• “There were a lot of people around here who had a nicer Christmas last year because of the gas busines
  • “The greatest economic and clean-energy opportunity of our lifetime
  • “This is a good thing for us”


Marcellus Shale creating “family-sustaining jobs”: John Moran Jr., president of Moran Industries, described the arrival of the natural gas industry as “a wonderful thing” that will both create “family-sustaining jobs” and lead people to finally “really believe the clouds (have) parted.” He likened the gas industry to “a blessing from God” and predicted a trickle-down effect and creation of new wealth unlike anything seen here since the long-ago lumber era. Heinz said the gas industry brings to the area “unlimited” business and employment opportunities. (Williamsport Sun-Gazette, 6/23/10)

Responsible Marcellus development benefiting “the mom-and-pops”: “The burst in industrial activity creates new business opportunities and spinoff benefits for established companies, said Marilyn Morgan, president of the Greater Montrose Chamber of Commerce. “We’ve got a lot of entrepreneurs,” she said, including vendors selling food at drilling sites and start-up laundry services cleaning clothes for gas-field workers. “The mom-and-pops are starting to see some economic benefits,” Morgan said. “Restaurants are seeing a difference.” (Towanda Daily-Review, 6/23/10)

Sen. Mary Jo White: Marcellus Shale “the greatest economic, clean-energy opportunity of our lifetime”: “It must be noted that this activity has generated billions of dollars for landowners, including the state, through lease and royalty payments, as well as hundreds of millions of tax dollars through corporate and personal income, sales, fuel and other taxes. … Without question, we must ensure that drilling occurs in a responsible manner. Thanks to increased permitting fees, we now have twice as many permit reviewers and inspectors on the ground than before the Marcellus rush. … The Marcellus Shale presents perhaps the greatest economic and clean-energy opportunity of our lifetime. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 6/23/10)

Marcellus Shale expanding PA’s workforce, small businesses: “According to Heinz, M-I SWACO initially will employ about 20 to 30 people at or working out of the Moran site, but he predicted the numbers will grow. … Among the employment opportunities are skilled positions for field engineers. Those hired locally will be those with both high school and college degrees, who will train before going out to well sites, according to Heinz. (Williamsport Sun-Gazette, 6/23/10)

Congressman Joe Pitts: Marcellus Shale will benefit local companies, “reduce energy costs while improving air quality”: “A Penn State University estimate shows that there is now enough gas in the Marcellus Shale to supply the entire U.S. for more than 14 years. Obviously, the Shale is not going to be tapped all at once and will not be the sole source of gas in the U.S., meaning that wells in Pennsylvania will provide a source of natural for decades. It is estimated that natural gas exploration could lead to more than 100,000 jobs statewide. While Pennsylvania’s 16th Congressional District is not located above the shale, local companies will certainly benefit. … With many Pennsylvanians looking for work we shouldn’t pass up this opportunity to create new jobs. Responsible development of the Marcellus Shale can reduce energy costs while improving air quality. (Pottstown Mercury, 6/23/10)

Marcellus Shale generating new jobs, significant revenue for local, regional businesses: “Larry Mostoller’s company moves up to 1 million gallons of water a day for Cabot Oil and Gas Corp. “My company has grown 300 percent in one year.” “I employ 80 percent of my workforce from Susquehanna and Wyoming counties,” he said. “I’m definitely going to go over 100 (employees) this year.” Despite controversy about the economic, environmental and employment impacts of Marcellus Shale natural gas development, the industry generates new jobs and significant revenue for regional businesses. … A recent Penn State University study financed by the gas industry concluded that drilling companies spent $4.5 billion in the state in 2009 and helped create 44,000 jobs. (Citizens Voice, 6/23/10)

Marcellus development helping local school districts, “Taxpayers like the idea”: “A school district in Bradford County is now caught up in the natural gas boom. Towanda Area School District agreed Monday night to a $500,000 gas lease with Chesapeake Energy. … “This is added money that we didn’t have before, new money,” said school board vice president Pete Alesky. … There won’t be big gas drilling rigs on the actual school property. The lease only allows the gas company to drill underneath the land. If the gas company finds gas there, then the school district can make more money by getting 20 percent royalties. “They should get in it. The opportunity is there to get some money and they should get it,” said taxpayer Howard Shaw of Wysox Township. … Taxpayers who talked with Newswatch 16 liked the idea of the district getting the surge of cash. (WNEP-TV, 6/22/10)

Marcellus Shale ‘crop’ sustaining family farms: “Natural gas is a new crop for farmers in many parts of the state. It is harvested thousands of feet below the topsoil. This new revenue it generates has allowed countless farms to stay in business, repair and upgrade their barns and buy new equipment to plant their crops. The lease revenue has saved many farms from development and allowed farmers to invest in modern no-till equipment to farm in a more efficient and environmentally friendly way – both are good for water quality and the environment. (Wilkes-Barre Times Leader LTE, 6/22/10)

Marcellus Shale send rail yards booming, boosting “overall economic development”: “A $500,000 upgrade of the historic rail yard in Fell Twp., which was built in 1825 to help ignite the region’s coal boom, is a good example of the region’s new gas industry’s ability to boost overall economic development and of the growing importance of rail freight to the region. The project will make possible the easy delivery, by rail rather than truck alone, of many of the materials used in the booming Marcellus Shale drilling industry. … The rail yard upgrade is a good example of how to use the gas industry to boost general economic activity. (Scranton Times-Tribune Editorial, 6/22/10)

PA prof.: Marcellus “energy, income, jobs a good thing for us”: “Debate about the economic effect may overlook the impact on the ground, said John Sumansky, Ph.D., an economist at Misericordia University in Dallas. “The burst of energy and income and jobs coming from this spills over to a sector where the economy has been lagging in this region,” Sumansky said. “This is a good thing for us, especially in the fields of transportation and construction.” It is a good thing for Latona Trucking and Excavating Inc., a Pittston company that does well-site preparation and hauls water for Chesapeake. On some days, up to 60 of the company’s 120 employs do gas-related work, said Joseph Latona, company vice president. … “This will probably be our best year ever in business.” (Towanda Daily-Review, 6/23/10)

200,000 well-paying jobs will be generated over the next decade: “It is likely, with the continued development of the Pennsylvania Marcellus Shale and the aging of the current natural gas industry workforce, that more than 200,000 well-paying jobs will be generated over the next decade, with an even greater number as drilling activity increases. … There is an immediate need for truck drivers/operators, equipment operators, drillers, rig hands, geologists/geophysical staff, production workers, well tenders, engineers, land agents and more. (PA Business Central, 6/22/10)

Marcellus Shale is saving small businesses, allowing folks to have “a nicer Christmas”: “Donald Lockhart sees a big difference over the last two years at his restaurant and gas station in South Montrose along Route 29, a major artery for drilling-related traffic. “We’ve better than tripled our business since last year,” Lockhart said as he sat in a booth in the dining area while a flatbed truck hauling an industrial generator idled outside. “I’m selling more Tastykake than they are in the grocery store.” … “They saved my business by coming here.” … Dozens of small businesses in the Endless Mountains region benefit from gas development, Mostoller said. … “My employees live better because they work in this industry,” Mostoller said. “There were a lot of people around here who had a nicer Christmas last year because of the gas business,” Lockhart said. (Towanda Daily-Review, 6/23/10)

The game-changing resource of the decade: “The extraction of shale natural gas is set to become a major growth industry in the United States. Recently, Amy Myers Jaffa wrote in the Wall Street Journal that natural gas could become “the game-changing resource of the decade.” Already Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Louisiana, and other states are beginning to reap the economic benefits of a natural gas boom. A study by Penn State University predicted that the natural gas industry in Pennsylvania alone will be responsible for the creation of 111,000 jobs and for bringing in an additional $987 million in tax revenue to the state by 2011. Natural gas extraction has been one of few industries growing (without government subsidies) during this recession. (Biggovernment.com Op-Ed, 6/23/10)