American Oil and Gas Reporter - January 2012 - 234

The Presidential Papers
Southeastern Ohio
Oil & Gas Association

JIM JAVINS
Producer Origination
Integrys Energy Services Inc.
Worthington, Oh.

from the president
The Utica Shale play certainly has
changed the energy landscape in Ohio. Major players such as Hess Corporation and
Consol Energy, Chesapeake Energy and
EV Energy Partners, and Anadarko Petroleum have formed joint ventures and
agreements to develop Utica Shale acreage.
This exciting new play will bring more
than 200,000 jobs to Ohio, bringing about
a need to ensure that all Ohioans have an
opportunity to gain from the benefits this
new production brings.
The Southeastern Ohio Oil & Gas Association is working with local educational
institutions such as the Career Centers in
Marietta, Oh., to aid in developing programs to help ensure that those who are
looking for employment will have the
proper training to meet the needs of companies that are hiring for this new play.
Marietta College, which has a well
known energy curriculum, is planning
some two-year degrees to train those who
are seeking employment in the oil and gas
industry. A strong educational network
supporting this natural gas development
through workforce training will be very
beneficial to workers in southeastern
Ohio looking for long-term employment.
The steel and manufacturing industries
already are seeing the impact of the Utica Shale through increased demand for
manufactured products and materials to
complete wells. Local businesses such as
hotels and restaurants also are seeing an
increase in business. They have been impacted by the high level of unemployment
in Ohio and have, over the past couple
years, struggled to maintain themselves.
All this would not be possible if it was

not for the strong state regulations in place
to ensure that developing oil and gas in
Ohio is done responsibly. SB 165, which
passed with bipartisan support in 2010,
strengthened these regulations. It received
a favorable response from both industry
and environmentalists.
The state's regulatory
program was further confirmed by STRONGER
Inc. (State Review of Oil
& Natural Gas Environmental Regulations), a
nonprofit, multistakeholder organization that assists states in
documenting the environmental regulations
associated with the exploration, drilling
and production of oil and gas.
STRONGER's review found that
"Ohio's program overall is well managed,
professional and meeting its objectives."
Some of the strengths of Ohio's regulatory
system noted by STRONGER were strong
enforcement tools, review of contamination pathways, and comprehensive well
completion reporting requirements.
Challenges To Development
As exciting and important as the Utica Shale is to the southeastern Ohio and
Ohio in general, it has not come without
challenges. The myths about "tracing"
keep rearing their heads in the debate over
responsible development of natural gas
from shales. Opponents claim the environmental impacts of hydraulic fracturing
are unknown, and development should be
delayed until further information is available. This issue is too important to our
communities and Ohio's economy to allow the distorted facts and misinformation
about tracing to go unanswered.
Hydraulic fracturing has been utilized in
Ohio since 1952, and not one case of
groundwater contamination has been connected to this activity. A Pennsylvania State
University study shows there are no measurable impacts on groundwater as a result of
natural gas production and hydraulic fracturing. A statement by U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jack-

234 THE AMERICAN OIL & GAS REPORTER

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son, as well as regulators from several other states, agrees with this conclusion.
Other challenges are proposed EPA initiatives on air quality, new interpretations
related to wetlands and streams by the
Army Corps of Engineers, and efforts to
grant the Ohio Public Utility Commission
authority over production facilities. In addition to those, other issues and challenges
include damages to roadways, noise, and
water use and its proper disposal.
The companies developing the Utica
Shale have shown they are acting responsibly in regard to these concerns by
repairing the roads they use, working with
communities to keep noise to a minimum,
and utilizing the many Class II disposal
wells in Ohio to safely dispose of water
and other wastes from drilling, stimulation and production of oil and gas.
The significant economic impact of
Utica Shale development on landowners,
companies and communities, as well as
the jobs it creates, is huge for Ohio. Governor John Kasich said during his energy
summit last year that the state should allow shale gas development, if only because of its potential for economic development.
Several main conclusions emerged
from the governor's energy summit, some
of which were drawn from the jobs study
conducted for the Ohio Oil & Gas Energy Education Project. Over the next five
years, it is expected that oil and gas producers will invest $34 billion in development, pipelines, royalty payments to
landowners, and other leasing expenditures. An estimated 204,000 jobs will be
created by the year 2015. Wages, salaries,
and personal income attributable to shale
production are estimated at $12 billion a
year, including $1.6 billion in royalties by
2015.
West Virginia Rules
Since many SOOGA members live and
work in West Virginia, we are monitoring
upcoming regulation there as well. A special session of the West Virginia Legislature passed rules in December for
drilling in West Virginia's portion of the
Marcellus Shale.
Funding for more field inspectors and
office staff through increased well permit
fees; buffer zones between shale wells and
homes, livestock and drinking water; the
amount of leeway granted to the West Vir-

American Oil and Gas Reporter - January 2012

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