To the editor:
There's a lot of drilling for natural gas in Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia in the Tri-State Area. There hasn't been this much drilling in this area since the early 1900s. There is an abundant supply of natural gas, so much so that drilling has slowed down. In the last five months, the market price of gas had dropped 60 percent.
The price consumers pay for natural gas has dropped less than 1 percent during that same period. I remember from previous years that when natural gas market prices went up, it did not take five months for the gas company to raise rates.
Can you believe that the gas company requested a 4.9 percent increase to consumers from the public service committee on April 20? So far, the commission has rejected this raise. The next meeting is scheduled for Aug. 31. With the cost of natural gas down 60 percent, shouldn't consumers get their rates down at least 25 percent?
Consumers, write more letters to the commission at 201 Brooke St., Charleston, WV 35301.
Donald Baker
Weirton
