I frequently progdogsticate the demise of PA at the hands of the natural gas industry when I write this blog, and it struck me this morning that some of you humans might think I’m the little dog who cried wolf. Even though I’ve already shown you the PA eMaps website, and explained how to use it to see where the natural gas wells are going to be, I need to show you another interactive map… mostly because it’s a lot nicer, but also because just a quick glance at it makes it more clear to any of you who just don’t understand the gravity of our situation here in Gasylvania.
The interactive map comes from the Pennsylvania Energy Impact Assessment, and it is very user-friendly. Here is the link: http://maps.tnc.org/paenergy/. The map pops up automatically when you go to that URL. You don’t need to add/subtract any buttons, but you can if you would like to. This site also plots windmills, in case you are interested in those. You’ll see something that looks like this when you go to the URL:
Screen shot of the PA Energy Impacts Assessment's interactive map.
See that huge swath that swipes across PA? Those are wells. You can cross reference between this map and the PA eMaps website to get specific info on any well. You can also zoom in on this map to your county or town. For example, when I zoom into Tioga and Bradford Counties, this is what I see…
Tioga and Bradford Counties, Pennsylvania
Do you get the picture? This is where we are headed, PA! Get on the website and locate your county or town and see how close you will be to a gas well… and get your water tested. The biggest challenge gas companies and homeowners have at the onset of a methane migration issue is the fact that not everyone has a pre-drill test for their water. Make sure you test for methane, ethane, and propane… and if you have the money (or if the gas company is doing the tests for you), then make sure you test for heavy metals and for other VOC’s such as benzene.
Your dogs will thank you for it.
ada.mae.compton 