American Oil and Gas Reporter - January 2012 - 194

ConventionSection: Pennsylvania Independent Oil & Gas Association

PIOGA Rising To Meet
Industry Challenges
By Del Torkelson
WEXFORD, PA.-The theme for the
Pennsylvania Independent Oil & Gas Association's winter conference says it all:
"A larger and stronger PIOGA-facing
larger and tougher challenges."
According to PIOGA President Louis
D'Amico, the sheer volume of subjects
the association plans to discuss during
the meeting, scheduled for Feb. 7-8 at
the Seven Springs Mountain Resort in
Champion, Pa., offers a summation of
the hurdles before the state's oil and gas
industry. The battalion of topics bearing
down on Pennsylvania producers includes:
* Proceedings in the Pennsylvania
General Assembly, including an impact
fee associated with shale gas development;
* U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency and Pennsylvania Department of
Environmental Protection clean air standards;
* Water management;
* Casing and cementing requirements
and their relation to gas migration concerns;
* Discussions with the DEP regarding
the definition of fresh groundwater;
* Amendments the DEP is planning
for its Chapter 78 Oil and Gas Act regulations;
* How regulations crafted for large,
unconventional shale operations affect
conventional natural gas wells;
* The Pennsylvania Public Utility
Commission's pipeline regulations;
* PIOGA's ongoing litigation to protect privately owned minerals in the Allegheny National Forest;
* Localities' efforts to regulate oil and
gas through municipal ordinances; and
* The outlook for natural gas markets,
including prospects for natural gas vehicles, ethane projects planned in the area,
interstate pipeline expansion, and commodity price projections.
Furthermore, while those policy matters
hardly exhaust the supply of issues confronting Pennsylvania's oil and gas companies, they also cannot ignore matters
pertaining to cost and operational efficiencies, technological innovations and
workforce development.

Such an extensive list presents a vicious
circle for PIOGA, D'Amico notes, in
which the same conditions that make the
association's efforts so pivotal also make
it difficult for members to attend an informative event. In other words, he explains, the greater the challenges PIOGA
members face, the less time they have to
carve out for an extended conference designed to help them confront those challenges.
Between general sessions, social and
recreational events, D'Amico notes that
PIOGA's 2011 summer meeting in May
covered three days. "We tried to do so
much at once," he remarks. "In today's
environment, it is tough to get away for
one day, and getting away for three days
can be simply too much. This way, we
will have a meeting of two full days in
February, and in June we will have a
one-day technical seminar preceded by a
morning of golf, shooting and entertainment, and an afternoon/evening pig roast."
"PIOGA has been active on a number
of fronts with a number of issues that
impact the entire industry-not only conventional operations, not only the Marcellus Shale, not only service companies,
but everybody," he adds. "We are going
to address a lot of those issues, showing
where, why and how we have been involved."
The Country's Keystone
Numerous factors, including Pennsylvania's status as the focal point of Marcellus activity, its Northeast location, its
status as a political swing state, and the
strong presence of both vehement antidevelopment groups well as communities
eager for economic growth seem to suggest
Pennsylvania has become a microcosm
of the United States' debate about energy,
the environment and the economy.
PIOGA Chairman Gary Slagel, senior
adviser, environmental strategies and regulatory affairs for Consol Energy Inc. in
Canonsburg, Pa., emphasizes the association is aware that its efforts and those of
its members appear to carry implications
beyond the commonwealth's borders. "All
eyes are on Pennsylvania. The industry
must maintain a path of continuous im-

194 THE AMERICAN OIL & GAS REPORTER

provement," he reflects.
"Pennsylvania truly has become the
Keystone State as it involves the natural
gas industry," D'Amico reflects. "Although
it has a longstanding history of oil and
gas development, West Virginia has been
watching Pennsylvania closely, and the
same is true for Ohio, where excitement
has been growing over the Utica Shale."
New Yorkers have been watching as
well, he adds, and he says he has taken
solace that cooler heads have carried the
day among Pennsylvania policymakers
instead of the alarmism that has prevented
any Marcellus development in New York.
"Our politicians are not always among
the world's best, but there was no immediate knee-jerk reaction," he describes.
"Even our former governor recognized
the importance of the industry. Even if
he had the wrong motive-taxing us-he
at least recognized the Marcellus opportunity was a job creator, and so it was
important to make a good effort to see it
developed."
Association Growth
In less than two years, D'Amico notes,
PIOGA has added full time personnel in
Vice President of Public Outreach Al
Catanzarite, Public Outreach Coordinator
Stephanie Paluda, and Vice President and
General Counsel Kevin Moody, and also
has tapped former DEP Deputy Secretary
J. Scott Roberts for consultation on environment and regulatory affairs. He credits
the new positions for helping PIOGA
monitor and act on industry issues as
they proliferate.
Slagel says the association's board
has been wise to strengthen PIOGA's
team and support D'Amico's management.
"I am extremely pleased with the willingness of the board to support Lou and
to give him all the tools he needs to support, promote and defend Pennsylvania's
oil and gas industry," Slagel affirms. "The
board recognizes the importance and
value of the knowledge and experience
Lou and staff bring to the table, and we
have been extremely pleased with PIOGA's
performance. The industry has a true
leader in Lou D'Amico."
"Having additional staff has helped,"
American Oil and Gas Reporter - January 2012

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