We had a very busy day yesterday.  We attended the rally for education in Harrisburg at the Capitol rotunda and visited with Representative Mirabito to encourage him to vote increased school funding. Later we drove to Milford to meet with the Susquehanna County Democrats.

Unearthed director, Jolynn Minnaar, spoke at the 2nd Shale Gas Conference held in Johannesburg yesterday. Entitled A Sidelined Society: The sales pitch, seclusion and secrecy around shale gas, her address unpacked the flawed sales pitch presented to South Africa, illustrated the seclusion of rural communities being targeted for gas extraction and revealed the devastating prevalence of non-disclosure agreements that have bought the natural gas industry a spotless track record of “no documented cases of contamination”.

Required reading for Monday morning.

Forcing natural gas out of shale rock through hydraulic fracturing is riskier than conventional gas development and requires tougher rules than those now in place, the International Energy Agency (IEA) says in a new report.

The IEA says such measures are entirely feasible, adding at most 7 percent to the costs of drilling. And the agency says they are necessary.

From National Geographic

Kids for Cleveland lemonade stand today in Williamsport!

Today Aqua America will begin to tear down some of what is left of the Riverdale Mobile Home Park in Jersey Shore, PA.

I attended Hands across Riverdale Prayer Vigil last evening. While it was going on people were trying to salvage what they could: their outdoor plants and the siding from their former homes to sell for scrap.

Band Rock above Ralston on May 30, 2012.
In the background are eight drilling rigs and two windmills.

Seismic testing equipment along Rock Run near Ralston on May 30, 2012