Entries by Matt Kelso, BA

Pennsylvania Oil & Gas Fines Analysis

In March 2017, FracTracker Alliance conducted a review of the available Pennsylvania oil and gas fine data released publicly by the PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to identify trends in industry-related fines over time and by particular operators. In total, the DEP has assessed nearly $36 million in fines to oil and gas extraction […]

Hypothetical Impacts of Unconventional Drilling In Allegheny County

With tens of thousands of wells scattered across the countryside, Southwestern Pennsylvania is no stranger to oil and gas development. New, industrial scale extraction methods are already well entrenched, with over 3,600 of these unconventional wells drilled so far in that part of the state, mostly from the well known Marcellus Shale formation. Southwestern Pennsylvania […]

Updated Pipeline Incident Analysis

By Matt Kelso, Manager of Data & Technology As massive new pipeline projects continue to generate news, the existing midstream infrastructure that’s hidden beneath our feet continues to be problematic on a daily basis. Since 2010, there have been 4,215 pipeline incidents resulting in 100 reported fatalities, 470 injuries, and property damage exceeding $3.4 billion. […]

Approaching 10K Unconventional Wells in PA

By Matt Kelso, Manager of Data & Technology Each state has its own definition of what it means for an oil or gas well to be “fracked.” In Pennsylvania, these wells are known as “unconventional,” a definition mostly based on the depth of the target formation: An unconventional gas well is a well that is drilled […]

Nearly 2 Million Pennsylvanians Live Within a Kilometer of Oil & Gas Wells

By Matt Kelso, Manager of Data & Technology In October 2014, the FracTracker Alliance performed an analysis showing an estimated 1.2 million people lived within a half mile of oil and gas wells in Pennsylvania. We have now updated the analysis, but this time, the unit of measure is one kilometer (0.62 miles). PA Population Within […]

Time Sequence Map of PA Drilling Available

Pennsylvania’s Drake Well is known for sparking the first oil boom in the United States in 1859. In more recent history, the industry has resurrected hydrocarbon extraction in the Commonwealth through unconventional oil and gas drilling – or fracking. Between 2002 and October 28, 2015, at least 16,826 of these high-impact wells have been approved […]

Pennsylvania’s Drilling Waste Distributed to Eight States

By Matt Kelso, Manager of Data & Technology According to data published by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), Pennsylvania’s unconventional oil and gas waste that was generated in the first half of 2015 found its way to treatment facilities, disposal wells, and landfills in eight different states. While the majority of the waste […]

1.7 Million Wells in the U.S. – A 2015 Update

  Updated National Well Data By Matt Kelso, Manager of Data & Technology In February 2014, the FracTracker Alliance produced our first version of a national well data file and map, showing over 1.1 million active oil and gas wells in the United States. We have now updated that data, with the total of wells […]

Unconventional Drilling Activity Down In Pennsylvania

By Matt Kelso, Manager of Data & Technology Wells Spudded (Drilled) Unconventional oil and gas drilling is well established in Pennsylvania, with over 9,200 drilled wells, an additional 7,200 permitted locations that have not yet been drilled, and 5,300 violations all happening since the turn of the millennium. It took a while for the industry to […]

Utica Drilling in Pennsylvania

In Pennsylvania, the vast majority of unconventional oil and gas activity is focused on the Marcellus Shale formation, a Devonian period deposit of black shale with a high hydrocarbon content, which requires horizontal drilling and large scale hydraulic fracturing to produce enough oil and gas to make the drilling economically viable.  This formation was created […]