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SPOILER ALERT!

Fracking and the Environment: A Basic Overview

There has been a great deal of media attention about "fracking" lately. Fracking is a shortened form of the term "hydraulic fracturing," which is a process by which natural gas and types of fuel oils can be extracted from a sold layer of rock or sediment, such as shale or coal, using hydraulic pressure. Fracking takes place all over the world, and is censured by environmental protection and conservationist groups, because the chemicals used in the process are dangerous, large amounts of potable water are used and polluted, and the environs around the mine are ecologically damaged.
Basically, fracking involves creating a fracture in a rock formation, by which chemical-infused water can be injected at high pressure into the rock. This process, by way of the force and chemicals, induces the rock formation (usually shale or coal) to release its hydrocarbon contents. These hydrocarbons, either in the form of a gas or liquid, are excellent sources of combustible fuel.
Everyone knows that fossil fuels (coal, petroleum oil and natural gas) power the world. Fossil fuels are good sources of combustible energy, at least in the opinion of the industrialists whose factories and vehicles are powered by fossil fuels, and that frequently use petroleum products for manufacturing their wares. Petroleum, especially, is in high demand, because it is the fuel which is most easily adapted for use s a fuel and a source for polymers used in the making of plastics and other materials. Up until fairly recently, oil has also been relatively easy to obtain via terrestrial wells that use more conventional drilling technologies. As the worldwide supply of easily obtainable petroleum has shrunk, interest in extracting that precious "black gold" from less desirable locations has increased.
Fracking has been around for decades; accounts document early usage of the process as early as 1903 in other mines to separate rock such as granite from bedrock. The Halliburton Corporation first used it on a wide scale for commercial oil-drilling purposes in 1949; the process proved so profitable that the company began using it in their petroleum drilling operations all over the country. Now, as Algae Treatment Centrifuge are dwindling and prices are shooting through the roof, the eyes of the world's energy-hungry consumers have turned toward new sources of fuel: natural gas and oil from shale formations.
Shale oil or gas is formed from organic materials such as pollen, spores and algae, which were deposited into the muddy bottoms of lakebeds and the seafloor. Over the course of geologic ages (hundreds of millions of years), this sediment became buried and lithified, becoming shale rock. Shale is rich in organic compounds and has long known to be a source of fuel-quality oil and gas-but it is frequently buried at such a depth that drilling for it has not been economically or technologically feasible. Often the pressure at these depths does not permit the upward extraction of the oil and gas, or else the gas is shielded by a high-density rock layer that conventional drilling techniques cannot penetrate. This is where the concept of fracking enters the picture. Shale rock at that depth is brittle enough to be shattered using this process. Some shale deposits are especially productive have high natural concentrations of gamma radiation.
Shale oil and gas had been touted as potential saviors for the planet's fuel and environmental crises, most notably by U.S. President Barack Obama in 2009. It is estimated that shale gas might comprise up to fifty percent of North America's production of natural gases by the year 2020. Growing interest in this fuel has flamed the interest of governments and corporations in other countries such as South Africa, Australia, Europe, Canada and Asia. Since shale deposits are found at such depths (up to 20,000 feet/6,100 meters), the only kind of extraction technique that can be used is hydraulic fracturing, or fracking.
What is the problem? Actually, there are two major problems with this process. First of all, shale gas is not a "cleaner" gas, in terms of greenhouse gases or hydrocarbon emissions. Actually, the EPA and several independent scientific bodies have discovered that between the extraction, conversion and usage processes of utilizing shale fuels, more harmful emissions are generated when compared to fossil fuels.
Additionally, using fracking as a method of extracting the gas is extremely detrimental to the environment. The "proprietary" chemical mixture used to loosen the fuel from the rock is full of harmful compounds, much of which stay in the ground after drilling has been completed. It is not possible to remove these chemicals from the water, which results in contamination of the water table. Radiation leakage from the gamma-rich shale can pose a problem for the groundwater and soil, too. The physical process of fracking causes irreversible damage to the landscape as well.
Simply, fracking is a bad idea. It might seem like a useful means to a profitable end, but in this case,will the risk outweigh the reward? In the next piece of this series, we will discuss the physical process of hydraulic fractured drilling, including an in-depth analysis of the chemicals used, the politics and economics of fracking, and the reaction of the world's scientific community.
SPOILER ALERT!

Fuel and Energy Information - What Is Oil Shale?

Due to fast growing industries and improved life styles (gadgets, electronics and other household appliances) we now use more energy in industry and transportation as well as in almost every aspect of our personal lives. This need for energy has compelled nations to search for new sources of materials to produce energy from in order to fulfill the daily needs of their citizens.
Oil shale is one such resource that offers hope as a new energy source. It is basically a sedimentary rock substance which has some fine grains within it of a substance called "Kerogen". It is an organic material which can be used to produce some liquid hydrocarbons. food grade decanter centrifuge produced are not true oil in nature but this shale oil may replace natural oil and gas in the next few decades as the deposits of traditional natural oil and gas deplete and eventually become exhausted and people are forced to turn to replacement sources.
The process of production of shale gas and oil is actually very simple and a cost effective alternative to normal oil and gas production. Through chemical analysis, crude oil is first generated from the kerogen and heated to a particular temperature to get a distilled shale oil product which is similar to conventional petroleum oil but not exactly so when compared at the molecular level. You can also obtain low grade power fuel directly by heating shale oil which is effective for power generation in many industrial applications.
Currently Middle East gulf countries are the prime exporters of natural oil and gas but as existing resources have depleted with our over consumption, crude oil prices have consequently soared much higher over the last decade. As the increasing energy needs of human beings climbs, the consumption of oil and natural gas directly increases also and with increasing prices comes a definite need to shift to an alternative like shale gas and oil which can be added to the available energy resource pool at a fairly reasonable price.
Research and various studies have shown usable enough reserves of shale gas located in both Western and Asian countries. It has also been found that shale gas emissions have a relatively low carbon content and as such they make a good alternative to traditional fossil fuels. The utilization of environmentally sustainable alternatives must occur in the near future though to help protect our planet from both pollution and increasingly severe "green house" effects.
The extraction of shale gas and oil faces many issues such as environmental impact concerns, divergent government policies, funding and the overall economic value of these projects amongst others. Environmental protection acts and concerns about the overall impact of the extraction process is a major hurdle for companies wanting to capitalize on the rising demand for shale oil and gas energy.
Although there are many problems to be addressed with the utilization of shale gas, the immense future need, in light of diminishing traditional natural resources and in the context of the current oil crisis situation, may direct sufficient resources and funding into the industry to make shale oil and gas a viable and sustainable part of our daily life in future.
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How to Minimize the Taxes on Marcellus Shale Payments

With the Marcellus Shale leasing arrangements and royalties in Western Pennsylvania some lucky area land owners are now faced with important decisions involving large sums of money in a scale they have never encountered before. As exciting as this is, as with all sudden accumulations of wealth there are important accounting challenges that must be met, especially if one wants to minimize taxes.
Lump Sum or Annuity?
When the energy companies' representatives working in Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania first contact landowners with potential drilling sites, they tend to entice them with up-front payments. From a tax standpoint, that represents an accounting challenges because many of the new Lessees have no experience with the limited ways in which lump sums of cash can be sheltered from onerous taxes.
That may be why so may savvy landowners, their attorneys, and their accountants prefer longer term royalties offering the largest share of the earnings they will realize over the life-time of the wells.
In some ways, this is similar to the decisions facing Pennsylvania lottery winners who are presented with a choice between a lump sum or an annuity. As attractive as the lump sum is on first look, its exposure to immutable tax issues in the year of issue begin to pale compared to the more elastic choices that come with measured, long-term royalties.
The landowner should be realizing a signing bonus and royalties in any agreement. We are, of course, looking at the entirety of the enterprise. And in that long-term comes a myriad of tax and accounting issues that Lessees need to address. In many ways these issues are identical to individuals and enterprises that have guaranteed income sources that are immutable.
More than just the needs of quality accounting that are brought to bear on regular enterprises, these consistent source of funds can and are viewed by tax code writers with special interest. For CPA's working with Marcellus Shale lessee clients knowing inside and out the individual tax issues in Allegheny, Washington, Fayette and Indiana counties, along with the tax code of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and of course, Federal Tax Law is vital.
Important Questions
Landowners need to order their financial affairs with some basic, common sense accounting guidelines:

Is the purpose of the royalties to be used as the income for their lifestyles on a yearly basis? Or do they intend to use part or all of it for future based purposes, including leaving large estates to heirs and favorite charities and causes?
As the royalty funds are distributed, does the Lessee plan to, at least initially, deposit the sum into nearby banks or qualified financial institutions, or will they set up separate private functions that will process the royalty payments? Sometimes the issue here is to introduce the Lessee to accounting and financial functions that they may not be familiar with for not having access to this kind of wealth before.
Finally, what are Kitchen waste centrifuge -term financial plans that the royalties will facilitate? In other words, where does the Lessee see themselves and their families, five, ten, fifteen and even twenty years ahead? What investment strategies, tax strategies, and wealth preservation and management accounting strategies best help them to obtain those goals?

The wise landowner should seek the help of proven professionals who have the accounting and financial planning expertise to help guide those facing the happy challenges of Marcellus Shale drilling royalties.
SPOILER ALERT!

Aquifers Are Unseen But Vital

Aquifers are underground pools of water. Unlike surface water, the water in aquifers is stored in rocks and shale that absorb moisture as the aquifer fills and release water as the aquifer empties. This is in contrast to "water table" that refers to the moisture level below the surface of the ground.
Aquifers are shallow, medium depth, and deep. The deepest ones are thousands of feet below the surface and contain water deposited from the Ice Ages. kitchen waste treatment centrifuge are so deep that no water flows into them. Medium depth aquifers can be as deep as several thousand feet below the surface. They may rise by several inches or several feet of water each year. Shallow aquifers occur from near the surface to several hundred feet below the surface and will rise and fall with the seasons. Surface aquifers can range from a few yards to hundreds of yards wide and deep.
Aquifers are a vital part of our water usage for two reasons: first, much of our drinking water and irrigation water is drawn directly from them. Secondly, they help keep surface water flowing and fresh. Wells and springs draw their water from aquifers. Streams and rivers add water to aquifers near the banks in times of heavy flow and draw from them in times of slow flow.
Early in the Fall is a good time to observe your wells, springs, creeks and rivers. If they are nearly dry the aquifers are being strained. If you detect any evidence of pollution they may also be contaminated.
We will never actually see an aquifer. These invisible, important dimensions of our water supply are little understood and vastly under-appreciated by most people. And yet day in and day out they contribute to the water most of us drink, to the health of many of our creeks, rivers, streams and lakes, and to the raising of the food we eat..
SPOILER ALERT!

Are We Doomed to Repeat History With the Marcellus Shale Deposits in Northeastern Pennsylvania?

On CBD extraction centrifuge commute today I drove past many of the same old local attractions. A decrepit railroad bridge spanning a stretch of river near its convergence with a smaller waterway where red and orange dusty mud spewing from underground mines covers the banks and bed of the waters. A train yard full of junk, now showing signs of life. Piles of coal and black desert also line the route.
Everyone in this valley passes, every day, many reminders of the unchecked exploitation of natural resources. These are so plainly evident that they have become unremarkable.
As always, I drove past the site of the Twin Shaft disaster, 58 miners entombed for eternity under hundreds of feet of rock. Their families now long since dead, there is no one to remember.
Now we have daily reports of trillions (with a capital "T") of dollars of natural gas to be drilled out of the mountains just to the north of our comfortable little post industrial wasteland. We have news of the creation of 200,000 jobs, and of massive investment by the same people who are filling the Gulf of Mexico with crude oil. These are the same types of people, by the way, who lorded it over our coal miner ancestors 100 years ago.
After so many decades below the poverty line, the people of our region welcome the chance to make some money. Their worries over water supply are set aside so they can get checks for what seem to be enormous sums of money. Who could ever possibly blame them?
Perhaps the spirits of the hundreds and thousands of miners hurt and killed in the mines. They came from the old countries far away to find better lives for their descendants. They wanted their children to be educated and free from oppression and hunger. By and large, they achieved that goal.
I suspect that the miners would want their descendants to be smarter, to look around and know, based on the lessons of the past and the present, that our country's endless need for fuel places the environment second to profit. I think the miners would want their great grandchildren to get paid for selling this fuel.
I also think the miners would know with whom they are dealing. The miners made progress by forming unions at the price of blacklisting by the mine owners and excommunication by the church. These energy executives, like the coal and rail barons 100 years ago, are unabashedly cashing in on the energy needs of the world. We should cash in on their need for our energy.
These companies are buying gas rights for a nickel and selling for a dime within six months.
Let's organize, unify and hold out. This time, let us get paid before they take what they are going to get in any event. With enough money, we can move or drink bottled water. If they want our land, make them buy it at a premium.
The historical odds are that the extraction of this fuel will wreck the environment and the water supply. When the fuel is exhausted, the region will relapse into that stagnation particular to decimated mining country. When that happens, the Endless Mountains will contain only endless abandoned drilling rigs, rusting equipment, towns with vacant storefronts, polluted streams and rivers. The locals will look at them every day, and to their grandchildren, it will all seem normal.
Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it.
What happens to those who remember?
SPOILER ALERT!

Those Fracking Chinese - They Are So Full of Gas, Natural Gas That Is

The United States is hardly the only nation that has an abundance of natural gas. There are other countries that are also exporting their left over abundance, and now we have new technology to get even more. That technology will be shared around the world, and even if it isn't shared, others will soon follow. oil sludge treatment decanter centrifuge may choose not to involve themselves in "fracking" technologies because perhaps they don't understand it, environmentalist concerns, or the geological formations under the earth where the gas is located is not separated by enough Earth from underground freshwater supplies.
Nevertheless, many in the natural gas industry in the United States would like to export this energy. Already Congress is concerned, because although we have hundreds of years of supply, especially considering all the new methods we are using such as fracking, we also want cheap and abundant energy here, and we don't want to run out. Of course, who says we will be able to export all of this gas, if all of our potential international customers are using the same methods to get their own gas out of their own ground?
According to the China Economic Review on March 18, 2012 "China forecasts surge in shale gas production," as the country will begin fracking methods and expect annual shale gas increase hyperbolically in 2015 and up to ten-fold by 2020, and there was another interesting article about this in the WSJ titled; "China Forecasts Soaring Shale-Gas Output," published on March 15 and updated on March 16, 2012.
Sure, this is totally expected, and I wrote about this back in 2008. Indicating that eventually everyone else would be using the same technology. Yes, China likes to make lots of future projections when it comes to their economy. Some are very robust forward-looking statements which don't make a lot of sense, and obviously you can't have 10% year-over-year growth forever, to project such is simply nonsense, akin to the global warming alarmists and their hockey puck stick.
Figures lie, and liars figure, an exponential growth forever is not possible, or at least exponential graphs forever are impossible when it comes to natural resources in economics here on Earth. The reality is; in the United States we are full of gas, and we have tons of it, and we are finding more all the time. But I would submit to you that the Chinese are also full of gas, and now that they've found fracking, you can bet they're going to go get it all. This could turn out to be a good thing because they have so many coal-fired electricity plants generating energy, and all that is severely polluting their air. So maybe Food centrifuge supplier/manufacturer fracking Chinese aren't so bad after all? You be the judge.
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Considering China's Future Shale Gas and Oil Revolution On Global Economics

Not long ago, I was talking to an alternative energy strategist from Europe who was pushing wind and solar. He explained to me that China was ahead of the United States when it came to alternative energy. He said that China had invested more than the United States had, and had more to show for it. Whereas, that might be true since the United States has spent $90 billion on alternative energy and much that they invested in has gone bankrupt and provided little if any jobs - all is not well in China when it comes to CO2 emissions in their energy sector.
In many regards China is polluting up a storm, and for almost a five-year period they had produced one new coal-fired plant every two weeks. The amount of pollution in Beijing and Shanghai is unheard of, it's far worse than Mexico City if you can believe that. There are some days when people in high-rises cannot see across the street to the building on the other side, it is really that bad. Perhaps you haven't heard about this because the Chinese media blocks out any stories on such topics. US media companies in China don't dare write about it either, or they will be kicked out of the country.
Of drilling fluids decanter centrifuge , China must have energy generation and are getting all they can have hydroelectricity, building nuclear power plants, and putting up the wind and solar, but their alternative energy strategies are not working fast enough to keep up with demand, so they keep burning coal. Their best strategy might be to do something like the US and use natural gas as it's not as if the Chinese don't have just as much or more than we do.
There was an interesting article the Wall Street Journal on December 3, 2012. The article was titled "Global Gas Push Stalls-Firms Hit Hurdles Trying to Replicate US Success Abroad," by Russell Gold and Marynia Kruk. The article noted that China has 1,275 trillion cubic feet of natural gas which is technically recoverable using fracking techniques, the same type of techniques we're using here in the United States. It seems as though China has even more natural gas than we have available in the United States, and trust me we have plenty.
So why doesn't China go after all their natural gas? Well, they have different geological and rock formations than we do, different sedimentary layers where ground water is trapped. They are also deathly afraid of earthquakes, as well they should. The article above also stated; "obstacles mean significant overseas shale energy production could be a decade away." Still, clarifying decanter if the global warming alarmists, environmentalists, or the rest of the world is going to want all of China's pollution from their coal-fired plants.
Either they need to turn them into clean coal, or figure something else out. Further, the costs to their populations health is significant as that too is a problem, a big one. Indeed I hope you will please consider all this and think on it.

Marcellus Shale Gas Drilling Projects in Rural Pennsylvania

The production of natural gas from the Marcellus Shale formation is having an effect on people, businesses, the Ecosystem in parts of north central Pennsylvania, like in the rural community of Coudersport, PA. The impact on life in the area of natural gas activities will have major impacts lasting for approximately 50 years. Initially, the local economy in natural gas drilling areas will grow substantially. In addition, the restaurants, hotels, and specialty gifts stores in the underlying areas will greatly benefit and make profits from the many workers needed to extract and transport the natural gas. For instance, in the Pennsylvania area projections indicate over 2,000 wells will be drilled within a year. In the years to follow approximately 40,000 more wells will be drilled.
The amount of people needed to perform these functions will greatly impact the local communities in positive and negative ways. Close to 400 workers of 150 different occupations are needed for each natural gas well. Many of these workers will only be working at the well sites and surrounding locations for a few days, whereas, others will require more time to complete their individual projects. Forecasters of the Marcellus natural gas project predict projects could last for the next fifty years. There will be people working in the gas fields, companies providing resources and services to the workers, development stages where drilling rights are acquired, and closing wells when drilling is completed. There is CBD extraction centrifuge will make profits online and in their store.
Additionally, yeast separation centrifuge in Coudersport, PA as well as other rural communities in the surrounding areas will benefit greatly from the influx of people passing through and taking residence in the boroughs. However, there is a price to pay for more profits and more people. With the arrival of more people and activity in the rural regions of Coudersport, PA and similar areas there stands to chance there will be more crime, social difficulties, and other social and environmental aliments. Already, local residents and businesses in Coudersport have witnessed significant increase in traffic and people in the downtown area. Hotels in the area are packed, while more and more people patronized the local restaurants in pursuit of a good meal.
Only time will tell if the Marcellus Shale projects will provide what is necessary concerning natural energy. Nonetheless, the lifestyle, businesses, citizens, and ecosystem in the areas involved in this project will be affected in a number of ways. More traffic, crime, and people are expected to infiltrate the passive and tranquil communities. Wildlife and renewable resources will also be affected by the increase of vehicles and populace. We hope all goes well...