or any other fossil fuel company. I would prefer to be an early investor in
alternative energy for the 21st century rather than hanging on to dwindling
prospects for investments in 19th and 20th century fossil fuels.
It
is time that ExxonMobil started shifting away from oil and gas, and toward
alternatives — both for environmental reasons and to protect the long-term
viability of the company. Many large energy producers and consumers, including
ExxonMobil, are building a carbon fee into their long-term planning
assumptions. Actively supporting the
phase-in of a carbon fee would be one way to move the company into the 21st
century. Recognizing that methane emissions disqualify natural gas as a “bridge
fuel” is another.
Good
luck with that fracking water tank. I hope you don’t have to move, and also
that you will help a lot of other people stay in the homes they love.
Regards,
Lou Allstadt”
9. Los Angeles Moratorium Against Fracking
“Los
Angeles is primed to become the first oil-producing city in California and the
largest city in the United States to place a moratorium on fracking.
The Los
Angeles city council unanimously voted Friday on a draft ordinance that
prohibits "well stimulation" by hydraulic fracturing, acidizing and
other controversial oil and gas drilling methods.
"Until
these radical methods of oil and gas extraction are at the very least covered
by the Safe Drinking Water Act, until chemicals are disclosed and problems are
honestly reported, until we're safe from earthquakes, until our atmosphere is
safe from methane leaks, we need a fracking moratorium," Councilman Paul
Koretz, who introduced the motion along with Councilmember Mike Bonin, told a
cheering crowd before the meeting.
As is
the case all over the United States, drilling in Los Angeles largely affects
minority populations since most extraction occurs in Latino- and African
American-dominated neighborhoods
“Today
is the beginning of justice for all Los Angeles communities facing these
wells,” said Monic Uriarte, a resident of the Esperanza Community Housing
Corporation—whose campaign People Not Pozos bussed 50 residents to City Hall
for the vote.
“For
years, the University Park neighborhood has been assaulted by Allenco Energy
Corporation’s toxic emissions from their oil extraction activities. We were getting sick from the emissions,
with health symptoms including spontaneous nose bleeding, headaches, asthma,
and much more. No one should live in the shadow of an oil well,” Uriarte
continued.
The
moratorium motion now goes before the city attorney’s office to be written as a
zoning ordinance and will then return to council for a final vote.” http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2014/03/01-0
10. Fracking Boom
Spews Toxic Air Emissions In Texas
KARNES CITY, Texas -- When Lynn Buehring leaves her doctor's
office in San Antonio she touches her inhaler to be sure it's close.
About 40 miles down
the road, flares trailing smoke appear. A yellow-brown haze can fill the
horizon as Buehring, 58, passes into Karnes County, where she was born. Today,
the ranch house she shares with husband Shelby, 66, is at the epicenter of one
of the nation's biggest oil and gas booms, with more than 50 wells within 2.5
miles.
Known as
the Eagle Ford Shale play, this 400-mile-long swath of oil and gas extraction
stretches from East-Central Texas to the Mexico border. Since 2008, more than
7,000 wells have been sunk with an additional 5,500 approved. Energy companies,
cheered by the state, envision thousands more. It's an "absolute game-changer,"
an industry spokesman said.
From their
porch, the Buehrings can see and smell this gold rush. Three nearby processing facilities have
permission to release 189 tons of
volatile organic compounds, a class of toxic chemicals that includes benzene
and formaldehyde, each year. That's more than Valero's Houston Oil Refinery
disgorged in 2012. They also are allowed
to release 142 tons of nitrogen oxides and 95 tons of carbon monoxide per year.
The
regulation of oil and gas extraction falls primarily to the states, whose rules
vary dramatically. States also enforce the federal Clean Air Act - a
problematic situation in Texas, which has sued the U.S. EPA 18 times in the
last decade.
For eight
months, InsideClimate News, the Center for Public Integrity and The Weather
Channel have examined what Texas, the nation's biggest oil producer, has done
to protect people in the Eagle Ford.
What's happening in Texas also matters in
Pennsylvania, North Dakota and other states where hydraulic fracturing, or
fracking, has made it profitable to extract energy from shale. Our
investigation reveals a Texas system
that protects industry more than the public:
-Air monitoring is so
flawed that Texas knows little about pollution in the Eagle Ford, an area
nearly twice the size of Massachusetts.
-Thousands of
facilities are allowed to self-audit their emissions, so authorities have no
idea how much pollution they release.
-Companies that break
the law are rarely fined. Of 284 complaints Eagle Ford residents filed in a
recent four-year period, only two resulted in fines despite 164 documented
violations.
-Texas lawmakers have
cut the state's budget for environmental regulation since the Eagle Ford boom
began, from $555 million in 2008 to $372 million in 2014.
-Since 2009, the
number of unplanned toxic air releases associated with oil and gas production
increased 100 percent statewide.
-Texas officials are
often industry defenders, so residents of drilling areas are usually left to
fend for themselves. Oil money is so ingrained in Texas culture that people
like the Buehrings tend to become collateral damage.
-The Texas Commission
on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) is led by three commissioners appointed by Gov.
Rick Perry, who favors dismantling the EPA. TCEQ officials often move to
lucrative jobs as lobbyists for the industry they regulated. The Texas Railroad Commission, which issues
drilling permits and regulates other aspects of oil and gas, is controlled by
three elected commissioners who accepted more than $2 million in campaign contributions
from the industry during the 2012 election cycle, according to data from
the National Institute on Money in State Politics.
-State legislators who
regulate the industry are often tied to it. Nearly one in four lawmakers, or
their spouses, has a financial interest in at least one energy company active
in the Eagle Ford, a Center for Public Integrity analysis of personal financial
disclosure forms shows.
"I believe if you're
anti-oil-and-gas, you're anti-Texas," Republican state Rep. Harvey Hilderbran
said in September.
The TCEQ declined interview requests. In a statement, it said air pollution
isn't a problem. "The air monitoring data evaluated to date indicate
that air pollutants in the Eagle Ford Shale area have not been a concern either
from a long-term or short-term perspective," the TCEQ said.
"Therefore, we would not expect adverse health effects..."
But a memorandum obtained
through a public records request
indicates the TCEQ knows its air monitoring is flawed. "The executive
director has extensive records of underestimated or previously undetected
emissions from oil and gas sites. These are not isolated instances but have
occurred statewide and indicate a pattern," Richard A. Hyde, then deputy
director of the TCEQ's Office of Permitting and Registration, wrote in the Jan.
7, 2011, memo. Hyde, now executive director, declined to comment.
Since drilling came to Karnes
County, Lynn Buehring's asthma has worsened. Instead of using a breathing
machine once or twice a month, she sometimes needs it every day. She has
migraines so intense they've induced temporary blindness.
"There's nothing we can do," Shelby Buehring said.
"Nobody is listening to us....I hate it here."
But others say the boom is worth
it.
"The Eagle Ford Shale is
the biggest economic investment zone in the entire world," said Steve
Everley, who works in Washington, D.C., for Energy in Depth, an arm of the
Independent Petroleum Association of America. "I mean, are we going to
prevent people from having jobs? Are we going to relegate an entire section of
the state to continued poverty or are we going to move forward with economic
development?"
(InsideClimate
News is a nonprofit, non-partisan news organization that covers clean energy,
carbon energy, nuclear energy and environmental science. More information is
available at http://insideclimatenews.org/.)
By
JIM MORRIS, LISA SONG AND DAVID HASEMYER
InsideClimate
News
Read
more here:
http://www.sacbee.com/2014/02/25/6187288/fracking-boom-spews-toxic-air.html#storylink=cpy
11. Static Electricity- Massive Drill Site Explosion In Colorado
Mar 4 - GREELEY, Colo. — Static electricity is
suspected of sparking a massive explosion and fire at an oil and gas
drilling site in northern Colorado that injured two workers. The explosion north
of Greeley shook houses and set a fire that could be seen for miles.
The
explosion happened as workers were pulling an oil and water mixture out of
storage tanks to take to a separator.
Photo by Bob
Donnan
Donations
We are very appreciative of donations
to our group.
With your help, we have handed out thousands of flyers on
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meetings, and provided information to citizens and officials countywide. If you
would like to support our efforts:
In the Reminder line
please write- Westmoreland Marcellus Citizens’ Group (no abbreviations). You can send checks to Jan Milburn, 114
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Westmoreland Marcellus Citizen’s Group—Mission Statement
WMCG is a project of the Thomas
Merton Society
To raise the public’s general awareness and
understanding of the impacts of Marcellus drilling on the natural environment,
health, and long-term economies of local communities.
Officers: President-Jan
Milburn
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