With the Tri State area of WV, PA and OH having so much growth and success in the natural oil and gas industry everyone needs somewhere to go to keep up with all the current events in those areas. This week’s #FF features @TriStateShale.
We spoke with Douglas Berkley, who created @TriStateShale, and was ranked #28 on the Top 50 Oil and Gas people to follow on Twitter.
Are you the only one who tweets for Tri State Shale (if not who else contributes and what are your job titles)? 
It’s just me…I’m Marketing Manager/New Business person at Somerset Regional Water Resources.  Tri State Shale is my own, personal creation and my personal opinions are my own, not that of SRWR per se.
 Tell us a little bit about Tri State Shale.    
I started Tri State Shale as a professional group dedicated towards sharing industry news and making new industry contacts within the Marcellus and Utica Shale plays.  I really only started taking it seriously about a year ago and it has taken off with a bit of nurturing.  The LinkedIn group is where a lot of the growth is, with over 2500 members, growing daily.  The Twitter account goes hand in hand with a corresponding Facebook page, too.  It’s actually something I do in my spare time and doesn’t take as much time as one would think.  The number of great people I have met because of these groups are amazing.
Why did you feel it was important to start a page specifically for the PA/OH/WV area? 
Simply put, it was all the growth taking place in the region and I didn’t see a group that was targeting it well in the social media realm at that time.
What makes you so passionate about the natural gas industry? 
Twitter in general has turned out to be a great way for me to share stories on an industry I believe in with others, and also has been a great way for me to meet people.  I’ve turned my personal account at @douglasberkley and the Tri State Shale account in to networking tools in many ways.  I’ve actually met many “followers” and it’s been a great experience, you already feel like you know them when you shake hands for the first time.
Where can we go to learn more about Tri State Shale? 
The Tri State Shale LinkedIn group is the best spot…also the Twitter account and people can contact me at, my natgas industry heavy Twitter site, @douglasberkley.
Be sure to follow @TriStateShale to keep up-to-date with what’s going on with Natural Gas in Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia.

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Sarah was born in Lewistown, Pennsylvania- a small town in central PA. She is currently attending Pennsylvania State University majoring in Public Relations and minoring in Recreation, Park and Tourism Management. She is presently working as an Intern in External Affairs for Cabot Oil & Gas Corporation. Sarah’s responsibilities include writing for Cabot’s social media, scheduling content and event planning.