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Mountain Lines by Nelson Haas

Sinnemahoning

Exploring the "Rocky Lick" in PA
Sinnemahoning is one of Pennsylvania's secret little gems-a quiet, sparsely populated, nature lover's getaway where the rest of the world seems to disappear, taking the tension from your shoulders with it while you explore this scenic area.Situated on the Bucktail Trail Highway (Route 120, a very scenic drive!) between to other small towns (Driftwood and Renovo), Sinnemahoning itself is rather tiny-in fact, blink when you see the sign and you may miss seeing the town, lol!Yes, the entire area may be lacking in some creature comforts-there is not a Wal-Mart or shopping plaza to be found; no Days Inn (though there are plenty of campgrounds and lodges)........MORE

Help Us Save PA's Wild Forests

By David Masur, PennEnvironment Director
in
Environment
April 26, 2010
From Pennsylvania's Sproul State Forest to Tioga State Forest (home to the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon), our state forests are well-known destinations for hiking, fishing, camping and other outdoor activities.
Most Pennsylvanians would be shocked to hear that they're often sold off to the highest bidder for destructive practices that will do irreparable harm to our forests. It's sad but true -- dangerous gas drilling is placing hundreds of thousands of acres of Pennsylvania forestland at risk.
This week the Legislature is deciding whether to protect our remaining state forestlands from gas drilling. Click here to help make sure our state representatives make the right choice for our state forests today.
Already, state officials have opened up 700,000 acres of our state forests for gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale region -- that's more than 40 percent of our forests over the Marcellus Shale.
More drilling means more roads, pipelines, wells and trucks in our state forests, destroying habitat and polluting our streams.
Luckily, there is a proposal to halt further gas drilling leases in our state forests. If passed, House Bill 2235 will implement a 5-year moratorium on further drilling leases in our state forests.
HB 2235 is expected to be voted on this week. Without your support for this bill, the trend of selling off our state forests to the highest bidder may continue. Let's make sure that we keep our forests protected now and for future generations of Pennsylvanians. Click the link below to e-mail your state representative today -- and help protect Pennsylvania's state forests. http://www.pennenvironment.org/action/our-natural-heritage/moratorium?id4=ES
http://www.pennenvironment.org

Pennsylvania Marcellus Shale economics

Must have been last year that the gas industry paid Watson & peers of Penn State to do their now famous economic projections for Marcellus Shale. Jobs, money and glowing economics, with incredible numbers in every category. Those dazzling numbers don't seem to be showing up. Two recent reports create some interesting indicators of this purported Pennsylvania boon. The first report involves jobs, or conversely, the lack of jobs. Pennsylvania now has the highest unemployment rate it has seen in 25 years, and we are already 5 years into the Marcellus Gas Rush. The second recent report indicates that for the first time in nearly 20 years, the population around Pittsburgh has increased. This leads us to the quick take that while Marcellus Shale drilling may be creating a few jobs, the bulk of them are being filled by gas industry workers from out of state. The glossy economic reports say that jobs are going to be created, but it didn't finish by saying the jobs would be filled by workers coming from Texas, Oklahoma, Wyoming and Colorado. (Oh, and those illegal aliens found recently on a West Virginia drilling site) It's also safe to guess by all the license plates that haven't been changed-over to Pennsylvania plates that most of those payroll taxes are going back to those states, not into Pennsylvania coffers. Drilling isn't a labor intensive business to begin with, especially once you get past the trucking end of things. It will be interesting to see these commissioned study groups try to validate their glowing results someday. A great salesman once said, "Sell the sizzle, not the steak." That part has been done, but the numbers won't lie.
http://greenmanmarcellus.blogspot.com/2010/03/pennsylvania-marcellus-shale-economics.html

PA Politician Calls for Moratorium on Gas Drilling Permits

As the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection prepares to issue 5,000 Marcellus Shale gas drilling permits this year, only one Democratic gubernatorial candidate in the May 18, 2010 Pennsylvania primary is calling for a moratorium on issuing new permits in a state that strongly supports gas drilling. Former Congressman Joe Hoeffel says the natural gas industry should deal with concerns about wastewater contamination before DEP issues additional permits. Gas drilling is a “pretty serious challenge” to the drinking water supply in communities, he says......MORE

State's forests could pay high price for drilling of Marcellus Shale gas reserves, official warns

If citizens don’t take an active interest in the impacts of natural gas drilling, Pennsylvania forests could pay the price, said John Quigley, the Secretary of the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. “We will see a degradation of Penn’s Woods the likes of which is unprecedented in the history of the state,” Quigley said. Quigley spoke to a crowd of about 75 people at a Bucknell University symposium on the Marcellus Shale over the weekend. A wave of natural gas drilling is about to wash over the state that “no agency of state government is prepared for,” Quigley said. “We have not seen the tip of the iceberg,” he said. ...MORE