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A proposed Wyoming Senate bill (Senate File 157) that would require baseline groundwater testing by oil and natural gas operators before drilling begins has stirred up controversy, with industry officials questioning whether the law is needed.

Pacific Gas and Electric Co. (PG&E) has asked California regulators to reject a proposed list of penalties by the state safety staff for the utility’s shortcomings prior to the San Bruno, CA, pipeline explosion.

A Pennsylvania judge ruled that the state Public Utility Commission (PUC) had no authority to review local drilling ordinances for compliance with Act 13, a decision that could force the agency to release nearly $1 million in impact fee revenue withheld for noncompliance.

The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) has received requests from citizens, oil and gas companies and local officials to review the drilling ordinances of three of the five localities in southwestern Pennsylvania that have filed a legal challenge to Act 13, the state’s omnibus Marcellus Shale law.

West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin announced Friday that the state process has begun to include natural gas vehicles (NGV) on West Virginia’s bid list for 2013 model year vehicles, following a recommendation he received from his NGV Task Force. The contract bid has been included in the state’s current purchasing bulletin, calling for 36 different vehicle models with 10 of those specified as being fueled by compressed natural gas (CNG), an announcement from Tomblin’s office said. The contract is officially out to bid, the first step towards attaining the state’s goal of using its abundant gas supplies to fuel its vehicle fleet, Tomblin said. He also said that the NGV Task Force is exploring potential partnerships “with and among natural gas producers, infrastructure developers, vehicle manufacturers and other industry leaders” to expand the state’s fueling infrastructure for CNG. The Purchasing Division will hold a pre-bid conference Aug. 22 and the bid opening is scheduled for Sept. 6. Additional information is available to prospective bidders by contacting the Purchasing Division at (304) 558-4785 or (304) 558-2306.

Using Colorado as its example, a Boulder, CO-based nonprofit law and conservation group, added its two cents to the growing list of advocate-sponsored studies of hydraulic fracturing (fracking), concluding there are definite impacts on water supplies and the communities they serve from the widespread use of the oil/gas drilling technology.

The Republican-dominated House of Representatives Thursday passed an energy bill that could be described as encompassing a producer’s wish list, but those wishes won’t come true unless and until GOP control spreads to the Senate and the White House.

The Republican-dominated House of Representatives Thursday passed an energy bill that could be described as encompassing a producer’s wish list, but those wishes won’t come true unless and until Republican control spreads to the Senate and the White House.

North Carolina’s assistant state geologist said estimates put forth by supporters of natural gas development in the Tar Heel State are overly optimistic and actual reserves are probably much lower.