| By Bob Weaver
A major increase in gas well drilling in West Virginia is causing hundreds of land owners to turn out to public meetings around the state regarding their rights.
There is a major gas well drilling boom in the Mountain State, from about 300 wells annually five years ago to about 3,000 wells, most of them being produced by Chesapeake Energy and other large outfits.
The production will directly affect landowners and the environment.
Over 100 people attended a public meeting Thursday at the Spencer Heritage Park to learn about the formation of a new statewide organization, the West Virginia Surface Owners Rights Organization (WVSORO).
A number of those attending vented their anger toward production outfits who have placed landowners and royalty holders at a disadvantage.
Many of those attending paid to join the new organization.
The de-forestation of a gas well site, about 10 acres per well with access roads, is likely exceeding the de-forestation of current mountaintop removal.
Notification problems, wide-swath right-of-ways destroying trees, spacing of drilling, and poor reclamation were among a number of issues discussed at the meeting.
There was an informational display on how the current boom in gas drilling is impacting property owners and there was a brief presentation of how the gas well permitting process works.
It was also learned that because of mineral wealth, West Virginia is one of only six states where the surface and subsurface rights have ever been separated from each other.
It was not until the 1980s that surface owners were even notified that a gas well was going to be drilled or that post drilling reclamation would take place or be required.
The primary focus of the meeting was to discuss a Surface Owners Bill of Rights that was recently submitted to both the House of Delegates and the WV Senate.
The crowd in attendance included Delegate Bob Ashley, Spencer Mayor Terry Williams as well as several local businessmen, farmers, gas industry workers and recent local real estate purchasers.
West Virginia Surface Owners Rights Organization www.wvsoro.org
| 
