SPOILER ALERT!
Shale Fracking Technology Is Real Energy Innovation - But Some Don't See It That Way
The other day, I was speaking with a thought leader from South Africa working with the schools and promoting the future of innovation with the goal of fostering business entrepreneurship to allow South Africa to meet the demands needed for the 21st Century. One thing that I find interesting here in the United States is that when we talk about energy innovation everyone assumes that we are talking about solar technologies or better wind turbines. They never seem to consider the traditional energy industry and all the technological advances being made there, such as fracking.
There was dewatering centrifuge wastewater treatment supplier/manufacturer in the 'corporate news' section of the Wall Street Journal on December 17, 2012 titled; "Chevron Enters Shale Hunt in South Africa - Company's Decision Comes as Temporary Ban on Exploration Is Lifted in a Country Estimated to Hold Large Reserves," by Devon Maylie and Alexis Flynn which noted that South Africa has the 5th largest estimated reserves using the new fracking technologies - maybe more.
Believe me when I tell you that as more fracking is going on around the world to get out gas and oil, there will be new methods, and even more efficient technologies introduced. In fact, it is happening now. If South Africa and other countries continue to develop safer environmental strategies for fracking, and more efficient ways to get at that oil and gas, then we can have the best of all worlds. wastewater centrifuge treatment see, shale fracking technology is real energy innovation, and it's here right now and today.
Much of the incremental gains we've achieved in solar and wind still leaves it as less-than-adequate for our needs and return on investment. If we take these technologies along with better ways to efficiently use fossil fuels and put out fewer carbon emissions we will have solved all the challenges, and it appears there is plenty more where that came from; that is to say there is no current risk of peak oil.
Kitchen waste centrifuge what we have is folks in academia promoting alternative energy strategies and new innovations in technologies, never looking at the improvements made in the fossil fuel sector of the energy industry.
While some countries are putting anti-fracking laws into place for supposedly environmental reasons, or to further push their alternative energy agenda, other nations are moving forward with these technologies to ensure that their countries emerge as more than just emerging nations in the future. Please consider all this and think on it.
There was dewatering centrifuge wastewater treatment supplier/manufacturer in the 'corporate news' section of the Wall Street Journal on December 17, 2012 titled; "Chevron Enters Shale Hunt in South Africa - Company's Decision Comes as Temporary Ban on Exploration Is Lifted in a Country Estimated to Hold Large Reserves," by Devon Maylie and Alexis Flynn which noted that South Africa has the 5th largest estimated reserves using the new fracking technologies - maybe more.
Believe me when I tell you that as more fracking is going on around the world to get out gas and oil, there will be new methods, and even more efficient technologies introduced. In fact, it is happening now. If South Africa and other countries continue to develop safer environmental strategies for fracking, and more efficient ways to get at that oil and gas, then we can have the best of all worlds. wastewater centrifuge treatment see, shale fracking technology is real energy innovation, and it's here right now and today.
Much of the incremental gains we've achieved in solar and wind still leaves it as less-than-adequate for our needs and return on investment. If we take these technologies along with better ways to efficiently use fossil fuels and put out fewer carbon emissions we will have solved all the challenges, and it appears there is plenty more where that came from; that is to say there is no current risk of peak oil.
Kitchen waste centrifuge what we have is folks in academia promoting alternative energy strategies and new innovations in technologies, never looking at the improvements made in the fossil fuel sector of the energy industry.
While some countries are putting anti-fracking laws into place for supposedly environmental reasons, or to further push their alternative energy agenda, other nations are moving forward with these technologies to ensure that their countries emerge as more than just emerging nations in the future. Please consider all this and think on it.
SPOILER ALERT!
What Is Fracking And Should We Be Nervous About It?
What is fracking? It probably is a term new to many people but it's definitely becoming a popular topic in the media. Fracking is a controversial process used to extract gas from shale rock formations found thousands of feet below the earth's crust. The process involves drilling into the surface of the earth and then triggering small explosions to crack and shatter the hard shale rock in order to release the gas contained inside. Sand, water and many highly corrosive chemicals are forced into the rock at high pressure allowing the gas and crude oil to flow out before being extracted by energy companies. The process can be used to create new sources of oil and gas or to enlarge existing operations. The drilling can be carried out vertically but horizontal drilling is more common.
The name fracking comes from a longer name for the process, hydraulic fracturing. The rock is theoretically fractured and this is often referred to as a 'frac job'.
The process is highly controversial mostly due to the "unknown" as experts cannot agree on just how dangerous the technique is. A primary concern is that fracking uses many carcinogenic chemicals and the fear is that these chemicals may potentially find their way into natural water sources and pose a major threat to the users. Industry experts however point out that drinking water is generally found within a few hundred feet of the surface whereas most fracking is taking place several thousand feet below the surface.
Left wing geologists have recently stated that the fracking process was a probable cause in the triggering of two minor earthquakes off the English coast. The energy industry obviously denies the process is at fault and blames bad practices as opposed to a bad technique. The extraction of shale gas using fracking is also being seen as a potential cause of further global warming as shale gas is found in many locations and is often seen as a cheaper alternative to renewable energy sources. The truth is that natural gas has a much smaller carbon foot print than either coal or oil so it's a great solution for reducing pollution. Those who fantasize about wind and solar replacing fossil fuels have never done their research. With current technology it's impossible for alternatives to become the primary source of energy. Additionally, no one ever talks about the toxic ingredients that go into manufacturing solar panels and the batteries used to power electric cars (another inconvenient truth).
Fracking is causing many heated debates between concerned individuals and energy companies. Currently energy companies are looking into ways of creating longer and deeper cracks in the earth allowing more gas to be extracted. This will obviously lower the extraction cost of the gas, this has caused uproar among opponents and environmentalists. In general the idea of using these aggressive techniques will always cause fear mongering and hand wringing because of the unknown long-term consequences.
Fracking is https://www.zkcentrifuge.com/fermentation/ to go away any time soon as energy companies see it as a cost-effective way of extracting more and more natural gas. As Fermentation centrifuge continue to evolve concerns will continue to linger and even grow. As we have said there are always concerns over any new process and they will either eventually diminish or there will be a major disaster like the opponents are predicting. Only time will tell and as it is with most things we are bound to continue to push the boundaries until someone finds an issue.
The name fracking comes from a longer name for the process, hydraulic fracturing. The rock is theoretically fractured and this is often referred to as a 'frac job'.
The process is highly controversial mostly due to the "unknown" as experts cannot agree on just how dangerous the technique is. A primary concern is that fracking uses many carcinogenic chemicals and the fear is that these chemicals may potentially find their way into natural water sources and pose a major threat to the users. Industry experts however point out that drinking water is generally found within a few hundred feet of the surface whereas most fracking is taking place several thousand feet below the surface.
Left wing geologists have recently stated that the fracking process was a probable cause in the triggering of two minor earthquakes off the English coast. The energy industry obviously denies the process is at fault and blames bad practices as opposed to a bad technique. The extraction of shale gas using fracking is also being seen as a potential cause of further global warming as shale gas is found in many locations and is often seen as a cheaper alternative to renewable energy sources. The truth is that natural gas has a much smaller carbon foot print than either coal or oil so it's a great solution for reducing pollution. Those who fantasize about wind and solar replacing fossil fuels have never done their research. With current technology it's impossible for alternatives to become the primary source of energy. Additionally, no one ever talks about the toxic ingredients that go into manufacturing solar panels and the batteries used to power electric cars (another inconvenient truth).
Fracking is causing many heated debates between concerned individuals and energy companies. Currently energy companies are looking into ways of creating longer and deeper cracks in the earth allowing more gas to be extracted. This will obviously lower the extraction cost of the gas, this has caused uproar among opponents and environmentalists. In general the idea of using these aggressive techniques will always cause fear mongering and hand wringing because of the unknown long-term consequences.
Fracking is https://www.zkcentrifuge.com/fermentation/ to go away any time soon as energy companies see it as a cost-effective way of extracting more and more natural gas. As Fermentation centrifuge continue to evolve concerns will continue to linger and even grow. As we have said there are always concerns over any new process and they will either eventually diminish or there will be a major disaster like the opponents are predicting. Only time will tell and as it is with most things we are bound to continue to push the boundaries until someone finds an issue.
SPOILER ALERT!
Life in the Barnett Shale, Part Two
In Part One of this series we talked about some of the positive aspects of the Barnett Shale, what it's done for the economy of North Texas and the reasons it has become profitable to produce oil and gas from the vast deposits stretching across much of North Texas. But not all is well and good in the Shale and some of our more unfortunate neighbors, so-called Citizens of the Shale, have become something more akin to Slaves of the Shale. Take for instance the citizens of DISH, TX, that famous little North Texas town whose citizens changed its name to DISH with the promise that the entire population would receive DISH Network satellite broadcast for free and for life. By the way, the caps aren't mine, that was part of the deal.
DISH, TX, a map dot in Denton County just north of Fort Worth with an estimated population of 181, symbolizes all that has gone wrong in the Barnett Shale as a result of the unbridled greed of the oil companies as well as the landowners alike. Yes, those two parties are both to blame for different reasons, yet the real culprit here is government generally and the Texas Railroad Commission and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality specifically. Rather than simply upholding sludge centrifuge supplier to further the well-being of the citizens these politicians were elected to protect, our governmental bodies have chosen to turn a blind eye to the travesty being committed in some areas of the Barnett Shale. One need merely to Google DISH, TX to read a plethora of articles regarding the air quality there as a result of benzene and other emissions from gas well drilling in the area, as well as across much of the 6,000 square mile Barnett Shale.
However, gas drilling itself is a minor problem in DISH. The real problem stems from the large number of compressor stations that have been constructed in there. As it turns out, the town has become a crossroads so to speak for a huge number of pipelines constructed for the transmission of natural gas, gas produced not only from wells around DISH, but from wells all over northern Denton and Tarrant counties. And there is not just a couple of compressors at work here, we are talking about 10 or more at last count. Atmos Energy bought land, got a permit for a compressor and then "subdivided" the land. They subsequently sold it to other producers who obtained separate permits. The permits state w=what kind and how much of a particular chemical a compressor will emit with a limit on those emissions set by none other than the EPA. The entire compressor site should have been viewed as one site, with one permit allowing that one set limit. It should be easy to see the cumulative principle in effect here. The sad part is that the TRC and TCEQ, the supposed watchdogs for the citizens, have knowingly allowed this to happen without batting an eye. Livestock and trees are dying as a result. Many of the citizens have fallen victim to neurological disorders linked to chemicals known to be in high concentration in the area. One family in particular were forced to move away due to health problems, problems that are slowly clearing up after the move. Yet the state has turned a blind eye.
In the end, regardless of the booming economy in North Texas, there are still many who have lost jobs. It's easy to understand the motivation behind what is known as "mailbox money", the checks mailed from oil companies as royalties and bonus money. Is your health, the health of your loved ones and neighbors worth it? Think about that when that oil company landman comes knocking at your door.
DISH, TX, a map dot in Denton County just north of Fort Worth with an estimated population of 181, symbolizes all that has gone wrong in the Barnett Shale as a result of the unbridled greed of the oil companies as well as the landowners alike. Yes, those two parties are both to blame for different reasons, yet the real culprit here is government generally and the Texas Railroad Commission and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality specifically. Rather than simply upholding sludge centrifuge supplier to further the well-being of the citizens these politicians were elected to protect, our governmental bodies have chosen to turn a blind eye to the travesty being committed in some areas of the Barnett Shale. One need merely to Google DISH, TX to read a plethora of articles regarding the air quality there as a result of benzene and other emissions from gas well drilling in the area, as well as across much of the 6,000 square mile Barnett Shale.
However, gas drilling itself is a minor problem in DISH. The real problem stems from the large number of compressor stations that have been constructed in there. As it turns out, the town has become a crossroads so to speak for a huge number of pipelines constructed for the transmission of natural gas, gas produced not only from wells around DISH, but from wells all over northern Denton and Tarrant counties. And there is not just a couple of compressors at work here, we are talking about 10 or more at last count. Atmos Energy bought land, got a permit for a compressor and then "subdivided" the land. They subsequently sold it to other producers who obtained separate permits. The permits state w=what kind and how much of a particular chemical a compressor will emit with a limit on those emissions set by none other than the EPA. The entire compressor site should have been viewed as one site, with one permit allowing that one set limit. It should be easy to see the cumulative principle in effect here. The sad part is that the TRC and TCEQ, the supposed watchdogs for the citizens, have knowingly allowed this to happen without batting an eye. Livestock and trees are dying as a result. Many of the citizens have fallen victim to neurological disorders linked to chemicals known to be in high concentration in the area. One family in particular were forced to move away due to health problems, problems that are slowly clearing up after the move. Yet the state has turned a blind eye.
In the end, regardless of the booming economy in North Texas, there are still many who have lost jobs. It's easy to understand the motivation behind what is known as "mailbox money", the checks mailed from oil companies as royalties and bonus money. Is your health, the health of your loved ones and neighbors worth it? Think about that when that oil company landman comes knocking at your door.
SPOILER ALERT!
Identifying the Origin of Mollusca by the Mouthparts
Burgess Shale Fossils Provide Evidence of the Origins of the Mollusca
The next time you come across a slug or a snail in your garden, or perhaps if you sit down to a plate of mussels in a white wine sauce with cream nod you head in approval towards one of the most successful animal phylum known on planet Earth - Mollusca. A�Now thanks to the use of a non-destructive research technique being applied by a Canadian researcher on fossil specimens from the famous Burgess Shale deposits, it seems that palaeontologists have finally begun to unravel the mystery as to how these animals evolved.
The phylum known as Mollusca is one of the most diverse of all the animal phyla and thanks to most of its members having hard body parts and living in a marine environment, the Mollusca are perhaps the most abundant large invertebrates recorded as fossils. A�There are shelled and unshelled forms of mollusc. A�Although the six taxonomic classes that make up this phylum may seem very different, they all share the same basic body plan. A�There are the gastropods (slugs and snails), bivalves such as oysters, cockles and mussels and of course, the cephalopods, perhaps the most advanced of all the members of the Mollusca. A�The cephalopods consist of a number of extant forms, such as squid, cuttlefish and octopi, plus some very important forms that are extinct but have proved so invaluable to palaeontologists as they develop biostratigraphical profiles of rock strata - long-dead groups such as the Ammonites and the Belemnites.
However, debate has gone on between palaeontologists studying the beautifully preserved Burgess Shale specimens (British Columbia, Canada) as to which of the many animal fossils dating from over 500 million years ago, represent the ancestors of the molluscs. A�Now thanks to the work of a University of Toronto PhD student, scientists are beginning to get a better understanding of how the molluscs evolved and which of the bizarre animal fossils from the Burgess Shale represent early forms of this important phylum.
Most molluscs possess a radula, rows of tiny, interlocking teeth that can rasp away drawing food into a primitive mouth which is then passed through a one-way digestive system. A�Only the filter feeding bivalves don't have this "rasping tongue". A�Using advanced electron microscopy to produce images that could then be modelled in three-dimensions, Toronto student Martin Smith was able to demonstrate that two bizarre types of Burgess Shale creature from the Middle CambrianA�Odontogriphus omalusA�and the heavily armouredA�Wiwaxia corrugataA�were forerunners of the Mollusca.
Odontogriphus omalus specimens are extremely rare in the Burgess Shale. A�This organism seems to have been a flat-bodied animal with mid-line symmetry (bilateral symmetry), a single muscular foot for locomotion and a toothed feeding structure with a single stomach and intestine. A�Some fossils from the Burgess Shale strata indicate animals that grew to lengths in excess of ten centimetres. A�Wiwaxia, on the other hand is a much more common member of the Burgess Shale assemblage. sugar refining horizontal spiral centrifuge might suggest that Wiwaxia spp. were more abundant in the warm, shallow tropical sea represented by this British Columbian strata, or it might simply reflect that greater preservation potential of Wiwaxia over Odontogriphus. A�Wiwaxia was certainly a striking animal. A�It had a body plan that was symmetrical around its mid-line, roughly elliptical in shape, toothed mouth-parts that were broadly conical and a primitive mouth and digestive tract. A�It probably pulled itself along using a muscular foot, the sides and the upper surface of this organism was covered by rows of overlapping protective plates called sclerites. A�Shooting upwards from the dorsal area were two rows of parallelA�spikes. A�These spikes probably acted as a deterrent against attack from nektonic predators.
Previous studies had suggested that both Odontogriphus and Wiwaxia were basal forms of either the Mollusca or the Annelid worms, or perhaps they represented evolutionary dead-ends, types of creature that died out leaving no descendants. A�This new research shows that the teeth of these animals sat on a grooved, primitive tongue and the shape, number and articulation of the individual teeth components and the way these structures grew puts these particular Burgess Shale members firmly into the mollusc camp. A�The ancestral molluscan radula is shorter and more squat than in similarly sized extant molluscs today. A�The mouthparts were made up of two or three rows of similarly, shaped teeth (shaped like miniature shoe horns); with a symmetrical central tooth and smaller denticles along the edges. A�The teeth would have moved round the end of a muscular tongue-like structure in a conveyor-belt-like fashion, scooping food and seabed detritus into the mouths of these primitive creatures. A�They were not the sophisticated lettuce-munching radula of the common garden snail, but this new study by the Canadian PhD student does indicate that organisms like Odontogriphus and Wiwaxia are basal to the Mollusca.
The next time you come across a slug or a snail in your garden, or perhaps if you sit down to a plate of mussels in a white wine sauce with cream nod you head in approval towards one of the most successful animal phylum known on planet Earth - Mollusca. A�Now thanks to the use of a non-destructive research technique being applied by a Canadian researcher on fossil specimens from the famous Burgess Shale deposits, it seems that palaeontologists have finally begun to unravel the mystery as to how these animals evolved.
The phylum known as Mollusca is one of the most diverse of all the animal phyla and thanks to most of its members having hard body parts and living in a marine environment, the Mollusca are perhaps the most abundant large invertebrates recorded as fossils. A�There are shelled and unshelled forms of mollusc. A�Although the six taxonomic classes that make up this phylum may seem very different, they all share the same basic body plan. A�There are the gastropods (slugs and snails), bivalves such as oysters, cockles and mussels and of course, the cephalopods, perhaps the most advanced of all the members of the Mollusca. A�The cephalopods consist of a number of extant forms, such as squid, cuttlefish and octopi, plus some very important forms that are extinct but have proved so invaluable to palaeontologists as they develop biostratigraphical profiles of rock strata - long-dead groups such as the Ammonites and the Belemnites.
However, debate has gone on between palaeontologists studying the beautifully preserved Burgess Shale specimens (British Columbia, Canada) as to which of the many animal fossils dating from over 500 million years ago, represent the ancestors of the molluscs. A�Now thanks to the work of a University of Toronto PhD student, scientists are beginning to get a better understanding of how the molluscs evolved and which of the bizarre animal fossils from the Burgess Shale represent early forms of this important phylum.
Most molluscs possess a radula, rows of tiny, interlocking teeth that can rasp away drawing food into a primitive mouth which is then passed through a one-way digestive system. A�Only the filter feeding bivalves don't have this "rasping tongue". A�Using advanced electron microscopy to produce images that could then be modelled in three-dimensions, Toronto student Martin Smith was able to demonstrate that two bizarre types of Burgess Shale creature from the Middle CambrianA�Odontogriphus omalusA�and the heavily armouredA�Wiwaxia corrugataA�were forerunners of the Mollusca.
Odontogriphus omalus specimens are extremely rare in the Burgess Shale. A�This organism seems to have been a flat-bodied animal with mid-line symmetry (bilateral symmetry), a single muscular foot for locomotion and a toothed feeding structure with a single stomach and intestine. A�Some fossils from the Burgess Shale strata indicate animals that grew to lengths in excess of ten centimetres. A�Wiwaxia, on the other hand is a much more common member of the Burgess Shale assemblage. sugar refining horizontal spiral centrifuge might suggest that Wiwaxia spp. were more abundant in the warm, shallow tropical sea represented by this British Columbian strata, or it might simply reflect that greater preservation potential of Wiwaxia over Odontogriphus. A�Wiwaxia was certainly a striking animal. A�It had a body plan that was symmetrical around its mid-line, roughly elliptical in shape, toothed mouth-parts that were broadly conical and a primitive mouth and digestive tract. A�It probably pulled itself along using a muscular foot, the sides and the upper surface of this organism was covered by rows of overlapping protective plates called sclerites. A�Shooting upwards from the dorsal area were two rows of parallelA�spikes. A�These spikes probably acted as a deterrent against attack from nektonic predators.
Previous studies had suggested that both Odontogriphus and Wiwaxia were basal forms of either the Mollusca or the Annelid worms, or perhaps they represented evolutionary dead-ends, types of creature that died out leaving no descendants. A�This new research shows that the teeth of these animals sat on a grooved, primitive tongue and the shape, number and articulation of the individual teeth components and the way these structures grew puts these particular Burgess Shale members firmly into the mollusc camp. A�The ancestral molluscan radula is shorter and more squat than in similarly sized extant molluscs today. A�The mouthparts were made up of two or three rows of similarly, shaped teeth (shaped like miniature shoe horns); with a symmetrical central tooth and smaller denticles along the edges. A�The teeth would have moved round the end of a muscular tongue-like structure in a conveyor-belt-like fashion, scooping food and seabed detritus into the mouths of these primitive creatures. A�They were not the sophisticated lettuce-munching radula of the common garden snail, but this new study by the Canadian PhD student does indicate that organisms like Odontogriphus and Wiwaxia are basal to the Mollusca.
SPOILER ALERT!
Marcellus Shale and Airports: New Economic Opportunities
There is decanter centrifuge for sludge dewatering that Marcellus Shale exploration offers great economic opportunities for businesses and developers throughout the Marcellus Shale play. Oil and gas producers and support companies are investing a great deal into leases, drilling, development and other infrastructure improvement. Airports must be prepared to take advantage of these opportunities as well.
Airports: Focal Point for Economic Development
Because airports are typically located on large tracts of land and are near major highways, they are ideal properties on which to locate Marcellus Shale drilling or related support facilities. Natural gas companies also typically fly their employees into the region on a regular basis, making the airport a prime focal point for other developmental activities. These companies may need land for the development of hangars and corporate office space, and airports can offer that land and the capabilities to aid the natural gas companies in their development plans. These opportunities could lead to hangar construction and other related development such as small business parks on or near an airport property, with the airport as the central focus area.
For airports to succeed in capitalizing on the Marcellus Shale industry, they must successfully balance plans for airport operational needs with the designation of land that could be used for Marcellus Shale development or drilling.
While most airports have an approved Airport Layout Plan, it is very doubtful that the Plan took into account non-aviation related development such as those that will be required as a part of the Marcellus Shale boom. An Airport Business Plan is essential to help the airport manage its existing assets while taking advantage of any development opportunities. oilfield centrifuge can provide development guidelines, sample leases, minimum standards and other required information to ensure a level playing field for all types of development.
Additional Help Exists for Airports
Working with a professional aviation consultant can help airports navigate the many obstacles that can come with Marcellus Shale development. Aviation consultants can work with the Federal Aviation Administration and the State Department of Aviation to ensure that all Sponsor Grant Assurances are being met while helping the airport meet the needs of the developer. It is extremely important to involve the consultant and the funding agencies early on in the process to ensure a smooth, stress-free process to improving the airport's revenue stream through Marcellus Shale drilling and/or development. When choosing a consultant, look for the following capabilities:
Airport business planning
Funding agency coordination and approvals
Marketing plan initiatives
Aviation development plans
Regulatory compliance to expedite permit approvals and minimize project delays
Airports: Focal Point for Economic Development
Because airports are typically located on large tracts of land and are near major highways, they are ideal properties on which to locate Marcellus Shale drilling or related support facilities. Natural gas companies also typically fly their employees into the region on a regular basis, making the airport a prime focal point for other developmental activities. These companies may need land for the development of hangars and corporate office space, and airports can offer that land and the capabilities to aid the natural gas companies in their development plans. These opportunities could lead to hangar construction and other related development such as small business parks on or near an airport property, with the airport as the central focus area.
For airports to succeed in capitalizing on the Marcellus Shale industry, they must successfully balance plans for airport operational needs with the designation of land that could be used for Marcellus Shale development or drilling.
While most airports have an approved Airport Layout Plan, it is very doubtful that the Plan took into account non-aviation related development such as those that will be required as a part of the Marcellus Shale boom. An Airport Business Plan is essential to help the airport manage its existing assets while taking advantage of any development opportunities. oilfield centrifuge can provide development guidelines, sample leases, minimum standards and other required information to ensure a level playing field for all types of development.
Additional Help Exists for Airports
Working with a professional aviation consultant can help airports navigate the many obstacles that can come with Marcellus Shale development. Aviation consultants can work with the Federal Aviation Administration and the State Department of Aviation to ensure that all Sponsor Grant Assurances are being met while helping the airport meet the needs of the developer. It is extremely important to involve the consultant and the funding agencies early on in the process to ensure a smooth, stress-free process to improving the airport's revenue stream through Marcellus Shale drilling and/or development. When choosing a consultant, look for the following capabilities:
Airport business planning
Funding agency coordination and approvals
Marketing plan initiatives
Aviation development plans
Regulatory compliance to expedite permit approvals and minimize project delays
SPOILER ALERT!
Life in the Barnett Shale, Part One
Ever hear of the Barnett Shale? No? Then you must not be from North Texas and you must not work in the oil field. The Barnett Shale is an enormous geological formation of natural gas source bedrock in what is known as the Bend Arch-Fort Worth Basin, consisting mainly of sedimentary rock from the Mississippian age, formed some 354 million-odd years ago. It covers much of North Central Texas, underlies the entire city of Fort Worth and stretches into at least 21 counties. This huge gas field play is still actively being discovered and is a huge boon to the local economies in this region. North Central Texas has been virtually untouched by the nationwide recession as a result. This 6,000-plus square mile natural gas reservoir is estimated to be the second largest producing inland natural gas field in the United States, second only to the San Juan Basin that covers much of Colorado and New Mexico.
An interesting detail of the Barnett Shale is that the gas is contained in extremely hard rock (shale) and until very recent advances in hydraulic fracturing technology the gas was nearly impossible to extract in any commercially viable quantities. These advances in technology in conjunction with advanced horizontal drilling techniques, not to mention an up-tick in natural gas prices, are the driving factors behind the seemingly endless exploration all across North Texas. Oil has also been discovered in some of the far northern counties of the formation, albeit in small quantities. yet record high oil prices coupled with declining world-wide oil reserves have also made the production of oil from the Barnett Shale a commercially viable endeavor.
Despite all the wonderful economic benefits that North Texans are enjoying as a result of this unprecedented and unbridled search for natural gas, the Barnett Shale does have a dark side. CBD extraction centrifuge will have a more in-depth look at why in Part Two of Life in the Barnett Shale.
An interesting detail of the Barnett Shale is that the gas is contained in extremely hard rock (shale) and until very recent advances in hydraulic fracturing technology the gas was nearly impossible to extract in any commercially viable quantities. These advances in technology in conjunction with advanced horizontal drilling techniques, not to mention an up-tick in natural gas prices, are the driving factors behind the seemingly endless exploration all across North Texas. Oil has also been discovered in some of the far northern counties of the formation, albeit in small quantities. yet record high oil prices coupled with declining world-wide oil reserves have also made the production of oil from the Barnett Shale a commercially viable endeavor.
Despite all the wonderful economic benefits that North Texans are enjoying as a result of this unprecedented and unbridled search for natural gas, the Barnett Shale does have a dark side. CBD extraction centrifuge will have a more in-depth look at why in Part Two of Life in the Barnett Shale.
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 petroleum supplies 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. https://www.zkcentrifuge.com/product/ship-hatch-sludge-treatment/ 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.
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 petroleum supplies 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. https://www.zkcentrifuge.com/product/ship-hatch-sludge-treatment/ 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.
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 the long-term financial plans that the royalties will facilitate? In two phase centrifuge , 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.
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 the long-term financial plans that the royalties will facilitate? In two phase centrifuge , 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.
