After months of speculation about the various effects of hydraulic fracturing in Athens County, a group of speakers provided firsthand accounts of the controversial drilling method’s consequences at a conference Wednesday.
About 130 area residents, government officials and business owners gathered in Walter Hall to hear presentations about the environmental and economic impacts of fracking for the summit titled “State of the Region Conference: Understanding the Boom-Bust Cycle for Greater Sustainability.”
The conference was sponsored by the Ohio University Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs, which aims to prepare the area for oil and gas development, according to a news release.
Keynote speaker John Quigley spoke of his experiences as the former secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and said a majority of the negative impacts from drilling could be traced to hasty decision-making.
“Pennsylvania can be a cautionary tale for Ohio,” Quigley said. “It’s been punctuated by waves of natural-resource development, and we’ve got it wrong every time by privatizing profits and socializing costs.”
Although most of his presentation focused on cautionary measures, Quigley urged the audience to approach the oil and gas movement with an open mind.
“Shale-gas development presents all kinds of opportunity for economic development,” Quigley said. “Don’t be overwhelmed by claims on either side of this debate. There is exaggeration across the board.”
One of the environmental benefits of natural-gas development is that it is less conducive to global warming than coal development because gas emits half the amount of greenhouse gasses, Quigley said.
“Natural gas is the fuel that can be the bridge to our renewable future,” Quigley said.
Despite the possible benefits, local officials are concerned that they do not have the authority to regulate the well-permit process.
“So much is regulated by the state that our hands are sort of tied,” Athens County Commissioner Larry Payne said. “We’re trying to be proactive by thinking ahead of time and holding meetings like this for people to share information and learn.”
Throughout the rest of the conference, a number of panelists discussed specific issues Ohio will be facing in the near future and provided insight from personal experience with the industry.
A significant problem for areas that have seen drilling development is a shortage of housing because drilling companies have purchased available residences for their out-of-state employees, said Glenn Enslen, director for economic development for Carroll County, which has more than 70 horizontal wells.
“Folks who have been long-term renters are simply being pushed out of the market,” Enslen said.
The rush to secure leases and drill in Pennsylvania led to the problems of natural-gas development that the state is now facing, Quigley said.
“Begin this work now before the first well is drilled in your community,” Quigley said. “You don’t want to be faced with the question: ‘What now?’ We’re going to be faced with that question in Pennsylvania.”
ls114509@ohiou.edu
