While the following was written by a gentleman living and experiencing fracking in Texas, the parallels with what's going on in Pennsylvania's backyards couldn't be clearer. His essay is incredibly moving. Here is an excerpt:
"Someone asked if I felt we had ‘won or lost’, obviously looking for details. That got me to thinking.
Regardless of where one lives in Gasland, whether it is the urban setting or rural, I’m hard pressed to say that there is no such a thing as ‘winning’, only degrees of losing...
When the drillers first show up, one loses any sense or belief one has about personal property rights. One learns the hard way the definition of ‘split estate’, and that somewhere along the line, someone decided that mineral rights trump all other rights, including any one thought they had according to the U.S. Constitution...."
Read the remainder of the essay...
Showing posts with label Texas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Texas. Show all posts
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Tioga County man stabbed to death by gas industry worker
[Please note: this article was originally posted on www.stargazette.com, 11.5.2010]
Gas industry worker charged in Pa. stabbing death
Landry being held in death of his landlord
By Jason Whong
jwhong@gannett.com
CHARLESTON TOWNSHIP, TIOGA COUNTY, Pa. -- A gas industry worker from Texas has been charged in the Thursday night stabbing death of a local man from whom he rented a room.
Pennsylvania State Police in Mansfield arrested Billy Holden Landry, 49, of Liverpool, Texas. He is charged with criminal homicide and aggravated assault in the death of Shawn Charles Miller, 44, of Cherry Flats Road in Charleston Township, east of Wellsboro.
Police were called just before 11:30 p.m. Thursday to 158 Cherry Flats Road, where Miller rented two upstairs bedrooms to Landry and another gas industry worker.
Miller had no pulse when medics arrived, according to a criminal complaint against Landry filed in District Court in Wellsboro.
Miller was pronounced dead at the scene by the Tioga County Coroner's Office.
Police said the men were arguing before the stabbing.
Kimberly A. Hess said she witnessed the argument at the home that her mother, Connie Everitt, shared with Miller, Everitt's boyfriend of 13 years. Miller rented the two upstairs bedrooms in the three-bedroom home to "oil-riggers," she said.
Hess said she spent the night on the couch and was awakened by Miller asking Landry and the other man, Mike Helton, to be quiet.
"They were drunk, and one had a girl over, and they were all just rowdy and making noise," Hess said.
Hess said she heard a voice from upstairs taunting Miller and asking him to come upstairs.
Miller remained at the bottom of the stairs and asked them to "shut up, be quiet," she said.
Hess said the men came downstairs, one with a knife, as Everitt tried to keep the men apart.
Everyone was "eventually pushed down on top of Shawn," Hess said, as the fight moved toward the television.
"There was a candle that got broke, and I seen blood coming ... from Shawn's wrists, from the top of his hand, actually. And I thought it was from the candle getting broken," she said.
Miller took a few steps, then fell over. "That's when we realized he had gotten cut ... right below his chest," Hess said, as she traced a line across her abdomen with her finger.
"We were trying to give him CPR."
Landry and Helton left immediately afterward, she said. "They left without their shirts on or anything. They didn't grab their bags or nothing."
Just after midnight, Landry went to state police in Mansfield and told the dispatcher that he wanted to speak with a trooper "about a situation he was involved in," according to the complaint.
Landry told the dispatcher that "two females had beat him up" and that he had stabbed a man "in self-defense," according to the complaint.
When a trooper interviewed Landry, he said he was protecting himself and that "nobody should take a beating and not protect themselves."
To read the remainder of the article in full (including photos), please click HERE.
Gas industry worker charged in Pa. stabbing death
Landry being held in death of his landlord
By Jason Whong
jwhong@gannett.com
CHARLESTON TOWNSHIP, TIOGA COUNTY, Pa. -- A gas industry worker from Texas has been charged in the Thursday night stabbing death of a local man from whom he rented a room.
Pennsylvania State Police in Mansfield arrested Billy Holden Landry, 49, of Liverpool, Texas. He is charged with criminal homicide and aggravated assault in the death of Shawn Charles Miller, 44, of Cherry Flats Road in Charleston Township, east of Wellsboro.
Police were called just before 11:30 p.m. Thursday to 158 Cherry Flats Road, where Miller rented two upstairs bedrooms to Landry and another gas industry worker.
Miller had no pulse when medics arrived, according to a criminal complaint against Landry filed in District Court in Wellsboro.
Miller was pronounced dead at the scene by the Tioga County Coroner's Office.
Police said the men were arguing before the stabbing.
Kimberly A. Hess said she witnessed the argument at the home that her mother, Connie Everitt, shared with Miller, Everitt's boyfriend of 13 years. Miller rented the two upstairs bedrooms in the three-bedroom home to "oil-riggers," she said.
Hess said she spent the night on the couch and was awakened by Miller asking Landry and the other man, Mike Helton, to be quiet.
"They were drunk, and one had a girl over, and they were all just rowdy and making noise," Hess said.
Hess said she heard a voice from upstairs taunting Miller and asking him to come upstairs.
Miller remained at the bottom of the stairs and asked them to "shut up, be quiet," she said.
Hess said the men came downstairs, one with a knife, as Everitt tried to keep the men apart.
Everyone was "eventually pushed down on top of Shawn," Hess said, as the fight moved toward the television.
"There was a candle that got broke, and I seen blood coming ... from Shawn's wrists, from the top of his hand, actually. And I thought it was from the candle getting broken," she said.
Miller took a few steps, then fell over. "That's when we realized he had gotten cut ... right below his chest," Hess said, as she traced a line across her abdomen with her finger.
"We were trying to give him CPR."
Landry and Helton left immediately afterward, she said. "They left without their shirts on or anything. They didn't grab their bags or nothing."
Just after midnight, Landry went to state police in Mansfield and told the dispatcher that he wanted to speak with a trooper "about a situation he was involved in," according to the complaint.
Landry told the dispatcher that "two females had beat him up" and that he had stabbed a man "in self-defense," according to the complaint.
When a trooper interviewed Landry, he said he was protecting himself and that "nobody should take a beating and not protect themselves."
To read the remainder of the article in full (including photos), please click HERE.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Did you know that your tax money is being used to bring drillers into Pennsylvania? Neither did we.
The following appeared in a recent Facebook post from PennFuture. Who knew? I'm sure if it's happening in Pittsburgh, it's probably not an isolated incident--especially in northeastern & northcentral PA where you can't throw a rock without hitting a gas well. And by the way, atta boy Gov. Ridge! I'm glad someone has their priorities straight.
(Please note: You can find out more information about PennFuture and many other organizations, informative blogs, and other resources related to gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale by clicking on the appropriate tabs along the top of "Protect the Endless Mountain's" Facebook Page. You can also see & explore the same resources listed along the right-hand side of the blog.)
"Did you know that your tax money is being used to bring drillers into Pennsylvania? Neither did we.
Then we saw the story in yesterday’s Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, which details a trip sponsored by the Pittsburgh Regional Alliance using money from the Department of Community and Economic Development that will fund an event at the Petroleum Club of Houston, complete with hors d’oeuvres, where two drilling executives and the head of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development will wine and dine 150 Lone Star gas industry executives to come to Pennsylvania and make money from our natural resources.
Now, we have no objection to recruiting companies to do business in Pennsylvania, but we think that the drillers haven’t really done their best at making sure Pennsylvanians and Pennsylvania companies get a piece of the Marcellus action. Except for former Governor Tom Ridge, that is, whose firm is getting nearly $1 million to stop a substantial severance tax from being passed.
Seems like the drillers think that Pennsylvania is a great place to pillage, but they wouldn’t want to live here as real partners in our communities. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be fighting so hard against playing by our rules and paying their fair share.
But ordinary citizens can trump the arrogance and cash of the drillers by making their voices heard. The legislators are considering what to do right now – and they must do the right thing.
Send an email right now to your legislators with one simple message: The drillers must play by our rules and pay their fair share.
If you want to do more, please help PennFuture reach out to others by phoning our members and supporters. Contact Christine Knapp, our director of outreach, at 215-545-9692 or sign up to volunteer on our website."
To read the article "Public money used to court Texas drillers" in yesterday's Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, click HERE.
(Please note: You can find out more information about PennFuture and many other organizations, informative blogs, and other resources related to gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale by clicking on the appropriate tabs along the top of "Protect the Endless Mountain's" Facebook Page. You can also see & explore the same resources listed along the right-hand side of the blog.)
"Did you know that your tax money is being used to bring drillers into Pennsylvania? Neither did we.
Then we saw the story in yesterday’s Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, which details a trip sponsored by the Pittsburgh Regional Alliance using money from the Department of Community and Economic Development that will fund an event at the Petroleum Club of Houston, complete with hors d’oeuvres, where two drilling executives and the head of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development will wine and dine 150 Lone Star gas industry executives to come to Pennsylvania and make money from our natural resources.
Now, we have no objection to recruiting companies to do business in Pennsylvania, but we think that the drillers haven’t really done their best at making sure Pennsylvanians and Pennsylvania companies get a piece of the Marcellus action. Except for former Governor Tom Ridge, that is, whose firm is getting nearly $1 million to stop a substantial severance tax from being passed.
Seems like the drillers think that Pennsylvania is a great place to pillage, but they wouldn’t want to live here as real partners in our communities. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be fighting so hard against playing by our rules and paying their fair share.
But ordinary citizens can trump the arrogance and cash of the drillers by making their voices heard. The legislators are considering what to do right now – and they must do the right thing.
Send an email right now to your legislators with one simple message: The drillers must play by our rules and pay their fair share.
If you want to do more, please help PennFuture reach out to others by phoning our members and supporters. Contact Christine Knapp, our director of outreach, at 215-545-9692 or sign up to volunteer on our website."
To read the article "Public money used to court Texas drillers" in yesterday's Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, click HERE.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Concerned about the drilling?
Mayor of Dish, TX to be in Elmira, NY next weekend
Calvin Tillman, Mayor of a small town in Texas (Dish, TX), will be in Elmira on Saturday, February 20 to talk about his fight to protect his community from toxic emissions in the natural gas fields surrounding them.
Where?
Heights Theater
210 East 14th Street
Elmira Heights, NY
When?
Saturday, Feb 20
Breakfast : 8:30-9:15
Presentation: 9:30 - 11:00 AM
Dish is located in the epicenter of the Barnett Shale gas play and is home to a megacomplex of compressor stations, pipelines, metering stations, and gas wells. The town of Dish's air study sampled air at seven locations from August 17 and 18, 2009. The results of this analysis revealed high concentrations of carcinogenic and neurotoxin compounds near and on residential properties. The report also indicated that many of the compounds in the air exceeded the short-term and long-term effects screening levels according to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality regulations.
This event is co-sponsored by the Shaleshock Citizens Alliance and People for a Healthy Environment.
Calvin Tillman, Mayor of a small town in Texas (Dish, TX), will be in Elmira on Saturday, February 20 to talk about his fight to protect his community from toxic emissions in the natural gas fields surrounding them.
Where?
Heights Theater
210 East 14th Street
Elmira Heights, NY
When?
Saturday, Feb 20
Breakfast : 8:30-9:15
Presentation: 9:30 - 11:00 AM
Dish is located in the epicenter of the Barnett Shale gas play and is home to a megacomplex of compressor stations, pipelines, metering stations, and gas wells. The town of Dish's air study sampled air at seven locations from August 17 and 18, 2009. The results of this analysis revealed high concentrations of carcinogenic and neurotoxin compounds near and on residential properties. The report also indicated that many of the compounds in the air exceeded the short-term and long-term effects screening levels according to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality regulations.
This event is co-sponsored by the Shaleshock Citizens Alliance and People for a Healthy Environment.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
NPR Interview: Health Issues Follow Natural Gas Drilling in Texas
If you didn't hear this piece when it aired, take a moment to listen (or read) the NPR interview with the mayor of Dish, TX a small town in the northern part of the state. After decades of living in the town, many residents are experiencing serious, unexplained health issues since the installation of 11 natural gas compression stations within the town limits. Air tests since the stations have been built have shown "extremely high levels of carcinogens and neurotoxins."
As Mayor Tillman noted, "if you don't learn from what has happened here, by the time that the odor gets bad enough for you to not want it there, by the time that the noise gets loud enough that it's disturbing you, it's already too late."
As Mayor Tillman noted, "if you don't learn from what has happened here, by the time that the odor gets bad enough for you to not want it there, by the time that the noise gets loud enough that it's disturbing you, it's already too late."
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