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Gas drilling to resume on state forests
By MIKE SCHREIBER
Era Associate Editor
Local oil producers will soon have another place to drill for oil and natural gas.
On Tuesday, the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources announced it was ending a five-year moratorium on shallow oil and gas leasing on state-owned land. Officials also said the agency will accept competitive bids later this year for leases on 75,000 acres of land for gas extraction in response to the increased interest in the Marcellus Shale formation and the millions of cubic feet of natural gas reserves it’s believed to contain.
The move — which could further boost the economy of McKean County and the surrounding region — was met with skepticism by environmentalists, who believe the Rendell administration caved in to the whims of the oil industry, which is experiencing record-setting prices for crude oil.
“This approach on shallow gas drilling is a way for DCNR to cautiously and responsibly balance its legislative requirement to provide for the economic use of mineral resources while sustaining those forests and their ecological, recreational and cultural benefits for present and future Pennsylvanians,” DCNR Secretary Michael DiBerardinis said.
“Oil and gas extraction has been part of our state forest plan for more than six decades and it will continue to help provide clean energy and economic returns that we will invest in conservation initiatives.”
There was no immediate word on how much drilling might occur on state forestland in McKean, Potter, Cameron and Elk counties. DCNR manages about 2.1 million acres of state land, of which 207,000 acres are currently being leased for gas production, with about 650 wells in place.
The ban on drilling started in 2003 and was one of the latest battles between the oil and gas industry, the government and environmentalists, who believe the ruling flies in the face of the Rendell administration’s Pennsylvania Wilds initiative.
DiBerardinis said the department’s position would allow limited shallow drilling if gas is found during the development of deeper gas fields, or on a case-by-case basis.
“It’s a good first step and I think the auction will be successful,” Pennsylvania Oil and Gas Association Executive Director Steve Rhoads said, adding most of the forestland that will be auctioned off is located in Tioga and Lycoming counties. “Most of the active leasing interest is going on for the Marcellus Shale.”
Rhoads said 75,000 acres doesn’t represent much land when compared to the total amount of forestland in the state. DCNR officials said the acreage represents about 4 percent of the state forestland.
“It’s a new play and people are looking at it carefully,” Rhoads said.
Companies that are afforded the opportunity to drill will be able to do so in the Marcellus Shale formation, which is between 6,000 to 8,000 feet underground, and the Trenton-Black River deposit, which is 10,000 feet deep. New technology has made it possible to reach the fuel.
The sites have already drawn the interest of groups from Texas to Canada.
DCNR officials said lease sales are developed by receiving nominations for the acreage from gas companies. Then, the companies are required to competitively bid on the offered state forestland. The highest responsible bidders may then be issued oil and gas lease contracts. DCNR will retain the ownership of the land.
“This is a positive move forward,” state Rep. Martin Causer, R-Turtlepoint, said. “Perhaps they should be opening up even more acreage. I know myself and several other legislators have been pushing for this.”
Causer said the move is a start in making the state and country more energy independent.
“Increased domestic production is part of that equation,” Causer said. “We are really in the center of where the activity is planned to take place. It’s very important for our local economy and it was definitely time to open the (state) land up.”
However, there are concerns about what the drilling could do to the environment.
Allegheny Defense Project Forest Watch Coordinator Ryan Talbott called the DCNR’s move “unfortunate,” adding the agency now wants to make the state forests mirror the national forests. Drilling is also taking place on the Allegheny National Forest.
“The DCNR is buckling to the oil industry pressure,” Talbott said. “The Rendell administration bears a lot of responsibility for allowing this to happen. They don’t have to lift the ban, and are literally contradicting their Pennsylvania Wilds initiative. Lifting the ban will destroy this area for tourism.”
The DCNR imposed a moratorium on shallow drilling in 2003 in response to concerns that roads, well pads and pipelines were destroying wildlife habitat. Shallow gas development requires a proportionally greater number of wells at closer spacing than does medium or deep development, which allows for fewer, more widely spaced wells.
“The Marcellus Shale will have enormous well pads,” Talbott said. “You are talking about serious fragmentation of the forest for this type of drilling activity.”
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