Former Governor Ed Rendell faced criticism after he published a pro-fracking op-ed in the New York Daily News last month and failed to mention his connections to the natural gas industry. ProPublica first reported that after stepping down has governor, Rendell was hired as a paid consultant to a private equity firm with investments in the natural [...]
The bankruptcy of federally-backed California solar company Solyndra has soured many politicians on the idea of propping up the green energy sector with government support. But here in Pennsylvania, both Democrats and Republicans agree a plan to boost the commonwealth’s alternative energy consumption is working well. StateImpact Pennsylvania’s Scott Detrow has an update on the [...]
Pennsylvania is strapped for cash. The state has run billion dollar-plus deficits for three straight years. But since 2009, royalties and bonus payments from Marcellus Shale drilling in state forests have brought in hundreds of millions of dollars. Some officials say additional drilling is the solution to the commonwealth’s financial problems. That’s raising the ire of [...]
Those anti-drilling protestors finally found someone inside the Pennsylvania Convention Center who had their back: former Democratic Governor Ed Rendell. After a day filled with speakers who dismissed or mocked their concerns – former Republican Governor Tom Ridge called it “phony hysteria,” and Chesapeake Energy CEO Aubrey McClendon essentially labeled them luddites – Rendell took [...]
If you’re anyone who has anything to do with drilling for natural gas in Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale, then you’ll likely be at the Philadelphia Convention Center on Tuesday and Wednesday. The drilling industry’s top trade group, the Marcellus Shale Coalition, is hosting “Shale Gas Insight,” a two-day conference “that will offer abundant opportunities for industry [...]
Former Department of Environmental Protection Secretary John Hanger probably won’t be seeing Page One anytime soon. Hanger has been extremely critical of the New York Times’ “Drilling Down” series, which has warned of radioactivity in fracking fluid, lax drilling regulation in Pennsylvania, and industry concern over the future of shale drilling, among other charges. When [...]
According to a story in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Pennsylvania’s Fish and Boat Commission is planning on leasing 43,000 acres of waterways to natural gas drillers, in order to raise revenue for dam repairs. The commission estimates it will need $78 million to repair the 16 dams, which are classified as high risk because they cannot [...]
StateImpact seeks to inform and engage local communities with broadcast and online news focused on how state government decisions affect your lives.
Learn More »