Author Archives: davidjkatz

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About davidjkatz

The Moses family has lived on the Stillwater River since 1974, when George and Lucile Moses retired and moved to the Beehive from the Twin Cities. They’re gone now, but their four daughters (pictured at left, on the Beehive) and their families continue to spend time there, and have grown to love the area. This blog started as an email chain to keep the family informed about the threat of increased fracking activity in the area, but the desire to inform and get involved led to the creation of this blog.

A personal story: Kip Gardner, Carroll County, Ohio (with video)

Posted on April 22, 2014 by davidjkatz

“It’s disappointing that private corporate interests can trump my rights as a landowner. I’m worried that I’ll be forced into an undesirable lease that does not protect my land or my ability to farm in the future,” -Kip Gardner Telling … Continue reading →

Posted in Personal stories | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Catching up on some items that have been sent to me and other things I’ve been meaning to post: Work has now started on the ECA well in Belfry. A local resident reports, ““I drove up there and sure enough … Continue reading →

Posted on April 21, 2014 by davidjkatz | Leave a comment

Bad news. Your property value is about to go down 22%

Posted on April 18, 2014 by davidjkatz

Recently we did a three-part series that looked at how increased oil and gas drilling will take away property rights in Stillwater and Carbon counties. The first part looked at the negative impact drilling has on property values, and how … Continue reading →

Posted in Fracking Information | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

A visit to the front in the war against rural America

Posted on April 17, 2014 by davidjkatz

Last week I took advantage of the beautiful Montana spring weather to drive over to Belfry. There I could see for myself the site of the well recently permitted by the Montana Board of Oil and Gas Conservation (BOGC). It … Continue reading →

Posted in Community Organization, Politics and History, Fracking Information | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

A personal story: Terry and Teresa Jackson, West Virginia

Posted on April 16, 2014 by davidjkatz

“They have no right to pollute my property, to desecrate the land we own. If I was out here pouring chemicals on my property, I’d be in jail.” -Teresa Jackson Telling personal stories The oil and gas boom has been underway … Continue reading →

Posted in Personal stories | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

A sharp-eyed reader spotted this on monster.com. Anyone who is complacent about ECA’s intentions after a long cold winter should think again. District Production Foreman ECA – Energy Corporation of America – Billings, MT Energy Corporation of America is actively seeking … Continue reading →

Posted on April 14, 2014 by davidjkatz | 4 Comments

Alaska adopts strict new rules for fracking. What about Montana?

Posted on April 11, 2014 by davidjkatz

It’s interesting to see what other states do while Montana twiddles its thumbs. Alaska’s oil and gas regulatory body has adopted new rules governing hydraulic fracturing that include increased testing of water wells for contamination. Final regulations are now being … Continue reading →

Posted in Fracking Information | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Rex Tillerson admits humans cause climate change; Steve Daines doesn’t get the message

Posted on April 10, 2014 by davidjkatz

“The good thing about science is that it’s true whether you believe in it or not.” –Neil deGrasse Tyson Rex Tillerson When Rex Tillerson speaks, this blog listens. Rex is pretty much an icon around here. He’s the namesake of … Continue reading →

Posted in Community Organization, Politics and History, Fracking Information, Shared Letters and Posts | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

A personal story: Marilyn Hunt, Wetzel County, West Virginia

Posted on April 9, 2014 by davidjkatz

 We used to live the American dream; we had a middle class existence. Now we’re on a camping trip without the fun. We collect rain water to water the stock and we’ve set up a special system to treat the … Continue reading →

Posted in Personal stories | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

If you’re in Stillwater County you may be aware of a comments period on a federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lease sale that ends tomorrow, April 9. The purpose of this post is to familiarize you with the BLM … Continue reading →

Posted on April 8, 2014 by davidjkatz | 6 Comments