Faculty

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Monday approved DCP Midstream LP’s request to build an 11-mile pipeline to transport gas from the Niobrara Shale in the Denver-Julesburg (DJ) Basin to interstate natural gas markets served by the Colorado Interstate Gas (CIG) pipeline. The proposed $12 million pipeline facilities (LaSalle Residue Line) would connect to the proposed LaSalle processing plant in Weld County, CO. The only shipper on the proposed line would be DCP. DCP Midstream is a joint venture of Spectra Energy and ConocoPhillips. Based on new production in the Niobrara Shale in the DJ Basin, DCP told FERC it plans to construct the 110 MMcf/d LaSalle gas processing plant and a new gathering pipeline in Weld County (see Shale Daily, May 16, 2011).

Researchers from Duke University plan to return to Pennsylvania next week to conduct additional testing of residential water wells in the northeastern part of the state, including wells that are not currently near any Marcellus Shale natural gas drilling.

Temple University announced Wednesday that three faculty members will investigate the source of methane gas that has contaminated water wells near Marcellus Shale drilling sites in Susquehanna County, PA, and will also study how the debate over hydraulic fracturing (fracking) is affecting public policy.

West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin issued an executive order Tuesday directing the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to begin enforcing several new safeguards on Marcellus Shale drilling, and to identify areas of regulatory concern.

State lawmakers in West Virginia have created a bipartisan 10-member panel to discuss and seek a consensus over Marcellus Shale regulatory reform.

If 1998 Atlantic hurricane predictions by faculty at ColoradoState University are correct, the four-year period of 1995 through1998 will have been the most active consecutive four years forhurricanes on record. This year’s Atlantic hurricane activity ispredicted to be “appreciably more than 1997 but less than theunusually active 1995 and 1996 seasons.