State officials have spent the past few months meeting with representatives from all sides of the debate over oil and gas drilling to see if they can possibly come up with new rules to regulate the industry.

In particular, they are focusing on horizontal drilling, a process that is used to tap into the vast natural gas reserves of the Marcellus Shale, a geologic formation lying under a good portion of northern West Virginia. West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection Cabinet Secretary Randy Huffman recently said the process likely will be handled by a different set of rules than those that govern the traditional vertical drilling.

James Martin, chief of the state Office of Oil and Gas, said state officials have hosted a series of meetings with environmentalists, industry officials, surface owners groups, farm bureaus and mineral owners groups.

"So we tried to get everybody engaged that at least had an interest," he said.

Drilling into the Marcellus Shale is controversial because many people are worried about its environmental impacts, just not on the land but on the watershed. They are worried chemical-infused water from a technique known as fracking will drain into the watershed and escape wells.

It is a debate playing out in several states. The state of New York placed a moratorium on Marcellus Shale drilling within its borders until some of the environmental issues have been resolved.

West Virginia officials have said that is not the route they want to take. Since April, they've been meeting with various interest groups, sometimes together and sometimes separately, to discuss concerns and listen to recommendations as to what policy changes could be made to address the proposed drilling.

"We are still a ways away," Martin acknowledged. "We were hoping to have this thing wrapped up by the end of the year."

The goal is to have a piece of legislation ready for state lawmakers when they meet in regular session in 2011, he said.

Still, significant differences need to be to overcome. One is the divide between some surface owners and mineral owners, who are allowed under state law to drill on another person's land to access the minerals they own. That situation, known as "split estates," has angered surface owners who believe their property rights are being violated.

Another issue is the state's small number inspectors versus the number of active wells in the state, said Dave McMahon of the West Virginia Surface Owners' Rights Organization. There are 2,700 wells for every inspector.

"The governor and the DEP both recognize we need to increase the number of inspectors," he said.

As far as reaching agreements on policy, McMahon noted there isn't just one industry group to negotiate with.

"It is hard for the industry to agree on anything because there are two different trade organizations," he said.

Those organizations are the Independent Oil and Gas Association of West Virginia and the West Virginia Oil and Natural Gas Association.

Corky DeMarco, executive director of WVONGA, said his group favors a different set of rules for new drilling techniques.

"We're not against it," he said. "We're actually for it, for the simple reason we need a set of rules we can operate under."

What WVONGA does not want to see is West Virginia go to route of New York, although that path seems unlikely at this point. DeMarco said what the state needs to do is develop a set of rules governing the drilling techniques used most often.

"I think the opportunity is ours, and I think we need to seize these opportunities," he said. "It is a very bright future for energy development in the state of West Virginia."