DCNR to collect money from drillers who harvest gas under public
streams By Laura Legere (Staff Writer
firstname.lastname@example.org) Published: June 4, 2012 Natural
gas drillers have to sign leases and compensate the state if
they plan to collect gas trapped deep beneath publicly owned
streams and rivers, according to a policy developed recently by
the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural
Resources. The policy applies to gas gathered from pads on
neighboring properties – away from the streams and their banks –
where wells are drilled vertically before turning and boring
laterally underground. Waterways in the commonwealth are
considered publicly owned if they are, or have ever been, used
for commercial trade or travel. The list and maps of the
waterways compiled by DCNR include hundreds of streams
throughout the state’s Marcellus Shale region. Where the state
owns the streambeds, it also owns the mineral rights beneath
them. DCNR spokeswoman Christina Novak said the state is
developing a stan