Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Tanya Gabriele on October 22, 2010 at 3:44pm

Hello Larry. We own a 137 acre farm in Fowler. That's about 17 miles northeast of Warren. A couple attorneys--on two different occasions--approached my mom with leases. This happened well before any of us heard about the Marcellus shale. Mom wondered why two attorneys approached her instead of land agents. She also thought their offer was next to nothing. So, she shredded their contracts.
Both of us are proximal to the Youngstown Air Base. Since that's a public domain, I wonder who would give a gas company authority to tap the shale there. I also wonder if such a company would--or could drill-- at the airbase without leasing the private property that would be within a mile radius of a well head at the airport.

Permalink Reply by Larry Andrew Chako on October 25, 2010 at 3:50am

Tanya, thanks for your response. I'm just learning about this process. What are land agents? Also, do you know if a company would even be interested in a tract as small as 28 acres and what are the implications regarding the surrounding landowners?

Permalink Reply by Tanya Gabriele on November 7, 2010 at 12:24pm

Hello Larry.
Land agents are sales representatives who come to your house to wrangle a deal with you on behalf of the oil and gas company.
From all that I have read as presented by this website, the Marcellus drillers are seeking leases from people who own much less than 28 acres.
That is realistic. Companies who drill shallow wells do that as well. I have a friend in Vienna who shares a well with a neighbor because he needed 5 more acres to get a second well drilled on his farm. My friend has 68 acres. His neighbor had less than 10. The neighbor ended up with unlimited gas and royalties. My friend gets royalties, but has restrictions on his usage. He did not read his contract when he signed it. He told the land agent what he wanted and assumed they would give it to him. He's a hard headed Italian.

I am worried. I didn't get the whole story, but I heard there is such a squabble over the Marcellus in south western Pennslyvania that a faction is trying to pass a bill to use eminent domain to take land from private property owners to gain access to the Marcellus Shale. The fight for our freedom is right here. Not in Iraq.

Permalink Reply by Larry Andrew Chako on February 7, 2011 at 1:44pm

Tanya,

It's been awhile since your last reply. Do you know of any other activity in our area? Do you have any suggestions on how to pursue companies interested in exploration/drilling? Do have information on landowners that have successfully negotiated contracts and have been through the entire process? Do you know of any attorneys in our area that specialize in oil/gas leases and represent landowners?

Permalink Reply by Tanya Gabriele on February 8, 2011 at 5:05am

Ye.  Chesapeake just offered my friend who owns a farm in Vienna, Ohio a lease for $1,500 an acre for 10 years.  My friend wnts twice that amount.

Permalink Reply by James Kerns on February 15, 2011 at 7:42am

Larry and Tanya, Hello, I have been approached by Cobra Resources with a "standard lease agreement" and an offer for a flat $400 for five years lease. I laughed them out the door, but not before i heard that they took advantage of a neighbor who does not speak English well and is not well off. They got his 98 acres for a song i'm afraid. I think we need to talk to our physical neighbors and our friends so they are aware of the situation and everyone needs to consider the environmental impact as well as the financial aspect of a lease. These wells could be a good thing if done well. Good for jobs, family, schools(think taxes), but devastating to the environment when done poorly. I live in Bloomfield Township, Trumbull County on 70 acres i raise cattle and a family on. I have a friend of 25+ yrs. who works in the industry who has no interest in our area, but he is good for information.

Permalink Reply by Tanya Gabriele on February 16, 2011 at 10:45pm

Hello.  Thanks for contacting me.  Cobra also contacted my family with a $250/acre offer.  I immediately went to my neighbor's place.  They had already consulted our other neighbor who was an administrator to Eastern Petroleum.  He told her it was a bad deal.   My friend in Vienna who was approached with a $1500/acre offer by Chesapeake is holding out for more.  I also went to one of a township residents who has a very active position in the community.  I gave him the address t this website and an update.

Permalink Reply by Brett R Oxley on February 16, 2011 at 5:16am

Mahoning county just published their water testing fee schedule and what they test for. I have attached a copy here. Ensure Trumbull (actually all counties in Ohio) are doing the same. Get your water tested prior to fracking, because once they fracked, you cannot test the water and then state it wasn't (bad chemicals) were not there prior to them drilling and therefore not claim damages, if they occur. Protect yourself, because the drillers will not.

Attachments:

• Marcellus Shale Flier 2-15-11.doc, 167 KB

Permalink Reply by Tanya Gabriele on February 16, 2011 at 10:55pm

How much does this test cost?  How thorough is it?  We tried getting our well water tester once before.  We we were concerned about the number of people who were dying of cancer in our area.  There were reports that the township landfill was illegally accepting radio active waste and other carcinogens from New York.  We contacted the EPA.  They said they had already surveyed the quality of the water in our area.  When my mom asked the agent about his findings, he just laughed at her.  He implied--with all the nitrates entering the water table as a result of farming, a--all of northern Trumbull County is polluted.  When she asked him about testing for radio active residuals.  The EPA agent laughed at her again and asked, "What do you think we ought to do about that?" 

My mom considered hiring an independent water tester, but none of the companies she found have kits that test for heavy metals, etc.  In fact, we were told you have to know specifically what you are looking for before they can test?  That means, you water can be cleared by a test, but it's really not passible because the assessment was not comprehensive.  What is Mahoning testing for?  And what are they charging?

Permalink Reply by Brett R Oxley on February 17, 2011 at 4:26am

Open up the attachment on my previous post, it lists the fees and exactly what they test for. You can also go to mahoning county's webiste and get that same information. They have a company (independent) out of Cleveland doing the sampling collection and testing.

 

You should contact your county board of health and see what their water testing, their testing Tiers and their fees for each tier of testing.

Permalink Reply by Tanya Gabriele on February 18, 2011 at 12:57am

Thank you.  I will do.  When I think about it.  This ought to be a service already performed by the EPA.  Shouldn't they be the ones being proactive?  Its like having the tax payer pay twice for services that are already in service.