Marcellus meeting draws hundreds in W.Va.
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MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- Opponents of Marcellus Shale gas drilling are demanding a moratorium on new West Virginia operations until tough laws are passed, enforcement is dramatically increased and water supplies are protected from overuse and pollution.
The Joint Select Committee on Marcellus Shale is taking comments on how to better regulate the rapidly growing industry at three public hearings in northern West Virginia, where the industry is in overdrive. The second, held at the West Virginia University College of Law, drew a standing room-only crowd of hundreds Monday night.
"Our water's at stake here. There are problems, and this is an emergency," said Maidsville resident John Garlow. Although acting Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin has called for emergency rules to govern the industry until legislation is passed, "we needed them two years ago."
Permit fees should be raised enough to cover all costs, including the salaries for an army of state inspectors and full repairs to damaged roads, he said. Mr. Garlow also proposed a 2-cent to 10-cent fee for every gallon of water gas companies withdraw to support hydraulic fracturing operations.
The mile-deep Marcellus reserves underlie most of West Virginia and Pennsylvania, stretching from Ohio to New York. To break gas free from tightly compacted shale, companies drill first vertically, then horizontally, blasting huge volumes of water, chemicals and sand into the rock to create fissures that let the gas escape. It's called fracking.
"We are currently using gold, which is water, to mine silver, which is gas," said attorney Hiram Lewis, who represents people sued by drilling companies over mineral rights. The potential environmental and health consequences of poorly regulated industry outweigh the potential economic benefits, he argued.
"This industry's out of control in West Virginia," Mr. Lewis said. "I say we pass a moratorium now."
Dozens of gas workers, meanwhile, defended their industry. From West Point graduates turned engineers to West Virginia natives who hunt and fish, they insisted they care about the environment because they live here, too.
"I'm an outdoorsman," said Stone Energy's Rick Toothman. "I spend a great deal of my time in the woods and in the streams, and the last thing I want to do is jeopardize it."
Although some rules could be improved, he said drilling companies are already regulated by a variety of state and federal agencies.
Stone has voluntarily gone beyond what's required for years, Mr. Toothman said, publicly disclosing the chemicals in its fracking fluid, keeping records of water use from source withdrawal to disposal and using equipment that keeps brine and waste secure.
Throughout the evening, the debate followed the typical pattern, pitting environmental concerns against job growth.
WVU economics professor Tom Witt said the development of Marcellus Shale in West Virginia could create 20,000 jobs by 2015.
West Virginia can learn from examining public policy in neighbors like Pennsylvania, he said, cautioning that "if our policies are significantly out of line with other states . . . investment and jobs will go elsewhere.
First Published July 26, 2011 9:22 am
