Accidents

Accidents | Energy Companies | Hilcorp Energy | Industrywide Issues | Mercer County | Pennsylvania

Hilcorp has 2 Accidents (in 3 Weeks) in Mercer County, PA
September 9, 2014September 9, 2014

Hilcorp is having some bad luck in Mercer County, PA. Three weeks ago two storage tanks at a Hilcorp well pad caught fire and exploded–no one injured. Then, this past Saturday (three weeks later), a separator caught fire at a well pad. No big explosions this time–at least none that were heard. However, up to 20 homes had to be evacuated while the fire was extinguished. Once again, no injuries…
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Accidents | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

PA DEP Releases List of Water Wells Impacted by Shale Drilling
August 29, 2014August 29, 2014

Here comes the next media smear campaign. This time the meme is “You know that lie we’ve been telling about how shale drilling contaminates water wells? Well it was true all along. Here’s the proof!” Case in point: The Associate Press has a single, breathless story of a new list just released by the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) of 243 water wells “contaminated” by Marcellus Shale drilling. We’ve included the list below. These 243 are wells DEP officials believe have been affected by shale drilling after conducting an investigation. Some of the cases are still under investigation but included on the list because the DEP thinks they were likely contaminated by drilling. Is this the smoking gun? Is Marcellus drilling a threat to water after all? As always, MDN is here to provide some much needed perspective…
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Accidents | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Wastewater | Westmoreland County | WPX Energy

DEP Says WPX Needs to Replace 3rd Water Supply in SW PA
August 27, 2014August 27, 2014

In July, MDN told you the water wells for two of three families living near a WPX recycled frack wastewater impoundment (i.e. “pond”), near Ligonier (Westmoreland County), PA, were determined to have been contaminated by that impoundment. That is, the Kalp impoundment leaked into the ground, according to the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP), and that has caused a long-term problem with those wells (see WPX Wastewater Impoundment Source of Water Contamination in W PA? and our follow-up story Important Update on WPX Energy Leaking Impoundment in SWPA). The DEP has made a final determination that the third family’s well, the elderly Ken and Mildred Geary, was also affected and that WPX will need to find a permanent water replacement solution for them too…
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Accidents | Coterra Energy (Cabot O&G) | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Susquehanna County

DEP Fines Cabot $76K for Out-of-Control Well in Susquehanna County
August 25, 2014August 25, 2014

Back in January Cabot Oil & Gas “lost control” of a well in Susquehanna County, PA for a period of 27 hours. Cabot said it could not determine the exact amount of natural gas or fluid released because it was not possible to safely measure the flows. However, most of what got released was methane–the same thing that comes out of cow butts in prodigious volumes. Even though the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) says there were “no significant environmental impacts,” the DEP slapped Cabot with a $76,546 fine for their inability to keep control of the well and for the unquantified discharges that came from it…
Read More “DEP Fines Cabot $76K for Out-of-Control Well in Susquehanna County”
Accidents | Energy Services | HalenHardy | Huntingdon County (PA) | Industrywide Issues | Meetings | Pennsylvania | RETTEW

HalenHardy & RETTEW Offer Oil & Gas Safety Day on Aug 19
August 15, 2014August 15, 2014

Next Tuesday, August 19th, HalenHardy and RETTEW are offering a free program focusing on how workers and their companies can create a proactive culture of safety. Called the Oil & Gas Safety Day, the half-day program (either morning or afternoon) will sport an expert safety panel and attendees will have the opportunity to participate in live demonstrations of the latest safety innovations available to reduce slip, trip and fall accidents on the work site. The event will be held at the HomeWaters facility in Spruce Creek–so while you’re there, you can also enjoy some of the world’s best fly fishing, and try your hand at shooting clay pigeons. Here’s the details…
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Accidents | Chevron | Energy Companies | Greene County (PA) | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania

DEP Issues Final Report – What Caused Chevron Well Fire?
August 7, 2014August 7, 2014

In early February, a well already drilled and completed by Chevron in Greene County, PA was in the process of being connected to a pipeline system. The well caught fire and exploded, eventually spreading to a second well close by (see Explosion & Fire at Chevron Well in SWPA – 1 Person Missing). The fire and explosion killed a worker at the site, a contractor with Cameron International (see Remains of Chevron Contractor Found at Greene County Well Site). The PA Dept. of Environmental Protection did a thorough investigation and has just released its After Action Review of the incident (below). Here, in a nutshell, is what the DEP says caused the fire and death…
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Accidents | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Range Resources Corp | Regulation | Washington County | Wastewater

More Problems for Range Resources with SWPA Impoundments
August 7, 2014August 7, 2014

Range Resources has had ongoing problems with the neighbors and townships where they’ve built and maintained several frack wastewater impoundments (large ponds) in Washington County, PA for the past several years. MDN has chronicled the push back, threats, lawsuits and shenanigans (see our list of Range impoundment stories here). The saga continues. Late last week residents living near the Cecil 23 impoundment–formerly known as the Worstell impoundment, located in Cecil Township–were informed by the town that the state Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) would be testing the ground (and water supplies?) following an alert from Range that the impoundment may have leaked in the past. Then, on Tuesday of this week, Range received a Notice of Violation from the DEP for leaks found at the Yeager impoundment in Amwell Township…
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Accidents | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

PPG Uses Auditor General “Report” to Slam Shale Industry – Again
August 4, 2014August 4, 2014

The increasingly anti-drilling Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (PPG) continues to recycle a DOA crap report issued by the anti-drilling Pennsylvania Auditor General–who took office promising to give the drilling industry a black eye and further his own aspirations to one day be governor (see Anti-Drilling PA Auditor General Criticizes DEP in “Report”). As MDN pointed out, Auditor General Eugene DePasquale produced a report that uses data a) now more than two years old, and b) largely looks at the state Dept. of Environmental Protection as it was under Gov. Ed “Fast Eddie” Rendell (when John Hanger was Secretary of the DEP). Those little facts seem to escape the PPG who have just generated yet another anti-drilling article that supposedly finds drillers didn’t discover or report their own spills half the time (at least through the end of 2012)…
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Accidents | Energy Companies | Energy Services | Equinor/Statoil | Halliburton | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Monroe County (NY) | New York | Regulation

OH Rep Hagan Doesn’t Let A Good Frack Accident Go to Waste
July 24, 2014July 24, 2014

Anti-drilling Ohio State Rep. Robert Hagan (Democrat, Youngstown) sent out a press release yesterday that says, essentially, “Na na na na na, told ya so, told ya so.” In just about that childish tone. Hagan has seized on a report that MDN and others highlighted yesterday from the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that alleges Halliburton, following the well pad fire in Monroe County on June 28, took five days to provide a list of chemicals at the site to the EPA (see EPA Reports on Enviro Damage from Statoil Well Fire in OH). What Hagan conveniently leaves out of his childish screed is that Halliburton promptly provided that list to the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources and local firefighters, the two agencies stipulated under Ohio law. The EPA is not stipulated to get a fast copy of the chemicals list–they’re not first responders to the accident. The EPA is there to watch, observe, assess and level hefty fines…
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Accidents | Energy Companies | Energy Services | Equinor/Statoil | Halliburton | Industrywide Issues | Monroe County | Ohio

EPA Reports on Enviro Damage from Statoil Well Fire in OH
July 23, 2014July 23, 2014

On June 28 a fire at Statoil’s Eisenbarth eight-well pad in Monroe County, OH quickly spread and engulfed some 20 trucks on the pad site, along with other equipment, chemicals and supplies stored at the site. It was a devastating fire (see Statoil Frack Trucks Catch Fire in Monroe County, OH). Local, state and even federal agencies quickly responded to the incident and fortunately no one was injured. One of the responding agencies was the federal Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA recently released their initial response report covering the period June 28 – July 5–a chronicle of actions taken, the facts known, and the EPA’s initial view on environmental damage caused by liquids escaping from the pad. We have the full EPA report (below), along with an update on the continuing fallout from that accident…
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Accidents | CNX Resources | CONSOL Energy | Energy Companies | Greene County (PA) | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania

Fire at CONSOL Well Pad Site in Greene County, PA
July 15, 2014July 15, 2014

CONSOL Energy experienced a small fire yesterday around 3:30 pm at their Green Hill 11 drill pad near Waynesburg (Greene County), PA. There are precious few details, but we know that no one was injured, and the fire was out and the fire department left the scene within two hours–meaning it was fairly minor…
Read More “Fire at CONSOL Well Pad Site in Greene County, PA”
Accidents | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Wastewater | Westmoreland County | WPX Energy

Important Update on WPX Energy Leaking Impoundment in SWPA
July 10, 2014July 10, 2014

On Monday MDN told you about three families near a WPX Energy wastewater impoundment near Ligonier (Westmoreland County), PA who say their well water has been contamined by frack wastewater leaking from the impoundment (see WPX Wastewater Impoundment Source of Water Contamination in W PA?). We have an important update on that story. WPX spokesperson Susan Oliver contacted MDN and provided details of their strong response to the situation, and new information that we don’t believe anyone else has bothered to publish…
Read More “Important Update on WPX Energy Leaking Impoundment in SWPA”
Accidents | Chevron | Energy Companies | Greene County (PA) | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania

Parents of Worker Killed in Chevron Greene Co Fire Sue
July 8, 2014July 8, 2014

In February of this year there was an explosion and fire at Chevron’s Lanco 7H well pad in a remote area northwest of Bobtown in Greene County, PA (see Explosion & Fire at Chevron Well in SWPA – 1 Person Missing). Sadly, the fire killed Ian McKee, 27, a Cameron International contractor working at the Chevron well site (see Remains of Chevron Contractor Found at Greene County Well Site). Ian’s parents recently filed paperwork suing Chevron…
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Accidents | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Wastewater | Westmoreland County | WPX Energy

WPX Wastewater Impoundment Source of Water Contamination in W PA?
July 7, 2014July 7, 2014

Three families near a WPX Energy wastewater impoundment near Ligonier (Westmoreland County), PA say their well water has been contamined by wastewater leaking from the impoundment. The case is just coming to light (at least for MDN) although the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) has known and has investigated the “leaky impoundment” for going on two years now…
Read More “WPX Wastewater Impoundment Source of Water Contamination in W PA?”
Accidents | Energy Companies | Equinor/Statoil | Industrywide Issues | Monroe County | Ohio

Statoil Frack Trucks Catch Fire in Monroe County, OH
June 30, 2014June 30, 2014

Crews were working to frack a Utica Shale well at a Statoil drill pad in Monroe County, OH around 9 am on Saturday when hydraulic tubing (not to be confused with the process called hydraulic fracturing, or fracking) from some of the equipment caught fire. The fire quickly spread to 20 trucks lined up at the pad, burning the trucks (some of them exploding) and creating thick, black smoke that billowed for hours. Fortunately no one was injured, although 20-25 families living within a mile of the well were evacuated…
Read More “Statoil Frack Trucks Catch Fire in Monroe County, OH”
Accidents | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Morgan County | Ohio | PDC Energy | Utica Shale

Bubblin’ Oil at Site of PDC Well Blowout in Morgan County, OH?
June 23, 2014June 23, 2014

An update to a story we’ve tracked since early May. PDC Energy had begun drilling several Utica wells in Morgan County, OH when one of the wells had an accident and spilled drilling mud on the drill pad, overflowing off the pad (see PDC Accident: Drilling Mud Spills into Creek in Morgan County, OH). A quick investigation determined that the blowout preventer failed (see Blowout Preventer Failed at Morgan County, OH Utica Well Site). We have an update on that well and two other wells located on the same pad…
Read More “Bubblin’ Oil at Site of PDC Well Blowout in Morgan County, OH?”