Litigation

Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

PA Supreme Court Rules Against Act 13 Drilling Law, Yet Again
September 29, 2016September 29, 2016

The Democrat-controlled Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled yesterday in another (hopefully final) decision on the 2012 Act 13 Marcellus drilling law passed and signed by then-Gov. Tom Corbett. Four Democrat judges have just struck down more of Act 13, leaving not much left except the part that raises money and gives it away (called an impact fee, otherwise known as a severance tax). You will recall that seven selfish towns sued the state over the Act 13 law and it’s provision that would substitute a statewide, uniform and fair set of zoning ordinances for drilling in place of a patchwork, crazy quilt system of local ordinances for oil and gas drilling. These seven selfish towns wanted their own ordinances and sued, ultimately winning at the Supreme Court (see PA Supreme Court Rules Against State/Drillers in Act 13 Case). The PA Supremes couldn’t, however, be bothered with deciding every tiny bit of nuance and sent some items back to the lower Commonwealth Court for final decisions. Following several cases in the lower courts, some of it came back to the Supreme Court for a final decision, and that just happened. The Supreme’s ruling (full copy of their decision is embedded below) affects the use of eminent domain, what information can be shared by doctors as it relates to privileged trade secrets for drillers, and most importantly, a decision that ends the right of the PA Public Utility Commission (PUC) to keep an eye on the zoning regulations passed by towns, to ensure those regulations don’t supersede state oil and gas regulations. Most of Act 13 is now down the toilet, thanks to four left-wing Democrat judges…
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Electrical Generation | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Regulation

Obama’s Disastrous Clean Power Plan Goes to Court Today
September 27, 2016September 27, 2016

We’ve written plenty about President Obama’s so-called Clean Power Plan (CPP), introduced last summer, a plan to force electric generators to convert to using more “renewable” sources of energy–and less fossil fuels (see Obama Stabs Natural Gas Electric Plants in Clean Power Plan). The CPP outright assassinates coal powered generation, and wounds (but doesn’t kill) natural gas. It is Obama’s attempt at picking winners and losers in who and how we get our energy. We all saw how that worked out with Solyndra. Earlier this year 29 states and state agencies, including Ohio and West Virgina, filed an application with the U.S. Supreme Court seeking an immediate stay of the CPP (see 29 States Ask Supreme Court to Stop Obama Clean Power Plan ASAP). In a shock decision, the Supreme Court did just that (see Supreme Court Shocker – Justices Halt Obama’s Clean Power Plan). Today the enormously complex CPP gets its day in court. The Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit will hear arguments from 16 lawyers (egads!) in a marathon session that will run for nearly four hours. Here’s a bit more about what to expect today, and in the days ahead, for this disastrous regulation forced on the American population by a dictatorial El Presidente…
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Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | NEXUS Pipeline | Ohio | Pipelines | Statewide OH

Ohio Appeals Court: NEXUS Can Enter Private Property for Surveys
September 26, 2016September 26, 2016

Ohio’s Ninth District Court of Appeals has upheld the right of NEXUS Gas Transmission to enter onto private land in order to conduct surveys for a potential pipeline route. Ohio’s Sixth District Court previously made a similar ruing in favor of NEXUS. Top energy law firm Bricker & Eckler argued for NEXUS in both cases and turns in the following report:
Read More “Ohio Appeals Court: NEXUS Can Enter Private Property for Surveys”
Dominion Energy | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pipelines | Statewide VA | Virginia

VA Supreme Court to Hear Atlantic Coast Pipe Survey Case
September 23, 2016September 23, 2016

In the southeastern U.S. much of the Big Green opposition to pipelines has centered on preventing pipeline companies from entering properties to complete required surveys. If you can stop the process before it begins (so they reason), it saves them from having to hop in the VW Microbus and go to (pot smoking) anti-pipeline rallies all over the place. Peace man! Landowners in West Virginia and Virginia have challenged the rights of various pipeline companies to enter their property. It happened with EQT’s Mountain Valley Pipeline (see Mountain Valley Pipeline Sues 103 WV Landowners for Survey Access), and it happened with Dominion’s Atlantic Coast Pipeline (see Atlantic Coast Pipeline Wins Another Virginia Court Case). Each time these cases have been litigated in Virginia courts, the pipeline companies have won (if not in the first case, then on appeal). However, a high-stakes case has just been accepted by the Virginia Supreme Court in which an 83-year old granny says she doesn’t want surveyors for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline to enter her property. Dominion and other pipeline companies have a lot riding on the case…
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Air Quality | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Regulation

IPAA Launches Campaign to Defeat EPA Methane Regs
September 21, 2016September 21, 2016

Yesterday MDN reported on the scorching remarks by two U.S. Congressman with regard to the federal Environmental Protection Agency’s rogue actions to try and regulate oil and gas drilling by imposing new methane emissions regulations (see Congressmen Blast EPA Over New Methane Regulations). Let’s keep the heat on. The premier organization representing independent oil and gas drillers is the Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA). The IPAA is at the forefront in fighting the EPA to defeat these draconian new regulations. According to the IPAA (quoting the EIA), these new regulations would make marginal oil and gas wells unprofitable to operate. Those so-called marginal wells represent 15% of all the natgas produced in the U.S., and 20% of the oil produced. Can you imagine what would happen to prices if you suddenly shut down that much production? No, the Obama EPA doesn’t think of things like that–and that’s the problem. Or if they do think about it, they certainly don’t give a fig. The IPAA sent around a letter outlining their game plan for fighting the EPA’s draconian methane emissions regs. Huddle up–here’s the plan…
Read More “IPAA Launches Campaign to Defeat EPA Methane Regs”
Industrywide Issues | Lease & Royalty Payments | Litigation | Ohio | Statewide OH

Important: OH Supreme Court Finally Rules on Dormant Mineral Act
September 16, 2016September 16, 2016

MDN has been reporting on the Ohio Dormant Mineral Act (DMA) for years (see Video: OH Lawyers Explain Dormant Minerals Act & Impact on Utica). In a nutshell, there are two DMAs in Ohio–one passed in 1989 that went into effect in 1992, and another in 2006 which added certain additional procedural requirements to the 1989 version. The DMA in its various versions provides for mineral rights that had previously been separated from surface rights to transfer back to the surface owner under certain conditions. The problem, for drillers and for landowners in Ohio, is in knowing which set of DMA rules to use (1989 or 2006) in determining who owns the mineral rights. A number of DMA cases went before the Ohio Supreme Court. Some of the minor cases have already been decided (see Ohio Supreme Court Rules in Important Dormant Mineral Act Case). However, most of the big cases remain stalled at the Supreme Court. That is, until now. Yesterday the Ohio Supreme Court ruled on the remaining big DMA cases. The Supremes issued full rulings in three cases and stated the other cases come under those three. The biggest of the three is Corban v. Chesapeake Energy, in which the justices said the 2006 law now trumps (pun intended) the 1989 law. Here’s a summary of what the court decided…
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Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pipelines | Regulation

FERC Fights for Constitution Pipeline in Federal Court
September 16, 2016September 16, 2016

Two days ago MDN told you that the Natural Gas Supply Association (NGSA) had filed a brief in a lawsuit brought by anti-drilling zealots against the much-needed Constitution Pipeline (see NGSA Lobbies Fed Court, DEC to Advance 2 Stalled Pipelines in NY). The Constitution is a $683 million, 124-mile pipeline from Susquehanna County, PA to Schoharie County, NY carrying Marcellus gas. Radical environmental groups sued in federal court to challenge the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) environmental review of the Constitution. If the wackos can get FERC’s review cast aside, they can slow the project to the point where they can (hopefully for them) kill it. That’s the game plan. The NGSA pushed back against it, and now, so has FERC. On Monday, FERC filed its own brief in federal court, asking the court to throw out the challenges by the zealots…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Athens County | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Meigs County | Ohio | Portage County | Regulation | Statewide OH

OH Supreme Court Rejects County Frack Ban Ballot Proposals, Again
September 15, 2016September 16, 2016

Anti-fossil fuel zealots in Athens, Meigs and Portage counties in Ohio are spitting and sputtering after the Ohio Supreme Court on Tuesday once again shut down their childish frack ban ballot measures–ruling that Secretary of State Jon Husted and the election boards of those counties did not violate the law in tossing out the ballot measures. The radical Pennsylvania-based Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF) is particularly torqued off. It’s not the first time the Supremes have slapped them down. Their frack ban ballot measures were also tossed last year by the Supremes (see Ohio Supreme Court Keeps Frack Bans Off Ballot in 3 Counties). It’s not good for future fundraising letters when the CELDF can’t win a case. Below we have a roundup of stories about the decision, including a full copy of the decision itself, handed down on Tuesday…
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Industrywide Issues | Litigation | New York | Pipelines | Regulation | Statewide NY

NGSA Lobbies Fed Court, DEC to Advance 2 Stalled Pipelines in NY
September 14, 2016September 14, 2016

The Natural Gas Supply Association (NGSA) has gone into action to support two currently-stalled pipeline projects in the People’s Republic of New York, where Chairman Cuomo rules. Yesterday the NGSA filed a brief in federal court to respond to an effort by the rogues gallery of environmental extremist groups (including Catskill Mountainkeeper, Riverkeeper, Sierra Clubbers and other ne’er–do–wells) to stop the Constitution Pipeline from getting built. The Constitution is a $683 million, 124-mile pipeline from Susquehanna County, PA to Schoharie County, NY carrying Marcellus gas. The enviro groups sued in federal court to challenge the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) environmental review of the Constitution. If the wackos can get FERC’s review cast aside, they can slow the project to the point where they can (hopefully for them) kill it. That’s the game plan. NGSA is pushing back, legally. Also this week the NGSA asked the NY State Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to get off its rear-end and approve air permits for Dominion’s New Market Project–a fairly dull $159 million capacity upgrade to an existing natural gas pipeline which runs across upstate New York from the PA line, west of Horseheads, and then northeasterly to the state’s Capital Region. Once again the DEC is doing their master’s bidding by refusing to grant necessary air permits for the New Market Project to proceed…
Read More “NGSA Lobbies Fed Court, DEC to Advance 2 Stalled Pipelines in NY”
Energy Services | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Kinder Morgan | Lease & Royalty Payments | Litigation | NGLs | Ohio | Pipelines | Statewide OH

UTOPIA Pipeline Still Battling OH Landowners with Eminent Domain
September 12, 2016September 12, 2016

UTOPIA Pipeline Project map – click for larger version

Kinder Morgan’s UTOPIA (Utica To Ontario Pipeline Access) pipeline is a 12-inch ethane pipeline that will run 240 miles and will only be built in Ohio–therefore the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) won’t be involved in permitting the project. In April we asked the question, Why is UTOPIA Pipeline Less “Controversial” than NEXUS in Ohio?. Perhaps that question was premature, because not long after we ran a story that Kinder Morgan was suing holdout landowners using eminent domain to allow the pipeline (see UTOPIA Pipeline Sues Holdout OH Landowners Using Eminent Domain). The real eye-popper was reading just how much Kinder Morgan was offering for easements to property owners. Of course what a landowner is offered depends on how many feet of land the pipeline will cross. Some landowners were offered up to $63,300 for an easement. In some cases, the offers were “more than 10 times the appraised value of the easement.” It’s certainly in a landowner’s best interest to settle before being forced to settle (for far less) via eminent domain. So how is the process going? The lawyer for one group of landowners says KM’s offers are low, not high. Here’s an update on the legal battles in the Buckeye State over UTOPIA…
Read More “UTOPIA Pipeline Still Battling OH Landowners with Eminent Domain”
Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | MarkWest Energy | West Virginia | Wetzel County

MarkWest Sues Contractor for Shoddy Work at WV Processing Plant
September 8, 2016September 8, 2016

Over the years, MarkWest Energy, now a part of MPLX, has built a number of natural gas processing plants in Wetzel County, WV, collectively called the Mobley plant. In September 2014 MarkWest signed a contract with paving and construction company J.F. Allen to design and build a retaining wall so MarkWest could then build the Mobley V plant (in Smithfield). MarkWest says, in a lawsuit they’ve filed against J.F. Allen and other subcontractors, that they didn’t do the job right and it resulted in long delays and millions of dollars in extra costs for MarkWest. Which MarkWest is now trying to recover, requesting a jury trial…
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Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

PIOGA Loses Court Case Challenging PA DEP Standards for Permits
September 2, 2016September 2, 2016

UPDATE: PIOGA sent MDN an exclusive statement about the case. They intend to appeal. Read PIOGA’s statement below…

In 2013 a RINO justice on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, Chief Justice Ron Castille, sold out the Marcellus industry and joined with three Democrats on the state’s high court to overturn a large and important part of the newly minted Act 13 drilling law, in a case known as Robinson v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (see PA Supreme Court Rules Against State/Drillers in Act 13 Case). Part of the Act 13 law was left intact, but part of it, the part that directed local municipalities to craft zoning laws to include certain statewide uniform provisions concerning the location of oil and gas operations, was tossed (see What Does PA Supreme Court Decision on Act 13 Mean?). In June of this year, the Pennsylvania Independent Oil & Gas Association (PIOGA) argued a lawsuit against the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) based on the tossed Act 13 case. PIOGA argued that part of the Act 13 law–the part that granted the DEP sweeping power to consider proposed impacts a well might have on public and natural resources when considering whether or not to issue a permit–was no longer valid. PIOGA said those parts of the law are directly related and intertwined with the part struck down by the Supreme Court. In other words, Act 13 in its original form, as passed, said the DEP could consider impacts on public and natural resources as part of the decisional process for issuing permits, but the Supremes struck down that part of the decisional process because they said it could not be implemented consistent with Act 13’s intent. PIOGA’s lawsuit pointed out that public natural resources were still protected by other laws operators must comply with and that the Supreme Court’s invalidation of Section 3215(c) meant that DEP ould no longer impose conditions in permits related to these other laws. A Commonwealth Court in PA ruled yesterday against PIOGA’s argument (full copy of the ruling embedded below). In essence, the court is picking and choosing which parts of a law that was duly passed it wants to have enforced, and the parts it doesn’t like it willy nilly tosses, which is bass ackwards. DEP must obey the Supreme Court’s rulings just as everyone does, but not for now courtesy of the Commonwealth Court…
Read More “PIOGA Loses Court Case Challenging PA DEP Standards for Permits”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Energy Companies | Indiana County | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania General Energy | Wastewater

Federal Court Denies CELDF’s Re-Hearing Request in Grant Twp Case
August 26, 2016August 26, 2016

We believe this bit of news is exclusive to MDN–we’ve not seen it anywhere else, yet. In early August MDN reported that the novel legal argument offered by the radical leftist PA-based group Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF) in Grant Township (Indiana County), PA claiming to represent a local ecosystem had failed (see CELDF Loses Case to Represent Ecosystem – Turtles Disappointed). The CELDF tried to claim the Little Mahoning Watershed, an ecosystem, is a “person” under the law–an asinine notion. The CELDF had hoodwinked local anti-drillers in Grant who are opposed to a legally-permitted injection well, attempting to block the well from getting built and operated by Pennsylvania General Energy (PGE). Claiming they speak for the ecosystem was the legal shenanigan the CELDF tried to pull–and it didn’t work. The federal Third Circuit Court of Appeals rejected their arguments, clearing the way for PGE to build the injection well and continue with a $1 million lawsuit against Grant for causing economic harm to the company. Here is the new and exclusive news: The CELDF, masquerading as the Little Mahoning Watershed (the “ecosystem”), along with CELDF’s sibling organization called East Run Hellbenders Society, immediately petitioned the full Third Circuit (all of the justices) asking for a rehearing–something called a Sur Petition for Rehearing. The CELDF wanted another bite at the apple–a chance to prove to other justices that the Little Mahoning Watershed is a “person” under the law and should be represented by the crazies at the CELDF. The justices of the Third Circuit unanimously and swiftly rejected the petition for rehearing. It’s the end of the road for the CELDF and Grant Township in this case, which means the PGE injection well will now get built, and Grant Township taxpayers will have to pony up $1 million (if PGE wins their lawsuit, as we expect they will)…
Read More “Federal Court Denies CELDF’s Re-Hearing Request in Grant Twp Case”
Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pipelines | Regulation | Spectra Energy

Spectra Spits in MA High Court’s Eye – We’ll Still Build Pipeline
August 25, 2016August 25, 2016

Last week MDN reported on the decision by the Massachusetts Supreme Court to deny utility companies operating in the state to pass along potential costs of a new natural gas pipeline to electric rate payers–the people who would most benefit from such a pipeline (see MA Supreme Court Ruling Endangers New England Gas Pipelines). Several utilities had entered into long-term agreements with Spectra Energy’s proposed Access Northeast pipeline on the basis of recovering their costs by passing along pipeline costs to ratepayers. We previously took great pains to explain this complex issue, of government-regulated companies and how they make money. We speculated last week that this decision may indeed imperil the building of Spectra’s Access Northeast pipeline. Good news! Spectra is metaphorically spitting in the eye of the MA Supremes. The company says it will move forward with building the pipeline anyway, regardless of the Supreme Court’s decision…
Read More “Spectra Spits in MA High Court’s Eye – We’ll Still Build Pipeline”
Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Lease & Royalty Payments | Litigation | Pennsylvania | SWEPI | Tioga County (PA)

Tioga County, PA Landowners Won’t Let Driller Clean Up
August 19, 2016August 19, 2016

This one has us scratching our heads. Landowners Damon and Kendra Baker, in Tioga County, PA, signed a lease with Shell’s SWEPI in 2006. We’re guessing the signing bonus was peanuts because at that time the Marcellus was still in its infancy in PA. SWEPI constructed a well pad on their property in 2010 but had drilled no wells by the time the lease expired in 2011. The Bakers wanted a healthy re-signing bonus to allow SWEPI to lease their land again. SWEPI’s final offer was $150,000 (not sure for how many acres). The Baker’s, according to SWEPI, wanted half a million dollars. SWEPI said “no thanks” and therefore, according to state Dept. of Environmental Protection standards, needs to restore the property to its original state and be done with it. But the Bakers won’t let them re-enter the property. So SWEPI is suing and the clock is ticking–they only have until December to put it back to original condition or the company will be fined $500/day until it’s done…
Read More “Tioga County, PA Landowners Won’t Let Driller Clean Up”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Energy Companies | EQT Corp | Fayette County | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Regulation | Wastewater | West Virginia

Fayette County, WV Appeals Federal Court Ruling on Injection Well
August 19, 2016August 19, 2016

In January, three liberal Democrat county commissioners from Fayette County, WV, with the backing and help of the radical WV Mountain Party, voted to ban injection wells in the county (see WV County Officially Bans Injection Wells; Children Brainwashed). The ban was intentionally written so broadly it would also ban the operation of more than 500 vertical oil and gas wells in the county. The next day EQT sued to overturn the ban (see EQT Sues WV County that Banned Injection Wells, Seeks Injunction). One of the chief architects of the ban, from the Mountain Party, admits the ban was intended to stop all oil and gas activity in the county (see Anti Admits Fayette County, WV Ban Aims to Shut Down All O&G Wells). Fearing they would lose the EQT lawsuit, in March the commissioners backed away from the position of banning everything to do with drilling in the county. They revised the proposed ban regulation as a tactic to avoid losing their court case (see Fayette WV Commissioners Change Ban to Focus on Injection Wells). In June, a federal judge tossed out Fayette’s illegal ban (see Federal Judge Rules Fayette County Injection Well Ban Illegal). Now the lib Dems, with the assistance of the radical Appalachian Mountain Advocates, has had the gall to appeal the federal judge’s decision…
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