Going again to the wells

Dear Editor,

The recent Times Observer editorial on orphaned oil and gas wells unfairly blames today’s conventional oil and gas operators — many of which live and work in Warren County.

Most of Pennsylvania’s estimated 200,000-plus orphaned wells were drilled long before modern regulations existed. The 200,000-plus orphaned wells are the responsibility of a bygone era, not today’s operators who work under strict state oversight, bonding requirements, and reporting rules.

In fact, PA’s modern conventional oil and gas industry has plugged tens of thousands of wells — nearly 20 times more than the Pennsylvania DEP has contracted to have plugged.

Here are other facts: the DEP data on unplugged wells is unreliable. Recently the DEP published data saying that modern oil and gas producers (including several from Warren County) failed to pump thousands of wells. The Sierra Club used this data to testify to Rep. Greg Vitali’s committee that these wells were abandonment risks and that increased well bonding was necessary. But … the DEP data was false, and the Sierra Club had to apologize.

Fact: the legislature recently increased bonding requirements for new wells.

But proposals like Vitali’s bill, to retroactively apply increased bonding to existing wells, will force many responsible operators to shut down. Bonding sounds easy — like buying an insurance policy. But, in reality, a $100,000 plugging bond requires the operator to put up $100,000 of collateral — usually cash or securities.

Requiring massive bonding increases for the tens of thousands of existing wells would require conventional oil and gas operators — including Warren County companies — hundreds of millions of dollars. That money simply doesn’t exist. Vitali’s bill would turn active wells into abandoned wells — exactly what the policy aims to prevent.

What Pennsylvania needs is a practical, cost-effective program that lowers plugging costs and leverages the knowledge and equipment of local producers already doing this work. Scapegoating compliant operators or pursuing retroactive regulations won’t solve the problem. All this bill does is punish our local operators and our community by putting law-abiding oil and gas operators out of business.

Let’s work together with clear, fair policies that protect the environment and support the responsible producers who have long been part of the solution.

David Clark,

President,

PA Grade Crude Oil Coalition

Keeping faith

Dear Editor,

I wanted to comment on the present situation in the Middle East in relation to other events happening in the world. Like much of the planet, I find what just transpired with the “twelve day war” unsettling and riveting at the same time. One gets the impression, especially if you’re a student of the Bible, that humanity has entered unchartered waters!

Practically everywhere we look there is chaos and confusion as western civilization continues in a rapid decline.The main problem is that so many nations in Europe, as well large populations in America and Canada, have denied Christianity; and this has produced a huge spiritual vacuum. Nature abhors a vacuum and thus we have people attempting to redefine sexual gender in totally irrational ways; advocating for radical surgeries which mutilate children; campaigning to overthrow our system of government, replacing it with godless Communism; bringing pornography into our school classrooms and libraries; and legalizing the termination of babies at birth – which is clearly infanticide. These are just a few of the many dangerous roads we have gone down. In addition, it’s deeply troubling that our country is the largest consumer of human trafficking. The verse from Isaiah 5:20 stating “good is evil and evil is good” sums up our situation perfectly.

An increasing number of people are interpreting all this as signs of the soon coming of Jesus Christ. Besides societal breakdown there will be massive financial instability, along with natural calamities, such as numerous earthquakes and world wide plagues. This will be accompanied by “wars and rumors of wars” and evil attempts to usher in a “One World” system of government. Needless to say, all of these signs have been accelerating over the last several years.

When the U.S. bombed Iran I immediately went to the Book of Daniel which describes the opening scenario for the “last days.”

Everything was eerily similar except for just a few details; Israel isn’t even mentioned in a deadly assault on Iran. (Persia) The Prophecy states that a coalition of nations will come from the “west,” “not touching the ground as they come,” and in a “rage” totally destroy the evil regime. Shortly after this the main power leading the attack is broken. The rapid decline of this superpower is described five times in Daniel’s book. With our intelligence services constantly warning of a terrorist attack and America being overextended economically and militarily; perhaps it’s time to look up and call on the One who saves.

John A. Peterson,

Chandlers Valley

A solid bar

Dear Editor,

I have looked up the reassessments of real estate transfers in the last three weeks and the total amount of the properties that have sold is more than their new assessed value. In the last week, 14 properties actually sold — not including the ones that were transferred for one dollar and the one sheriff sale. Of those 14 properties, eight were sold for more than their new assessed value and six were sold for less. The total value of those sold was $2,285,300 and their appraised value was $2,133,170 which seems pretty close to me and the appraised value was $152,130 less.

I learned by state law counties can only reassess a property for three reasons. The first is new construction or demolition, the second is if the property was subdivided, and third is county wide reassessment which we are going through now. So whenever your property was assessed in the last 35 years, that is the value you have been paying taxes on. The longer since your property has been last assessed the lower your old assessment probably was.

Newer homeowners have been paying a greater share of the total municipal taxes. The purpose of the reassessment is to improve the fairness of the tax base.

Gregory Burkett,

Warren