StateImpact Pennsylvania to focus on energy; Marcellus Shale

Friday, 08 July 2011 16:41

StateImpact Pennsylvania to focus on energy; Marcellus Shale

Written by Scott LaMar, Director of Radio Smart Talk

Radio Smart Talk for Monday, July 11:

There may be no more important issue facing Pennsylvania than natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale formation. Natural gas is in demand because it is cleaner and cheaper than oil and coal and doesn't have to be imported from nations that may not be friendly to the U.S. We've heard often that there is potential for thousands of jobs to created from drilling

But what we also have heard from many people around the state is the process of extracting the gas from the ground -- called hydrofracking -- could cause great damage to the environment, especially water.

At a time when there is so much interest in Marcellus Shale, WITF has teamed up with NPR to provide in-depth reporting on energy issues in Pennsylvania, with an emphasis on gas drilling.

The collaboration is known as StateImpact PA. We'll learn more about this ambitious project on Monday's Radio Smart Talk.

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# Alex Burger 2011-07-11 07:08

With so much attention being paid to the environmental and health impacts of fracking and the imposition, or not, of impact fees, I have another question. Is the gas being extracted for use in the United States or is it being sold on the world market? With all the commercials promoting gas as a clean energy source and crucial for our energy independence, is this just another case of false advertising or not?

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# Michael Wood 2011-07-11 09:47

That is a good question. For a while, the talk was that it was going to be used in the US, and a fair amount of it likely will be. Lately, the talk has shifted to liquifying the gas and shipping it overseas - likely to China. New Jersey has been debating whether or not to have this type of LNG facility, and there has been discussion of having a shipping point in the Philadelphia area.

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# Robert Colgan 2011-07-11 08:08

Are the risks of the slickwater hydraulic fracturing drilling process nonexistent...?

Of course not.

The drillers say the risks are negligible. They're lying based on

their track record in the other shale plays : there we see major disruptions to the aquifers, the wells, the health of the people exposed to the gas leakages.

An Environmental Impact Study to determine how great the risks, how damaging the drilling has NOT been done....and we are being told lies by the gas drillers.
That leaves us with only one reasonable conclusion------to oppose any and all drilling until we know exactly what those risks are.

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# Bonnie 2011-07-11 09:45

the governors commission is very one sided. how unintelligent does he think the people of PA are ? It will impact the lives of us the citizens, so we should have a say as to what goes. I say the drillers will never leave no matter how much fee you put on them. they are making so much money they are rolling over in it . If they want to leave them ,let them . Most of the gas is not staying here anyway. It is going to foreign countries.

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# Caleb Grove 2011-07-11 09:46

It's true most Pennsylvanians support an impact fee on gas drilling. The gas companies will also lead the citizens to believe that they too support a fee. However, it's the legislation on the table that the energy companies support, which include such stipulations as permitted use zoning laws statewide which greatly benefit drilling companies. Before anyone throws their support into the legislation, be wary of what else may be tucked into the wording of the bills.

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# James Dillner 2011-07-11 10:01

There seems to be a lot of criticism of Governor Corbett relating to the Marcellus shale gas industry, but everyone forgets that this all began under Governor Rendell.

I think both governors realize that there really is no other business that is coming to PA in such a huge way. We're part of the "rust belt" and if this can be done properly, it can help our state with employment and taxes... even at this point it is only sales taxes, corporate taxes, and individual income taxes.

Before Marcellus shale, there was little happening in northern PA except bars and deer hunting.

What industry is out there that we worry about 20 years in the future? Of course it has a finite life. With industry going to China, the only industry left in the US will be growing pumpkins and watermellons for Walmart!

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# Carol Parowski 2011-07-12 09:40

My concern is about water. With easy research you can find that of all the water on earth 97% is salt water in the oceans. Of the remaining 3%, 2% is in the ice caps. so 1% of all the water on earth is fresh and supports life. This drilling takes enormous amounts of water. Adds chemicals(some of which are know toxins) pumps them into the earth where they gather more minerals and then it all returns polluted. Now it needs to be dealt with. Sometimes it is put into fresh water to be diluted, others buried in the ground. We know the effects of pollution on surface water...and it is not good. I do not understand how endangering the ground water is good.Please show me the studies that the drilling companies have made of the effects of their impact on my state.

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