A rally to show support for a moratorium on drilling Marcellus shale gas wells until adequate legislation is in place was held on the Capitol steps in Charleston, WV on Monday. More than 100 people braved the heat to attend the rally organized by West Virginians for a Moratorium on Marcellus (WV4MOM).
“We are asking [legislators] for a moratorium, a waiting period until we get more regulations. Without this, it should be banned altogether,” said Kathy Cash, a WV4MOM coordinator. ”We are not here to take jobs away from West Virginians,” Cash said. “But we will not become collateral damage to this industry. … Clean drinking water, clean air and uncontaminated oil — this is our birthright and we are prepared to defend and protect it.”
Residents of Wetzel County related how the industrialization of their neighborhood has changed their lives. ”We don’t hear the birds singing in the morning anymore,” Bonnie Hall said. “We have little narrow roads. If you went to town a few years ago, you might pass one car. Today, there are hundreds of tractor-trailers,” Baker said. “What used to be a 30-minute drive could now take between one and six hours.”
Delegates Mike Manypenny (D-Taylor) and Barbara Fleischauer (D-Mon) also spoke in support of legislation. Both actively promoted Marcellus shale bills during the 2011 legislative session.
Jesse Johnson, former Mountain Party candidate for governor, remarked about the shortage of WVDEP inspectors in a tongue-in-cheek manner. ”There is a moratorium. It’s a moratorium on hiring more inspectors.”
Inside the Capitol, Forbes reports thats legislators learned from Commerce Secretary Keith Burdette that the state has hired PB Energy Storage Services to study West Virginia’s capacity to store ethane. The state is competing with others in the region to build plants that can convert this byproduct of shale drilling into a widely used compound, ethylene.
“We are using all the resources that are at our disposal to recruit a cracker,” Burdette told the House-Senate panel. “I believe we’re a very competitive state in this mix.” But the absence of rules specifically written for Marcellus drilling may hinder this goal, lawmakers learned.
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