Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania’s Fracking Industry Plans To Continue, Whoever Wins White House
Pennsylvanians working in the controversial fracking industry are confident that the sector will endure, whoever wins the White House in November’s presidential election.
With an eye firmly on winning over voters in the gas-rich battleground state, both Republican candidate Donald Trump and his Democratic opponent Kamala Harris are vowing to support the hydraulic fracturing industry.
But Trump’s consistently strong support for the practice – and Harris’s past opposition to it – have led some voters in the largely rural Republican county of Washington to conclude that the former president would be better.
Once a Democratic stronghold with a strong union presence, Washington County has voted Republican in every presidential election since 2008
Rebecca DROKE
“I absolutely adore Trump, but I think he’s very contentious,” said Jennifer McIntyre, a 47-year-old sales and operations representative for Keystone Clearwater Solutions, which provides water transfer services for the fracking industry.
McIntyre, who is active in the local Washington County Republican party, told AFP she thinks the former president is “incredibly pro-oil and gas,” and that Democrats at both the state and national level have put up regulations that make it harder for the industry to succeed.
“I think that sometimes those regulations are not necessarily appropriate,” said McIntyre, 47, in an interview at the company’s offices in the suburban business park of Southpointe, where many fracking businesses are located.
Diversified Energy employees stand by natural gas well in Franklin Township, Washington County, Pennsylvania
Rebecca DROKE
Pennsylvania’s embrace of new fracking and drilling techniques in the first decade of the 21st century kicked off a boom in natural gas extraction which has pushed the state’s annual production higher than Canada or Qatar.
There are currently more than 2,000 active so-called “unconventional” gas wells in Washington County, and close to 13,000 across the state, according to data from Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection.
At Diversified Energy’s site in South Franklin Township in southwestern Pennsylvania, seven 10-year-old wells hum quietly as they extract natural gas from the Marcellus Shale thousands of feet below.
The gas is first cleaned, and then sold into a nearby pipeline, generating profits for Diversified, royalties for landowners, and revenues for state and local government.
Jason John Mounts, Diversified Energy’s director of operations in southern Pennsylvania, discusses the process of extracting natural gas on a deep well site in Franklin Township, Washington County, Pennsylvania
Rebecca DROKE
Together, these seven wells produce more than four million cubic feet of gas per day, on average, (approximately 113,000 cubic meters), Jason John Mounts, the company’s director of operations in southern Pennsylvania, told AFP during a tour of the site.
Asked whom he supports in the 2024 presidential election, the 40-year-old, who grew up nearby, said he backs “whoever is going to be driving our business.”
“At the end, it’ll take care of itself,” he said. “Every four years, it always takes care of itself.”
Unlike some of the largest players in the fracking sector, Diversified Energy does not do the actual fracking – an expensive and dangerous process in which water, sand, and chemicals are pumped thousands of feet underground at high pressure to create fractures in the bedrock and release the gas trapped inside.
Instead, it buys operating wells from other companies once they are up and running, and then fine-tunes them to increase production.
A truck from another well site drives by a Diversified Energy natural gas well site in Franklin Township, Washington County, Pennsylvania
Rebecca DROKE
Diversified expects its existing portfolio of wells across the United States to continue producing gas for the next 50 to 75 years on average, according to the company’s vice president of investor relations, Douglas Kris.
“This is going to be part of our economy here for as long as we need it,” he told AFP.
Scientists, environmentalists, and public health experts around the world have called for fracking to be banned, citing the health and climate impacts of the fracking phase of the extraction process, and the long-term environmental damage caused by the continued burning of fossil fuels.
In response to these concerns, governments across Europe – including France and Germany – have either banned or suspended the process, as have several provinces of Canada, and US states that include New York.
But in Pennsylvania, support for fracking has grown over the past decade, with 48 percent in favor and 44 percent opposed, according to a 2022 poll from the Muhlenberg College Institute of Public Opinion. When asked if fracking was good for the economy, 86 percent said yes.
A coal barge is seen along the Monongahela River in Monongahela, Washington County
Rebecca DROKE
Across the state, where coal was once the dominant source of energy, fracking supported more than 120,000 jobs in 2022, paying an average of around $97,000, according to a study commissioned by the Marcellus Shale Coalition (MCS), an industry trade group.
“Those jobs are across the spectrum,” MCS president David Callahan told AFP in an interview. “Many blue collar jobs. But many white collar jobs as well.”
Check your tickets! Someone in Pennsylvania won big in Friday’s Mega Millions drawing.
While the jackpot is still rolling, someone in Pennsylvania matched all five winning numbers drawn Friday night— 2-20-51-56-67, but not the Mega Ball, 19, to win $1 million. The Megaplier was 2X.
Three other Pennsylvania Mega Millions players matched four of five numbers drawn, winning $10,000.
Click here for more information from the Pennsylvania Lottery and to check if your ticket won anything.
The Mega Millions jackpot is estimated to be worth $944 million for the next drawing on Christmas Eve.
The Mega Millions odds are 1 in 302.6 million. Winners can choose an annuity with annual payments over 29 years, but most almost always take the cash option.
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New Hope, Pennsylvania, a quaint town of 2,500 people, is becoming a new celebrity haven as it offers a “peaceful and private lifestyle” away from the hustle and bustle of New York City, according to experts.
Gigi Hadid, Bella Hadid and their mother, Yolanda Hadid, bought a property in the tiny town in 2017, according to Realtor.
The property, which is called Carousel Farm, was purchased for $3.7 million and consists of a 5,0000 square-foot stone house, a barn that can accommodate 16 horses, and an in-ground pool, according to the outlet.
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Bella Hadid, Gigi Hadid and Yolanda Hadid reportedly purchased a home in New Hope, Pa., in 2017. (Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for V Magazine / Getty Images)
Aerial view of Yolanda Hadid’s farm in Pennsylvania (MEGA / Mega)
The listing of the property describes the home as a “gentleman’s estate” where guests can “relax around the pool, go riding on the 32+ acres, or just play your own version of Gatsby.”
In April 2020, Bella and Gigi posed for Vogue’s March issue on their ranch: “Postcard from Home for Vogue,” Gigi captioned her post.
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The Hadids’ home is called the “Carousel Farm” and is a 5,000 square-foot stone house in New Hope, Pa. (Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Lifetime / Getty Images)
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Gigi’s ex-boyfriend and father of her child, Zayn Malik, also owns a home in New Hope.
Earlier this year, Malik spoke to British Vogue about the benefits of owning a property in the Pennsylvania town and said it’s a “great place to reflect on your thoughts and think about things without the noise of the world.”
He also noted that his home in New Hope gave him the inspiration for his latest album, “Room Under the Stairs.”
Zayn Malik told British Vogue about the benefits of owning a home in Pennsylvania earlier this year. (Swan Gallet/WWD via Getty Images / Getty Images)
The current man in Gigi’s life, Bradley Cooper, also owns a home in New Hope, just down the street from Carousel Farm, according to the New York Post. The outlet reported that Cooper, who grew up just an hour away in Jenkintown, purchased the home for $6.5 million in December 2023.
Zayn Malik and Gigi Hadid were previously in a relationship and share a daughter. (Mike Coppola/Getty Images for People.com / Getty Images)
Cooper’s newly purchased home was built in 1704 and has undergone extensive renovations, per The Post. The home has seven bedrooms, six bathrooms and is 6,300 square feet.
Tabitha Heit, a licensed relator, told Fox Business, “As a real estate agent licensed in both Pennsylvania and New York, I’ve noticed a significant trend of New Yorkers relocating to Pennsylvania.
“There are several reasons for this shift: the slightly milder climate, more affordable living compared to states like New York and New Jersey, and the overall appeal of the area.”
Gigi Hadid and Bradley Cooper reportedly own homes on the same street in New Hope, Pa. (Getty Images / Getty Images)
Bradley Cooper and Gigi Hadid have been romantically linked since October 2023. (Aeon/GC Images / Getty Images)
Heit told Fox Business that since inventory has been “tight” for years, the recent increase in demand has been driving up home prices.
“I would imagine celebrities are drawn to this area as well as it likely offers them a more peaceful and private lifestyle. New Hope, with its artsy vibe, is a standout town, and its location – just across the river from New Jersey – makes it incredibly accessible,” Heit noted.
“I would imagine celebrities are drawn to this area as well as it likely offers them a more peaceful and private lifestyle.”
She added, “Doylestown is another hot spot in Bucks County, offering charm, culture and a vibrant community that continues to attract buyers.”
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Carle Robbins, a broker in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, told Fox Business that New Hope and Doylestown are where celebrities like to dine.
“But the celebs live in the surrounding townships: Solebury, Upper Makefield, Plumstead, Tinicum,” Robbins added.
Justin Bieber is among the celebrities seen in New Hope, Pa., in recent years. (Jason Merritt / Getty Images)
According to Realtor, the median home price in New Hope is $1.3 million. The outlet also noted that New Hope is in the middle of New York and Philadelphia, which makes it an attractive location for commuters.
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The outlet reported that stars like Leonardo DiCaprio, Justin Bieber and Tina Fey have all been seen in New Hope in recent years.
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