Many individuals, groups, organizations, and government agencies are involved in the economic effects of hydraulic fracturing. Four important groups that will be discussed in detail are: natural gas companies, America’s Natural Gas Alliance, and specialists.
One important group involved in the economic aspects of natural gas companies is the companies themselves. Individual companies are the best resource for looking into economic factors as they have many statistics indicative of their economic effects. Natural gas companies might be biased, but they can provide information about the number of employees, policy information, and questions about their profits. In addition, many natural gas companies are publically traded companies, which means much of their economic data is freely available online. Looking up annual reports is an easy way to find answers for many questions about these companies’ current and future projects, and how they spend their money. Companies often have a person responsible for communicating with the media, and those people typically have a background and expertise in discussing hydraulic fracturing. Keep in mind that company representatives might be biased in favor of hydraulic fracturing. A representative for Chesapeake Energy is Gordon Pennoyer,
Director of External Communications. His phone number is 405-935-8878, and his e-mail address is media@chk.com.
Another important group is America’s Natural Gas Alliance (ANGA). ANGA is an educational organization that represents many large natural gas companies. To get information about company policies or general hydraulic fracturing or natural gas statistics, ANGA is a great resource. The organization is biased toward natural gas companies, but is also very helpful and employees typically have a background and expertise for hydraulic fracturing topics. A representative for ANGA is Dan Whitten, Senior Director of Communications. His phone number is 202-789-8490, and his e-mail address is dwhitten@anga.us.
A third important group involved in the issue is specialists in fields associated with aspects of hydraulic fracturing across the U.S. The best way to get into contact with somebody well educated on the issue is to contact unbiased people who study and are knowledgeable about economic policies. One contact is Dr. Timothy J. Considine, Director for the Center for Energy Economics & Public Policy at the University of Wisconsin. His phone number is 307-766-2543, and his e-mail address is tconsidi@uwyo.edu.
Marcellus Shale