Shale Gas Insight Philadelphia 2011
By: Tejas Gosai
As I hastily fastened my Marcellus Shale Coalition badge onto my gray suit lapel, Ray Walker, Jr. of Range Resources and Honorable Tom Ridge, PA’s 43rd Governor, welcomed the natural gas elites to what can only be described as the “Prom” of the shale gas industry. Over a lavish 2-day Shale Gas Insight Conference, the Marcellus Shale Coalition hosted top natural gas industry leaders, executives, politicians, exhibitors, vendors, businesses, prominent media outlets, 1600 registered participants, and me for an all out Marcellus Party in the truly sweet city of Philadelphia.
Please click here for Northcentralpa.com’s very concise breakdown of the conference.
Or click here for news results from a Google search for “Shale Gas Insight Philadelphia”
It should be noted that the conference was a success and I genuinely enjoyed attending each presentation, formal event and exhibition, but rather than commenting about the actual conference, my experience outside the conference during the anti-fracking protest and anti-fracking conference was most notable about the trip.
Conference Participants gazing at a mob of Activists.
While walking the hallways of Philadelphia’s massive convention center on the first day of the Shale Gas Insight Conference, I saw a flurry of suits peering down onto the streets. This was no midday gazing competition; they were looking at nearly 2,000 protesters with placards, megaphones, cameras, and microphones glaring up at them. At that point, I quickly weighed a luncheon with Aubrey McClendon, CEO of Chesapeake Energy, and John Surma, CEO of US Steel, against the raging scene outside, and I was out the door.
Marcellus Shale Protesters
I feverishly snapped photo after photo, as this was my first protest and I was blown away with the volumes of Marcellus haters. The Marcellus Shale’s top anti-frackers took the stage and eloquently shouted/sang their hatred for the natural gas industry, movement, process, problems, greed and pollution. Even the “Jesus of Anti-Fracking” took the stage, Gasland creator, Mr. Josh Fox. Other speakers/artists included:
All photos of the event can be accessed here.
Speaking:
- Craig & Julie Sautner, Dimock, PA
- Blondell Reynolds Brown, Philadelphia City Councilwoman
- Curtis Jones, Philadelphia City Councilman
- Doug Shields, Pittsburgh City Council President
- Al Appleton, internationally respected water systems expert
- Iris Marie Bloom, Protecting Our Waters
Anti-Fracking Placards
- Tracy Carluccio, Delaware Riverkeeper Network
- Jim Walsh, Food and Water Watch
- David Braun, United for Action
Additionally, lifting our spirits in such serious times will be:
- Welcoming songs from the powerful Rev. Rhetta Morgan
- Rebel Diaz, bilingual political hip-hop
- Beth Nixon, West Philly’s comic genius
- The Band Called Fuse, underground rock & hip-hop
- Marc Black, living life one song at a time
Doug Shields, Pittsburgh City Council President, summed up the entire groups feeling with this (Video Link):
“And so it will be with this, this industry will leave us all with a legacy of woe and want and we’re gonna pay through the nose while they walk out with trillions of dollars out of this state.”
Freedom to Protest
The rally became particularly interesting as the Marcellus Shale Coalition badge on my gray suit lapel notified many irate protesters that one of “them” is amongst their midst. Quick taps on the shoulders and a head flick in my badge’s direction gathered more and more protesters, and though I dexterously removed my badge, I was
Marcellus Shale Protesters
surrounded. After a formal greeting and dissolving of the issues, I was invited to the Shale Gas Outrage conference, Freedom From Fracking: Building Strategies Together, the next day, an opportunity I could not miss. This was my chance to talk with people who hate the Marcellus Shale and I assured them that I would attend to elicit relevant statements and cover their event.
As I approached the Congregation Rodeph Shalom in North Philadelphia, I was warmly greeted and started getting the other sides’ perspective.
The conference agenda was as follows:
8:30 Registration Opens
9:00 – 9:15 Welcome & Introductions
Don't Frack Your Mother
- Welcome from Rabbi Eli C. Freedman
- Announcements from Conference Coordinators Lynne Iser & Rabbi Mordechai Liebling
9:15 – 10:30 Opening Plenary
- Sandra Steingraber, Keynote Address
- Maya van Rossum, Delaware Riverkeeper
- Paul Rubin, Hydrologist & Hydrogeologist
- Jerry Silberman, Introduction to Moratorium Action Plan
- A. Allen, Protecting Our Waters
10:45 – 12:00 Concurrent Workshop Session
12:05 – 12:55 Lunch
1:00 – 2:15 Concurrent Workshop Session
2:30 – 3:45 Concurrent Workshop Session
4:00 – 5:00 Closing Plenary
- Josh Fox, Gasland
- Barb Jamoska, Responsible Drilling Alliance
- Moratorium Action Plan Updates
http://shalegasoutrage.org/schedule/conference/conference-schedule-program/
I was not permitted to attend the conference seminars, but I did speak with multiple protesters ranging from the focused concerned citizens to the serious full-time anti-frackers. Benjamin Ketchum, a young activists summed up his view on the conference by stating, “as an individual, I plan on moving this into the right direction, I support the organizations that letter write, but direct action needs to take place, the prominent feature of this movement as a whole is that this is big, and this is current and if we frame the argument properly in the public eye, we will do what it takes to stop fracking in America.”
A public gathering took place following the Shale Gas Outrage seminar including statements from Barb Jamoska, Responsible Drilling Alliance, and concluded with remarks from Josh Fox, Director of the Oscar-nominated “Gasland.” Josh fox riled the
Fox and Jo
crowd and stated that bigger things need to happen to solve these problems and get the politicians and media involved to make a louder noise. He encouraged everyone to stick together and keep the fight strong. I was in agreement when he stated that these two days were a powerful step in the right direction to properly regulate this industry and that the public sees upon the anti-fracking movement as a threat…but then he grabbed a banjo. Please click here for video of Josh Fox and the Banjo
I was almost in shock when I saw Josh Fox go from leading his people against the supposed “monster Marcellus,” to strumming his banjo, but when the sweet music of Josh Fox’s banjo hit my ears, I saw people stand up, clap, dance, and stomp. I couldn’t help but participate. I decided that rather than listening to the issues, we should just follow our pied piper and “believe”, be angry, scream out and take time off of work to attend protests. Then all 200 of us, including Josh Fox, held hands and sang “This Land is Your Land” for 7 minutes. It was magical and I felt great. But then I realized that this is the anti-fracking movement and from a rational standpoint, this was not the power points and graphs, scientists, and factual research that I use to make my decisions about the natural gas industry.
The fervor and zeal that Fox was preaching with was convincing and those who don’t necessarily educate themselves regarding “the opposition” can easily be swayed to believe anything. I did converse with protestors and activists who appeared to be more knowledgeable than their peers on research, politics, and legal issues but I feel that I can safely say there were only a handful of them. The witty, quirky slogans on t-shirts and signs are a great way to catch the attention of everyone in the vicinity but actual, educated debate was not present (at either conference). Seminars and workshops at the Shale Gas Insight Conference did recognize many of the negative issues associated with drilling but backed up their standpoint with research and statistics. I found this to be a significant difference between the two conferences and the way information is presented. Holding hands, singing songs, and dancing to banjo music are a fun way to spend an afternoon, but in my eyes negated all the speeches presented by the respected individuals in their fields. How can you take that seriously? Needless to say, both conferences were very interesting.
Tejas,
I would like to start off by thanking you for choosing to cover both sides of the events in philadelphia last week. It was a pleasure to meet you.
I wanted to make a few quick points regarding part of your coverage of our activist event.
First, I think it should be noted that there was quite a bit of deep discussion and hours of strategy sessions, power point presentations, focus groups and networking taking place. These workshops were closed to the public so I understand that, arriving towards the end of the day, you may not have witnessed much of this aspect, nor would you have been permitted to attend those workshops first hand.
Secondly, There were wonderful and informative presentations during the opening plenary. Paul Rubin gave a very detailed analysis of the scientific processes and potential dangers presented by fracking. Jerry Silberman kicked off the conference in the right direction by engaging those present in a substantial conversation regarding effective strategies.
Additionally, I think it is worth pointing out, as I did in our interview, that everyone who came to our event wanted to be there and nowhere else. We maxed out our alloted attendence and were forced to turn people away. Our attendees have day jobs they had to schedule time from, travel and lodging expenses that come out of their own pockets, and no financial incentive to attending, unlike many in the idustry who write off their time and expenses to their company and are attending in the hopes of making lucrative business connections.
Yes, we gathered in a circle and sang. Yes we went out for drinks afterwards… We have to keep some of it light if we are to keep people from burning out. Ours is a movement of personal dedication. Everyone who was there was there for no other reason than their personal belief in what is right.
I thank you again for providing coverage of our event and I hope to cross paths again in the future.
Benjamin Ketchum
Organizer
Gas Truth of Central PA
Hi, I am so sorry that you were not able to be in the seminars. One was a presentation based solely on DEP files and data provided by the gas company. It provided a clear, concise, and factual account of thermogenic methane migration into a water supply– in addition to other contamination effects from a wellpad in PA. Please email me and I can get you down along the road a bit more… the road to what? To the truth that the “antifrackers” (who kinda make me smile) actually DO know a lot about science (even if only a few of them) and they are working hard to promote education for everyone that is factual, science-based, file-specific, and definitely non-hysterical. All of teh shenanigans that you see outside are simply for one reason: to get your attention. I’m glad that it worked! Hopefully more people curious like you will be kind enough and brave enough to step out into the masses and risk class suicide, even if only just for a moment.
This reality of gas drilling is anti-American. http://youtu.be/g5QqidiEEHw
You didn’t mention me. I was one of the speakers. What’s different about me is that I have been a life-long Conservative, and likely the only one in attendence. I am also still not opposed to natural gas well development, I’m all for responsible drilling. This is after a small gas company no one has ever heard of, called Aruba Petroleum, decided to cut a 100ft long section out of my $15,000 pipe and cable fence to let in their bulldozers for a natural gas well pad preparation on my 10 acre piece of paradise in Decatur, TX. Aruba didn’t even have the permit yet, and they were on their way to destrying my property. Since my wife and I are merely ‘surface owners’ this means we have zero property rights. None. This is further complicated by the fact that were live in an unicorporated area, so there exists no ordinances to protect us. Not so much as a noise ordinance. Aruba has taken 40% of our property, and through multiple spills, dumped more than 10,000 gallons of toxic waste water and drilling mud on our property. Aruba came on to our property illegally to start their operations on Sept 16, 2009. On Sept 16, 2010, by a 5-0 ruling of the local tax authority, our homes’ value was dcreased from $300K to $78K. The damage was essentially done in one afternoon. That was prior to the installation of not one, but two compressors. I have no doubt the value is now zero. And I haven’t got to the constant emissions, multiple violations, failure to follow regulations or the fact that the State of Texas-the Gas and Oil State- is also suing them; for permit and emissions violations. The state regulatory agency on air quality, TCEQ fined them $32,500 for…wait for it….permit and emissions violations. My neighbors are also suing them because the emissions cause them to keep getting sick. This is after multiple trips and reports and emissions findings by the TCEQ, which obviously doesn’t have the will or the desire to actually force Aruba into compliance. We have also drawn our own lawsuit agsint them, and a court date is set for January. Aruba apprently wants to go to trial, although given the mounting evidence against them, I have no idea why. I hope we make it all the way to court, as we’ve been trying to draw attention tot he fact for two years that Aruba is simply too stupid and too careless and certainly too thoughtless to be permitted to drill. They cut corners, violate the law repeatedly, thumb their nose at the TCEQ, and EPA, and don’t spend a dime on anything that doesn’t generate income. So no filters on the diesel generators, no quality valves (they are constantly getting stuck, creating venting of gas) and they drill close to homes and public roads to save the expense on having to build their own roads.
I’m not anti-drilling, I’m anti-irresponsible drilling.
Think I’m exaggerating? Not being truthful? Check out the many videos on YouTube under Aruba Greed and decide for yourself.
Seems like maybe some of the people listed, like hydrologist Paul Rubin, may have had some more objective data to present that you were unable to have access to.
Might be interesting to have some of the speakers from this conference on the radio show to present their data and perspective.
PS Nice suit.