Lou is receiving Social Security Disability benefits as a result of a low back condition which involves several herniated discs. He was previously employed as a well driller but cannot perform that job due to the rigorous physical aspects of his former job. Lou has stayed in touch with his former employer, Bud. Bud’s well drilling business is thriving as a result of the Marcellus Shale natural gas boom. Bud asked Lou to come back to work as a consultant and assured Lou that he will not be performing any physical tasks. But Lou is concerned that if he returns to work, his Social Security Disability benefits will stop.
Question: Can Lou return to work and still collect Social Security Disability benefits?
Answer: Yes, there are special rules that allow people receiving Social Security Disability benefits (or Supplemental Security Income) to return to work and still receive monthly payments. And if Lou cannot continue working because of his back problems his benefits can start again.
Social Security has created work incentives to allow people receiving benefits to return to work. These incentives include continued cash benefits for a time and continued Medicare or Medicaid while Lou returns to work.
This “trial work period” will allow Lou to test his ability to work for at least nine months. During this trial work period, Lou will receive his full Social Security benefits regardless of how much he earns as long as he reports his work activity to Social Security and he continues to have a disabling impairment. In 2010, a trial work month is any month in which his total earnings are $720 or more. The trial work period continues until you has worked nine months within a 60-month period. After this trial work period, Lou also has 36 months during which he can work and still receive benefits for any month when his earnings are not “substantial.” In 2010, earnings of $1000 or more are considered “substantial”. If Lou earns more than $1000 per month after the trial work period, his benefits will stop.
Disclaimer: The above article is for instructive purposes only and each case is fact sensitive. Consultation with an attorney should be obtained instead of reliance upon the legal issues discussed in this column.

MICHAEL J. RUDOLF, Susquehanna County Independent
Published: July 14, 2010

About two dozen employment recruiters, business representatives and others toured some natural gas sites in Susquehanna County on Wednesday, learning what jobs will be available in the industry.

BY STEVE McCONNELL (STAFF WRITER)
Published: July 15, 2010

A company developing a railroad facility to serve the natural gas drilling industry is also seeking to withdraw 905,000 gallons of water a day from the Lackawanna River in Fell Twp. to support its operation.

Honesdale-based Linde Corp. began developing the Carbondale Yards Bulk Rail Terminal this year inside the Enterprise Drive business park to provide a transportation mode for materials and to mix fluids on-site that natural gas drilling companies use in the drilling process.

Susan Obleski, a spokeswoman with the Susquehanna River Basin Commission, which regulates surface water withdrawals in the watershed, said the commission is reviewing Linde’s application to see if flow meters, which measure the amount of water in the river at all times, will need to be installed around the withdrawal point as a way to mitigate potential impact to aquatic life, especially during drought conditions.

Linde officials have said they intend to mix the drawn water with sand and a chemical concentration to create a “drilling mud.”

The river withdrawal point, which is located near Linde’s facility, is also upstream from a stretch of the Lackawanna River from Archbald to Olyphant designated as wild, “trophy” trout waters with stringent fishing regulations enacted by the state Fish and Boat Commission.

Larry Bundy, a law enforcement assistant regional supervisor for the state Fish and Boat Commission, which also regulates state waters and aquatic wildlife, said Wednesday that he “wasn’t aware” of Linde’s application. However, he said his agency relies on the river basin commission’s biologists and staff to make determinations on whether water withdrawals may impact trout or other aquatic life.

“I haven’t seen any problems,” he said of other commission-approved water withdrawals in his Northeast Pennsylvania jurisdiction.

As of Monday, the river basin commission had only approved only one water source withdrawal for natural gas-related development projects in Lackawanna County – 91,000 gallons a day from the South Branch of Tunkhannock Creek in Benton Twp.

It has approved dozens of others throughout its 27,510-square miles jurisdiction, however, including 22 water withdrawal applications specifically for natural gas projects in Susquehanna County.

The Susquehanna River Basin Commission could vote on Linde’s application at its September meeting.

Contact the writer: smcconnell @timesshamrock.com

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Copyright:  The Scranton Times 

BY JEREMY G. BURTON (STAFF WRITER)
Published: July 15, 2010

State regulators are investigating a Tuesday night fire at a natural gas well in Susquehanna County.

The blaze began at 8 p.m. at a Marcellus Shale drilling site operated by Chesapeake Energy in Auburn Twp. It took two hours to extinguish the fire, which apparently did not cause any significant contamination to the environment, the state Department of Environmental Protection said.

No one was hurt.

The fire happened when a valve failed, leaked natural gas and ignited, DEP said. The leak was the result of “erosion wear,” Brian Grove, a Chesapeake Energy senior director, said in a statement.

But what exactly caused the spark remains unknown, a company spokesman said. The leak ignited at a point in the extraction process where the gas travels through pipes into a piece of equipment that separates it from wastewater and other chemicals.

Chesapeake Energy shut down both wells on site when the fire started and called state regulators, Mr. Grove said. The wells are on private property off Route 367 near Tuscarora Lake.

DEP Secretary John Hanger praised the response of the company and the Rush Volunteer Fire Department.

“We’ll be investigating this operation closely,” he said in a statement.

The Chesapeake Energy site will be closed until repairs are made and regulators finish their investigation, according to DEP. The company operates 182 wells in the Marcellus Shale formation and has been issued 698 natural gas permits statewide.

Efforts were unsuccessful to reach firefighters with the Rush volunteer company.

Contact the writer: jburton@timesshamrock.com

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Copyright:  The Scranton Times

Those against Encana Oil & Gas plans ponder appeals for permits already granted.

By Steve Mocarsky
Staff Writer

As Encana Oil & Gas officials await a hearing next month on zoning permits for 10 new natural gas wells in Luzerne County, gas-drilling opponents are contemplating a second appeal for permits that already have been issued to the company.

Encana recently filed applications with the Luzerne County Zoning Hearing Board seeking temporary-use permits and special exceptions for drilling five natural gas wells and height variances for building a gas processing facility at a site nestled between Loyalville, Hickory Tree and Meeker roads in Lake Township.

The company also applied for the same types of permits for drilling wells on two properties in Fairmount Township – two wells on a site northeast of the intersection of state routes 487 and 118, and three wells on adjoining land to the northeast.

The zoning hearing board has scheduled a hearing for 7 p.m. Aug. 3 to hear testimony on those applications.

The Lake Township site, owned by 4P Realty of Blakely, is about 600 acres. The two Fairmount Township sites consist of 13 parcels – some owned by William Kent of Benton and others owned by Jeffrey Hynich of Lake Township – spanning nearly 480 acres. They are referred to as the Red Rock/Benton Gas Consortium Lands in a lease with Encana.

Encana would move forward with drilling wells on those properties if two exploratory wells in Lake and Fairmount townships prove successful.

Drilling on the Fairmount Township property of Edward Buda is expected to begin within five to 10 days, Encana spokeswoman Wendy Wiedenbeck said.

Encana won zoning approval for drilling on a Lehman Township property owned by Russell W. Lansberry and Larry Lansberry in April but withdrew the application last week – less than a month after township residents Dr. Tom Jiunta, Brian and Jennifer Doran and Joseph Rutchauskas filed an appeal of the zoning approval in county court.

Rutchauskas said on Tuesday that attorneys for the Gas Drilling Awareness Coalition are checking into the possibility of appealing the issuance of zoning permits about two weeks ago for Lake Township property owned by Amy and Paul Salansky on which Encana plans to begin drilling later this summer.

The county zoning hearing board approved the permit applications for the Salansky property in May.

Rutchauskas said he was told by a zoning official that it was too late to file an appeal on the Salansky permits because one must be filed within 30 days of the zoning hearing board’s decision.

“We’re having lawyers check into the timeframe of when the permits were approved and when they were issued. Our stance is that the 30-day timeframe is from the day the permits were issued, not from the day they were approved,” Rutchauskas said.

He said the permits could not be issued until the board received several response plans from Encana, such as a traffic management plan and an emergency response plan.

Eight permits for the Salansky property were issued on June 25 – the same day Encana submitted the plans – and two more were issued on June 28, according to zoning office records.

Rutchauskas said there’s no way zoning officials could have reviewed all the plans the same day, and the permits should not have been issued until the plans were thoroughly reviewed.

“How can you issue a permit without reading the required plans? You can put a Superman comic book in there and they wouldn’t know the difference. Do it slow, take your time, at least open them. I’ve been going through those books almost eight hours,” Rutchauskas said.

Luzerne County Planner Pat Dooley said officials are checking into how an appeal can be filed on the issuance of a zoning permit.

Dooley said he’s not aware of anyone ever appealing the issuance of a zoning permit, only the approval of a permit.

Contact the writer smocarsky@timesleader.com

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Copyright:  The Times Leader

By Elizabeth Skrapits (Staff Writer)
Published: July 11, 2010

DALLAS TWP. – Mary Alice Frederick became nervous in March when she discovered her neighbor, the Irem Temple Country Club and the Masonic Village development, had leased mineral rights to a natural gas company.

“I can’t put a chicken coop in my backyard but people can put heavy industry all around the township. I don’t understand that,” the retired Dallas school teacher said. “It doesn’t make sense. It doesn’t seem fair.”

A proposal on the table that would allow natural gas companies to take gas from beneath people’s properties regardless of whether or not they have leased their mineral rights, Frederick now fears losing the peace and quiet of her beloved neighborhood.

In exchange for a tax on natural gas extraction, gas companies are seeking what they call “fair pooling,” legislation that would require property owners without leases to allow drilling beneath their land in exchange for a share of royalties to be determined. However, the gas companies could not put a drilling rig on unwilling owners’ properties. Landowners call “forced pooling.”

“Gas companies are just bullying their way in and telling the legislators what they want. It should be the reverse,” Lehman Township resident Joseph Rutchauskas said. “It’s a democracy, not a corporate dictatorship.”

Rutchauskas lives near two sites permitted for natural gas wells. In August, Encana Oil & Gas USA Inc. intends to start preparing one in nearby Lake Township for drilling, and has all the requirements for a well in Lehman Township. Encana recently notified Lehman Township supervisors they do not plan to drill the third well in Lehman Township.

“I do not support that one bit because I feel it’s a violation of my rights,” Rutchauskas said about forced pooling. “I don’t think anyone should have the right to tell me they can drill under my land without my consent.”

He said his development, which has 10 properties, is protected by covenants that do not allow drilling of any kind, including beneath the property.

“We would have to change the covenants to allow it, and nobody in the development wants to do that,” Rutchauskas said.

He said the question of whether the covenants would hold up under a forced pooling law would have to be answered legally.

“I would take it to court to whatever level necessary,” Rutchauskas vowed.

Irem Temple Ancient Arabic Order Nobles Of The Mystic Shrine have leased 355.91 acres to Chesapeake Appalachia, LLC. The land completely surrounds Frederick’s half-acre property.

The concept of forced pooling scares Frederick, who was already concerned about the potential to turn her quiet suburban street into an “industrial zone.” She opposes natural gas drilling because of potential harmful effects on the environment. She also doesn’t like the idea that foreign investors from countries such as United Arab Emirates and China have interests in natural gas companies.

“I don’t want to be part of this,” Frederick said. “I do have a conscience.”

Irem Recorder Harry Wood said the organization has not heard anything from Chesapeake about plans for the site.

“I don’t blame them,” he said in response to residents’ concerns about forced pooling.

However, Wood said gas drilling would be done far enough away from homes that they shouldn’t be affected, even in the case of horizontal drilling.

“Everybody has the wrong idea about that. It would never be allowed on any of these properties. If any drilling would be done it would be on the top of the hill, or away from the residences,” he said.

Developing the Irem Golf Course is also not an option, he said.

“I’m not going to take a $7 million golf course and put a drilling rig in the middle of it,” Wood said.

eskrapits@citizensvoice.com, 570-821-2072

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Copyright:  The Citizens Voice

It is up to the state whether to approve or deny the request to seek natural gas.

By Steve Mocarsky smocarsky@timesleader.com
Staff Writer

PLAINS TWP. – A second energy company has plans to drill a natural gas well in Luzerne County – this one behind the East Mountain Business Park in Plains Township on property owned by Theta Land Corp.

Rice Drilling, a subsidiary of Washington County-based Rice Energy, filed an application for a permit to drill and operate a well in the northeast corner of the township with the state Department of Environmental Protection on June 24, according to the department’s online database.

The department has 45 days from receipt to either approve or deny the application.

Encana Oil & Gas is set to begin drilling two wells in Fairmount and Lake townships this summer and has drilling permits for two other sites in Lake and Lehman townships.

According to a DEP well locator map, the proposed well site in Plains Township would be just west of Deep Hollow Pond, a little more than 1,000 feet from Baltimore Drive and less than a mile south of Jumper Road.

Freda Tarbell, DEP’s community relations coordinator for the Northwest Region, said the staffer handling the application was unavailable on Thursday, so specifics on the site, such as acreage and distance from water sources, were unavailable.

A secretary with Rice said no company representative was available to provide information on Thursday.

The permit application is somewhat unusual, given that energy companies normally lease gas rights from land owners before applying for drilling permits. However, no lease for the land had been filed with the Luzerne County Recorder of Deeds.

Theta Land Corp. is a subsidiary of Southern Union Co. – one of the nation’s largest suppliers of natural gas – and has been linked to billionaire Louis DeNaples of Dunmore.

Environmentalists criticized DeNaples in 2000 in connection with the purchase of 44,000 acres of land – some of it environmentally sensitive – owned by Theta. He had long been thought to be the buyer, but a confidentiality clause in the sales agreement kept the buyer’s identity secret.

However, DeNaples’ role was confirmed by a Dauphin County grand jury, which determined that a company controlled by DeNaples had purchased Theta. DeNaples in 2008 had been charged with perjury for allegedly lying to state Gaming Control Board investigators about alleged ties to organized crime members. Prosecutors withdrew the charge after he transferred ownership of Mount Airy Casino Resort in Monroe County to a trust.

Plains Township Secretary Kathy O’Boyle said no application for drilling has been submitted to the municipality. She said most of the land behind the business park is zoned as a conservation district and extraction of natural resources would be considered a conditional use. The driller would have to appear before the planning commission and the township board of commissioners for approval, and that process could take about a month, she said.

Reacting to news of the drilling permit application, state Rep. Eddie Day Pashinski, D-Wilkes-Barre, said he’s “in favor of economic development and job growth,” but he supports a temporary moratorium on gas drilling in Pennsylvania “until safeguards are in place.”

“There needs to be regulations in place, enough inspectors on the ground, enough state police to monitor and check vehicles and proper water treatment facilities to protect drinking water sources,” Pashinski said.

“We were all very excited when we learned this new industry was coming to Northeastern Pennsylvania. … Their initial presentations were very encouraging. But in light of what happened in Dimock and Clearfield County, I am supporting a temporary moratorium,” he said.

Natural gas migrated from well bores in Dimock, Susquehanna County, contaminating some drinking water wells last year.

A blowout at a well in Clearfield County in June shot explosive gas and polluted water 75 feet into the air before crews tamed it 16 hours later.

Steve Mocarsky, a Times Leader staff writer, may be reached at 970-7311.

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Copyright:  Times Leader

By Elizabeth Skrapits (Staff Writer)
Published: July 5, 2010

Luzerne test wells’ results awaited

Depending on how its first natural gas wells turn out, Luzerne County could attract a lot of attention from potential drillers.

“I suspect everybody’s interest levels will be piqued if Encana gets successful,” said Steve Myers, director of Land and Legal Affairs for Citrus Energy Corp.

Encana Oil & Gas USA Inc. is poised to start drilling two exploratory natural gas wells this summer, one in Fairmount Twp., on the property of Edward Buda off Route 118, and the second in Lake Twp. on the property of Paul and Amy Salansky on Sholtis Road.

Drilling for natural gas in an area once known for anthracite coal mining is a daring move, by industry standards.

“Everyone’s nervous about going that far south,” Mr. Myers said.

Maps of the Marcellus Shale show the formation running throughout Luzerne County. However, its shale may not be very rich in gas due to the proximity of the anthracite coal-producing areas and high temperatures, which can turn the gas into carbon dioxide, Mr. Myers said.

“There’s some concerns that the Marcellus Shale was subjected to some high temperatures, high pressures that would have converted the shale to graphite and cooked off whatever gas was in place,” he said.

There’s a line that exists, but nobody knows exactly where it is, Mr. Myers said.

“One side, it’s going to be productive; you throw a rock and it’s not,” he said. “Kind of like a summer shower. It can rain across the street, but it doesn’t rain in your yard.”

Encana officials are willing to take the risk.

“We’ve said all along that it’s exploratory, and we have to prove we can develop commercial quantities of natural gas,” Encana spokeswoman Wendy Wiedenbeck said.

“We’re not focused on what other operators are doing; we’re just focused on acting responsibly and getting the wells drilled. And the well results will speak for themselves.”

Although the drill rig is expected to arrive in Fairmount Twp. at some point after today, and the drilling and completion process will take an estimated 65 to 75 days total, production results won’t be in until the end of the year or even 2011, Ms. Wiedenbeck said.

Gas production for the Fairmount Twp. and Lake Twp. wells will have to be reviewed before Encana makes further plans, she said.

At one time Citrus had considered drilling in Luzerne County, leasing hundreds of acres in Lake and Fairmount townships in partnership with Tulsa, Okla.-based Unit Corp. But the partnership broke up and Citrus ended up selling off almost all its leases to Williams Production Appalachia.

Williams Inc., also based in Tulsa, does natural gas drilling and processing, and owns thousands of miles of pipelines, including the Transco, which runs through northern Luzerne County – conveniently close to Encana’s planned drilling sites.

Williams has received permits from the state Department of Environmental Protection to drill three wells in Columbia County: two in Benton and one in Sugarloaf Twp.

Another natural gas company, Oklahoma City-based Chesapeake Energy, also has dozens of leases in Luzerne County but hasn’t made a move yet.

“Chesapeake is still evaluating the area. However, as we drill each new well, we learn more about the potential and the productivity of particular geologic areas, and this information guides our decisions about where to focus future activity,” Brian Grove, Chesapeake director of corporate development, stated in an e-mail.

For the time being, Citrus is focusing its efforts in Wyoming County, according to Mr. Myers. The company has drilled four wells so far in a successful partnership with Procter & Gamble, and has more in the works.

Citrus also plans to drill its own wells in Wyoming County, where it has leased large chunks of land – as have Chesapeake, Carrizo Marcellus LLC, Chief Oil & Gas, and others drawn by the prospects of production in Luzerne County’s neighbor to the north.

“It’s very much a hotbed of activity,” Mr. Myers said. “Any time you get good production, people are going to come. … We expect to have plenty of company here in the future.”

Contact the writer: eskrapits@citizensvoice.com

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Copyright:  The Scranton Times

By Patrick Sweet (Staff Writer)
Published: July 4, 2010

Natural gas companies have acquired the mineral rights to nearly two-thirds of Wyoming County in less than five years, and now they are looking at the rest.

“Our world, right now, is Wyoming County,” said Steve Myers, director of land and legal affairs for Citrus Energy Corp.

Strong gas production from wells in the northern part of the county has sparked stiff competition between gas companies trying to lease as many acres as they can.

“Obviously, (you get) good competition when you’ve got good production in an area,” Mr. Myers said.

Many companies are eagerly waiting to see how wells in the southern part of the county near Noxen on the Wyoming/Luzerne border produce as they battle for the county’s remaining acres, he added. The state Department of Environmental Protection granted Chief Oil & Gas a permit on June 15 to begin drilling a well on Robert Longmore’s 97-acre Noxen farm.

Farther south, Encana Oil & Gas USA Inc. will begin drilling the first exploratory well in Luzerne County as early as next week.

The potential for rich gas strikes in the Marcellus Shale beneath Wyoming County has driven gas companies to lease more than 165,000 acres, roughly 63 percent of the county, since Oct. 19, 2006, a Times-Shamrock review of 4,110 gas leases in the county revealed. That’s more than five times the 30,000 acres leased in Luzerne County.

The two largest parcels leased for exploration in Wyoming County straddle the border between Noxen and Forkston Twps.

The International Development Corp. leased the mineral rights to a 13,627-acre property to Silenus Land Solutions Inc. in May 2008. Less than a year later, the Thomas Family Trust and trustee William W. Thomas Jr. leased another 13,627-acre property in the same area to Anchor OGM LLC.

But the most active gas company in the county is Chesapeake Appalachia LLC, which has signed 2,714 leases totaling more than 71,400 acres, roughly 43 percent of leased land.

Chesapeake, along with Citrus and Unit Petroleum Co., benefited from large leasing deals with the Wyoming County Gas Group. In 2008, the landowners group leased nearly 16,000 acres to Citrus and Unit, including a nearly 7,500-acre property spreading across Eaton, Forkston and Noxen townships owned by Arlene Traver and Ryvamat Inc. Each of the landowners in the group was paid $2,850 per acre and will receive 17 percent of royalties from future gas production.

Earning even a larger windfall was the gas company president who negotiated the deal: Chris Robinson of Raegayle LLC of Pittsburgh, who earned $88.50 per acre, a total of at least $1.35 million.

Multiple attempts to reach Mr. Robinson were unsuccessful.

Mr. Myers said Citrus had a good working relationship with Mr. Robinson because of Mr. Robinson’s experience in the industry.

“He’s actually an oil and gas producer,” Mr. Myers said. “We had a one-on-one negotiation and he just took it back to the group and answered the hundreds of questions. It was quite efficient.”

Mr. Robinson is president of Ardent Resources, a gas company also based in Pittsburgh, which, Mr. Myers said, does much of its work in New York.

Contact the writer: psweet@citizensvoice.com

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Copyright:  The Scranton Times

By David Falchek (Staff Writer)
Published: July 7, 2010

A bid by natural gas gathering company Laser Northeast Gathering Co. LLC to become a regulated utility and earn the power of eminent domain faced vocal opposition at a public hearing in Great Bend on Wednesday.

More than two dozen people, including a county commissioner, spoke before Administrative Law Judge Susan D. Colwell and an audience of nearly 200 at the state Public Utility Commission hearing at the Great Bend Fire Department in Susquehanna County.

All but a few were opposed to the petition, which would set a statewide precedent granting natural gas pipeline companies public utility status and give them the controversial power of eminent domain for the project.

Some speakers cited environmental concerns with the natural gas extraction process. Other property owners said use of eminent domain to put a pipeline on their property would violate their rights. Many focused on eminent domain, the process of taking property through condemnation.

“I don’t want a private company to tell me when and how I can use my land,” said Michael J. Giangrieco, a Susquehanna County commissioner. “They say it’s a last resort, but it will become one of the first resorts. Our experience shows that this industry views landowners as an inconvenience.”

Patrick Walker of Factoryville called eminent domain “corporate welfare.”

Environmental consultant Nancy Wottrich of New Milford lives in a solar-powered home, grows her own food and works to maintain her land. She refuses to participate in the natural gas rush. She said eminent domain would force her to turn over her land for something she believes is wrong.

While principals of Laser Northeast, Scranton native Tom Karam and Texan Chip Berthelot, were in the hall, they did not testify. They defended their plans with some attendees during breaks in the hearing, which stretched on for three hours.

Mr. Karam said eminent domain is not an unfettered power that negates property owners’ rights and interests, but rather a due process that includes a hearing before a local quasi-judicial board of view, just compensation, and an appeals process.

Beyond that, condemnation is something Laser Northeast wants to avoid because of the expense and bad feelings it engenders, Mr. Karam said.

The only positive comments came from landowners who negotiated agreements with Laser Northeast, including Liberty Township farmer Jim Barbour. He focused on the employment and investment the natural gas industry has brought to the county and the need to move gas so that mineral rights owners may reap royalties.

Mr. Barbour reminded people that the U.S. has hundreds of thousands of miles of natural gas pipelines that operate safely.

“I don’t know anyone who cares about the environment more than I do,” he said. “Laser was very cooperative and catered to my wishes. They are going to do this in an environmentally-friendly way.”

Mike Fiorentino, an attorney for the Silver Lake Association, an official intervenor in the case, said his group will put Laser Northeast application to the test.

“It is not clear whether they should get it,” he said. “But if they do, we will make sure they proceed at the highest possible standard.”

Technical hearings on the application will be held in Harrisburg. Judge Colwell will issue her recommendation to the commission by year’s end, she said. The full commission will make a decision later.

Contact the writer: dfalchek@timesshamrock.com

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Copyright:  The Scranton Times