Posts Tagged ‘Pennsylvania gas drilling industry’

Nearly $2 million will be allocated for a look at environmental results.

STEVE GELSI MarketWatch

NEW YORK — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Thursday it will conduct a massive study to investigate any potential adverse impact of hydraulic fracturing to extract natural gas, as the energy industry moves to boost domestic natural gas supplies.

The effort comes as part of a move by government officials and academics to grapple with an expected increase in the decades-old practice of extracting natural gas by injecting water and fracturing rock, a practice known as fracking.

In Northeastern Pennsylvania, drilling is proceeding in the Marcellus Shale, a layer of bedrock containing natural gas.

“There are concerns that hydraulic fracturing may impact ground water and surface water quality in ways that threaten human health and the environment,” the EPA said Thursday.

The agency said it’s reallocating $1.9 million to help pay for a “comprehensive, peer-reviewed” study. Regina Hopper, president of industry group America’s Natural Gas Alliance, said the EPA study will help affirm the safety of fracking.

“Hydraulic fracturing has been refined and improved over the past 60 years and has been used safely on more than one million U.S. wells,” Hopper said in a prepared statement. While hydraulic fracturing usually takes place far underground, well below aquifers for domestic water supplies, it also produces wastewater which must be treated on site or trucked off for disposal.

Last month, the House Energy and Commerce Committee launched an investigation into the potential impact and said it would like to see more information on the chemicals used in fracturing liquid.

“Hydraulic fracturing could help us unlock vast domestic natural gas reserves once thought unattainable, strengthening America’s energy independence and reducing carbon emissions,” said Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif. “As we use this technology in more parts of the country on a much larger scale, we must ensure that we are not creating new environmental and public health problems.”

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A recent study out of Pennsylvania State University has been quoted by the gas industry as predicting that as many as 98000 new jobs may be created in Pennsylvania as a result of increased drilling for natural gas.

The Pennsylvania personal injury Attorneys at Dougherty Leventhal and Price LLP are committed to protecting the rights of workers and their families for injuries or death suffered while working at drill sites. Attorney Thomas Cummings and Attorney Joseph Price will be attending a seminar at the University of Texas which will discuss issues involving gas drilling. Attorney Cummings handles workers compensation claims for injured workers. Attorney Price handles serious/complex personal injury claims involving injury or death. Both Attorney Cummings and Attorney Price have been named Super Lawyers by Philadelphia Magazine.

Any person or family suffering death or injury as a result of gas drilling in Pennsylvania should contact Dougherty Leventhal and Price LLP immediately for a free consultation.

As a result of the recent Pennsylvania state budget compromise, the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources recently received bids for the leasing of state lands by gas drilling companies. The leases were for up to 32,000 acres of land in Cameron, Potter, Tioga, Clinton and Clearfield counties. The land is located in State Forests including Sproul, Elk, Tioga and Susquehannock.

According to the DCNR the leases will generate at least $125 million in additional revenues for the State coffers. The leases will also help create jobs. State environmental groups have raised serious concerns over the leases, but DCNR is confident that a balance has been struck addressing all issues.

Dougherty Leventhal and Price LLP represents individual injured as a result of gas drilling related injuries in Pennsylvania. Contact one of DLP’s twelve (12) Pennsylvania personal injury attorneys if you have any questions regarding injuries suffered as a result of companies or individuals related to the Pennsylvania natural gas drilling industry.