Sveinung Svarte, chief executive officer of Athabasca Oil Corp., Calgary, will function also as president after the departure of Bryan Gould and formation of an executive operational and development committee to be chaired by Ronald Eckhardt, a director.

Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP is expanding its Sweeny Lateral pipeline running between the Kinder Morgan Crude Condensate (KMCC) pipeline and Phillips 66’s Sweeny refinery in Brazoria County, Tex.

NET Midstream’s wholly owned subsidiary Eagle Ford Midstream LP (EFM) has secured firm transportation agreements from Eagle Ford shale producers including Talisman Energy USA and Statoil Natural Gas LLC.

Energy policymakers worldwide should look beyond supply security and environmental questions and consider water resource availability if they expect to succeed, experts said May 3 during a forum at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.

The New York State Supreme Court Appellate Division ruled May 2 that townships in New York state can ban hydraulic fracturing and shale gas drilling within municipal borders.

ATASCOSA COUNTY, Tex.—The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) Center for Community and Business Research reported in March 2013 that Eagle Ford shale development added more than $61 billion in total economic impact during 2012.

WARD COUNTY, ND—The Montana-North Dakota chapter of the National Service, Transmission, Exploration, and Production Safety Network (MonDaks STEPS) held its first safety stand down on Feb. 14, 2013.

Oil production from 14 of the most active counties in the South Texas Eagle Ford shale reached 28 MMbbl in the last year. Gas production doubled from the previous year to 271 bcf, and for the same period, condensate tripled to 21 MMbbl, according to a March report from the Eagle Ford Task Force, which was established by the Texas Railroad Commission.

FAULKNER COUNTY, Ark.—In January, the USGS announced results from its year-long groundwater study in the central portion of Arkansas' Fayetteville shale.

ALBANY, NY—Marcellus Shale production reached 7 bcfd, surpassing the Haynesville to become the largest gas producing play in the US, according to a recent report from IHS.

CHENANGO COUNTY, NY—With no clear regulatory decision on the books, New York's local municipalities are enforcing constitutional rights to limit drilling activity within their borders.

Given the demanding schedules oil and gas professionals must maintain, it is easy to lose sight of the positive progress the industry continues to make—and what these collective efforts, aimed at safely producing clean-burning domestic natural gas, mean for the Northeastern US and the country as a whole.