Land Grabs By Fracking Companies

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Wmass

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This is amazing, simply unreal. States are now giving away private property to drilling companies when people refuse to allow drilling on their property.

http://openchannel.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/10/02/14183177-energy-firm-uses-land-grabs-to-secure-fracking-rights-from-reluctant-landowners?lite
 
Often here in Pa at least , the landowners don't own the mineral rights Since they drill down and then horizontally to get the gas , they only need the permission of who owns the mineral rights , then they drill down on leased property and under the rest.
 
The article deals with a number of topics, but the main one is "forced pooling" where the landowners do own the mineral rights. But the answer "no" is not an option.
 
troutbert wrote:
The article deals with a number of topics, but the main one is "forced pooling" where the landowners do own the mineral rights. But the answer "no" is not an option.

I can understand forced pooling but I would have thought a landowner who was forced in would be compensated. A lot of the other items seem to be contract related. My suggestion there is to have a good lawyer. (Yes I do value lawyers! :)
 
Landowners who are "force pooled" probably do get paid. But I don't know that for sure. Does anyone?

But the main issue is that the landowners have full title to their land, including mineral rights. But they do not have a choice in the matter of whether gas is extracted from their property.
 
troutbert wrote:
Landowners who are "force pooled" probably do get paid. But I don't know that for sure. Does anyone?

But the main issue is that the landowners have full title to their land, including mineral rights. But they do not have a choice in the matter of whether gas is extracted from their property.

The article indicated they didn't get paid.

Forced pooling is similar to what happens on right of ways. If a high voltage power line is going from one region to another a single landowner generally can't stand in the way. Is that right? Would any infrastructure get built otherwise? What if almost everyone said no? Does it sometimes go too far? What is the current law in Pennsylvania?
 
Eminent Domain is one thing as per the law but Mineral Rights are another. Is this "forced pooling" happening here in Pa?
 
If you Google "forced pooling PA" you'll find plenty to read on the topic.

You pretty quickly get into some pretty complicated stuff, though.
 
Forced pooling is not here in PA yet, but it is being discussed. I am not sure but if a landowner is force pooled they will get paid for the royalties, not sure about anything else.

Here in PA, an Exploration and Production Company cannot produce gas under any property without having the oil and gas lease.

Finally, lets get the terminology straight,

Exploration and Production Company (Oil & Gas Co.), applies for permit, is the owner/operator of record in PA. Chevron, Range, Chesapeake

Drilling Company, contracted by E & P Co., actually drills the wells. Precision Drilling, Falcon Drilling, Patterson Drilling.

And finally, my favorite, Cementing/Hydraulic Fracturing companies, Halliburton, BJ, Universal Well Services, FracTec,

This is by no means a complete list and there are many, many more contractors that do work for the E & P companies.

This is all in response to the OP's title of this thread.



 
Gudgeonville wrote:
Forced pooling is not here in PA yet, but it is being discussed. I am not sure but if a landowner is force pooled they will get paid for the royalties, not sure about anything else.

Here in PA, an Exploration and Production Company cannot produce gas under any property without having the oil and gas lease.

Finally, lets get the terminology straight,

Exploration and Production Company (Oil & Gas Co.), applies for permit, is the owner/operator of record in PA. Chevron, Range, Chesapeake

Drilling Company, contracted by E & P Co., actually drills the wells. Precision Drilling, Falcon Drilling, Patterson Drilling.

And finally, my favorite, Cementing/Hydraulic Fracturing companies, Halliburton, BJ, Universal Well Services, FracTec,

This is by no means a complete list and there are many, many more contractors that do work for the E & P companies.

This is all in response to the OP's title of this thread.

This is a good "pecking order" list and informative post. Thanks Gudgeonville.

Its always good to know EXACTLY who we are hating on. :-D
 
Mo.......it's a good pecking order but it seems when there is a problem it's usually with the cementing/hydraulic fracturing companies , reading the lists of accidents that were cited as violations , most of the time the reason is listed as "Casing failure" , to me that means that somewhere within the area that could get into the aquifer the casing cracks , breaks , etc. seems to me the ones we should be hating on the most are THEM. Also these companies are the ones that refuse to disclose the exact recipes of the cocktail of stuff they use to do their portion of the deed.
 
Mike, they are all subs of the Corporations. Thats the point. Gudgeons post indicates the blame is shared but it isn't. It all goes back up to the top Corp who is causing the locomotion of the industry.

Ultimately the responsibility falls on the captain of the ship. Except in the corporate world...where they can pass it off to someone else.
 
No passing off the buck here, I was just pointing out that "fracking companies" do not "grab land".

The E & P companies are the ones held responsible, and we accept that, when it is accurate information. But it gets old when non issues are reported as toxic spills, etc. I'll say it again, this industry, right now, has NEVER been safer or more environmentally friendly.

We all like the lights, heat, fuel to take us hunting and fishing. But no one wants it in their back yard. I have never had a hunting spot ruined by well drilling or pipelines, can't say the same for housing or retail development.

There is more "stuff" running off a mall parking lot than these well locations.
 
Gudgeonville wrote:
I have never had a hunting spot ruined by well drilling or pipelines

I have. Just sayin...
 
The only thing I can think of that might be ruined by a right of way would be a food plot. Right of ways are amazing kill zones. Furthermore, when the ground is broke, the animals come and investigate. Animals love broken ground. How has it affected your hunting Kabutt?
 
midgeman wrote:
How has it affected your hunting Kabutt?

I had hunted turkeys for about 3 consecutive springs in the same spot near Snow Shoe. Always found them where we knew they'd be. Never harvested one, but enjoyed a few brief conversations. Two years ago they put a pad a couple hundred yards from this spot; the turkeys don't hang around there anymore. Circumstantial, yes, but I'm comfortable in saying that the well site had an effect.

This doesn't pertain to hunting necessarily, but I've also smelled pungent odors associated with drilling activity (gas, oil, diesel, whatever) up to a mile downwind of a site. If it burns my nostrils, how does it affect the fauna in the area?

I think that some of allegations against the gas drilling phenomenon are overblown, but most are legit. IMO, it's too much too soon.
 
Kabutt,
you hit the target right on the nose.Tooooo fast with not even close to enough inspectors to keep this under good scrutiny.
 
I've been around lots of right of ways, pads, and impounds. I know it's disheartening to see beautiful land to be forever changed but it is what it is. That aspect affects me too, however, those birds are still there, keep calling and I hope you get one.
 
I agree, those deer and turkey love the edges that are made from the tree removal. The hunting is not ruined, just changed some. That's what I meant.
 
No, the birds are not gone forever, but they're not in the same location. Their habits have changed due to the drilling activity. The question was whether or not it affected my hunting, and it has. Yeah, animals are attracted to edge habitat, I get that. But not the edge of a pad site where there's all kinds of machinery and people bustling about, not during the daylight...

I understand that pilfering the land is a necessary evil to exist as the society we are. This continent has been stripped and stripped again and it will continue to be, that's the way it is. But we're smart enough now and should learn from past mistakes...

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