Major driller releases e-mails with lawmaker

Major driller releases e-mails with lawmaker

PITTSBURGH (AP) — A major natural gas drilling firm has shared e-mails it received from a southwestern Pennsylvania lawmaker who once supported the company’s efforts but is now an ardent opponent of the impacts of Marcellus Shale drilling.

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports Wednesday that Rep. Jesse White, a Washington County Democrat, once asked Range Resources if he could catch a ride to the Super Bowl on the company’s jet and separately complained about the company’s lack of hard work on a disappointing political fundraiser.

White tells the newspaper that Range is organizing a smear campaign because he sticks up for landowners locked in disputes with the company, though he refused to provide his e-mails to bolster that claim.

Range Resources claims the e-mails it released are accurate and fairly reflect White’s changed relationship with the company.