Online Toolkit for Municipal Officials and Community Leaders*
Local Government's Role
Roads and Trucks
Scope of Local Authorities
Negotiating with Gas Companies
Legal Issues
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Overview of Local Government's Role in Natural Gas Development and Drilling
Marcellus Shale: What Local Government Officials Need to Know
Source: Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences and Agricultural Research and Cooperative Extension, 2008.
In addition to general background on Marcellus Shale drilling, this 24-page report includes information concerning:
- The roles and authority of various entities (Pennsylvania-specific)
- Local Issues - pages 11-19. Includes Roads, Water, Revenue, Population Change and Community Impacts and Environmental Impacts
- What Local Officials Can Do - pages 19-22. Includes Roads, Bonding, Zoning and Land Development, Capital Budgets, Task Forces.
- Helpful Resources - pages 23-24.
Energy Boomtowns and Natural Gas: Implications for Marcellus Shale Local Governments and Rural Communities
Source: Prepared by Jeffrey Jacquet for the Northeast Regional Center for Rural Development at Penn State University. 2009.
This report includes two sections containing information specific to local governments.
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"Challenges to Local Governments" - pages 8-13
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A second section talks about how government structure in NY and PA differs from Western states and provides overall recommendations for how to approach preparation for drilling - pages 52-57
If We Knew What We Know Now...A Decade of Lessons Learned from Urban Drilling in Fort Worth
Source: Penn State Cooperative Extension, Marcellus Shale Educational Webinar Series. May 20, 2010.
This presentation by Sarah Fullenwider, Senior Assistant City Attorney for Fort Worth, Texas, covers community issues arising from drilling in that state. It is available as a webinar or simply a slide presentation.
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A wide range of topics is touched on from a “hindsight is 20/20” perspective.
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A "Could Have, Should Have" and lessons learned section begins on slide 15.
Natural Gas Development Checklist for Municipal Officials
Source: Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences and Agricultural Research and Cooperative Extension. December 2008.
This two-page checklist provides a high-level yet quite comprehensive overview of what municipal officials can expect, plan for and think about to prepare their communities for gas development and drilling.
Roads and Trucks
Marcellus Shale: Local Road Impacts
Source: Cornell Cooperative Extension. June 2010.
This webinar, presented by Lynne Irwin and David Orr of Cornell’s Local Roads Program, includes coverage of the following topics. (Length: 1 hour, 18 minutes)
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14:00 Begins specific discussion of roads
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27:45 The effect of gas drilling activity on roads
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36:40 Preserve and Protect Your Roads
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37:55 Vehicle and Traffic Law
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38:38 Legal Basis for Access Permits
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39:37 Legal Basis for Load Permits
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41:00 What Can You Do?
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42:06 Expect Problems
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42:50 Consider Sight Distance and Road Width
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43:33 Drilling Equipment Truck
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45:00 Q & A
Resource Binder: Drilling in the Marcellus Shale
Source: Tioga Investigates Natural Gas (TING) in partnership with the Marcellus Shale Graduate Student Workshop led by Visiting Assistant Professor, Katia Balassiano, City and Regional Planning Department, Cornell University. Spring 2010.
Chapter 7 (pp. 148-168) of the Resource Binder addresses the following issues:
If We Knew What We Know Now...A Decade of Lessons Learned from Urban Drilling in Fort Worth
Source: Penn State Cooperative Extension, Marcellus Shale Educational Webinar Series. May 20, 2010.
This presentation by Sarah Fullenwider, Senior Assistant City Attorney for Fort Worth, Texas, covers community issues arising from drilling in that state. It is available as a webinar or simply a slide presentation.
The Scope of Local Authorities
Preparing for a Natural Gas Boom in Schuyler County, NY
Source: Cornell University Cooperative Extension in Schuyler County, New York. 2008.
Schuyler County created a task force to help prepare and plan for hydraulic fracturing of the Marcellus Shale. The Task Force produced this one-page document with examples of potential recommendations that could be adopted by the Towns.
Natural Gas Impacts to Local Governments and the Role of Community Task Forces
Source: Cornell Cooperative Extension, Natural Gas Resource Center. May 2009.
In this three-part presentation:
- Jeffrey Jacquet of Cornell Cooperative Extension provides an introduction to the gas drilling process and impact considerations. (Slides 6-18)
- Bill Pammer, Director of Planning for Sullivan County, talks about municipal readiness for drilling. (Slides 19-35)
- Loretta Sullivan, Chair of Tioga Investigates Natural Gas (TING) discusses creating a task force. (Slides 36-40)
New York State Local Government Guide to Marcellus Shale Gas Development
Source: Marcellus Shale Workshop, City and Regional Planning Department, Cornell University. Fall 2009.
This guide was prepared by interdisciplinary graduate students at Cornell University as part of a Marcellus Shale Workshop, led by Stephan Schmidt, in the City and Regional Planning department. This document is an excerpt from that report titled, “What Can Local Governments Do?” and covers such issues as roads, zoning, permitting, public safety and services, local comprehensive planning and intergovernmental task forces.
Negotiating with Oil and Gas Companies
Negotiating a Municipal Oil & Gas Lease
Source: Coughlin & Gerhart LLP, Binghamton, NY. Available through Cornell Cooperative Extension. August 29, 2008.
This five-page memo to the New York Conference of Mayors includes information about municipalities’ authority to lease municipal lands as well as lease negotiation considerations such as defining lease terms, royalties, public emergencies and more.
Negotiating Pipeline Rights-of-Way in Pennsylvania
Source: Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences and Agricultural Research and Cooperative Extension. October 2010.
This report, which focuses primarily on landowners, discusses easements, or agreements between pipeline companies and property owners. Easements “provide a permanent, limited interest in the land that enables the pipeline company to install, operate, test, inspect, alter, repair, maintain, replace, and protect one or more pipelines within the designated easement.”
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Pages 4-5 include a list of issues that landowners will want to consider while engaging in two-way negotiation over the exact parameters of the right of way. A more detailed list of topics to consider is enclosed in the Landowner’s Guide to Leasing Land in Pennsylvania
Getting to Yes
A useful resource for general negotiation tips is Getting to Yes, the national best-seller by Roger Fisher and William Ury. Principled -- rather than positional -- negotiation emphasizes (1) separating the people from the problem; (2) focusing on interests rather than positions; (3) inventing options for mutual gain; and (4) insisting on using objective criteria.
Legal Issues
Natural Gas Production and Municipal Home Rule in New York
Source: Michael Kenneally and Todd Mathes, New York Zoning Law and Practice Report Vol. 10 No.4. January/February, 2010.
This five-page report helps answer the question: to what extent may a municipality exercise its home rule powers to govern activity associated with the development of the Marcellus shale play? It references specific laws, constitutional articles and precedents to describe opportunities and limits associated with municipalities’ powers.
Current Legal Issues for Marcellus Shale: The SGEIS and Other Hot Legal Topics
Source: New York State Bar Association; prepared by Yvonne Hennessey, The West Firm, PLLC, Albany, NY. November 2009.
This presentation covers five “hot” legal issues associated with Marcellus Shale drilling: a breakdown of the SGEIS (Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement), Local Preemption, Road Use, Legislation and other miscellaneous legal topics. It focuses on New York State, though slide 25 (of 30) highlights Pennsylvania.
A Legal and Practical Guide to Protecting Your Citizens and the Environment in the Face of Marcellus Shale Natural Gas Drilling
Source: Kimberlea Shaw Rea, Esq., Bosworth Gray & Fuller, Bronxville, NY. March 2009.
Available through Cornell Cooperative Extension.
*This project is supported in part through The Park Foundation and The Heinz Endowments.