Susan Fowler crosses her arms and gazes out the picture window above
her kitchen sink. The view includes an inviting deck, lush trees and a
towering oil derrick that stands just 89 feet from her property line.
Much of the neighboring 13-acre property has been clear-cut to drill a
total of three oil wells, and the project has forever changed her
charming home and the surrounding Broadview Heights neighborhood.
“Had I known this was coming,” she says, eyeing the derrick, “I
never would have moved here.”
She’s not alone. Wells have been popping up all over Northeast Ohio
since 2004, when the Ohio House and Senate passed House Bill 278, which
usurped home rule for the installation of gas and oil wells for the
entire state; potential drillers would no longer be subject to the
whims of local governments. The legislation gave the Ohio Department of
Natural Resources (ODNR) sole jurisdiction on permitting, installation
and regulatory enforcement of all Ohio wells.
The Ohio Oil and Gas Association gushed with joy. They touted the
move as a liberation of the state’s resources and a new weapon in the
fight against the volatility of natural gas prices.
At first glance, the regulations sound invasive but not intolerable.
A minimum of 20 acres is required for the average well, which may not
be closer than 300 feet from the unit’s boundary. Since the bill’s
inception, however, that deceptively simple concept has turned into an
issue so divisive it is shredding lifelong friendships and tearing
close-knit neighborhoods apart.
Nowhere in Northeast Ohio are the fights more vehement than in the
otherwise sleepy burg of Broadview Heights, which has long been known
as a hotspot for natural gas and oil. Since H.B. 278 was enacted, 67
new wells have been drilled in the city’s 13 square miles.
The 20 acres associated with each well may belong to any number of
landowners; collectively their properties comprise a “unit.” The key
part of that acreage is the 300 feet surrounding the well. Property
owners within that circle must agree to be part of the aggregate in
order for drilling to proceed. If they refuse to play ball, they may be
subjected to “mandatory pooling,” particularly if they own less than 10
percent of the unit.
The decision on whether to force a landowner to join the unit is
made by ODNR’s Oil and Gas Technical Advisory Council, which consists
of eight appointed members: six representing oil and gas producers, one
representing landowner royalty interests and one representing the
public.
Read that last sentence again.
If that doesn’t stack the cards against the little guy, the
assembling of the 20 acres is where things get really dodgy. Any property can be part of the unit as long as it touches another property
within it. There is no limit to the number of owners within the 20
acres or to how far away the acreage can be from the wellhead. The
resulting unit shapes appear freakishly gerrymandered, with the lines
drawn by mineral rights (which are separate from property rights and
not necessarily held by the landowner). Unit plots I reviewed for this
article included long fingers of land jutting into or out of the
aggregate unit.
One gas company representative took exception to my use of the word
“gerrymandered.” But what else describes a skinny, nearly mile-long
finger pointing out from an otherwise blocky 20-acre shape? Unit
boundaries on other plots cut in and out in square fringes in order to
trace around amenable property owners. A particularly obstinate
landowner can end up surrounded by cooperating landowners, his or her
land appearing as a hole in a map of the unit.
But rights are rights, right? As Supreme Court Justice Oliver
Wendell Holmes once said, “The right to swing my fist ends where the
other man’s nose begins.” With that in mind, consider a typical well
installation: There’s clear-cutting, putting in an access road,
erecting an oil derrick, 24-hour klieg lights and a noise so stentorian
it could make Dick Cheney cry. How do I know? There’s a crude oil well
in the field next to my house, about 500 feet away. I had no say in its
construction, went nearly insane with the noise of the drilling and I
don’t get a dime in royalties.
That well was drilled in 2007, and today it’s quiet and hidden by
the dense tree growth around the field where it sits. Despite our rocky
start, I freely admit that the well has been a good neighbor. Or so I
thought.
When I walked into the field one day in September, the pumpjack or
“nodding donkey” was politely dipping in and out of the earth inside
its chain-link fence. But there was black sludge all around it, and the
air was thick with a pungent oil odor. Outside of the fence, an area of
about 50 by 90 feet was covered with hay, through which new grass was
sprouting. All the peripheral natural grass was dead. Trees on the edge
of the affected area had shriveled brown leaves, whereas all the other
trees were lush and green. Something had happened here.
I called the owner, Bob Belovich, who does not reside on the
property. He said that, no, neither the ODNR nor the EPA nor well
owner, Ohio Valley Energy, had informed him of any release. Ohio Valley
Energy’s field representative told me that about five or six barrels of
crude (which would equal between 200 and 300 gallons) had spilled, but
everything had been cleaned up. He’d reported the incident to ODNR.
But then ODNR field inspector Norburt Lowder told me that only about
one barrel of oil and “brine” (salty water from the ground) had been
ejected from the well. He verified that no other public entities had
been informed about the event (spills less than 210 gallons do not
require further reporting), and that no soil, air or water tests were
conducted. The liquid was mostly brine, he said, and added that the
whole incident was due to a simple well “burp” during routine
maintenance and repair.
While Lowder was telling me to put my request for a copy of the
report and other questions in writing, another well in Ohio was getting
ready to “burp,” but with tragic results.
On September 10, 28-year-old Kenneth Hanson reported for work on
Ginger Road in the small town of Freeport in Guernsey County. He and
other crew members with CHIPCO LLC out of Zanesville were scheduled to
plug a gas well. They filled the well with water. They followed
procedures. But Mother Nature had other ideas. In an instant, a
concentrated cloud of hydrogen sulfide escaped from the wellhead.
The Freeport volunteer fire department got a call that some men were
down near a gas well. When Fire Chief Don Warnock and his team got
within about 500 feet of the wellhead, their equipment indicated that
the air was not safe to breathe. They donned protective gear and went
in. Four of those rescued were hospitalized, one in critical condition.
But it was too late for Hanson, who survived four years as a U.S.
Marine but was no match for the deadly gas.
So how, then, does such a wellhead end up less than 140 feet from an
occupied home?
With “directional drilling,” oil companies can drill in one
location, going deep under ground at an angle and even turning corners
to access pockets of oil or gas hundreds, even thousands, of feet away
from where the visible wellhead sits. This method adds approximately
$100,000 to an otherwise $350,000 vertical drilling project, but is
particularly useful in urban settings. It has boomed in Ohio since the
new law.
“God didn’t just put oil and gas under corn fields, he put it
everywhere,” says a gas company representative who spoke on condition
of anonymity. “I hate drilling in urban areas, but there’s just no
place else to drill. Every day there’s more and more [planned]
developments, more people, more WalMarts. And they all use gas and
oil.”
The wellhead area consists of that familiar nodding pumpjack, its
associated equipment and a tank battery that commonly has an
aboveground oil tank and one for slurry. Depending on how you look at a
pumpjack, it’s either a quiet soldier fighting the good fight against
sky-high home heating prices and OPEC, or it’s an unsightly industrial
blemish. It is a financial godsend to one homeowner and a hateful
intrusion to his neighbor; the point of view is usually determined by
whose name is on the royalty check.
“I’ve never gotten a complaint about a well from someone who’s in on
the pool,” attests Broadview Heights assistant fire chief Joe Fleming,
who adds that he’s heard of monthly royalties ranging from $2 to
$1,200.
With directional drilling, the most stringent rules apply to the
land above the 300-foot-diameter “target zone” deep in the earth from
which the oil or gas will ultimately be drawn, often a neighborhood or
two away from the wellhead area. But the visible wellhead, with its
installation derrick and klieg lights and its permanent pumpjack and
tank battery, only requires a 75-foot setback from any adjacent
property not associated with the unit. And even that requirement can be
waived by the ODNR.
The phrase “not in my backyard” is usually figurative, but not in
this case. Most Ohioans probably are not aware that an oil derrick can
be erected just 75 feet from their property line and, as long as it is
100 feet from a dwelling and complies with Ohio code, there is not one
thing they can do to stop it.
Hence, on the corner of Karen Lynne Drive and West Mill in Broadview
Heights, there sits a large pumpjack and tank battery on a one-acre lot
in a typical suburban neighborhood. It is next to residents who had no
power over its construction and garner no royalties from it. The
nearest home is less than 150 feet from the wellhead. The target zone
for the well is about 500 feet away, under Interstate 77. Residents on
the other side of the highway get monthly royalty checks, as do ODOT
and a developer.
In an ironic twist, the neighbors adjacent to this wellhead
willingly signed over their mineral rights on yet another well a
neighborhood away — the one right behind Susan Fowler’s home.
Directional drilling is also what allowed Fowler’s neighbor Carol
Pine to have multiple wellheads on her 13-acre Diana Drive lot (two are
operating, one is under construction and yet another awaits
permitting). One of the wells is vertical, and Pine’s acreage is
devoted mainly to it. The 20-acre units for all the other wells are
connected to target zones that spider out from Pine’s lot and conclude
at points near and far. Between the existing and pending wells,
drilling/well company Cutter Oil has collected more than 80 acres of
mineral rights for the Pine wells belonging to more than 40 entities,
including the City of Broadview Heights.
In May 2009, Broadview Heights city council agreed to lease an array
of municipally owned parcels to Cutter Oil for five new wells. Many
cities enter into such agreements. What set these apart was that the
units were located in densely populated neighborhoods and included a
bevy of privately owned parcels. Three of the well units abutted
properties owned by residents who were vehemently against drilling,
including the one behind Susan Fowler’s lot. In yet another bizarre
turn of this convoluted story, the mineral rights of the Fowlers’ lot
are actually part of that well’s unit. But Fowler and her husband get
no royalties.
When the Fowlers purchased their home in 2003, they weren’t thinking
about mineral rights and didn’t know that the subdivision’s developer,
Lucky Acres, retained them. When Cutter showed up, Lucky Acres forked
over the mineral rights under the Fowlers’ home and 23 others and now
reaps royalties from the well. That the city was also in on the deal
was the final twist of the knife for the Fowlers and their
neighbors.
“The city and the state unleashed these people on us and we have no
way of protecting ourselves,” says Fowler.
But city officials maintain that Cutter Oil would have simply
enlisted mandatory pooling or moved the target zones of the wells in
order to cut the city out of the deal — and they have a point.
The city had flatly refused to lease any land for the Karen Lynne/West
Mill well, and well owner M&M Royalty simply shifted the target
zone and configured the unit to include amenable owners. The well went
in. The citizens were still irate. And the city got nothing.
Although every Broadview Heights city official interviewed for this
story expressed distaste for the wells, they also cited much-needed
revenue from the Cutter wells and extras such as paving and
retention-basin jobs that Cutter threw in to sweeten the deal.
“We’re looking for improvements for the city,” says Broadview
Heights mayor Sam Alai. “Did we roll out the red carpet? Hell no.”
“We have people that are getting the royalty rights that are just
ecstatic,” says councilman Roy Stewart. “They look at it totally
differently than those who get nothing. It’s a matter of the haves and
the have-nots.” Incidentally, Stewart’s property was one of the Lucky
Acres package. Hence, as a resident, Stewart had no choice in the
well’s installation, but as a councilman, he voted for it.
“The heartburn that I’ve had is that the people down on Ashley Road
used to be my friends,” says Stewart of Susan Fowler’s neighborhood. “I
am not their friend anymore. They blame me. They have every right to be
upset and concerned about the future, but there’s nothing we can do to
stop [the wells].”
Maybe. The city’s leased portions range from 10 to 60 percent of the
units. Mandatory pooling of anything over 10 percent is unlikely to be
granted. Cutter would probably have had to move those wells around and
deal with a whole new set of participants had the city refused to lease
any land. Either option would have been a difficult proposition for the
bitterly contested Falls Lane Unit No. 1D well, for which the city
leased 6.5 of the required 20 acres. Furthermore, the target zone and
the wellhead are on city property. Circumventing that much involvement
would have been a tall order.
The nodding pumpjack is about 100 feet from the closest home that’s
part of the royalty package; neighbors across the street are not. One
homeowner’s commentary is a “Don’t Tread on Me” flag displayed
upside-down and at half-mast.
“I lost sleep over the matter,” says councilman George Stelmaschuk.
“Half were vehemently telling me that this is their right, that they
can do whatever they want as landowners and that the city should go
along with them. A lot of the other people cited the environment and
everything else.”
In the end, Stelmaschuk, whose own home is near a prominent
pumpjack, voted for the wells.
“The biggest downfall is these neighbors fighting,” says assistant
fire chief Fleming. He recalls a scene surrounding a minor spill from a
well earlier this year. “People were screaming and calling me names.
They became violent. We had to call the police. It’s sad. You hear
people say how they used to be great neighbors.”
Things change, but Susan Fowler is likely to remain furious over the
wellheads next to her home for a long time. She has a host of concerns
about those holes in the ground and the process by which they are
drilled, but what of the piping that goes underneath her property to
the associated target zone?
Gas company representatives contend that the underground portions of
wells are safe, born of tried and true technology. But the folks
surrounding English Well No. 1 in Bainbridge Township would likely have
a different opinion.
On December 15, 2007, Bainbridge residents Rick and Thelma Payne
were thrown from their bed as an explosion rocked their home. The
explosion was traced to natural gas leaking from a recently completed
well. Nineteen homes were evacuated that day. Everyone eventually
returned, except the Paynes. The damage to their house was so great it
had to be torn down.
But the fallout continues. The gas had infiltrated area aquifers,
and to this day the homes that used to draw water from those aquifers
have to use water stored in large plastic tanks in their garages. And
in January, the lawyers of Thrasher, Dinsmore & Dolan, representing
a host of defendants, filed a 30-page complaint in the Geauga Country
Court of Common Pleas against seven plaintiffs, first and foremost of
which is the owner of English Well #1, Ohio Valley Energy — the
same company that owns the well next to my house.
Many persons interviewed for this article asserted that Bainbridge
incident was an isolated incident and that the vast majority of wells
operate safely for years, so I asked the ODNR’s chief of communications
Cristie Wilt to quantify that by providing information about leaks,
spills and accidents. Her response said the agency issued 928 “Notices
of Violation” in 2008, but their current database system is unable to
produce a running total of gas leaks. Manually tabulated data, she
said, would not be available prior to my deadline. Then she referred me
to OSHA and the Ohio EPA for additional information.
Regarding my inquiry about the agency’s response to Kenneth Hanson’s
death, Wilt replied, “The unfortunate incident that occurred in
Guernsey County is being investigated by OSHA, which is why ODNR is not
providing details to the media/public.”
Books could be written about this issue, with stories from the
Youngstown area (where urban wells have been part of the landscape for
years) to the tony enclaves of Gates Mills, where fire chief Tom
Robinson has chronicled an 11-page “History of Gas Well Incidents in
Gates Mills,” only one of which occurred before 2006.
New drilling has slowed in Ohio, but that’s most likely a result of
the recession — it’s expensive, and the price of natural gas has
been flat. But that will change eventually, and drilling will come to
more parts of Northeast Ohio.
“I have to work,” says the gas company representative. “I have to
make my living. I have to drill.”
See this Scene&Heard blog post for more on Erin O’Brien’s dealings with ODNR for this story.
This article appears in Sep 30 – Oct 6, 2009.
Great article but a major item missing is that the majority of affected landowners and city officials mentioned here are all united under a project called NEOGAP or Northeast Ohio Gas Accountability Project. It is simply the name for all the citizens across OH affected (as seen above) that help each other in a neighborly way by sharing information in the short term from oil and gas experts and attorneys and in the long term by submission of a bill we wrote (we = the people) which will be submitted by Senator Grendell in less than a week or so! NEED HELP? http://www.neogap.org
OTHER IMPORTANT FACTS
-You CAN stop the wells. All landowners pooling together to say NO has the same affect the gas company has when they pool people to say yes, you simply need the majority standing together to say NO
-The City of Stow and Munroe Falls are saying no as a landowner and not forcing wells on citizens
-Brine is not just salt water but a mix of numerous hazardous chemicals (‘Frak Fluid’)
-The norm for royalities in land pools are reported at $40-$80 a month
-‘Free gas’ is raw gas including all impurities (not processed)and no odorant added being pumped into your home (this is illegal in other states due to dangerousness & caused the death of over 300 in a TX school)
-The biggest downfall is not people fighting but what people are breathing within proximity to these wells, according to EPA and OSHA radon and hydrogen sulfide are lethal biproducts at gas well sites
-Last year Lupus and other illnesses were linked to living near gas/oil buried pits (these pits are being buried in the Fowler neighborhood as they are all around OH despite other methods being available to dispose of the waste)
-Bainbridge Twp incident was not rare at all if you speak to informed sources, it’s happened in OH and happened again this year just over the border in PA
Gas & Oil can and is extracted more safely in other states, it does not have to be done as dangerously as it is right now in Ohio. Real legislative reform will allow industry to continue to work as well as protect public health and safety.
I fielded the following comment from a representative of Ohio Valley Energy:
“In the interest of accurate reporting, I want to bring to your attention an error in the article concerning the Payne’s house. The house was never torn down. In fact, we purchased it, and we are now in the process of repairing the damage (70% complete) for approximately $26,000. The house will be returned to a condition that is better than pre accident. I thought you should know.”
I continue to be amazed that the same people objecting to local energy development use the very energy source that is supplied and produced in thousands of communities throughout Ohio. 7 out of every 10 homes use natural gas. Should these residents be banned from using all natural gas or just PRODUCING it? I’m confused.
Energy doesn’t come from a hole in the wall —– and milk doesn’t come from a grocery store! Good grief —- these folks need a reality check! The reporter is correct in stating that neighbors used to get along —- except the change occurred when the NEO propaganda started POISONING communities with misinformation and lies! Tell them to get OUT of our neighborhoods —- they are the problem not any form of solution. Obviously, they have gotten to another reporter who is more interested in headlines than a balanced story.
The NEO/ Grendell legislative proposal —– if you understand the science, the technology and the regulations, is a 100% ban on the development of all wells in Ohio. Read between their BS. Ever wonder why their oil and gas forums don’t include knowledgeable industry representatives? The truth might be told. These meetings are an embarrassment to our communities. Would you hold forums on new heart procedures and not invite the doctors or the cardiologists? What’s next for these clowns? Will your industry or your employer be next? They say they are an “accountability” group but are held accountable to no one. They can pass out as much NEO propaganda as they want —- in this case, using the very energy source they are condemning to get their propaganda out there.
This propaganda has got to stop! Communities should be angered by the NEO TOXIC POISONS and stand PROUD that they are doing something to reduce our dependence on foreign energy. Good for the HUNDREDS of THOUSANDS of Ohio landowners with wells on their property that support producing domestic energy in a SAFE and ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY MANNER. Tell the NEO propaganda people, and their very few cult followers, to go live in a cave with their Colorado Mother Ship organization —- WITHOUT ANY ENERGY!
These comments and the article are riddled with so many innacuracies it is sad. This one-sided journalism slanted toward liberal nanny-statists must stop. I have not heard of anyone being hurt in any of these accidents in Ohio and no information is found anywhere on 300 fatalities in Texas due to gas inhalation. This should show people the kind of tactics these leftist organizations(NEOGAP) are using (lies and inducing fear) to achieve legislation that would bring the Ohio oil and gas industry to a complete halt; causing many more to lose there jobs. They even put on there website and I quote “The State of Ohio had a total Gross State Product of $448 billion during the same time period. Thus, the oil and gas industry accounted for a mere three-tenths of one percent (0.3 %) of Ohio’s Gross State Product…hardly irreplaceable.” This is how these people think of the working class, replacable as long as their ideologies prevail(your job could be next). I use natural gas to heat my house, I use gasoline, and I’m glad that ohio can produce these and lessen dependency on foreign or even other states production. Look what this kind of liberal thinking has done to California, they will probably go bankrupt litterally unless Obama bails them out too.
I live in an Ohio residential neighborhood where there are many oil and gas wells that has been producing for over 25 years. I’m proud that our community is producing some of our own energy. Perhaps if we do more —- we can bring some of our soldiers home that are risking their lives every day in very hostile countries to protect energy sources that don’t even belong to us.
Natural gas can only come from a well drilled in someone’s community. How arrogant to want to use this energy source but expect, in fact demand, that it comes from someone else’s backyard.
To date there has been over 273,000 wells drilled in Ohio. Drilling has also been going on in developed areas (residential neighborhoods, churches, schools, businesses, et al) since 1860. In other words, nearly 150 years prior to H.B. 278. The thought of this drilling in urban areas just starting since 2004 goes to tell how safe this industry has been historically in Ohio —– most didn’t even know that Ohio has been drilling and producing oil and gas for more than a century and a half.
The drilling rig is only on location 5 – 7 days. How long does it take to construct a home in your neighborhood — 6 – 9 months with non-stop noise as well? How about construction of a business or repairs made to roads? Come on!
An oil and gas well has the smallest environmental footprint of any energy source — and produces DECADES of clean DOMESTIC energy supplies. The average well diameter is about the size of a soccer ball, and the final foot print of the physical well is about the size of an average dining room.
Do we truly want to be less dependent on foreign energy? I guess not, and why? Because we want to rely on misinformation and lies —- STOP THE NEO PROPAGANDA.
It’s the new American dream. Go to school, work hard, save up, buy a nice home in a residential area and have your city, your state, a driller a and few greedy neighbors turn your neighborhood into an industrial wasteland. I love the part where the driller pretends that he’s patriotic by decimating your property value. My spouse had a military career; they forgot to teach him that. Then the driller pretends that putting a few pathetic trees around the pump head takes away all the environmental impact and returns your once quiet neighborhood to a park like setting as semis and tankers travel where your kid once biked. If you wanted to open your windows and be able to breath, that makes you a tree hugger. If you’re worried about the methane from hydrofracking tainting all water sources, you’re overly sensitive. After all they’re exempt from the Clean Water Act. What could be more important than their profit? Obviously nothing.
It’s the new American dream. Go to school, work hard, save up, buy a nice home in a residential area and have your city, your state, a driller a and few greedy neighbors turn your neighborhood into an industrial wasteland. I love the part where the driller pretends that he’s patriotic by decimating your property value. My spouse had a military career; they forgot to teach him that. Then the driller pretends that putting a few pathetic trees around the pump head takes away all the environmental impact and returns your once quiet neighborhood to a park like setting as semis and tankers travel where your kid once biked. If you wanted to open your windows and be able to breath that makes you a tree hugger. If you’re worried about the methane from hydrofracking tainting all water sources, you’re overly sensitive. After all they’re exempt from the Clean Water Act. What could be more important than their profit? Obviously nothing.
Just like Geico – Join with NEOGAP it is so easy even a tree hugger…I mean Cave Man can do it!
It is obvious this statement is taken out of the NEO propaganda handbook. Nice try! Sadly, you are writing about a specialized technical procedure you call “fracking” that has been around for over 60 years, and is highly regulated by each and every oil and gas producing state in the country. This is one of the best technical advancements in the industry’s history and continues to be . You should learn how to spell it first before you write about it There has never, EVER, been a documented scientific case in U.S. history connecting this technological procedure with contamination of any water wells — of course unless such a case has been made up by NEO type people. SHAME ON YOU! Stop poisoning our communities with your lies.
To:samanthasm and rational thinker- I am a conservative and proud of it! Would you people want an oil/gas well 100 ft. from your house?? I am not against drilling- only against doing it in our zoned residential urban neighborhoods!! We cannot drill in the Arctic wilderness where no humans live but they can come into our quiet suburban neighborhoods where PEOPLE live and breathe and drill 100 ft. from our homes!!! How outrageous is that??!!
I would love to have free gas unfortunately wells have drilled up my area of columbiana county. I have a well within 300′ of my home and a never even know it is there. The fencing around the equipment is 25 years old and it simply looks like a small fenced in area (no smell no problems). The fact of the matter is the safety record of the industry since 2004 when this legislation was passed is fantastic. Of course the media grabs on to the 2 or 3 wells where unordinary problems occured(Bainbridge and guernsey county).The people in Broadview Heights will calm down and feel the same as I do after the rigs move out(they won’t even know they are their). The EPA has done plenty of testing on frac fluid and air quality from exploration activities and they found what is obvious to most burning of fossil fuel not producing it causes pollution and no instances of frac fluid getting into water tables. If you have a well near you or have witnessed one please share as first hand is the best source not in articles by people who heard from someone who heard from someone.
P.S. I have a friend of a landowner in Broadview Heights and he had a well drilled on his 5 acres in town and he and his 3 neighbors are making $1,000 a month each. The wells are the best current oil wells in the state as one geologist with the odnr says. It just happens to be beneath a populated area. It makes sense that the companies want to drill the best wells(why would they want to do more work on leasing and have to deal with this kind of press)and the area of success is limited. I know alot of landowners involved who are profiting and happy(who the press and city officials conveniently ignore) and those who did not sign leases are doing the whining(Mrs. Fowler in the article above prime example). I guess the squeeky wheel does get the greese.
The picture from her back deck shows the rig it will be gone shortly and she won’t see anything or be affected at all. This is a sign of zoning flaws and how the oil and gas industry got it right by skirting all these local zoning boards who think they can tell everyone what they can or can’t do on there own property.
Answer me this…..Broadview Heights contracted a company by the name of Equity Oil and Gas to drill 2 wells on city property right out front of the admin building and another 1 on the ball fields IN 2005. Why is it OK for them to do that and reap the benefits but when the residents themselves want to have a well the city all of a sudden tries to pass a drilling ban. It sounds like the officials feel they are the only people capable or smart enough to have wells drilled NOW THAT’S A STORY WRITE ABOUT THIS NEXT TIME ERIN. A STORY OF LOCAL POLITICS AND PROPOGANDA STOPPING THE RESIDENTS FROM BENEFITING FROM THEIR MINERAL RIGHTS.
Yes, those wells are in close view of my home “proud conservative.” And so is the large cable and other utilities boxes that we landscape around. I agree that it is amazing that we can’t drive in Artic wildnerness, but have the technology and capabilities of drilling in developed areas. You can thank NEO type groups for that too!!
It is about time the news actually reports something that is good about drilling. Actually, they might be to stupid to really know where their own gas comes from that heats their home in the winter. The few people that are complaining are those who DO NOT have their mineral rights. If the Fowler’s were so smart, as they claim to be then they would of read their DEED when they bought their property. The 13 acres of woods behind the Fowler’s property is owned by someone else, NOT THE FOWLERS. If you own a property you can do whatever you want with it. IF you want wells on your property you are aloud to do it. But they didn’t do it alone, there are over 80 acres of landowners surrounding these wells that participated in those wells. Anyone who lives in the area should take a look how fast Cutter Oil Company has their wells cleaned up. That is why I am proud to have signed with Cutter Oil Company. Any landowners that are in support of drilling, we need to start showing our support to keep drilling in Broadview Heights and the State of Ohio. WE NEED TO SHUT DOWN THE NEOGAP!
In the interest of journalistic integrity, I sure hope that the author of this “piece” was not coordinating her efforts with the people from NEOGAP.
Would that compromise the integrity of the writer?????
Seems odd that the first two posts are from neogap, doesnt it????
just asking
Dear Erin,
Please tell me on what date you contacted anyone from the Ohio Oil and Gas Association and the “gushed” about anything.
I am sure that a trained journalist, such as yourself, has kept meticulous notes on who you talked to, the time, the date and thecontent of the conversation.
I await your reply
Erin,,
In one of your pictures,, you show a woman gazing off of her deck. SHe is looking a drilllng rig….. You may not know this,,, but neogap does,,,, that drilling rig will only be there 5 to 7 days…
After that, for the remaining life of the well,,, there will only be a pumping unit that stands 5 to 7 feet tall… Uusually, these wells are equipped with a “rabbit” system that is onnly 3 to 5 feet tall.
It will be camofluged and no one in the neighborhood will even notice its presence.
Either you did not do adequate “due dilegence” in creating this story or you were woefully misled by the likes of the neogap crowd..
In either instance…. I would appreciate it greatly if you would fairly and honestly research this issue and write (rewrite) an actual portrayal of this timely topic.
I’m very disappointed in you Erin. I believe that you made an attempt to tell a story —- but made one major major journalism flaw. You relied on this terrible “NEO” organization and believed them to be creditable without checking any real sources. I would encourage you to be responsible and tell the whole story. I have enjoyed the Cleveland Scene — but if this is the type of reporting that is going to be conducted here —- I’ll be done and disappointed with yet another journalist and their paper. Be fair and balanced. I went to a meeting in Chester several months back when some of this misinformation showed up. The meeting was held at a church and the speaker explained exactly how an oil and gas well was drilled, and answered everyone’s questions. NEO failed to show up but sent “flyers” instead. She (yes there are mothers in the oil and gas business too) was extremely thorough and explained in great detail all the technology — she even answered extra questions from the audience which held the meeting over for an extra hour and a half. She stayed and answered everything. She is also a fire fighter instructor. Erin — this is the kind of resource you need for a story. Her name was Rhonda Reta (sp?) and her organization is OOGEEP (Ohio Oil and Gas Energy Education Project — something close to this). They work with fire departments, schools, teachers and landowners but don’t own or operate any wells. Just public information resource. Please don’t lose my faith in the Cleveland Scene and in our society. These NEO people are really nut cases. I’m a nurse —- not an engineer or a driller, but having good information from reliable sources is terrific. I am no longer concerned or even notice the well in our neighborhood. But I’m glad it’s there. Please bring back our faith in journalism.
Erin,
This article is overflowing with errors in practically every paragraph.
I intend, over the next few days, to disect this “article”, line by line, and expose ALL of its glaring errors of fact!
To the 1-2 people (obviously a gas company rep or OOGA) who logged a bunch of comments under different names, none of the directors of NEOGAP were contacted about this story. If you actually read the article as I did, you would see that the writer spoke mostly to the ODNR, gas company reps and citizens in the affected neighborhood. Some other corrections to your rant- NEOGAP is nonpartisan and not anti gas/oil.
We think e&p should occur in a way that does not infringe on public health/safety or property rights. Are you saying that because you eat bacon once in a while you should have a pig farm next door? Since you cook the bacon on non-stick cookware you should have a DuPont chemical processing plant next-door manufacturing Teflon. Might I add all at 100 ft away forced on you after you sunk all your money into your property in a residentially zoned neighborhood…
I am not going to waste much time on you since you probably know the facts which you are trying to trick others into disbelieving but for those that don’t know, following are links to information from fed/state sources:
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N…
http://riverreporter.com/issues/09-09-24/n…
http://modern-us-history.suite101.com/arti…
Erin,
Lets take a look at paragraph 8 and 9 of your article.
The Technical Advisory Council is composed of 8 individuals that are APPOINTED by the Governor of the State of Ohio.
They are vetted by the administration. THey are mandated to attend Ethics Training (just like state Office holders). They are professionals in the natural gas and oil industry that have distinguished themselves in their industry.
This is one of the very many important aspects of this story that you got wrong:
The Technical Advisory Council DOES NOT MAKE ANY DECISIONS.
They hear testimony from Both sides of every issue and also input from ODNR officals. Then,,, they make a RECOMMENDATION TO ODNR.
It is ODNR’s decision whether or not to mandatory pool a particular peice of property.
Why would you think the deck is stacked against the little in that forum.?
Listen to the words “Technical Adivsory Council”. WHy in the world wouldnt you want oil and gas professionals on that board hearing testimony and making recommmendations to ODNR.
Read those last two sentences again.
Would you feel more comfortable if the Council was composed of “hairdressers” or butchers or race car drivers????
Come on!!!, Just stop and think about some of what you people are saying.. Do some honest research
samanthasam, any reason you’ve neglected to mention that the IP address from which you’re commenting is held by the ohio oil & gas association?
Actually “Supportdrilling”, the people complaining – like the Fowlers – are not just the ones who don’t have mineral rights. In fact, most of those people, even if they did have mineral rights, wouldn’t have been consulted on the drilling and they wouldn’t have had the option to sign on, and in the remote chance that they did, they’d have NOT signed.
The issue here is not whether gas drilling is a good idea or not. Mostly, people are not opposed to this drilling To the point that “Proudconservative” made, the issue is where. When the drilling rigs are gone, it won’t just be a fence that is left behind. It will be another of the thousands of wells that are woefully monitored by only 24 state inspectors. That’s bad enough. Worse, is that Ohio has committed a moral crime to allow these to be so close to people’s houses. 100 feet? Come on – that’s barely farther than pitcher’s mount to home plate. THIS is the real issue.
And guess what? You’re wrong. People aren’t allowed (why did you write “aloud”?) to do anything they want with their property. They are not allowed (aloud?) to do things that are destructive to others or others’ property, including property values. That’s either against the law, or can be remedied through penalties by the courts.
And to all those who suggested that NEOGAP and the community meetings didn’t want officials who could tell the truth, that’s simply wrong too. Were you there? Those meetings included City Council, mayor, Senator Grendell who’s been involved and active on these issues for a long time, the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources. The EPA has been invited, and so has Cutter Oil (who has consistently rejected the invites). Get your facts straight before you throw stones.
Last night the temperature in N E Ohio dropped to the mid 40’s. I sure hope Mrs. Fowler and all who are so opposed to drilling for gas & oil didn’t touch their thermostats and let that warm gas heat into their homes. I know I did and I’m very fortunate to have wells on my property.
In comment to “DO It Right” do you think any of the following reasons for Cutter Oil not to show up at the meetings could have anything to do with the threatening emails that were sent or the FACT that these were the same neighbors who destroyed all the fencing on Mr. Pine’s property that was put up for safety reasons, or maybe just all the inaccurate reporting would be reason enough for no comment.
Last night the temperature in NE Ohio dropped to the mid 40’s. I sure hope Mrs. Fowler and all who are so opposed to drilling for oil and gas in their backyard didn’t touch their thermostats and let that warm gas heat into their homes. I know I did and I’m very fortunate to have wells on my property.
In comment to “Do It Right” do you think any of the following reasons for Cutter Oil not to show up to your back yard meeting could have anything to do with the threatening emails that were sent or the FACT that these were the same neighbors who destroyed all the fencing on Mr. Pine’s property that was put up for safety reasons, or maybe just all of the inaccurate reporting would be reason enough for no comment.
did anyone bother to open the links that neogap posted. the one with the 300 dead students was from 1937 that proves how few incidents have occured in ohio they have to go back to 1937 in a state thousands of miles away. the fact of the matter is the farms are drilled up so the companies must drill locations near residences or lose their jobs. senator grendell’s proposal would end oil and gas exploration in ohio for that exact reason(they’re either not smart enough to figure that out or they are trying to act like they want it done right). like most over regulation you have people with no experience in these fields acting as if they know everything(sen. grendell and neogap). now that i’m done ranting “do it right” can spell check this and make him or hersekf feel better.
“industry hack” (finally something resembling honesty) and the one or two other troll/cowards: 1) put your money where you big mouths are, and show all this pride you claim to have in local drilling, and offer to buy the home of someone who lives near a well, at its pre-well value.
2) invest in a dictionary. “shotty”? seriously?
wow,
I guess my inital suscicions were right… This paper does come to this story with a “point of view”.
Tell us how you really feel Frank Lewis.
I was very disappointed to sell that you attempt to “out” people that disagree with your point of view.
One could construe your actions yesterday as trying to suppress someones 1st amendment right to free speech..
There is a reason you asked for screen names and passwords.. Those were given in trust… I dont think it is a wise thing for you to violate that trust…
I’ll intend to stick to facts and this forum and not engage in name calling.. I can I expect the same from you in the future????
By the way, the property value arguement is a non-starter..
Property values of real estate with oil and gas wells actually increase.
They generate a revenue stream for that property for years,, sometimes decades.. And those same properties are many times afforded free natural gas from those wells to heat their homes.
Another thing I find interesting about this forum… Some here seem obsessed with correct spelling. I am a terrible typist.. So I ask for your indulgence in advance.
suspicions,,,, see I told you I am a terrible typist.. I can spell, ok.
Can I expect……..
To all those who think it’s a good idea to drill 100 ft. from someones home, if you enjoy a good chicken dinner or steak once in a while, do you think it’s ok to set up a chicken or cattle farm next to you….on your small city lot in the suburbs? Do you know that if one of your neighbors wants to put up an oversized shed that they have to get zoning permission and have the neighbors within sight of this building sign off on this before a city can issue a permit? Does this notification happen if a driller wants to put a gas/oil well next to your house? NO! By the time you as a landowner find out about this well, it is already a done deal!! Do you think HB 278 should be changed to allow for notification to the neighbors in the area??? And by the way-how can any local zoning laws be abrogated to allow an INDUSTRIAL operation to come into a zoned residential area?? The only solution is to give home rule back to cities as was the case before HB-278!! Proud conservative
tellthetruth, I don’t care who disagrees. what I won’t tolerate is posing as just another reader when in fact you work in the industry. it’s deceptive and hypocritical, and you’re damn right I will out that. I would’ve outed NEOGAP if they’d tried it.
obviously when I suggested buying a home near a well I meant from a homeowner who does not collect royalties. because the real issue is how safe and smart suburban drilling is, right?
oh and anytime you’re ready to cite the “lies” in the article, instead of just vaguely whining about them, I’m all ears.
Frank Lewis,,
I didnt use the word “lie”…. I called the mistakes in this article “errors” and “errors of fact”
Dont put the word “lie” in my mouth and then try to exhibit some sort of “moral indignation”
I am giving the author of this peice the benefit of the doubt.
I believe that if there had been much more research on this topic, this article would have been written a lot differently.
When a well is drilled vertically in this area it must be drilled on a 20 acre unit. The well must be at least 300 feet from the unit lines. But it NOT a 300 feet circle around the well.
The author talks about a well drilled 500 feet from her residence.
The drilling rigs used in this area are mobile… The are not “erected”. The word crafting used in these paragraph gives the impression that a derrck is erected and is left there as a permanent structure that will stay there for the life of the well. The lights and the noise ONLY goes on for as long as the well is being drilled. Usually 5 to 7 days. An uninformed reader is left with the impression that the lights and noise go on for the entire life of the well.. That isnt the case!!
The author laments that she is 500 feet from the well and had no say in its construction… She also says that she doesnt recieve any money from the well….
Why in the world should she recieve royalties from this well.. Was her property contained in the drilling unit…. If not,,, she shouldnt recieve any royalties from this well!!!!
If the well wasnt on her property and she wasnt included in the drilling unit ,, then why on earth should she have any say in its constrution?????
And to further answer your previous queston,,, I intend over the next few days to disscet other “ERRORS OF FACT” in this article..
One other comment:
This is the only forum that I have participated in where a poster is required to disclose their occupation… Is that a requirement for all of your posters? If so,, I think you should state that on your “log in” page.
quoting from the article:
“A minimum of 20 acres is required for the average well, which may not be closer than 300 feet from the unit’s boundary.”
“I had no say in its construction, went nearly insane with the noise of the drilling and I don’t get a dime in royalties. That well was drilled in 2007, and today it’s quiet and hidden by the dense tree growth around the field where it sits. Despite our rocky start, I freely admit that the well has been a good neighbor.”
so maybe you want to read the article again, or ask some fully literate person to read it to you, slowly. and maybe we should also state that commenters should disclose their IQs, and if it sounds like an average room temperature, go post somewhere else.
Frank,,,
Then the next sentence was ” Or so I thought”
Surely, you know that everyone must take this article in its totality.
And then the author went on to describe this “burp”.
She then tries to equate that burp” incident with an incident in Guernsey Co.
If the proper amount of research had been done,,, the author would realize that those two incidents are not even closely related.
I intend to dissect that whole part of this article in a latter post.
Why do you treat posters here so rudely? Your responses are laced with insults and anger…
Isnt honest debate and honest exchange of information why your paper supports this forum in the first place???
Industry Hack,
FYI- that was the point of the TX article (that it occured years ago)… the point is that after the 1930s all o&g producing states BUT Ohio have modified regualtions to prevent blowing up houses or schools by adding odorant to natural gas and certainly processing it before pumping it into structures right from the wellhead (read any lease and in there you will see it says ‘free gas’ is at the risk of the lease signer- translation- if something happens due to using raw gas with no odorant the gas company is held harmless). Ohio is still doing things as if it’s the 30s for Gods sake!
All,
For the record I saw no errors in this article and Erin seems to be a brilliant and articulate writer who did a lot of research. If you have problems with the info, go yell at your state regulators where she got most of the facts: ODNR. And, BTW, the governor is required to appoint 99% o&g people to those committees under Ohio law… that should be changing to a more balanced ‘jury of your peers’ with the bill Grendell introduces. Instead of all o&g professionals, there will be positions for health officials, public and EPA to determine whether it is safe for children and elderly to be breathing in fumes or air from pressure releases at such proximities for example.
PS- NEOGAP includes o&g engineers, drillers and the like with over 55 years combined experience in many states (not just OH)… the opinion from them I like best is that ‘o&g e&p in Ohio most closely resembles a junior high school science project’. We are too busy to log in and check up on comments going forward so if/when TTT or others post their ‘proof of errors’ feel free to go to our website and email one of us and we can relay whether it is more smoke and mirrors or factual data.
honest debate, tellthetruth? I’d welcome that. all we’re getting from you are easily refuted claims of inaccuracy and bias.
let’s talk about that “burp.” the landowner had no idea that anything occurred on his property on Aug. 18 until scene’s reporter contacted him on Sept. 9. per the ODNR, “10 to 12 yards of contaminated soil was removed and replaced with 14 yards of soil.” a truckload of soil was taken off Belovich’s property, replaced and reseeded and no one told him. take a look at norburt’s lowder’s report again. The “landowner waiver” box is unchecked. the local fire department was not notified of the spill either.
the only reason anyone knows any of this is because a reporter saw something amiss and asked questions. how many other incidents are documented in the files of the ODNR, hidden from the public because no one even knows what questions to ask? how many incidents aren’t documented at all? no one outside ODNR and the industry knows, and neither of them are accountable to the rest of us. we’re being kept in the dark, and you’re calling it “safety.”
as for my treating you “rudely” — grow up. you came here mouthing off about bias and error, hiding behind your stupid screen name and figuring that no one would call your bullshit. you were wrong. if you can’t take it, go call a talk radio station and preach to the choir.
Late in the afternoon of September 11, I called Fire Chief Don Warnock of the Antrim Voluntary Fire Department out of Freeport. I felt bad calling him so late on a Friday after what I imagined had been a long and difficult week, but I wanted the truth about the Guernsey County incident and the Chief had been on the scene. He took my call and was generous with his time.
He described responding to the Ginger Road call the day before, the smell of the sour gas and the way he and his crew had to stop and don their air protection equipment when their monitors indicated they’d passed from a “cold zone” to a “hot zone.”
The acrid smell of gas permeated their emergency response vehicle as they transported the patients. It lingered. Three of his own crew felt a bit ill themselves and got checked out. “I didn’t feel good,” Warnock added, although he did not seek medical attention.
The Chief repeatedly noted that a family had just lost a loved one and a company had just lost an employee. I was respectful and gentle with my questions. He was gracious and honest with his answers. This interview was by no means a “gotcha” media moment.
When I hung up from that call, I was shaken. I sat down to supper with my husband of 17 years and our 12-year-old daughter; and for the first time since it went in, I was a little afraid of that well in the field next door.
I know that people can tolerate H2S in low concentrations, and that crews routinely monitor for it. I know that it dissipates quickly and that emissions are only likely to happen when crews are working on the wells. I also know that upwards of 25 percent of H2S poisonings happen to first responders and people standing by who go in to help someone who’s been downed by the gas and end up being overcome and going down themselves.
I am profoundly sorry for what happened to those gentlemen in Guernsey County last month. I do not want it to happen to anyone else. I would like to be thusly assured, which is why I contacted the ODNR about the event. Since they had no comment, tellthetruth, and you seem to know so much about this topic, please do expound on hydrogen sulfide. Assuage my worry. Which wells are subject to emitting lethal concentrations of H2S? Do they include the wells that dot Broadview Road, the ones that are a softball pitch away from brightly colored plastic play houses and tricycles? By all means “dissect” what happened to Kenneth Hanson. Be specific, please.
If you’d like to impart credibility to your answers, I suggest you step from behind your anonymous mask, tellthetruth, and list your name, location and professional affiliations.
If you people want to know more about me, visit http://www.erinobrien.us
Erin and Frank,,
I will repeat a couple of comments that I have posted here earlier and then I am done commenting on this subject at this venue.
If you would have done a lot more research into this topic and would have engaged professionals from the oil and gas industry, I believe you would have written a much different story.
I, once again, ask you to do a lot more research on this topic for your own edification. Ohios oil and gas professionals work for small oil and gas companies, there is NO “Big Oil” in Ohio.
I urge you to engage people in Ohios Oil and Gas industry.. Let THEM tell you their story.
It seems to be in vogue right now to make any extraction industry the Boogey Man.
When you hear ALL sides of the story, I believe you will come to a much different conclusion about an industry that does so much for Ohioans.
Frank,,
I am not going to “take the bait” and argue with you or come back with equally heated rhetoric.
I believe you have short-circuited a very constructive debate and exchange of information.
I can tell you first hand that there is no 300ft perimeter of leasing around a drill site. I’m less than 300 ft from a drill site, and no one asked for my permission to drill. As to the people who think that residential drilling is risk free and a necessity, you need to look up some of the information that is available for the chemicals that these drill sites are exposing residents to. This is serious business, and people, especially young children, should never be exposed to these toxins. Why is it that drilling is successfully challenged on federal, state, and local park lands? Don’t people matter? Aren’t our private neighborhoods all eventually connected to park, preserves, and watersheds? But the most important factor that no one should ever forget – people should always be allowed to have a say and make a choice about things that can impact on their health. When your property is mandatorially pooled for drilling, that inherent right is taken away from you. When your neighborhood has a collective majority that objects to drilling, and a minority of citizens/and/or the city decide to approve drilling, your citizens’ rights have been seriously violated. Many citizens, including city officials, get all of their information, pros and cons, about oil drilling from the industry drilling companies. Really people, if you wish to find the truth about a “Chevy”, would you ask a “Dodge” dealer?
I am embarrassed to say that I am a resident of Broadview Heights, and I have witnessed our city leaders do every thing that they can to passively support residential drilling. It is an illusion to believe that there are no consequences. The short term money that the city recovers on royalties will be lost in the long term by diminished property taxes from homes that have depreciated in market value due to the neighborhood oil wells. And realtors will be unable to sell or get financing for homes which are proximal to wells. Does that sound like a great future for any city?
Patricia Volk
Erin ,Gee you wrote a whole piece about my property ,( my )oil wells , used my name and NEVER once talked to me! If this is unbiased reporting …. I think people should hear the rest of the story. I think Ms. Volk should be embarrassed to live in Broadview Hts NOT for the oil wells but because of the way our city leaders cower to a few shrill voices and shrivel to eco- fanatical lobbyists. “Drill Baby Drill”
I would like to add my comments to the list. I have been to Broadview Heights and I have seen the well being drilled, essentially in Susan’s backyard. I live in Hudson and we have wells in the parking lot of our high school, 75 feet from our baseball stadium. I am not opposed to the drilling of gas wells in general. I am opposed to the lack of communities control over the disposition of their own property. It is patently unfair and frankly un-American, that one person (or group of people) can use their mineral rights to potentially permanently damage the property of their neighbors without any transparency or due process.
Of course there are risks with urban drilling. These same risks exist when the drilling is done in non-urban environments. The trouble is that when the risks manifest themselves in urban areas, the damages are severe. People’s drinking water can be permanently polluted. And it happens. Wells can leak gas into people’s homes. And it happens. Plenty of nasty things CAN happen. And they DO happen. Not often. And not frequently. But they do happen. That is why Urban drilling is almost NEVER worth the risk. And when it is being considered, it should be done openly, and with the input and CONSENT of the members of the community who could be affected.
That is what Home Rule is about. Letting the members of the affected community have input and control over THEIR community.
This article ran in several papers, including the Cleveland PD on 10/4/09: “The benefits of natural gas: It’s plentiful and it’s here,” by Llewellyn King.
http://www.whittierdailynews.com/ci_134135…
It offers an informed point of view.
tellthetruth, again, you never attempted to debate, you just leveled accusations that you couldn’t or wouldn’t back up, and when called on this, you whined. so good riddance. I’m sure you’ll find a forum where you can make paper-thin, uninformed arguments and still be taken seriously.
tellthetruth, for someone who’s done talking, you sure are having a hard time shutting up.
your first three posts (assuming you posted under only one name) all questioned the reporter’s integrity and research. no specific assertions, just lots of vague gripes about accuracy and bias. here’s your fourth post: “This article is overflowing with errors in practically every paragraph. I intend, over the next few days, to disect this “article”, line by line, and expose ALL of its glaring errors of fact!”
eventually you got around to citing some supposed shortcomings in the article, and you were so wrong — it took me seconds to find the elements that you claimed were missing — that I started to wonder if you’d even read it. when I noted that, you whined, and have been whining ever since.
so please, show us your role in this high-minded debate that I’ve supposedly shut down by responding to your attacks. or just make good on your promise to go away.
Frank,
I have/had about zero interest in “wallowing in the muck” or exchanging snarky one-liners with you in regard to this timely, serious and very technical subject.
journalism 101 Dont make yourself the story.
I will repeat a quote that I mentioned to you earlier:
“Beligerence is the currency of the intellectually bankrupt”
As much as you are trying to re-ignite the discussion at this venue by issuing insults, it isnt going to happen.
good. then stop posting. you never had anything to say anyway.
The PD article didn’t delve into the downside of oil/gas drilling–especially in urban environments. Erin Obrien’s article in The Cleveland Scene reveals the dark side of the oil/gas drilling industry. Reform of Ohio law is needed, but not S.B. 165 which is just a cosmetic tool to allow the drillers to continue to do their dirty work while while families, neighborhoods, and communities in Northeast Ohio suffer. We must back State Senator Grendell and the Northeast Ohio Gas Accountability Project who have put together the REAL reform bill. It will soon be introduced into the Ohio Senate. Go to http://www.neogap.org for more information.
If wells are a problem for homeowners, what would you say about this:
http://www.clevescene.com/cleveland/welcom…
There, people are tortured with sleep deprivation at night
Further to comments made last night at the North Royalton town hall meeting with ODNR officials, here is the email wherein ODNR representative Cristie Wilt responded to my inquiry about the the hydrogen sulfide incident in Guernsey County:
http://docs.google.com/View?id=dffmpt2n_37…
Live subterranean video cam tracks onshore toxic drilling chemicals used in natural gas drilling. Elected official invited to become “PA environmental savior” read the rest of article here:
http://clearville.wordpress.com/