Since 2004, nearly 3,000 shale gas wells have been drilled in Pennsylvania, which is still just a tiny fraction of the state’s number of conventional oil and gas wells. But because shale gas is so deep and extracting it means handling massive amounts of water, much more infrastructure is involved than in conventional drilling—creating a much bigger footprint as a result, says SSSA member Patrick Drohan, a Pennsylvania State University assistant soil science professor. “I could see right away when I saw my first Marcellus gas pad that this would be something that would change Pennsylvania’s landscape unlike anything the state has seen in well over 50 years.”