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Output from the nation’s shale plays has ballooned domestic natural gas production over the past few years, but the industry, and the country, have yet to fully embrace all that the paradigm shift entails, said Rick Smead, a director in Navigant Consulting Inc.’s energy practice.

Output from the nation’s shale plays has ballooned domestic natural gas production over the past few years, but the industry, and the country, have yet to fully embrace all that the paradigm shift entails, said Rick Smead, a director in Navigant Consulting Inc.’s energy practice.

Frio County, TX is in the heart of Eagle Ford Shale country, but drilling waste hauling and disposal worries have overshadowed the economic boom that oil and gas activity has brought to the South Texas region, county officials said.

Physical natural gas prices tumbled 8 cents overall in Wednesday’s trading as traders prepared for the Independence Day holiday, and many sections of the country expected to see mild weather. Nearly all points were in the red, and Northeast points bucked the downtrend, but a couple of points in the Marcellus suffered losses of over a dollar or more.

Decades of oil and gas drilling, and the jobs and benefits it provides, are engrained in Texas culture, and it’s a way of life that Pennsylvanians now are attempting to assimilate, but residents of both states continue to reconcile the advent of shale gas drilling, according to a survey of 1,600 adults.

Lower 48 gross natural gas production during April increased 0.8% (0.57 Bcf/d) to 73.24 Bcf/d from a revised March figure of 72.67 Bcf/d, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said Friday. In a separate report, EIA said overall April dry gas production set a record for the month, although it was “a small increase” from April 2012.

Oil and natural gas producers still are poring over the 171-page draft rule governing hydraulic fracturing (fracking) activities on public lands, and while proponents and opponents agree that some concessions were made by the agency in the latest rule to avoid duplication of state and tribal fracking requirements, they say BLM could have gone further.

The cash market on average gained 4 cents Wednesday for Thursday delivery as the midsection of the country continued to get lashed by snow, cold and generally winter-like conditions. California and Midwest points were strong, and other market centers posted more moderate gains. At the close of futures trading, June had eased 1.7 cents to $4.326 after posting a new 21-month high at $4.440 earlier in the day. July had fallen 1.5 cents to $4.379, and June crude oil was clobbered, falling $2.43 to $91.03/bbl.

Cash natural gas prices retreated 11 cents on average Thursday as traders elected to factor in mild temperatures across the country and incorporate Wednesday’s screen weakness ahead of the release of government inventory data.