FINZEL — Marcellus Shale in Garrett County is shaping up to be a goldmine and the Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences Cooperative Extension wants to ensure that exploration of the formation will benefit both energy companies and landowners.

The extension group held a meeting on Tuesday evening at the Finzel Fire Hall to educate local landowners about the shale, its development by energy companies and leasing opportunities that may be available to them. Roughly four dozen people attended.

Marcellus Shale is an expansive rock formation containing natural gas ranging from New York to Virginia.

Many property owners are hoping to capitalize on the value of the natural gas contained within the shale by leasing their property to energy companies hoping to harvest the gas. Critics believe that there are underlying environmental hazards, such as water contamination, related to the drilling process used to harvest the gas.

Tom Murphy, head of the extension’s natural gas team, was the speaker for the evening. Murphy’s presentation focused primarily on helping attendees understand the scope of shale and development projects.

“The picture is a lot bigger than people think it is,” said Murphy.

Murphy said Marcellus Shale is the largest shale play in the United States and the second largest in the world. Energy companies believe that 498 trillion cubic feet of natural gas can be harvested from the shale using current technology. Annual consumption of natural gas in the United States is around 20 trillion cubic feet.

Murphy said energy companies have spent $5 billion on development in the shale. That number is projected to increase to $55 billion by 2014. The continuing development of the area is expected to lead to job opportunities, particularly for area youth.

During a question-and-answer session after the presentation, Murphy and other officials addressed the concerns of landowners.

One topic that was covered was the idea of selling minerals versus leasing them. Murphy said that leasing was usually the better choice for reasons including the variety of protections for leasers that are lost if the minerals are instead sold.

Another concern that was brought up was the belief that Maryland officials are ignoring the issue of the shale.

“This has got to be a government-wide effort,” said Kolin Jan, president of the Allegany County Chamber of Commerce. “Please pressure the right people in the government to get the proper procedures in place.”

Cory Galliher can be reached at cgalliher@times-news.com.