Marcellus Shale
The Marcellus Shale issue is a difficult one and the science of it is very complicated. Here we present some of our thoughts and findings.
First some of my personal thoughts (Pete). They hopefully provide you with an idea of my frame of mind when I search, collect and report here, information about Marcellus. I hope to be as neutral as possibble, but I realize that whether it is or is not it will always be the reader's opinion!
Reference Material
These are links and copies of documents that you may find helfull in making an informed decision.
- The Marcellus Shale issue is being debated heavily in the Maryland Legislature. To learn more about what is going on, the Board of the Deep Creek Lake Property Owners Associations has put together an information piece that allows anyone to follow the happenings in the Legislature. Do check it out. It has important consequences for Garrett County and you.
- Untreated water samples from 49 wells in Garrett County have been obtained and analysed by DNR. This is the report on their findings - November 2012.
- At the request of Congress, EPA is conducting a study on the potential impacts of fracking on drinking water. This is the EPA's progress report - December 2012. A copy of the report can be downloaded from here also. - January 2013
- A gas industry view on fracking and earthquakes - May 2012.
- Here is a presentation by MDE Secretary Summers on the current state of the Marcellus issues in Maryland - January 2013.
- Vermont bans Fracking - Vermont is the first state to ban fracking entirely as of 17 May 2012. Check out the story.
Local Sources of Information
Aside from this website there are other, local organizations, that spend significant time on the issue.
- The Greater Cumberland Committee FAQ - The Marcellus Shale issue is certainly important to the lake. We're tracking it, but are not focussing on it at this time, although it looks like we may have to. We do want to make people aware of resources that they can explore for themselves. The Greater Cumberland Committee is one source of such information that is tracking the issues for the local area. This is their FAQ.
- Another local source, operating by Garrett County government are the findings of the MSNG Advisory Committee.
- The following is a link to an e-blast message from the Board of Directors of the Deep Creek Lake POA. It's an experimental mechanism to overcome some technical issues with the POA website.
- The following is a map that shows the area DNR is interested in for samples of well water to determine methane content.
