Review of gas drilling 'on track'
State expects process to be completed this summer
stargazette.com
By Tom Wilber
twilber@gannett.com • Staff Writer • February 16, 2009
A review of regulations associated with natural gas drilling is on schedule to be completed this summer, and that could clear the way for energy companies to begin work in the Southern Tier.
Efforts to tap natural gas from the Marcellus Shale deposit were put on hold last summer while the state Department of Environmental Conservation assessed drilling's impact on water, the landscape and communities.
Officials completed another major step in that review earlier this month that laid the groundwork for a regulatory overhaul to oversee a surge in drilling volume and intensity expected with the Marcellus.
"We remain on track to complete this process in the summer," Lori Severino, a spokeswoman for the DEC, said last week.
George Miner, president of Southern Tier Economic Growth in Chemung County, said he hopes the move toward completing the review results in adoption of regulations that would allow Marcellus drilling in New York, much like is taking place in Pennsylvania now.
"If that goes through, we'll be back to creating a lot of jobs here," he said.
One of those sources of jobs would be Schlumberger Technology Corp., a Houston-based company in the gas exploration field that has purchased 87 acres in The Center in Horseheads for a complex where at least 300 people would work.
Miner said approval of the regulations would speed up Schlumberger's construction timetable.
"They're still going ahead with the project to service Pennsylvania from here," Miner said, "but if New York state allows gas drilling to resume, it will just be a bigger project with more jobs."
New York officials have now completed two key steps of the lengthy regulatory review - public hearings and the resulting regulatory blueprint, called a scoping document.
As expected, the scoping document will take into account drilling's impact in specific areas, including:
* Rivers, streams and aquifers that could be affected by the industry's need for large volumes of water. Each Marcellus well typically requires millions of gallons of water.
* The use of additives in water to help release gas from bedrock.
* Space and facilities at the site to ensure proper handling of water and additives.
* Removal and disposal of drilling waste.
* Quality of life issues, including noise, air quality and general disruption.
The agency will use the scoping document as the focal point for its regulatory updates. A draft is expected this spring, Severino said. They will be followed by a public comment period before final regulations are issued this summer.
State Sen. Thomas W. Libous, R-Binghamton, said the environmental review is important, but he was concerned it would drag on and become an obstacle for economic development related to the gas industry. Last week, he said a recent conversation with DEC Commissioner Peter Grannis assured him the state "has every intention" of completing the review as early as this summer.
Permits cannot be issued until regulations are in place. Regardless, there are concerns the DEC lacks the manpower to regulate the industry after the environmental review is complete. The state faces a severe financial crisis and hiring freeze, with no answers yet about how the DEC's relatively small Division of Mineral Resources would gear up for a large influx of drilling expected with Marcellus development. |
