The United States Department of Agriculture decided that there were some trees in Ohio that were more important than the livelihood of 200,000 American workers, so, on behalf of eco-Marxists everywhere, they squashed the whole fracking business until it can be studied, because things are different now, or something:
President Obama’s United States Department of Agriculture has delayed shale gas drilling in Ohio for up to six months by cancelling a mineral lease auction for Wayne National Forest (WNF). The move was taken in deference to environmentalists, on the pretext of studying the effects of hydraulic fracturing.
“Conditions have changed since the 2006 Forest Plan was developed,” announced WNF Supervisor Anne Carey on Tuesday. “The technology used in the Utica & Marcellus Shale formations need to be studied to see if potential effects to the surface are significantly different than those identified in the Forest Plan.” The study will take up to six months to complete. The WNF study reportedly “will focus solely on how it could affect forest land,” despite the significance of hydraulic fracturing to united proponents of the delay, “and not how it could affect groundwater.”
They need to study how environmental policy has affected energy production in America.
But the trees are more important than 200,000 workers trying to feed their kids, right? Not to mention the millions that could benefit from the increase in natural gas production.
It’s all about the natural environment. They can’t have things like this going on there:
Speaking of the WNF gas drilling, one environmentalist group spokesman suggested that moving forward with drilling “could turn the Ohio Valley into Ozone Alley,” even though Wayne National Forest already has nearly 1300 oil and gas wells in operation which this study does not affect.
Yeah, you read that right.
But I have to correct myself. Dropping the lease doesn’t stop 200,000 jobs.
It’s 204,000:
The Ohio Oil and Gas Energy Education Program (OOGEEP) recently estimated that drilling in the Utica shale, which is affected by the suspension of the mineral lease auctions, would produce up 204,500 jobs by 2015.
But relax. The USDA says only 200 jobs or so will be delayed. And they’re the experts on this stuff you know. The USDA. Right.
Just another case of jobs killing while there are millions out of work!
Let them drill!
Drilling is already taking place in Ohio in the Utica shale on acres of private land so the misrepresentation that a temporary ban on 3000 acres of drilling in the Wayne is costing Ohio 200K jobs is simply untrue- drilling is already taking place in eastern ohio creating many jobs.
Also this was not “Obama’s decision” it was made in house by the foresters in the Wayne and the BLM can still overide the decision and decide to go ahead with the lease. Keeping twisting the facts….! Do you even live in this part of Ohio?
FRACKING IS BAD, IT RUINS THE WATER TABLE, AND YOU WANT TO TELL ME THAT 200K PEOPLE WILL BENEFIT FROM THIS, YEAH FOR A FEW YEARS BUT THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT AND DAMAGE IT WILL CAUSE IS LIFE LONG PEOPLE IN WEST VIRGINIA CAN LIGHT THE WATER ON FIRE RIGHT OUT OF THEIR WATER TAP THEY DRINK FROM AND YOU IGNORANT PEOPLE WANT TO FRACK
THINK ABOUT YOUR CHILDREN AND THEIR CHILDREN.
LETS CREATE JOBS FOR 200K PEOPLE AND ME AND YOU HAVE TO BUY WATER TO DRINK FOR THE REST OF OUR LIFE….. MAKES A LOT OF SENSE
Gasland…..watch it
200,000 jobs? You have to be kidding me. Better check your sources. That equates to 67 full time employees per acre of leased land in the WNF zone. The Apple Foxconn factory in China barely tops that. I realize there are ancillary jobs created outside of the rig, but common sense dictates that this number is exaggerated by a multiple of at least 100. This would support 4-5 sites, each creating less jobs than a golf course.
[at 10 acres per site the OOGEEP figure equates to 400 FTE per acre... where are you gonna fit the rig with all them hard hats in the way??]I am from Houston and have been on the forefront of Hydro Fracking for years. As much as we’re enjoying the boon from that Marcellus, Ohioans who plan to stick around past 2015 better pray for national, state, and local regulation to keep it in check. Otherwise you’ll be paying this quick hit of cash for decades to come. It pains me to say it but the USDA is acting in your best interest here. 6 months is not a long time for peace of mind, calm down. Without so much as visiting their site, I’m willing to bet my mineral rights that OOGEEP is in the pockets of Chesapeake et al. I don’t usually post comments on these things but this was so ridiculous I couldn’t pass it up.