1. Healthcare

The Voice
of the
Independent
Since 1959
NEWS
February
2015
ASTs: Proposed Legislative Rule Unveiled
In the latest development relating
to West Virginia’s new aboveground
storage tank (“AST”) legislation, on
December 22, 2014, the West Virginia Department of Environmental
Protection (“WVDEP”) filed with
the West Virginia Secretary of State
its proposed legislative rule implementing the Aboveground Storage
Tank Act (the “AST Act”), 47 C.S.R.
63 (the “Proposed Rule”). The
89-page Proposed Rule was open
to public comment through January 21, 2015, when a public hearing
was held at WVDEP’s headquarters.
WVDEP should be reviewing the
public comments and making any
changes that it deems appropriate
based upon that review. Then, the
Proposed Rule must be submitted
to the West Virginia Legislature for
further consideration and adoption
before it can take effect.
Proposed Rule
The Proposed Rule is modelled
on the “rough draft” emergency
rule, as described in an article in
the October 2014 IOGA News.
WVDEP made a number of
changes to the draft emergency rule
in response to informal comments
from the public.
Perhaps the
most substantive
new language in
the Proposed Rule
relates to the definition of “Level 1
AST,” which has
been expanded
Mark D. Clark
to include any
Spilman Thomas
tank that contains
& Battle, PLLC
substances that
are “on EPA’s ‘Consolidated List of
Chemicals Subject to Emergency
Planning and Community Right to
Know Act (EPCRA), CERCLA, and
Proposed Rule Continued on page 19
Is Your Gathering Line Safety Regulated?
When we talk about regulated
gathering lines, we are frequently
referring to those gathering lines
with rates regulated by the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission
(“FERC”) because they are owned
by a transmission company regulated
pursuant to the Natural Gas Act. Or
maybe we are talking about a regulated intrastate gathering line, a line
that transports gas for others for a
fee, and can be regulated by the West
Virginia Public Service Commission
(“WVPSC”) as to access, rates, terms
and conditions of service. You are
probably familiar with these concepts.
But there is also a third type of
regulated gathering line -- a safety
regulated gathering line. If you
operate a safety regulated gather-
ing pipeline, failure to comply with
pipeline safety regulations regarding
the design, installation, construction, inspection, testing, maintenance, and record keeping of the
Pipeline and Hazardous Material
Safety Administration, published in
49 CFR Part 192, or to comply with
the pipeline safety regulations of
the WVPSC Gas Pipeline Safety Division published in 35 CFR Series 4,
can result in an assessment or fine.
Legislation passed in West Virginia
last year increased the amount of
the civil penalty that can be assessed for pipeline safety violations.
Under current law, a civil penalty
may not exceed $200,000.00 for
each violation for each day the violation persists, up the total amount
of $2,000,000 for any related series
of violations.
Whether a gathering line is a safety
regulated gathering
line depends primarily on its location in relation to
people, measured
by the number of George Patterson
buildings, dwell- Bowles Rice
ings, or public
gathering areas per contiguous mile
of pipeline. The safety regulation
determination also considers the
type of pipeline material used (metallic or non-metallic), and the pressure under which the line operates.
The actual determination of whether
a gathering line is a safety regulated
gathering line requires careful analyGathering Line Continued on page 16
INSIDE
David Haney / 2
Charlie Burd / 4
Scott Chapman / 5
Bud Moss / 7
Industry Events / 9
Keith Stonestreet / 11
Kathy Tawney / 13
Hugh Byers / 15
IPAA / 17
WVDDC / 31
2
David Haney President, IOGA WV
There’s No Such Thing as Doing
Too Good of a Job...Or Is There?
For many years we enjoyed a
price premium for our gas in the
Appalachian Basin. Our gas was
located in the optimum place to
supply the Northeast markets, the
biggest natural gas market in the
U.S. Our wells, storage fields and
pipelines were all in position and
ready to serve these markets. The
demand in these markets was so
big during peak periods gas was
“imported” from the southwest and
western regions of our country to
meet the demand. Our gas received
a positive cost basis adjustment due
to its proximity to the market.
Due to an increasing dependence
on foreign supplies for our energy
needs, our country needed someone to step up to the plate with a
solution. Coming to the rescue
was our hard working, devoted, risk
takers in the oil and gas industry.
We entered the shale revolution
with new technologies in horizontal
drilling and improved fracturing
and completion techniques. The
remarkably prolific unconventional
shale wells have reversed the trend
and we are now importing less of
our energy than we have for years.
Our industry did such a good
job that a glut of natural gas was
created, especially in the Northeast
Marcellus and Utica plays. Along
with newfound constraint points in
our pipeline systems and a grossly
inadequate infrastructure preventing us from getting gas out of the
northeast, the price of natural gas
eroded to levels we had all hoped
we would never see again. The
positive cost basis we enjoyed has
switched to a negative cost basis
since we are now paying to get our
gas to other markets. This cost
continues to erode our price even
further below an already declining
(?) market price.
The effect of all of this on many
of our producer members is devastating. The cause and the solution belong to the industry itself.
The problem was created by the
industry doing such a good job of
developing the country’s shale re-
sources. The solution comes from
a slowdown in drilling, continued
infrastructure development and
development of additional markets
and uses for our gas. It would be
nice if IOGAWV could have some
influence on the supply and demand effects of our commodity.
Too Good Continued on page 10
2014-2015 OFFICERS
BOARD MEMBERS
David Haney
President
Jon Hildreth
Vice President/Program Chair
Don Nestor
Secretary-Treasurer/Finance &
Taxation Chair
Jim McKinney
Past President
Hugh Byers
Director, Commerce Committee Chair
Scott Chapman
Director, Membership Comm. Chair
Jeff Isner
Director
Brett Loflin
Director, Governmental Affairs
Committee Chair
Bob Radabaugh
Director, Environmental / Safety
Committee Chair
Tom Rowan
Director, Communication /
Education Committee Chair
Greg Smith
Director
Mark Spears
Director
Ben Sullivan
Director
3
4
Charlie Burd Executive Director, IOGA WV
From the Burd’s Nest:
Off and Running
As we enter the third week of
the 2015 West Virginia Legislative
Session, the halls are abuzz with the
excitement generated by the new
Republican majority. The 40-plus
new legislative members have moved
into their offices and settled into
a routine. Phones and computers
finally seem to be in working order
and the abundance of new staffers
have been feverishly studying their
bill drafting manuals and adapting to
the processes of legislative action.
Senate and House of Delegates
leaders have made it clear that the
first dozen or so bills introduced
simultaneously in both Chambers
were their priority legislation for the
session. Each Chamber has demonstrated great discipline in staying on
course to achieve their objectives.
Some of the issues addressed in
legislation that has been introduced
and of direct importance to us
include:
• (SB-1, HB-2001) Repealing
West Virginia’s version of “cap
and trade” laws. A repeal of
the “cap and trade” bill, more
formally titled “Repealing Alternative and Renewable Energy
Portfolio Act,” would mean that
utility companies would no longer be required to obtain 25%
of their energy from renewable
energy sources. This bill instead
would allow more use of coal,
theoretically creating more jobs.
Repealing “cap and trade” has
been declared to be leadership’s
number one priority.
• (SB-3, HB-2003) Relating to
liability for trespasser harm and
to codify existing common law
in West Virginia as it relates to
the duty of care possessors of
•
•
property owed to trespassers.
SB-3 has passed the Senate and
has been ordered to the House
of Delegates for further consideration.
In addition, (SB-13, HB-2013)
also addresses property owner
liability and proposes to protect
property owners against dangers that are open, obvious, and
reasonably apparent or as well
known to the person injured as
they are to the owner or occupant. If passed as currently
stated, the owner shall not be
held liable for civil damages for
any injuries sustained as a result
of such dangers. SB-13 has
already passed out of the Senate
and has been ordered to the
House of Delegates for further
consideration.
(SB-12, HB-2012) Relating to
payment of separated employee’s outstanding wages on or
before the next regular payday
on which the wages would
otherwise be due and payable.
However, bonuses and other
fringe benefits of employment,
as defined in section one of this
article, are not considered part
of the compensation to be paid
at the times specified in this
section. The bill, among other
things, also proposes to reduce
the amount of liquidated damages available. The bill provides
an instance when liquidated
damages are not available. SB-12
has passed the Senate and has
been ordered to the House of
Delegates for further consideration.
• (SB-280) That will allow the Secretary of the WVDEP to transfer well work permits governed
under §22-6A-7. If passed as
currently stated, this bill will
allow the Secretary to prescribe
transfer forms, charge a nominal
fee of $250 to review the existing permit and it provides for
a noticing provision within 90
days of the transfer. SB-280 has
Continued on page 25
Burd’s Nest
5
Scott Chapman Membership Chair
IOGAWV Board Approves
11 New Members in January
Please welcome these new members approved in January:
Advantage Technology
ALL
Steve Santmyer
814 Quarrier St.
Charleston, WV 25301
Phone: (304) 342-0796
Cell: (304) 545-3700
[email protected]
www.advantagetech.biz
Apex Companies, LLC
PRO
Douglas Newton
20 Valley Stream Pkwy.
Ste. 270
Malvern, PA 19355
Phone: (610) 722-9050
Cell: (267) 251-2113
[email protected]
www.apexcos.com
Aqua Transfer & Oilfield
ALL
Solutions Corp.
David Alderman
PO Box 687
272 Development Lane
Buckhannon, WV 26201
Phone: (304) 460-7370
Cell: (304) 786-4300
[email protected]
www.atos.us.com
Geostabilization PRO
International
Peter MacKenzie
543 31 Rd.
Grand Junction, CO 81504
Phone: (855) 579-0536
Cell: (713) 819-5153
Fax: (970) 245-7737
[email protected]
www.geostabilization.com
Elexco IOGA WV 6.9x4.5col hi.pdfPage 1
4/20/11
Virginia Grosz
ASO
Virginia Grosz
122 Scenary Circle
McMurray, PA 15317
Intra State Insurance Corp. PRO
Allan Hawkins
PO Box 5526
1385 Rosemar Rd.
Vienna, WV 26105
Phone: (304) 295-1048
Cell: (304) 482-5566
Fax: (304) 295-1048
[email protected]
www.intrastatecorp.com
New Members Continued on page 27
11:21:27 AM
A FULL SERVICE LAND COMPANY SERVING NORTH AMERICA
• Seismic Permitting
• Mineral and Surface Leasing
• Mapping/GIS Services
• Right-of-Way Acquisitions
• Mineral Ownership/Title Curative • Abstracts of Title
ELEXCO LAND SERVICES, INC.
Marysville, Michigan
(800) 889-3574
Olean, New York
(800) 999-5865
Canonsburg, Pennsylvania
(724) 745-5600
ELEXCO LTD.
London, Ontario, Canada
www.elexco.com
(800) 603-5263
6
7
Bud Moss Ergon
Monthly Appalachian Basin Crude Oil Prices
105
100
95
90
85
80
75
70
65
60
55
50
45
40
35
Legend:
01/14 02/14 03/14
PRICE/BBL: 04/14 05/14
WV North
06/14 07/14 08/14 09/14 10/14 11/14
WV Central
WV Southern
12/14
8
9
Industry Events
Make Plans to Join Us at These Events
February 10-11, 2015
IOGAWV Winter Meeting
Marriott Town Center Hotel
Charleston, WV
Info: www.iogawv.com
March 2-4, 2015
IPAA Congressional Call-Up
The Loews Madison Hotel
Washington, DC
Info: www.ipaa.org
March 25-26, 2015
WV Contractors EXPO
The Charleston Civic Center
Charleston, WV
Info: www.cawa.org
February 24-25, 2015
PIOGA Winter Meeting
Seven Springs Mountain Resort
Seven Springs, PA
Info: www.pioga.org/event/
March 11-13, 2015
OOGA Winter Meeting
Hilton Columbus at Easton
Info: ooga.org/events/ooga-event
March 25-26, 2015
Marcellus and Manufacturing
Development Conference
The Charleston Civic Center
Charleston, WV
Info: www.wvma.com
May 14-17, 2015
Desk & Derrick Region I Meeting
Wheeling, WV
Info: [email protected]
May18-20, 2015
IOGCC Midyear Meeting
The Grand American Hotel
Salt Lake City, UT
Info: www.iogcc.ok.gov
Events
Continued on page 29
10
Too Good Continued from page 2
Added compliance and operational costs from regulations often
cut into our already thin bottom
lines. IOGAWV can and often does
have influence in these areas. The
board, staff, lobbyists, legal counsel and actively engaged members
are all monitoring and fighting for
reasonable rules and cost controls.
We recognize these hardships and
many of us are living them with you.
IOGAWV is working hard to protect
our producer members and, in turn,
provide a viable association for all of
its members.
Last month I mentioned a Strategic Planning Session we are having
on February 12th. At that retreat,
we will be addressing a number of
issues such as our mission going forward, the diversity of our membership, helping our members fit into
our changing industry, our strengths,
our weaknesses, and future opportunities and direction. Please let the
Board office or a Board member
know before February 12th if you
have any other suggested topics.
IOGAWV has always been one of
the strongest associations in WV and
is proud to be recognized at the state
and national level for its efforts to
protect independent producers. We
hope to keep it that way.
11
Keith Stonestreet Stonestreet Associates, LLC
Fixing the Value Of Your
Business for Estate Tax Purposes
The purchase price in a binding
buy-sell agreement, whether a fixed
amount or one determined by a formula, can be accepted as the estate
tax valuation if these conditions are
met:
1. The buy-sell agreement must
create an enforceable obligation
on the part of the deceased’s
estate to sell and the buyer to
purchase the business interest.
2. The buy-sell agreement must
prohibit the owner from disposing of his or her business inter-
est during lifetime without first
offering it to the other parties
to the agreement at a price not
higher than the price specified in
the agreement.
3. The buy-sell agreement must be
the result of an “arm’s length”
transaction, meaning that the
price must be fair and adequate
at the time of the agreement or
any subsequent reevaluation.
Without such an agreement, there
can be a great deal of additional
detail and uncertainty as to the valuation of a business interest at the
owner’s death, adding to the time
and expense required to settle the
estate, as well as making it difficult
to predict and plan for any estate
taxes that may become payable.
12
13
Kathy Tawney West Virginia Desk and Derrick Club
ADDC Seeking Sponsorships for
Region I Meeting
The West Virginia Desk and
Derrick Club is proudly hosting
the Region I Meeting in Wheeling
on May 14-17, 2015. In addition
to the business meetings, an educational outing is planned to showcase
a natural gas plant at Natrium in
Marshall County, plus an outing at
Centre Market Square in Wheeling.
The Association of Desk and
Derrick Clubs (ADDC) is an international educational organization
with clubs and members across the
United States and Canada. Region
I includes the memberships from
Clubs in Pennsylvania, Ohio and
West Virginia. The purpose of the
ADDC is "to promote the education
and professional development of
individuals employed in or affiliated
with the petroleum, energy and allied
industries." The Association 's motto
is "Greater Knowledge - Greater
Service."
The West Virginia Desk and Derrick Club invites you to consider
a sponsorship opportunity. The
sponsorship form on page 31 offers
options to support the Region I
Meeting at several different levels.
All sponsors will be recognized in
the meeting program. We ask that
your donations be mailed by April 1,
2015. If you have questions, please
contact Kathy Tawney by phone at
304-925-6100, ext. 297, or by email
to [email protected].
The West Virginia Desk and Derrick Club qualifies as a non-profit
organization under IRS Code 501
(c)(6). Contributions or gifts may
be deductible as a trade or business
expense, rather than a charitable
donation.
Contributions may be sent to:
West Virginia Desk and Derrick
Club Region I Meeting
PO Box 734
Charleston, WV 25323
Thank you for supporting West
Virginia Desk and Derrick Club and
our Region I meeting.
14
15
Hugh Byers Direct Energy
Nymex Natural Gas Futures Contract
12-Month Forward Strip Average Prices Through 1/23/2015
16
Gathering Line Continued from page 1
sis of the federal regulations in 49
CFR Part192.1-8. Determinations
vary based on Class locations, which
are defined based on where the
pipeline lays in relation to buildings,
dwellings, or public gathering areas.
As housing or building construction
occurs, Class locations can change,
as Class locations do not depend on
whether a line is located in a city or
town. There are also variations in
the safety compliance requirements
depending on the Type of gathering
line. The MAOP of the line bears
on whether a line is a Type A or
Type B line. Of course transmission
lines are subject to detailed regulation, and distribution lines are safety
regulated as well.
Pipeline safety is something that
we all work hard to observe, even if
we operate an unregulated gathering
line, but we don’t always think about
the need to be ready to prove design,
installation, construction, inspection,
testing, and maintenance should a
WVPSC safety inspector knock on
the door. Record keeping, for regulated and unregulated lines, is important. No one wants to be in the
position of knowing that a qualified
pipeline safety contractor installed a
line in full compliance with all applicable safety laws and regulations, but
not being able to prove it later. Of
course, the best time to determine
whether you can demonstrate safety
compliance is before an inspector
comes knocking, so that you can retrieve needed records and have them
prepared for the inspection. There
are several companies that assist with
pipeline safety compliance, some of
which advertise in the IOGA news
or Buyer’s Guide accessible through
the IOGA website. If you are not
at the very top of your safety game,
perhaps you might give one of our
other members a call.
17
IPAA News
Pettey Oilfield
Services, Inc.
• Service Rigs
• Bailing Ma•
•
•
•
•
chines
Plugging
Power Tongs
Used Pipe
Fishing Tools
Dozers
Joseph C. Pettey, President
Allen Pettey, Vice President
P.O. Box 437
Hamlin, WV 25523
304/824-3432
Fax: 304/824-2275
Fed Frac Reg.
Defeated
On Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2015, the
U.S. Senate voted overwhelmingly
against an amendment offered by
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)
that would have paved the way for
the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) to regulate hydraulic
fracturing. The amendment was
added to the vote list near the end
of negotiations on the Keystone XL
pipeline bill. This vote was important because it was the first time in
years that the Senate had voted on
the question of whether EPA should
be able to regulate hydraulic fracturing. In addition to direct contact
with Senate offices, IPAA's lobbying team coordinated efforts among
other federal trade associations,
state cooperating associations and
individual companies to ensure that
Senators understood the importance of defeating this amendment.
Countless experts, regulators and administration officials have attested to
the proven safety record of hydraulic fracturing. Senator Gillibrand's
amendment would have undercut
the work, investment, and dedication
our industry puts toward complying with the wide array of existing
state and federal laws to ensure the
continued health of our environment and groundwater. IPAA will
continue its work to educate on the
necessary state/federal environmental regulatory balance to ensure
that American oil and natural gas is
produced in an efficient, environmentally sound manner. As part of
that effort, Energy In Depth has
published a blog post on the amendment. IOGAWV is proud to have
worked in unison with the IPAA
to secure the defeat of this amendment.
18
19
Proposed Rule Continued from page 1
FLEXIBILITY
... field development ... facility upgrades
... pipelines & surveys ... EPC projects
To find out more about how your company can benefit from Audubon’s flexible engineering solutions, contact
your Audubon representative, or visit our web site at www.audubon-engineering.com.
HOUSTON | NEW ORLEANS | COVINGTON | BATON ROUGE | LAFAYETTE | TULSA | DENVER | PITTSBURGH | BOGOTA
Gas
Analytical
Services, Inc.
Total Natural Gas Measurement Service
Phone (304) 623-0020
FAX: (304) 624-8065
Email: [email protected]
§ 112(r) of the Clean Air Act (CAA)’
(known as ‘the List of Lists’) as provided by 40 C.F.R. §§ 355, 372, 302,
and 68) in a concentration of one
percent (1%) or greater, regardless of the AST’s location, except
petroleum is not a Level 1 solely
based upon having constituents
on the CERCLA lists” (emphasis
added). The EPA List of Lists spans
112 pages, most of which identify
chemicals and chemical compounds.
The procedure for determining the
1% threshold is not addressed in the
Proposed Rule.
A few of the many changes reflected in the Proposed Rule compared to the rough draft emergency
rule are:
1. Level 3 ASTs continue to be
exempt from the rule, except for
some registration requirements,
and this category now includes
“potable water, filtered or unfiltered surface water, or groundwater (excluding flowback water
from oil and gas wells, and coalbed methane well(s)), demineralized water, noncontact cooling
water or water stored for fire or
emergency purposes.”
2. New definitions include “combustible liquid,” “empty,”
“flammable liquid,” “interstice,”
“petroleum” and “unusual operating conditions.”
3. “Temporarily out of service”
is clarified to start 60 days after
not receiving or dispensing fluid.
4. The 72-hour inspection requirement for Level 1 ASTs was
changed to 7 days.
5. Internal inspection requirements
are significantly eased to 20- and
30-year periods, depending on
the existence of a Release Prevention Barrier.
6. Signage no longer requires the
identity of the substance stored,
but security requirements must
Proposed Rule Continued on page 21
20
21
Proposed Rule Continued from page 19
be identified in a Spill Prevention Response Plan.
7. A substantial number of changes were made to the Corrective
Action section 7.
Notably, reporting of releases
from AST systems into secondary
containment is still required under
the Proposed Rule and no substantive changes were made to the section containing financial responsibility requirements for ASTs.
IOGA filed 18 pages of comments on the Proposed Rule explaining, among many arguments and
statements, that (i) the economic
impact of the requirements will be
crippling to many small producers,
(ii) the adoption of one-size-fits-all
requirements for Level 1 and Level
2 ASTs is arbitrary and capricious,
(iii) WVDEP seeks to use definitions
to unlawfully expand the scope of
the AST Act and (iv) ASTs subject
to federal Spill Prevention, Control
and Countermeasure requirements
should be regulated as Level 3 ASTs
subject only to limited registration
requirements.
Public Hearing Comments
Ten speakers offered oral comments at the public hearing on
January 21, six of whom represented
environmental/concerned citizen
interests. Those speakers were quite
consistent in their respective messages and the primary points were:
a. Oppose exempting any industry
from the Proposed Rule, including oil and gas.
b. Oppose weakening of the definition of “Level 1 AST” in the
Proposed Rule.
c. Support establishment and collection of fees in an amount to
fund a robust regulatory program.
d. Support increased financial
responsibility requirements
adequate to pay for remediation.
Proposed Rule Continued on page 22
22
Proposed Rule Continued from page 21
e. Support addition of public
notice and opportunity to comment on all applications for
certificates to operate.
Other comments included a
request to identify other tanks—like
those containing MCHM—to be
included in Level 1, support for the
definition of “first point of isolation,” requests for imposing stringent requirements on secondary
containment, and support for strong
regulation of Level 2 ASTs.
AST Act Amendment?
As has been widely reported, the
AST Act resulted in the registration
of over 48,000 tanks containing
anything from drinking water to
brine to MCHM to highly corrosive
acids. The AST Act had unintended
consequences by regulating tens of
thousands of tanks that contain safe
or relatively harmless fluids, or are
otherwise already highly regulated
under existing programs. IOGA and
other industry groups have urged the
West Virginia Legislature to remedy
the unintended consequences and
duplicative regulation imposed by
the AST Act.
Improvement to the AST Act
could be accomplished by (i) focusing on tanks that pose the greatest
potential for adversely impacting
public surface water intakes, which
are located within a zone of critical
concern that contain at least 10,000
gallons of fluid, and (ii) relying on
industry standards or government
regulatory programs that already
exist rather than creating duplicative
and conflicting regulatory standards.
Such amendments to the AST Act
would provide for the ongoing
protection of West Virginia’s water
resources without imposing excessive regulatory costs upon tank owners whose businesses may become
unprofitable.
Proposed Rule Continued on page 23
23
Proposed Rule Continued from page 22
Of course, a persuasive argument
can be made that oil and gas industry
tanks should not be subject to the
AST Act at all because such tanks
primarily contain relatively harmless
brine and oil in smaller—50-210 barrel—tanks and are subject to existing
regulatory oversight by WVDEP’s
Office of Oil and Gas. It is appropriate to continue to pursue protection of our state’s water resources
through rational risk-based regulatory programs that are currently in
place and have been demonstrated
to be effective over years of operation by tank owners. We can only
trust that the new legislative leadership and membership will adopt
such reasonable measures to encourage ongoing investment in the state’s
valuable oil and gas resources and
other job-creating business investments.
If you have questions regarding
the AST Act or the Proposed Rule,
please contact Katherine Crockett
(304-340-3832), David Yaussy (304340-3829), or Mark Clark (304-3403876).
Join the
Online Buyers
Guide at
iogawv.com
and get your
name out to the
industry across
the country!
24
25
Burd’s Nest Continued from page 4
already passed the Senate and
has been ordered to the House
of Delegates for further consideration.
In addition, at this early stage of
the Legislative Session we are also
watching:
• Senate Bill 165, a rules bill relating to drill cuttings waste;
• Senate Concurrent Resolution 8
that urges the US EPA to withdraw and/or rescind proposed
definition of “Waters of the
United States”;
• House Bill 2035 that seeks to
reduce the wholesale tax on
heating fuel, off road fuels,
kerosene and propane used for
home heating purposes or off
road uses;
• House Bill 2062 that proposes
to establish the Legislative Oversight Commission on Energy
Workers Safety;
• House Bill 2087 which proposes
to permit surface owners to purchase the mineral interests that
lay below the property in certain
circumstances; and
• House Bill 2269 which seeks to
require rules of the Department
of Environmental Protection,
Department of Health and
Human Resources, Division of
Natural Resources and Department of Commerce be no more
stringent than corresponding
federal laws.
To all owners of aboveground
storage tanks…we have not forgotten you!! The passage of legislation to get oil and gas operations
removed from the onerous provisions contained in SB-373 passed on
March 8, 2014 and as part of the last
Legislative Session is IOGAWV’s
top legislative priority. You can
expect to see IOGAWV Action
Alerts to keep you posted on our
progress. Currently, draft legislation
Burd’s Nest
Continued on page 26
26
22
Burd’s Nest Continued from page 25
has been provided to Senate and
House members for their review and
endorsement and we expect to see
legislation introduced well before the
end of January.
It is encouraging to note the spirit
of cooperation being demonstrated
by both Democrats and Republicans
at the start of session. To date,
most of the disagreement has surrounded the “cap and trade” bill—
but passionate debate could have
been predicted because this is the
bill declared to be the Republicans
top priority. It will be curious to see
what other, if any, issues strike a partisan chord, but one can anticipate
partisanship on various business and
social issues likely to emerge on the
agenda of both Houses.
One thing I can predict with all
confidence is that your IOGAWV
lobbying team consisting of myself,
Marc Harman, Phil Reale, Jim Fealy,
Megan Roskovensky, David Haney,
Brett Loflin, George Patterson,
Mark Clark and David Yaussy will
be diligently assessing every piece of
legislation introduced and taking the
appropriate action to protect your
interests. (Please note my appreciation to Megan Roskovensky, the Law
Firm of Philip A. Reale, PLLC) for
her contributions to this article.)
Register for
IOGAWV
events
at iogawv.com.
27
23
New Members Continued from page 5
Mountaineer Welding
PRO
and Construction, LLC
Adam Burkhammer
PO Box 118
5413 Georgetown Rd.
Horner, WV 26372
Phone: (304) 452-9760
[email protected]
Neptune Enterprises, LLC ALL
Alex Gonzales
42 84 Drive
Eighty Four, PA 15330
Phone: (855) 672-6700
Cell: (432) 360-9020
Fax: (214) 594-9113
[email protected]
www.neptunesc.com
Park National Bank
ALL
Sarah Thompson
140 E. Town St.
Ste 1400
Columbus, OH 43215
Phone: (614) 228-5234
Cell: (419) 343-6806
Fax: (614) 224-0136
sthompson@
parknationalbank.com
www.parknationalbank.com
Phoenix Diversified
PRO
Ventures, LLC
Joseph Vanzant
24390 Sandpiper Isle Way #204
Bonita Springs, FL 34134
Cell: (412) 721-8681
[email protected]
Silver Creek Services, Inc. ALL
Chuck Williams
4 Grandview Circle
Suite 201
Canonsburg, PA 15317
Phone: (724) 710-0440
Cell: (724) 710-0440
[email protected]
www.scsfirst.com
28
22
The IOGAWV office is located
at 300 Summers Street, Suite 820,
Charleston, WV 25301. Voice:
304-344-9867; fax: 304-344-5836;
e-mail address: [email protected];
home page: www.iogawv.com.
IOGAWV accepts advertising
for IOGA News, IOGAWV’s web
site and the directory. Contact
IOGAWV for advertising rates.
IOGAWV’s purpose is to
promote and protect the West Virginia oil and natural gas industry
through:
• Identifying and educating our
members as to the challenges
and opportunities confronting
our industry.
• Encouraging and projecting a
unity of purpose among our
membership.
• Educating the general public
and our elected and appointed
representatives as to the importance of the industry.
• Protecting and improving the
business and natural environment of our state.
The IOGA News is provided to
Association members and friends
of the industry as a part of our
activities to inform and update
our members on industry issues
and events.
The contents of IOGA News are
intended for general information
purposes only and should not be
read as specific legal, financial, or
business advice regarding specific
issues or factual events.
We urge you to always consult
your legal, financial, and professional advisors with any specific
questions you may have.
Readers are encouraged to pass
copies of the IOGA News to their
friends.
For additional copies of this
newsletter or for reprint rights,
please contact the IOGAWV office.
SERVING THE OIL & GAS INDUSTRY SINCE 1976
ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPACT STATEMENTS • PERMITTING: FEDERAL, STATE, LOCAL
ENGINEERING
PIPELINES • M&R STATIONS • COMPRESSOR STATIONS • WELL PADS
ENERGY
COAL BED METHANE • SOLAR • WIND • GAS/OIL
AIR
GENERAL • MINOR SOURCE • TITLE V
SAFETY
SAFETY PROGRAMS • SAFETY AUDITS • OQ PROGRAMS
LAND AND TITLE
SURFACE OWNERSHIP • MINERAL OWNERSHIP • DUE DILIGENCE
WASTE MANAGEMENT
SOLIDS • MUDS • PRODUCTION FLUIDS • UIC WELLS
WATER - WASTEWATER
NPDES • DRILLING PIT DISPOSAL • GROUNDWATER
INDUSTRIAL HYGIENE
NOISE • H2S TRAINING • FIRE SCHOOL • OSHA AUDITS
SURVEY & MAPPING
GPS • GIS • AERIAL • TOPOGRAPHIC • MINERAL
CORROSION SURVEYS
CLOSE INTERVAL • ATMOSPHERIC • DOT COMPLIANCE
A TOTAL SERVICE PROVIDED FROM ONE SOURCE
MSES
consultants, inc.
877.624.9700
www.msesconsultants.com
609 West Main Street
P. O. Drawer 190 • Clarksburg, West Virginia 26302
29
23
Events
Continued from page 9
June 1, 2015
PIOGA Summer Meeting & Golf
Outing
Wanango Golf Club
Reno, PA
Info: www.pioga.org
June 24-26, 2015
IPAA Midyear Meeting
Eldorado Hotel &
Santa Fe Convention Center
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Info: www.ipaa.org
July 8-9, 2015
IOGA of NY Summer Meeting
Peek’n Peak Resort & Conference Center
Findley Lake, NY
July 14-16, 2015
KOGA 79th Annual Meeting
Lexington Convention Center
Lexington, KY
Info: www.kyoilgas.org
July 28-29, 2015
PIOGA Annual Pig Roast,
Equipment Show & Seminar
Seven Springs Mountain Resort
Seven Springs, PA
Info: www.pioga.org/event/
August 2-4, 2015
IOGAWV Summer Meeting
The Greenbrier
White Sulphur Springs, WV
August 26, 2015
18th Annual Divot Diggers Golf
Outing
Tam O’Shanter Golf Course
Hermitage, PA
Info: www.pioga.org/event/
September 25-26, 2015
IOGAWV Sports Weekend
Lakeview Resort
Morgantown, WV
Info: www.iogawv.com
September 27-30, 2015
IOGCC Annual Year Meeting
The Skirvin Hilton
Oklahoma City, OK
Info: www.iogcc.ok.gov
30
22
31
West Virginia Desk and Derrick Club
300 Summers Street, Suite 820
Charleston, WV 25301
Phone (304) 344-9867 Fax (304) 344-5836
Presort Standard
U.S. Postage
PAID
Charleston, WV
25312
Permit No. 110