Big segment on 60 minutes about how we (US) have 2 times the amount of 'oil' as Saudi Arabia in the form of natural gas and how there is drilling in 30 states to get it. Lots of talk about 'fracking', how they do it and environmental concerns.
Missed it, shucks, but thank you. I swear 60-minutes is best news program on TV. I assumed it was a repeat so I skipped it tonite.
If you own the mineral rights as I do, you own the gas rights unless they were sold or leased away. People are getting from $1500 to $5000 an acre to lease for Marcellus or Utica shale. The wellsare 5000 to 10,000 feet deep and then horizontally drilled 2000 to 5000 feet. Then they case and frack. After production begins you get the real money. The royalty of around 15% which can be a lot more. If done right all will benefit. Jobs, less imported oil, cleaner air, and energy independence. Even the Sierra club has said that if regulation is in place to protect the environment nat gas is a benefit. Dickhead Chaney when in office gave the gas drilling industry a free ride and derregulated to a point of risk to the environment. That needs to be changed.
The Denver Post ran a story about the internal divisions in the EIA about estimates of how much NG there really is. Some people think the estimates are overblown and that too few producing wells have been used to come up with the numbers. The real issue that I see w/fracking is really what starts out in the fracking fluid, but rather what comes back up. Massive amounts of salt and heavy metals come back up out, at in the Marcellus Shale. It doens't sound like any of this stuff is being dealt with properly and that's going to cause all sorts of environmental and public health issues. As always, the companies producing the NG won't pay any of those costs. The people of PA and those down stream will, however (and of course the biota).
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2M-aDanmIYQ]YouTube - ‪60 Minutes Shaleionaires CBS‬‏[/ame] From 60 minutes. Shaleionaires
The treatment of fracking fluid is the latest industry to create jobs in the Western Pennsylvania area.
Go Marcellus Shale - All people, companies & places related to the Marcellus Shale Read about the gas industry from the front lines in Western Pennsylvania, Eastern Ohio, NY and West Virginia.
Warren Nears Approval to Treat Marcellus Shale Wastewater - WKBN - 27 First News - Local News - Youngstown, Warren, Columbiana, Ohio - Sharon, Pennsylvania Spinoff jobs!
Tripp I know produced fluid is one issue, but I am thinking that can be managed. I agree with earlier posts, historically EPA has left loopholes in the extraction/mining area. Seems to me the methane losses into air/drinking water is the more unusual risk. I am a little more interested in the compression CH4 losses you mentioned in a another thread. Sounds like someone needs to invent a way to treat drinking water for methane. Anyone want to team up?
one great scene on 60 minutes was when they took a gallon of water from someone's drinking well and lit it on fire.
Or....maybe we could keep the methane out of the drinking water? But of course, that's not nearly so profitable - what was I thinking?
That's happened in more than one place here in Colorado as well. I usually like to keep government regulation to a minimum, but when people's drinking water can be lit on fire, we're way below the acceptable minimum.
i used to feel that way about government intervention. then i saw what the republicans did to things like the banking industry and food safety. and i voted for many of them. okay, fhopol.
Yes it is a concern to me. But, from 60-minutes seems like if homeowner- (a) has own water well (not public) and (b) you have a small driller that does not correctly complete wells (c) the wells are right next to your house (sheesh) and (d) you do not own mineral rights, so you are not-compensated Then there will be complaints. I have friends whose property in PA had serious damage due to coal mining under the property, was briefly in the news. If you do not own mineral rights, you are sort of vulnerable, and this seems to be the common thread in many of the more publicized newspaper/TV stories. Not saying this is good. Just saying.
Not only are you not compensated, your right to quiet enjoyment of your property has been taken away, and your home may no longer be fit to live in. If you've got a ranch or a farm and the water supply is rendered useless, you're out of business and probably bankrupt. With the 'justice' system the way it is, the average homeowner or rancher could never afford to bring a lawsuit against an oil corporation, much less expect to be successful. So you're fracked. That's a completely outrageous, untenable situation that should never be allowed to happen. Yet it's called profit. Crazy.
that clip and the fact that they use neurotoxins and cancerogenic pathogens for fracking puts me on the fence at best; definite no in current form. It is not Wild West this needs to be regulated to ensure public safety.
Just saw a good report on Pennsylvania rural homeowner problems on EnergyNOW.com TV show. http://www.energynow.com/video/2011/07/22/Promise-Problems-Shale%20Gas-07.24.2011
Ira Glass had a very interesting piece on the PA situation about a month ago. It didn't paint a pretty picture, particularly of the energy companies. It also showed how quickly people will turn on each other when enough money is involved.
Thank you reminds me I am not listening enough to NPR these days. Our news radio in DC region is so good, tend to be hooked on it. Don't know why, they never get anything done around here!
