STEUBENVILLE - Though their work is far from done, members of Jefferson County's Oil and Gas Committee tackled one of the questions that most concerns area residents: How to make sure the community shares in the jobs and business opportunities shale drilling creates.
"We've got to be proactive," Commissioner Dave Maple said. "The big companies are not micro-managing things at this level, they're using the vendors they're used to using, working with the contacts they're used to working with. There's no hammer that anybody has to make them do it. We have to be partners to them."
Some local companies have managed to establish working relationships with the energy companies, he said. "We do already have a lot of local businesses starting to participate."
Others, though, suggested that "getting inside the fence has been difficult" for most area businesses.
"We have to create relationships with them," committee member Thomas Hartwig countered. "And any relationship you create takes time, doesn't it?"
Steubenville City Manager Cathy Davison, part of the committee's support team, said the onus is on community leaders "to be in front of the companies, make sure they know what we have here."
"If we're not there, then shame on us," she said.
Salem Township Trustee Terry Bell said he's seen "five different contractors doing almost the same thing" on wells being developed in his area, "and none of them are from Ohio."
"I know for a fact the people of Jefferson County have the equipment, people and training to do these same things," he said.
Laura Meeks, president of Eastern Gateway Community College, said they're already working on developing training programs.
The problem now, she said, is making sure they have instructors equipped to teach the classes.
"We can't have a trained work force without instructors," she said. "If we can't find people who know how to do it, we're in trouble.
"The governor's mandate is that we do not want to import drillers," she added. "If we're going to drill, (he wants) to have Ohioans drilling."
Maple pointed out that eventually the community's perception of local is going to change.
"A couple of years from now, I have a feeling a lot of the folks who have Texas plates now are going to be considered local," he said.
(Harris can be contacted at lharris@heraldstaronline.com.)
