The safe development of clean-burning American natural gas from the Marcellus Shale continues to surpass once unthinkable production levels, according to federal data released today. This from the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s report:

EIA Marcellus

Natural gas production in the Marcellus Region exceeded 15 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) through July, the first time ever recorded, according to EIA’s latest Drilling Productivity Report. The Marcellus Region, mostly located in West Virginia and Pennsylvania, is the largest producing shale gas basin in the United States, accounting for almost 40% of U.S. shale gas production. Marcellus Region production has increased dramatically over the past four years, increasing from 2 Bcf/d in 2010 to its current level.

Production in the Marcellus Region … is now on track to be enough to equal the demand in [Pennsylvania and West Virginia] plus New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia combined.

Here’s what they’re saving about today’s EIA report:

  • “Marcellus Shale Gas Production Hits New High” (Associated Press, 8/5/14)
  • “Marcellus Shale Gas Production Sets Record in July” (Pittsburgh Business Times, 8/5/14)
  • “Marcellus Region’s Natural Gas Production Reaches Record High” (Houston Chronicle, 8/5/14)
  • “EIA: Marcellus Accounts for 40% of U.S. Shale Gas Production” (Oil & Gas Journal, 8/5/14)
  • “Marcellus Gas Production up Tenfold in Five Years” (Philadelphia Inquirer, 8/5/14)
  • “Marcellus Shale Gas Production Hits New Milestone” (StateImpactPA, 8/5/14)
  • “Marcellus Production Exceeds 15 Bcf/d, to Keep Growing” (Rigzone, 8/5/14)
  • “EIA: Marcellus Shale Production Surpasses 15 Bcf/d” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 8/5/14)
  • “Marcellus Region Hits Gas Production Milestone” (The Hill, 8/5/14)

And thanks to shale development, “Pennsylvania is well-positioned to remain a magnet for job creation, manufacturing, and economic opportunity,” as MSC president Dave Spigelmyer writes in the Philadelphia Inquirer this week.

These facts were reflected in a University of Michigan report issued this week, which states shale can “revitalize domestic manufacturing,” as well as in a Times-Leader story that states “Natural gas could help mitigate high jobless rates in Southeastern Pennsylvania.”

Moreover, as outlined in a Politico Magazine column, “boosting our domestic [oil and gas] production would reduce America’s reliance on the chronically unstable Middle East.”