Casey calls for shale disclosures

SCRANTON - U.S. Sen. Bob Casey said Thursday that Pennsylvania's emerging natural gas industry has the potential to create jobs and wealth, but also carries environmental risks that must be addressed.

The Pennsylvania Democrat told a forum that the "gas rush" taking place in the Marcellus Shale region "can create a great economic boost" in a state where nearly 600,000 people are unemployed. But he added, "We must not fail to protect our people, our land, our water, and our future."

Casey is sponsoring the FRAC Act, stalled legislation that calls for federal regulation of the drilling process known as hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking." Drillers inject millions of gallons of chemical-laden water deep underground to break up the shale and let natural gas escape, leaving much of the water below ground. Because the process was exempted from federal laws by 2005 energy legislation, regulation has been left to states.

Opponents contend that fracking not only threatens the quality of groundwater but the quantity, since it requires much water to be withdrawn from rivers. The industry says that fracking has a long track record, is safe, and has no confirmation that the process has ever contaminated water supplies, and that other kinds of energy production use much more water.

Casey on Thursday pushed for full disclosure of all chemicals used in fracking, one of the provisions of the FRAC Act. The industry says it does disclose those chemicals, some known carcinogens, after years of claiming the chemical formulas were proprietary.

"Pennsylvanians have a right to know what is being injected into the ground at thousands of sites across the commonwealth," he said. If fracking chemicals do not pose a threat to groundwater, drinking water or human health, he asked, "then why can't we shine the light of full disclosure on that process?"

Industry official Kathryn Klaber, who appeared with Casey at the forum, said drillers have nothing to hide and do not object to additional types of disclosure to make the public more comfortable. "There's no reason not to have that data available, and clearly the public sees it as a top priority," said Klaber, head of the Marcellus Shale Coalition.

Thursday's forum at Marywood University examined the short- and long-term effects of natural gas development in the Marcellus Shale, a giant gas field underlying much of New York state, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia.