General Public Information
The exploration of Marcellus shale has the potential to affect Pennsylvania communities in a wide variety of ways, including environmental quality, job opportunities, economic development, population change, local taxes, roads, and public services. There is the very real potential for local winners and losers from natural gas, raising important state and local policy questions about how to ensure that the winners pay their fair share of the costs associated with natural gas.
More importantly, it is vital to recognize that any economic development growth resulting from Marcellus shale will be short-run, since it is a non-renewable natural resource; when the natural gas is gone, it's gone. This means citizens, local businesses, and local leaders need to be thinking about how to ensure that we remember the long-run consequences of natural gas development, and that the Marcellus shale play leaves Pennsylvania communities better off afterwards than they were prior to the exploration. The Commonwealth already has too many examples of when the long run is forgotten, and is now paying the price as it tries to remediate the negative impacts resulting from acid mine drainage and abandoned coal mines.
Natural Gas Introduction - presentations
- Geology and Resource Assessment of the Marcellus Shale (Terry Engelder January 26, 2009)
- Seismic activity (Tom Murphy Jan 2009)
- The Marcellus Gas Shale Play: Setting the Record Straight! (Dr. Terry Endgelder)
- Past, Present, and Future of the Marcellus Play (John H. Pinkerton, CEO Range Resources)
- Overview of Drilling (powerPoint)
- Marcellus Shale Exploration - Steps in the Process (Powerpoint)
- Fracing Process animation
- Water Flooding animation
- Horizontal Drilling animation
- Penn State Extension: Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania - video
- Penn State Extension: Fracing a Natural Gas Well - video
Econ & Community Impacts - Publications
- Emerging Trends in the Marcellus Shale
- Questions Citizens and Local Leaders Should Be Asking (pdf)
- Energy Boomtowns & Natural Gas: Implications for Marcellus Shale Local Governments & Rural Communities (Jan 2009)
- Pennsylvania's Gas Rush: Issues, Opportunities, and Education (1-09)
- Drilling for Dollars by Perryman Group (pdf)
- Sublette County (Wyoming) Impact Studies
- Sublette County (Wyoming) Socioeconomic Impact Study (pdf)
- Role of Oil and Gas Operations in the Economy of Elk, Forest, McKean & Warren Counties (pdf)
- Potential Economic Impacts of Marcellus Shale in PA (pdf)
Environmental Impacts - Publications
Local Government Impacts - Presentations
Local Government Impacts - publications
- Natural Gas Development Checklist for Municipal Officials (pdf)
- Natural Gas and Municipal Regulation in PA (pdf)
- Posting and Bonding Information (pdf)
