Cssd

The Pittsburgh-based Center for Sustainable Shale Development (CSSD) said Monday that it has issued its fourth certification to EQT Corp., confirming that the company’s Appalachian Basin operations are in compliance with its 15performance standards for oil and natural gas development in the region.

The Pittsburgh-based Center for Sustainable Shale Development (CSSD) issued its third certification Tuesday, this one to Consol Energy Inc., confirming with its most wide-ranging audit yet that the company is in compliance with all 15 of its performance standards for oil and gas development in the Appalachian Basin.

The Center for Sustainable Shale Development (CSSD) said Wednesday it has received a two-year, $150,000 grant from the Richard King Mellon Foundation in support of its certification program and public engagement initiatives.

At a closed-door meeting in Pittsburgh in 2011, a small group of exploration and production company executives, environmentalists and philanthropists sat down to discuss the polarization that was building around the country’s nascent boom in unconventional oil and gas production.

After taking almost a year to finalize voluntary performance standards to ensure shale gas resources are safely developed in the Appalachian Basin, the Center for Sustainable Shale Development (CSSD) began accepting applications from producers on Tuesday.

The Center for Sustainable Shale Development (CSSD) wants to begin certifying producers in the Appalachian Basin that adhere to its standards by the end of the year.