Dish Soap in TruthinessLand

In the TruthinessLand, Terry Engelder, Geoscience Professor at Penn State University and the so called Father of the Marcellus, was asked what was in the frack chemicals.  He said dish soap.

So I said to myself -  Hey, it's time for a road trip to the kitchen.

I just grabbed a bottle of Dawn off the sink and read the label - ingredients listed are :  water, sodium lauryl sulfate, sodium pareth-23, sulfate C-12-14-16, dimethyl amine oxide, SD alcohol, undeceth-9, propylene glycol, cyclohexandiamine, polyacetate, protease, fragrance, FD&C blue, no phosphate.

If it's only dish soap, why do they need an entire site to allow you to search for chemicals in the frack cocktail?  And these are the only ones they will tell us about. 

Not having an expert on hand, I went to Frac Focus.

UPDATE: 7/31/2012 - The Marcellus Shale Gas: Disingenuous thinking about its Environmental Footprint
Terry Engelder, Professor of Geoscience, The Pennsylvania State University

FracFocus is the national hydraulic fracturing chemical registry.

FracFocus is managed by the Ground Water Protection Council and Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission, two organizations whose missions both revolve around conservation and environmental protection.

The site was created to provide the public access to reported chemicals used for hydraulic fracturing within their area. To help users put this information into perspective, the site also provides objective information on hydraulic fracturing, the chemicals used, the purposes they serve and the means by which groundwater is protected

With some clicking around, I managed to find the list of frack chemicals the natural gas industry is willing to disclose.   Next I compared the list of ingredients on the Dawn bottle to that listed on the Frac Focus page.    Guess what?  None of the Dawn ingredients are on the Frac Focus page.

Granted some frack chemicals are proprietary, meaning if they tell you what these chemicals are they will have to kill you.....but not knowing what they are will probably kill you too.    Now I'm curious, is there FD&C blue in the frack cocktail?  Or Yellow 5 or Red 40?

Maybe frackers don't use Dawn?  Do me a favor, grab a bottle of dish soap, look at the ingredients and see if any are listed in on Frac-Focus. 

And by the way: (Emphasis Added  - my comments in red)

 Mr. Engelder said Range and Chesapeake Energy Corp., both major players in Marcellus, are collaborating with Penn State to solve problems involving hydraulic fracturing.    (Problems???? But TruthinessLand said there were no problems....)

One of the contracts involves the federal government putting up $3 million, which is matched by $2.4 million from industry. 

Mr. Engelder said despite the money flowing to his research, he remains on his nine-month university salary of $109,000. Mr. Engelder has an ownership stake in Appalachian Fracture Systems Inc., a consulting firm that has done work on Marcellus Shale. He said he earned $40,000 from it in 2009.   

He said other than that he is not drawing personal income from the industry and he is not a shill.

"I think there is a very important distinction between being an industry spokesperson/apologist and a scientist working very hard to help industry become better at what it does," Mr. Engelder wrote. 

He points to a Philadelphia Inquirer Op-Ed piece he wrote last year taking Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. to task -- as well as environmentalists and academics -- for statements regarding alleged gas migration into water wells in Dimock, Pa., for which homeowners blamed the company.

"Cabot's denials of culpability seem disingenuous," the piece said, "given that other industry leaders have recognized the issue and are working with Penn State to address it.".

Maybe Cabot used too much dish soap?

Corbett to the poor "FRACK YOU"

HARRISBURG - A decades-old state program that provides cash grants as a lifeline to the poor will go out of existence Wednesday with a one-month reprieve having run its course.

The General Assistance cash grant program, which dates to the Great Depression, has provided a monthly stipend of roughly $200 to nearly 70,000 Pennsylvanians. The great majority of recipients have been adults with permanent or temporary disabilities, but they also include victims of domestic violence, children under 18 in the care of an adult who is not a relative and individuals in drug and alcohol treatment programs.

Gov. Tom Corbett proposed eliminating the program in his budget address in February. The administration has generally eliminated or cut back social service programs that go beyond what the federal government requires.

Corbett has consistently cut the budget of programs and funding which benefit the REAL people of Pennsylvania - education, healthcare, social services and even the DEP.   Corbett cites Pennsylvania fiscal concerns as the reason.

Yet when it comes to his buddies fracking up our land, our water and our air, Corbett has no fiscal concerns.   Corbett wants to give $66 million per year for 25 years tax credit to Royal Dutch Shell Ethane Cracker Plant.

Total cost to the REAL people of Pennsylvania:

$1,650,000,000 ($1.65 billion)

No Fracking Way

Be sure to bookmark NO FRACKING WAY a blog by the people of Shale Shock Media.  I am honored to be joining James "Chip" Northrup, William Huston and Cris McConkey!

More from "Truthiness"Land

So call me a snoop, but when someone is held out as an "Expert", I like to know a bit more.     Consider this my "internet" road tour into "Truthiness"land. 

This is by no means intended to call the opinions or statements made by the "experts" into question, but rather to share what wasn't presented in "Truthinessland" by Energy-in-Depth and Independent Petroleum Association of America producers and editors.

Two of the experts presented were:
Scott Roberts –  former Deputy Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection for Mineral Resource ManagementTruthland Expert  Former Deputy Secretary, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental ProtectionNew Cumberland, Pa.  Recently retired from DEP after more than 25 years of service, Scott spent his whole career protecting the health and safety of Pennsylvania residents. Among his career highlights: Working with Democrats and Republicans from Pennsylvania’s congressional delegation earlier this decade to secure more than $1 billion in additional federal funding to remediate the state’s highest-priority abandoned coal mines.

and

Martin, Joseph, P.  PhD, PETruthland Expert Professor, Engineer, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pa. Joseph P. Martin, Ph.D., P.E. is a 29-year professor in the College of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering at Drexel University. He holds three degrees in civil engineering—B.S. from Tufts University, M.S. from Northeastern University, and a Ph.D. from Colorado State — and is considered a leading expert in his field. In 2012, Martin was selected as the “Engineer of the Year” by the Delaware County chapter of the Pennsylvania Society of Professional Engineers.

In 2010, the City of Philadelphia PA produced a report entitled:  Report of Philadelphia City Council’s Joint Committees on Transportation and Public Utilities and the Environment Pursuant to Resolution No. 100515:  Marcellus Shale Gas Drilling’s Impact on Philadelphia

Mr. Roberts was a member of the Regulator Panel: Member of the Regulator Panel: The fourth panel presented two members of different government agencies that play an active role in regulating drilling and one representative of two nonprofit corporations that monitor environmental policy in Philadelphia.

Dr. Martin was a member of the Science Panel: The first panel featured three scientists who presented facts and discussed the potential impacts that shale gas drilling could have upon human health, aquatic life and environmental quality. The panelists exposed gaps in information that must be filled in order to determine the full cost of fracking.

I encourage you to read the entire report and make up your own mind.

The following is Roberts' transcripts from the report:Roberts: “During the hydraulic fracturing, it's a high-pressure operation. A hose will burst, the materials will be sprayed out and spilled, or after the water flows back from the well, there's materials handling problems. And those are unacceptable. They're illegal under state law, and we should not accept that, period.” (Transcript p. 257)

Roberts: “Right now the statewide average, we're seeing about 13 percent of the water that is pumped underground comes back up during what's called the flow-back stage of well.” (Transcript p. 258)

Councilman Jones: “How often in the lifetime of a well or over a period of a year should a well be inspected?” (Transcript p.246)
 Roberts: “We try to go out and inspect those wells that are in production, really that's not where the problems occur. The problems would occur during those drilling operations. So we try to target having our inspectors going out at points of the process that are most likely to have problems.” (Transcript p.248)

Councilman Jones: “So in that phase, how many times is a good number of inspections?” (Transcript p.248)
Roberts: “It depends again on the nature of the operation and the operator, but four, five, six times.” (Transcript p.248)

Councilman Jones: “ How often and is there a process by which you monitor a well being shut down?” (Transcript p.249)
 Roberts: “Yes. There are specific legal requirements in the State of Pennsylvania for what's called well plugging, and when that well reaches the end of its commercial life, the owner or operator of that has an affirmative obligation to plug that well. It has to be done in a particular manner to make sure that the gas from a depth isn't leaking up the well bore and it's safe.” (Transcript pp. 249-250)

Leaking up the well bore?  According to Truthland, there is no such thing.

Councilman Jones: “So is it equally as a vulnerable time as the initial drilling?” (Transcript p.250)
 Roberts: “Oh, absolutely. And obviously with the Marcellus wells being as young as they are, we don't have any that have reached that point in their life expectancy.” (Transcript p.250)

Roberts: “We absolutely agree with the public and everybody else that the industry needs to be transparent with what they are using in these wells. And it is more difficult than perhaps was explained earlier in trying to get the industry to do that, but as was mentioned, we are changing our regulations and modifying them.” (Transcript p.256)

ummmm......according to Terry Engelder's statement in Truthland, the gas industry is just using dish detergent.The following is Martin's transcripts from the report:

Although much of the frack water is used for recycling, there is still no easy way to discard other water, which must be sufficiently treated before producers discharge the water.

Dr. Martin asserts that a treatment solution is entirely up to industry, while it is the public's role to set up standards that industry must satisfy.  (Martin: Transcript pp 33-35)

For every well, there are up to five layers of steel casing and cement to prevent brine leakage. (Martin: Transcript pp. 36-38)

Panelists disagreed about whether the injected material would be absorbed into the shale layer.
Martin said that the 8 injected chemicals are mostly organic and would be absorbed into the layer. (Transcript pp. 72-74)

Councilman Jones: “If everything went right, this is the benefit. Real quick, if things go wrong, what would be your nightmare?”
Martin: “My nightmare would be the spill of frack liquid when it's being carried from a site to some sort of treatment. People do get in accidents, trains do derail, things like that. The nightmare is nightmares. Everything is fairly controlled at the site if we fix these contractual issues. The state has monitors. Maybe they don't have enough, but the nightmare that I have is carrying a million gallons of frack water. When they finish an area to recycle it and it's too salty to deal with, it's being carried. Then we are dealing with a low-level variation of how do we move nuclear waste casts in Nevada. That's my nightmare of a spill of salt water on the road.”  (Transcript pp.85-86)

While each well drilled in the state is filed in the DEP's public record, along with a list of the materials that are injected, the particular concentrations of each substance is not disclosed by every driller. (Boufadel: Trasncript p. 65)

Furthermore, these substances are given under a generic trade name, but the specific chemicals are withheld. (Velinsky and Martin: Transcript p. 70P

Councilman Jones: “Even though they (companies) don't tell the public, do they tell someone, some regulatory agency, that this is what I'm putting in the ground so that you know?” (Transcript p.68)

Martin: “Yes. It's on the well record that's filed at the DEP that they have to list the materials they put in. They don't necessarily have to put in the concentrations. But that's in the public record for every well that's drilled…What is not fully disclosed…are the concentrations, but the contents are there” (Transcript pp.68-69)

Councilwoman Brown: “So are we hearing that there are no standard protocols, if you will, that the public is uniformly made aware of?” (Transcript p.69)
Martin: “No.” (Transcript p.69)

Councilwoman Brown: “There are no protocols, one. And, two, the public is not uniformly made aware of whatever the substance they're getting at the end of the drill?” (Transcript p.69)
Velinsky: “That's correct. And one of the things is that the drillers may say we're putting a chemical in and they give you the trade name, but they don't tell you the specific chemical.” (Transcript p.70)

Near the end of the movie, Sherry sits down with Loren Salsman, a Dimock resident, and they share a glass of water.  A year ago - Jul 25, 2011, EID visited Mr. Salsman and made these videos.   Funny how you never saw or heard the water filtration system humming in Truthland.

For more of what was not mentioned in Truthland - Read:   

What is the trouble with Truthland? -- by Scott Cannon

EZ-FRACK by EXECUTIVE ORDER

Because we are not fracking up Pennsylvania fast enough - Gov. Corbett has signed an executive order to speed up the process.

Governor Corbett Signs Executive Order Requiring DEP to Implement Permit Decision Guarantee Program

HARRISBURG, Pa., July 24, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Governor Tom Corbett today issued Executive Order EO2012-11, which requires the Department of Environmental Protection to immediately begin assessing how best to make timely permitting decisions. 

The order establishes a Permit Guarantee Program, in which DEP will strive to make permitting decisions within established processing times for complete and technically adequate applications.

2012-11.pdf 2012-11 - Permit Decision Guarantee for the Department of Environmental Protection  07/24/2012

1.  Types of Permits Covered.  This Executive Order authorizes the Department to establish by policy, using an open and participatory process, the elements of the Permit Decision Guarantee Program and the specific permits covered by the permit decision guarantee.  Such permits may include those with the most direct impacts on protection of public health, safety and the environment, as well as economic development.  The Department shall periodically revise and republish the policy, as needed. Notice of these actions shall be published in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.

2.  Applicant Responsibilities.  The permit applicant is responsible for submitting an application that contains all information needed by the Department to make a decision and meets all applicable environmental statutory and regulatory requirements.  Applicants are encouraged to schedule a pre-application conference with the Department as soon as practicable to discuss the permitting needs for the total project.

3.  Department Responsibilities.  The Department shall establish clear guidance that describes permit application requirements.  The permit decision guarantee policy developed by the Department for implementation of this Executive Order shall include a predictable processing time for each permit application covered by the permit decision guarantee.  The policy shall establish that the Department will strive to process environmentally-protective applications as expeditiously as possible, but no longer than the established processing times.  The policy shall indicate that only applications that are complete and technically adequate shall be eligible for the permit decision guarantee and that incomplete or severely deficient applications shall be returned to the applicant.  The processing time shall be the total number of business days beginning with the receipt of an application and ending with the final action by the Department.

4.  Coordinated Permits.  The Department will coordinate the review of applications for projects with multiple permits. The Department shall develop and update, as needed, a permit coordination policy that is consistent with the permit decision guarantee.

After all the frackers have paid good money for Corbett
2011 "donations" per Marcellus Money
    Chief Oil & Gas     PAC     January 21, 2011     $25,000.00    
    US Energy Exploration     Executive     January 21, 2011     $4,000.00    
    Shell     Executive     February 10, 2011     $50,000.00    
    Consol Energy     Executive     February 10, 2011     $1,000.00    
    Consol Energy     PAC     April 4, 2011     $7,000.00    
    Range Resources     PAC     June 7, 2011     $954.77    
    Range Resources     Executive     June 9, 2011     $1,000.00    
    Tanglewood Exploration     PAC     June 9, 2011     $1,000.00    
    Range Resources     Executive     June 9, 2011     $500.00    
    MarkWest Energy Partners     PAC     June 9, 2011     $1,000.00    
    Cabot Oil & Gas     PAC     June 9, 2011     $5,000.00    
    Range Resources     Executive     June 9, 2011     $300.00    
    Chief Oil & Gas     PAC     June 21, 2011     $5,000.00    
    Seneca Resources (National Fuel)     PAC     August 15, 2011     $1,000.00    
    Alpha Natural Resources     Executive     October 25, 2011     $1,250.00    
    Range Resources     PAC     November 1, 2011     $2,000.00    
    Chief Oil & Gas     PAC     November 1, 2011     $1,000.00    
    UGI     PAC     November 1, 2011     $2,500.00    
    Dominion     PAC     November 2, 2011     $1,500.00    
    Dominion     PAC     November 2, 2011     $1,000.00    
    Alpha Natural Resources     Executive     November 7, 2011     $1,250.00    
    Alpha Natural Resources     Executive     November 7, 2011     $500.00    
    Alpha Natural Resources     Executive     November 15, 2011     $2,500.00    
    Alpha Natural Resources     Executive     November 15, 2011     $2,500.00    
    Alpha Natural Resources     Executive     November 15, 2011     $2,500.00    
    Alpha Natural Resources     Executive     November 15, 2011     $1,250.00    
    Alpha Natural Resources     Executive     November 15, 2011     $1,000.00    
    Exxon Mobil     PAC     December 12, 2011     $10,000.00    
    Chesapeake Energy     PAC     December 12, 2011     $7,500.00    
    EQT     PAC     December 12, 2011     $1,000.00    
    Somerset Water Resources     Executive     December 12, 2011     $5,000.00    
    PIOGA     PAC     December 29, 2011     $5,000.00    
    Alpha Natural Resources     PAC     December 30, 2011     $7,353.85 

PSYOPS in Gasland

In late 2011, TXSharon attended an an industry conference for communication executives, Media & Stakeholder Relations Hydraulic Fracturing Relations Initiative 2011.   Read about her experience.   Be sure to scroll down and click on the media links.

TruthinessLand

To borrow a word from Stephen Colbert, Truthland would be more accurate if it were titled TRUTHINESSland.

If you scroll down to the bottom of the Truthland webpage it's stated that "Truth"land is a production by Energy-In-Depth, a front organization for the natural gas industry, and the Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA) which is another industry organization.

If your stomach can take it - Click here to watch

If you do decide to watch it - get a piece of paper and a pen and mark down how many gas wells, compressor stations, metering stations and pipelines you see. Leave a comment and let me know how many you saw.

One of my chuckles in the infomercial is near the end when she states that Josh Fox is from New York City. I was half expecting to see the Pace Salsa commercial where the "cowboys" exclaim NEW YORK CITY???!!!"

James "Chip" Northrup does a good job of dissecting "Truthland".

Teaching Chickens How to Make Omelettes

White House Wants Industry Help To Choose Which Regulations To Kill

per desmogblog - 7-20-2012, by Farron Cousins

Excerpt:

When the Obama White House begins adopting the same talking points as the dirty energy industry, something has gone horribly wrong with our government. But that is exactly what is happening today, with the White House apparently buying into the repeatedly debunked industry talking point that claims that government regulations are killing jobs.

The White House has created a new page on their website – whitehouse.gov/advise – where they are asking businesses to tell the government which regulations are burdening their business so that the government can decide whether or not to kill that regulation.

This is sooooo wrong on soooooo many levels.   The foxes are not only allowed to guard to hen house, they are being encouraged to teach the hens how to make omelettes.

The White House asks " How can we continue to streamline, simplify, and improve rules and regulations? Which rules should be eliminated, streamlined, or made more effective? How can we reduce reporting and paperwork burdens? What are the best ways to cut regulatory costs? We’re looking for your ideas."
"We’re looking for business owners across the country to tell us which regulations are standing in your way."
What you can do now, today!  GO TO THE "ADVISE THE ADVISOR" page and tell them what you think about corporations being allowed to devise their own rules.  

THIS IS NOT JUST ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES, IT WILL IMPACT EVERYTHING FROM HEALTHCARE, TO WALL STREET AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN.

Energy-in-Depth (EID): The “GAS”roots

Energy-in-Depth (EID):  The “GAS”roots

Marcellus Shale Players

On January 6, 2012 a Fracking and Nuisance Litigation meeting took place in Montrose, Pennsylvania. 

Energy-In-Depth’s (EID) - Northeast Marcellus Initiative Field Directors Bill desRosiers and Nicole Jacobs, along with Helen Humphries, Senior Corporate Communications Specialists for the Williams Company, attempted to attend the meeting.  They were asked to leave, as the purpose of the meeting was to meet with people wishing to seek litigation against the Natural Gas industry and share information on this matter.  

The following day,  “Bill” desRosiers published a blog entry on the EID-Northeast Marcellus Initiative website entitled “You’re Not Welcome Here” – This Is Transparency?”. 

Approximately, 2 weeks later, an article appeared on We Are Powershift website, entitled “From Township Planning Consultant to Fracker: Tom Shepstone” by Alexander Lotorto.   EID-Northeast Marcellus Initiative followed up immediately with  “Who Is Alex Lotorto, Well Street Occupier?” by Giles Howard, a Guest Blogger.

I would not be surprised to find an EID blog entry entitled “Who is Dory Hippauf?”, to appear within hours of publication.   Who is Dory Hippauf?  I’m a 56yr old woman, I moved to a small town in the Back Mountain area of Northeast Pennsylvania about 14 years ago from Massachusetts.   I am the Research Committee Chair for the Gas Drilling Awareness Coalition of Luzerne County.   I hold no degrees in economics, the corporate world, or politics.   I have an AA in Graphic Design, and an AS in CAD drafting.  I am currently employed as a CAD Drafter.   I have a great deal of curiosity in how corporations have influenced our government and our lives, and this led me to start “Connecting the Dots”.    All the information I have and will present is easily found on the internet using Google, and I do cite my sources.

In the interest of transparency, Part 3 of the Connecting the Dots series will be asking “Who Is EID”.   

According to SourceWatch "Energy in Depth (EID) is a pro-oil-and-gas drilling industry front group formed by the American Petroleum Institute, the Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA) and dozens of additional industry organizations for the purpose of denouncing legislation proposed by Colorado U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette to regulate underground hydraulic fracturing fluids."

In 2009, EID mounted a fierce “rebuttal” campaign against the documentary film, GASLAND, by Josh Fox.  EID sent a letter to Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences stating Gasland should be ineligible for nomination because it was based on inaccuracies.   EID also published several blog entries “debunking” the film. 

The funding sources for EID include: Anadarko, BP, Chevron, El Paso Corporation, EnCana, Halliburton, Marathon, Occidental Petroleum, Schlumberger, Shell API, Talisman and XTO Energy. 

EID has two satellite branches:  EID-Northeast Marcellus Initiative which covers Pennsylvania and New York area, and EID- The Ohio Project which focuses on gas/oil drilling in Ohio.  If you have clicked on these links, you will see nice profile pictures, each person’s EID Title, and a “hometown”.   The purpose of this is to may you feel more connected to EID, especially if you recognize the hometown, as in “Gee, these are nice people, they are from my home town.”  This is a time honored public relations tactic, used by many ad agencies to sell you products, and politicians to make them seem more “likeable”.  Public Relation firms know you will be more apt to believe someone who appears to have a connection to you, as opposed to someone you don’t know.

The “grassroots” initiative was launched around May 2011 by EID.  According to the website Marcellus Drilling News: “EID has also launched a major new grassroots initiative now spreading from county to county in the region.”   

Marcellus Drilling News further states “The program, known as EID’s “Northeast Marcellus Initiative,” calls for the hiring of several full-time organizers charged with engaging and educating the region’s many supporters of the Mighty Marcellus, and providing them with the tools they need to act. Led on the ground by campaign manager and well-known local natural gas advocate Tom Shepstone, the initiative is already up-and-running in several counties across the region, with field organizers now in place in Luzerne, Lycoming and Wayne Counties, Pa. – all with reach into New York State.”

EID is not grassroots.  EID’s “GAS”roots extend from the front groups, Corporations, Public Relations, to the halls of Congress. 

The Messengers:

The registrant information for the EID website is listed as FD Dittus Communications.   Dittus Communications went through various incarnation. FD in Dittus Communications stands for Financial Dynamics.  Dittus Communications became known as FD Americas Public Affairs, and later FD Americas was rebranded as FTI Consulting.

            FD Americas: A unit of UK-based strategic and financial communications consultancy             FD, FD Americas Public Affairs (formerly Dittus Communications) offers public relations,  marketing communications, and issue advocacy services. The firm provides the usual  corporate services (media relations, corporate communications, and crisis           management) plus public affairs services (issues management, legislative strategy,          grassroots organizing and coalition building) as well as marketing, creative, and design    services. Clients have included Kraft Foods, Dell, the US Department of Energy, and          International Paper. The firm was founded in 1993. 

            FTI Consulting: global business advisory firm dedicated to helping organizations          protect and enhance their enterprise value, today announced that Financial Dynamics (FD), the Strategic Communications practice of FTI Consulting, has adopted the FTI  Consulting brand globally. FD now will be known as the Strategic Communications practice of FTI Consulting.

The original founder and CEO of Dittus Communications is Gloria Dittus, and  became CEO and President of FD Dittus-Strategic Communications.  

Ms Dittus is now the founder of Story Partners.  Per Story Partners website: a public affairs firm focused on helping trade associations, corporations and coalitions amplify their story through carefully aligned online and offline campaigns designed to drive public policy debates. (emphasis added)

EID Players:

Lee Fuller is the Executive Director of EID, he is also the Vice President of Government Relations for the Independent Petroleum Association of America.  According to Open Secrets, the top industry represented by Mr. Fuller was Oil & Gas.   

Regarding Gasland, "The filmmaker alternates between misstating and outright ignoring basic and verifiable facts related to the impact of these activities on the health and welfare of humans, wildlife and the environment," said Lee Fuller, executive director of Energy in Depth (EID), in a letter (pdf) today to the academy.

Jeffery “Jeff” Eschelman is listed as Executive Vice President at EID.  In addition to his position at EID he is the Vice President of Public Affairs & Communication at the Independent Petroleum Association of America and former employee of Dittus Communications. 

Julia Bell: Researcher at EID, and Public Affairs & Communications Coordinator for the Independent Petroleum Association of America.

Chris Tucker: EID Team Lead, Spokesperson, and Advisor for – you guessed it – the Independent Petroleum Association of America.  Mr. Tucker is more closely associated with the EID-Marcellus Initiative branch as Team Leader and Blogger.

• Senior Vice President Oil & Gas: FTI Consulting
• Advisor to the Marcellus Shale Coalition
• Former Press Secretary/Communications Director for Rep John E Peterson R-PA (Retired at the end of 110^th Congress)                                                                                    Rep. Peterson’s Campaign Donors for the 2006 campaign:

                  $10,300: Devonian Resources (Energy Conservation and Management                                                                                         Consultants) Top Single Contributor

                  $35,500: Oil & Gas Top Industry Sector Contributor                 

• Former Communications Advisor for House Minority Whip Rep Roy Blunt R-MO, (elected as Senator in 2008).

                  2008 Senate Campaign:

                              $23,300: Chevron, 2nd highest individual contributor

                              $128,250: Oil & Gas, 3rd highest industry sector contributor

                  2010 Senate Campaign:

                              $32,173: Murray Energy, 15th highest individual contributor

                              $29,200: Koch Industries, 16th highest individual contributor

                              $28,800: Exxon Mobil, 17th highest individual contributor

                              $342,050: Oil & Gas, 7th highest industry sector contributor

Dana Bohan: EID Staff Geologist

      Junior Associate - Strategic Communications - Energy Sector: FTI Consulting

Steven “Steve” Everly: EID Spokesperson

      Assistant Vice President: FTI Consulting Financial Dynamics

            The strategic communication division of FTI Consulting, Financial Dynamics                               helps ensure that its clients’ brand, reputation and market valuation reflect the              true worth of their businesses.

     

      Columnist: Townhall.com

             Steve Everley is Manager of Policy Research at American Solutions and a contributing author to To Save America: Stopping Obama’s Secular- Socialist Machine by Newt Gingrich. Prior to joining AmericanSolutions, Everley worked as a research assistant at the American   Enterprise Institute. He graduated summa cum laude from the University  of Kansas and attended graduate school at the University of Southern   California. (emphasis added)

           

Nicole Jacobs: EID- Northeast Marcellus Initiative Field Organizer.

            Independent Consultant - Shalenet

            Shalenet operates through a grant from Department of Labor, Employment and               Training Administration to provide the gas industry with a local workforce.  Key partners include 15 Workforce Investment areas (not named), focusing on Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, and New York, PA Independent Oil an Gas   Association, Pennsylvania Independent Oil & Gas Association (PIOGA) the Veterans Administration, Allegheny Conference on Community Development,  Broome Community College, Eastern Gateway Community College, Pennsylvania College of Technology,  West Virginia Northern Community  College and Westmoreland County Community College.

ShaleNet operates out of Pennsylvania College of Technology which is affiliated                          with Penn State.

Brian Kennedy Per: NATURAL GAS: BP, others push against federal regulation of fracturing, Brian Kennedy is cited as a spokesman for Energy In Depth.  Although, Mr. Kennedy is cited as spokesman in this and others articles, there is no sign of him the the Energy In Depth websites.

            "This language seems to be a restatement and endorsement of policies and procedures the industry has been following for decades, as mandated by federal, state and local  laws," said Brian Kennedy, a spokesman for Energy In Depth. "To the extent the    language helps clarify the existing framework and highlight its overwhelming success to             date, it could be a valuable educational tool moving forward." (emphasis added)

• Senior Managing Director Strategic Communications: FTI Consulting
• Former Senior Managing Director: FD Americas-Public Affairs
• Former Communications Director: former Rep. Richard Pombo R-CA

                        Rep. Richard Pombo lost his re-election bid in 2006 to Jerry McNerney.
                        "Rep. Richard Pombo's loss represents the most significant electoral victory the environmental movement has seen in decades," said Rodger Schlickeisen, president of Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund. "It should  now be clear to all that we have the political strength to take on and defeat  extreme anti-environmental politicians."

 Environmentalists opposed Pombo for efforts to rewrite species protections and increase oil drilling in Alaska and off-shore while fundraising from industry groups. He also faced questions about ties to disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who pleaded guilty in a congressional influence peddling scandal.

                        2006 Campaign:

                                    $34,800: Chevron, 2nd highest individual contributor

                                    $197,648: Oil & Gas, 4th highest industry sector contributor

• Former Aide - House Committee on Natural Resources
• Staff Member – Rep. John Boehner R-OH
              Rep. John Boehner R-OH was Minority Leader in 2008.  He became House         Speaker in 2010.

                 

                  Campaign 2010:

                              $58,100: Murray Energy, 2nd highest individual contributor

                              $47,800: FirstEnergy Corp, 3rd highest individual contributor

                              $369,772: Electric Utilities, 4th highest industry sector contributor

                              $185,650: Oil & Gas, 14th highest industry sector contributor

• Co-Founder – Institute for Energy Research, DC office

Rhonda Reda: EID – The Ohio Project, Executive Director

• Executive Director: Ohio Oil and Gas Energy Education Program (OOGEEP)

Ms. Reda currently serves on the Public Outreach Committee of the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission (IOGCC) and the Colonial Drake Well  Historical “Oil150” Steering Committee. She is an active member of theIndependent Petroleum Association of America, the Society of Petroleum Engineers and the Ohio Geological Society. Recently, Ms. Reda served on  the White House Task Force on Energy Education, and has received numerous state and national awards for OOGEEP’s efforts including: AAPG Eastern Section’s Presidential Award for Public Outreach, Friend of Science  Award from the Science Council of Ohio, EPA’s Ohio Environmental Education Award for Outstanding Program, World Oil Runner Up for Best Public Outreach  Program, Ohio Department of Natural Resources’ Minerals Education Award,  and the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission’s Public Outreach Stewardship Award. Ms. Reda is a graduate of both Ohio University and Edison State College.

• Executive Director – Ohio Oil and Gas Foundation

Thomas Stewart: EID – The Ohio Project, Executive Vice President

• Member: Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission
• Executive Vice President and Board of Trustees: Ohio Oil & Gas Association (OOGA)

Travis Windle : EID Presenter.  Although Travis Windle’s name does not appear on any of the EID websites, he was cited as a presenter on a powerpoint presentation: THE MARCELLUS SHALE: Powering America’s Future,Thanks to Hydraulic Fracturing, dated October 14, 2010, and the email cited is for Mr. Windle at EID.

More recently, Mr. Windle has been cited as Spokesman for the Marcellus Shale Coaltion:
            “Likewise, Marcellus Shale Coalition Spokesman Travis Windle said the closure of any one   well will have little to no impact on those using it for waste disposal.”

• Vice President – FTI Consulting
• Press Secretary, House Republican Conference - US House of Representatives
• Communications Director, House Financial Services Committee  - US House of Representatives
• Press Secretary – former Rep John E Peterson R-PA (see Chris Tucker for Campaign Contribution Info)
• Staff Assistant – former Rep. Melissa Hart R-PA, she was defeated in the 2006 General Election.

 2006 Campaign: $17,938: K&L Gates, 4th Highes Individual Contributor. 

K&L Gates represents leading global corporations, and growth  middle-market companies, capital markets participants and  entrepreneurs in every major industry group as well as public sector  entities, educational institutions, philanthropic organizations and  individuals.

• Press Secretary - Rep. Tom Petri R-WI  Up for re-election 2012

                  Committee Assignments:

                  Education and LaborTransportation and Infrastructure

                  Leadership PAC: Badger Fund

Every “play” has it’s supporting cast of character, some more supportive than others.  The supporting players may operate on the periphery acting both independently and in concert with the main players.  Supporting players may be just that – supporting as a choir or echo chamber.

Supporting Players:
Robert P Murphy is also a columnist at Townhall.com

Senior Fellow: Institute for Energy Research

Robert P. Murphy is an economist with IER specializing in climate change. His research focuses on the proper discount rate to be used in cost-benefit analyses and the implications of structural uncertainty for policy solutions.

                                               

Board of Scholars: Mackinac Center for Public Policy

Per SOURCEWATCH: The Mackinac Center for Public Policy is a state-level conservative policy think tank in Michigan. Founded in 1987, it is the largest state-level think tank in the nation. It was  established by the state's leading conservative activists to promote  free market, pro-business policies. The Center voices its policy  positions though publications and has moved beyond Michigan by  helping the leaders of similar conservative institutions to improve  their operations in many other states and countries around the world.

The Institute for Energy Research (IER)

            Per SOURCEWATCH: founded in 1989 from a predecessor non-profit organisation,                   advocates positions on environmental issues including deregulation of utilities, climate             change denial, and claims that conventional energy sources are virtually limitless. It is a             member of the Sustainable Development Network.

                                               

 Robert L. Bradley Jr:  Chief Executive Officer and President.

Currently a member of the International Association for Energy Economics, the American Economic Association, Southern Economic Association, and the  American Historical Association.   Former Director of Public Relations Policy  at Enron.

Campaigns

 In 2009 IER ran a campaign on "green jobs" attacking the expansion of renewables energies. IER commissioned three studies on renewable energies and green jobs in Denmark, Germany and Spain. These studies by different think tanks were than promoted by IER and other free market think tanks in the US but also used in Europe.

 American Energy Alliance is a "partner" of Institute for Energy Relations and the same people work for both.

The American Energy Alliance (AEA) was founded in 2008 by Thomas Pyle, who previously lobbied on behalf of the National   Petrochemical and Refiners Association and Koch Industries  and who previously worked for Congressman Tom Delay (R-TX), when Delay served as Whip and before Delay, as House  Majority Leader, stepped down from the U.S. House of   Representatives under an ethical cloud. (emphasis added)