MarkWest Energy Takes Cecil, PA Back to Court over Compressor Stn
As we noted in June, after more than four years of resisting, Cecil Township, PA–under court order–finally approved a compressor station proposed by MarkWest Energy (see Cecil Twp Approves MarkWest Compressor, with Poison Pill Conditions). We also noted that Cecil pulled a fast one with their so-called approval. The reason they got away with violating the court ordered deadline was because they were supposedly bargaining in good faith with MarkWest–nailing down final details both sides could live with. But it wasn’t good faith on the part of Cecil. At the last minute, Cecil tacked on 26 “conditions” making it all but sure that MarkWest would not agree to the plan. And sure enough, MarkWest has had to take Cecil, one of seven selfish towns that sued to overturn the Act 13 law, back to court yet again. Perhaps the judge should just remove the town supervisors this time since they habitually refuse to obey the law?…
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Just when you’ve think you’ve heard it all when it comes to how evil and nasty fracking and shale drilling are, along comes another story of the horrors of shale drilling. An article in the most recent issue of the journal Invasive Plant Science and Management says shale and pipeline drilling in Colorado’s Piceance Basin (pronounced “pee awns”, located in northwestern Colorado) disturbs the dirt and because the dirt gets disturbed it gives non-native, “invasive” plants a chance to grab hold and choke out all other vegetation–or some such thing. Apparently the housing boom in Colorado that digs up more dirt than all of the drill pads and pipelines combined doesn’t have the same effect on the invaders. Maybe invasive plants don’t like the construction workers and backhoes that dig up dirt for a house foundation like they do construction workers and backhoes that dig up dirt for a drill pad or pipeline. Wait–they’re the same construction workers and backhoes? Shhh. Don’t tell the invasive plant species…
While all eyes have been on the possible hostile takeover of midstream giant Williams by another midstream giant, Energy Transfer Equity (see 
There was a rupture of a gas pipeline at a Jay-Bee Oil and Gas drill pad in the Big Run area of Tyler County, WV early Friday morning. There was no explosion, and no one was injured–but there was a fire and the fire could be seen for miles in the dark early morning. The fire from the ruptured pipe (cause still being investigated) burned for an hour before it was extinguished. The wells on the pad are currently shut-in while the WV Dept. of Environmental Protection investigates. This is not the first Jay-Bee accident in the Big Run area…