Safe

A new study of private water wells in rural Pennsylvania found 20% to be contaminated with methane before Marcellus operations began nearby, but also found increased bromide levels that could be the result of natural gas drilling.

The natural gas industry will miss out on the prize of shale if it can’t convince the public that development is safe, a Chevron Corp. executive told a Pittsburgh audience last Thursday.

The natural gas industry will miss out on the prize of shale if it can’t convince the public that development is safe, a Chevron Corp. executive told a Pittsburgh audience Thursday.

Investors have traditionally viewed long-haul natural gas pipelines as a relatively safe haven from risk; however, shifting trends in gas flows, “a much more proactive FERC” and the potential for higher maintenance expenses are changing that, according to an analysis by U.S. Capital Advisors.

Investors have traditionally viewed long-haul natural gas pipelines as a relatively safe haven from risk; however, shifting trends in gas flows, “a much more proactive FERC” and the potential for higher maintenance expenses are changing that, according to an analysis by U.S. Capital Advisors.

In an effort to ensure that air around Marcellus and Utica shale production sites is safe and to provide the shale industry “with the most efficient option to get operations up and running,” the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) said it is creating a new general permit.

Texas natural gas producers would be required to add a “tracer” liquid to help identify the fluids they use in hydraulic fracturing (fracking) operations under a bill filed in the state legislature last Friday.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has selected several potential sites across the country to study the effects of hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracking) on drinking water and groundwater.

Outgoing New York Gov. David Paterson took the high road on Saturday, vetoing a bill that would have codified into law a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in the state through May 15, and at the same time extending until July 1 a deadline for the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to prepare a supplemental generic environmental impact statement (SGEIS).