Chesapeake sells Marcellus assets

REGION — The Norwegian oil company StatoilHydro ASA has signed an agreement with Chesapeake Energy Corporation to acquire a 32.5 percent interest in Chesapeake’s Marcellus shale gas acreage holdings in West Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York.

According to various news outlets, the deal is worth $3.38 billion, and covers 32,000 leases in the four states, as well as any new leases that Chesapeake acquires.The companies said jointly the Marcellus could support the operation of as many as 17,000 horizontal wells during the next 20 years.

Chesapeake, the largest producer of natural gas in the United States, will also explore other energy opportunities with StatoilHydro, the second-largest natural gas supplier in Europe.

Narrowsburg DPW election on hold

NARROWSBURG, NY — A special election to determine the future of the highway and water and sewer departments in the Town of Tusten will likely be put on hold until the spring. The vote, which was originally to have been held during the general election on November 4, was cancelled because of a mix-up in paper work.

Tusten supervisor Ben Johnson wanted to reschedule the vote for early in December, but at the town meeting on November 10, Johnson said that many residents who leave the area for the winter expressed a desire to participate in the vote when they return in the spring. Members of the board expressed support for the postponement.

The vote will determine whether the highway superintendent remains an elected position or becomes a position appointed by the board, with the highway and the water and sewer departments merged into a single department of public works.

Public can give power line feedback

NORTHEAST PA — The Pennsylvania Chapter Sierra Club has sent a letter to members urging them to let PPL know their concerns about the proposed new power line.

The Plan B option for the new 500-kilovolt power line, currently under consideration, would carry electricity generated from the nuclear plant in Berwick through the Susquehanna substation to the Roseland substation near Livingston, NJ. The line would cross the Delaware River through the Water Gap National Recreation Area.

The Sierra Club argues that the need for increased energy could be met instead with conservation measures, and also points out the negative effects of the line on property values and outdoor recreation and the tourism industry.

Two meetings locally have been scheduled for the public to voice their concerns and ask questions: one on Tuesday, November 18 at the PPL Wallenpaupack Environmental Learning Center, Route 6 in Hawley; and another on Friday, November 19 at the Fernwood Hotel and Resort, River Road and Route 209 in Bushkill. Both will run from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.

New Mamakating library opens

WURTSBORO, NY — Black Creek Holdings, LLC, the Mamakating Library District and Kathy’s Tea Kozy Kafé will host a grand opening celebration of the new Mamakating Library District building on Monday, November 17 at 3:30 p.m. at the library, located at 156 Sullivan Street.

Black Creek purchased the former Ant Hill building in July of 2007. Principals Shalom Lamm and Ken Nakdimen invested $580,000 in the purchase and restoration of the 3,600-square-foot building, for the sole use of the library, to which Black Creek has granted three years’ free rent.

The restoration project entailed the complete gutting and renovation of the structure, including the addition of a handicapped accessible entrance, new doors, new skylights, new floors, new plumbing and new windows. The exterior of the building received a facelift as well, including landscaping.

BOCES under review

LIBERTY, NY — The Sullivan County Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) has received notification from Commissioner Richard Mills of the New York State Education Department that the department will conduct an in-depth study of the Sullivan County district to examine possible reorganization options. The decision was based on the results of a recent survey and comments from the field.

Such studies are authorized whenever a vacancy occurs in the Office of the District Superintendent of Schools, or if there has been no study within five years.

The study will be completed and the results made public on or before January 15, 2009. The commissioner cited a decreasing student enrollment base and operational costs in his decision to complete the study.

Things looking up at CRMC

HARRIS, NY — Catskill Regional Medical Center (CRMC) has earned full accreditation from The Joint Commission, according to Steve Ruwoldt, CRMC’s chief executive officer. Full accreditation was awarded to CRMC’s main campus in Harris, the Skilled Nursing Unit and the Grover M. Hermann Division Hospital in Callicoon, retroactive to December 8, 2007.

Also showing progress for the hospital, recent data from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services show the hospital’s mortality rates for heart failure, heart attack and pneumonia ranks among the region’s best.

CRMC went through a rough patch in 2006, when the state department of health found several violations of state code and doctors at Crystal Run Medical Center accused it of substandard care. A turnaround specialist firm, Navigant Consulting, was hired in October 2006, and in June 2007 Catskill Regional formed an affiliation with Orange Regional Medical Center to enhance healthcare in the region.

For more information visit www.crmcny.org or call 845/794-3300.