Session to focus on shale-gas impact

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Fact Box

IF YOU GO:

What: Economic impact of natural gas exploration

Where: Community Arts Center, 220 W. Fourth St.

When: 7:30 a.m., Wednesday

info: Registration is required and may be made by calling 570-433-3040

The economic impact of the Marcellus Shale formation and its potential for natural gas drilling in the region will be the topic of a program by the Penn State Cooperative Extension next Wednesday at the Community Arts Center, 220 W. Fourth St.

The event, co-sponsored by Merrill Lynch and the Williamsport-Lycoming Chamber of Commerce, is free and open to the public with pre-registration.

Titled "Economic Impact of Natural Gas Exploration," the program will start about 8 a.m., following a breakfast at 7:30. Presentations will be made by Thomas Murphy, extension educator, and Timothy Kelsey, professor of agricultural sciences, and are expected to last until about 9 a.m.

Murphy will discuss the Marcellus Shale formation, which runs from the Southern Tier of New York to West Virginia. The formation has attracted the attention of many companies that have leased thousands of acres of land in the county for natural gas exploration.

Kelsey will talk about the social and economic impacts natural gas exploration will have on the local community and businesses.

To pre-register, call the extension office at 433-3040.