Regulation

Broome County | Chenango County | Coterra Energy (Cabot O&G) | Delaware County | Energy Companies | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | New York | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Regulation | Schoharie County | Susquehanna County | Williams

Final EIS for Constitution Pipeline Delayed Another 2 Months, Ugh
August 26, 2014August 26, 2014

The Constitution Pipeline, which MDN has covered for more than two years, is a $683 million Williams pipeline project with backing from Cabot Oil & Gas that will run from Cabot’s gas fields in Susquehanna County, PA all the way to Schoharie County, NY. It’s an important project for Cabot Oil & Gas since it will move an additional half billion cubic feet of natural gas per day for the company. A month ago MDN told you the final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission was due “any day” (see Constitution Pipeline Update from Cabot – Final EIS Due Any Day). The EIS was already delayed, and now we learn that it’s delayed yet again. According to top energy blogger and analyst Richard Zeits, the EIS for the Constitution is now delayed until the end of October–another two months…
Read More “Final EIS for Constitution Pipeline Delayed Another 2 Months, Ugh”
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”
Air Quality | Beaver County | Energy Companies | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Processing Plants | Regulation | Shell

Details for Shell Ethane Cracker Revealed in Air Pollution Application
August 25, 2014August 25, 2014

We now have a very detailed, inside look at Shell’s proposed ethane cracker plant. In May, Shell filed an Air Quality Plan Approval application with the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection. The 715-page document (just now coming to light, full copy embedded below)–mammoth in scope and size–lays out, in detail, just how much air pollution the proposed ethane cracker would produce. As part of that document we gain insight into the technology Shell plans to use at the plant. The application also outlines other potential impacts from the plant, including soil and vegetation. The application concludes that the proposed plant emissions “are not expected to result in adverse effects to soils, crops, or plant species of concerns, within the vicinity of the project site”…
Read More “Details for Shell Ethane Cracker Revealed in Air Pollution Application”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Health Impacts | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA

PA DOH “Improves” Enviro Health Complaints Process
August 25, 2014August 25, 2014

A completely manufactured smear campaign by anti-drilling PBS reporters at Pennsylvania StateImpact continues to be joined by other willing, colluding accomplices in mainstream media outlets who accuse the PA Department of Health of either ignoring or intentionally hushing up so-called complaints. MDN previously outlined the chronology of the propaganda campaign by StateImpact Pennsylvania and the pushback by Secretary of Health Michael Wolf (see PA’s Sec of Health Fires Back at Reckless Accusations Against Dept). Because anti-drillers believe they have a winning issue (completely divorced from reality, but that doesn’t stop them), they continue to hammer away. And so, finally, Wolf (and Gov. Tom Corbett’s administration) are now playing defense instead of calling out these sleazeballs and exposing them for the frauds they are. The Dept. of Health has recently introduced “improvements to the environmental health complaint processes”…
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Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA | Taxation

PA Rep White Introduces Bill to Double-Tax Marcellus Drilling
August 14, 2014August 14, 2014

What is it with politicians like PA Rep. Jesse White (Democrat, Washington County) and their need to suck taxes out of any and every business and person they can? White, you may recall, was caught using fake online IDs, pretending to be some of his own constituents, using anonymity to attack his own constituents who disagree with his anti-drilling positions (see How the Mighty Have Fallen: PA Rep White Admits Guilt, Not Sorry). PA legislators (mostly Republican) who crafted the state’s update to oil and gas drilling laws, called Act 13, wisely (presciently) included a clause in the Act 13 law that says if greedy politicians (like White) pass a severance tax on drilling in the state, the current impact fee will end. The intent was to have an impact fee instead of a severance tax. White has just introduced a bill (DOA of course) that will strip out the sunset clause and keep the impact fee even if a severance tax is passed. That is, White and others of his ilk want to double-tax the Marcellus industry in PA, with the end result of killing it…
Read More “PA Rep White Introduces Bill to Double-Tax Marcellus Drilling”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Regulation | Statewide NY

Cornell Prof Asks Gov. Cuomo to Lift Drilling Ban, Uses Real Science
August 14, 2014August 14, 2014

Not all of the professors who work at Cornell University (Ithaca, NY) are out there ranging like Robert Howarth and Tony Ingraffea, who have made a cottage industry for themselves (and collected big bucks from the Park Foundation) bashing away at shale drilling. Their most infamous anti-drilling work claims burning coal is better for the environment than burning natural gas (see New Cornell University Study Says Shale Gas Extraction Worse for Global Warming Than Coal). And yet they still have jobs at Cornell. Gotta love tenure. Fortunately there’s a counterbalance at Cornell. A group of Cornell professors, including Dr. Larry Cathles, previously pointed out the gaping holes in Howarth & Ingraffea’s “research” (see New Cornell Study Says Coal is Not Cleaner than Natural Gas). Dr. Cathles recently sent an outstanding letter to NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo urging him to lift the shale drilling moratorium, giving Cuomo a Cliff Notes version of the real science that proves natural gas benefits the environment, rather than the reverse…
Read More “Cornell Prof Asks Gov. Cuomo to Lift Drilling Ban, Uses Real Science”
Columbia County | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Luzerne County | Lycoming County | Monroe County | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Regulation | Statewide PA | Transco | Williams

FERC Says “No Significant Impact” from Leidy Southeast Pipeline
August 13, 2014August 13, 2014

Williams is one very important step closer to beginning construction–this fall–on their Transco Leidy Southeast Expansion project. Last fall Williams filed an official application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for permission to proceed with the project, a $610 million project designed to increase the Transco pipeline’s capacity by 525,000 decatherms per day–enough natural gas to serve 2 million homes (see Williams Takes Next Step with Transco Leidy Pipeline Expansion). The expansion will pipe cheap, abundant NEPA Marcellus Shale gas to points from New York City to the southeastern U.S. The project includes construction of approximately 30 miles of additional pipe segments, called loops, in PA and NJ, in addition to modifying some existing compressor stations and valve sites. Earlier this week FERC reported the proposed changes would have “no significant impact” on the environment. What does that mean?…
Read More “FERC Says “No Significant Impact” from Leidy Southeast Pipeline”
Bradford County | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Southwestern Energy

Southwestern Fined $128K in PA for Drilling with Expired Permits
August 12, 2014August 12, 2014

One of the biggest drillers in the Pennsylvania Marcellus Shale is Southwestern Energy (based in Houston, TX). In fact, according to MDN’s own 2014 Marcellus and Utica Shale Databook, Vol. 1, there are only two other companies with more permits to drill wells in PA over the past year: Chesapeake Energy and Range Resources. So you may consider Southwestern one of the “big 3” in the Marcellus. Southwestern has just been fined $128,031 for drilling wells after permits to drill those wells was expired. Southwestern drilled five wells in Bradford County, PA after the permits issued for those wells had expired. Such permits expire after one year of being issued. Southwestern went ahead and drilled anywhere from 4 to 18 months after expiration…
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Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Regulation

NJ Gov. Christie Vetoes Frack Waste Ban 2nd Time
August 12, 2014August 12, 2014

Two years ago, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (Republican) vetoed a bill given to him by the NJ Democrat legislature that would ban the treatment and disposal of frack wastewater in NJ–presumably coming from Pennsylvania (see NJ Gov. Christie Vetoes Frack Wastewater Ban Bill). That didn’t stop ardent anti-drillers and wackos from organizations like the Sierra Club and the odious Food & Water Watch from trying again. They did, using their reliable (and dimwitted) allies in the NJ legislature. A second bill was passed by both the Senate (S1041) and Assembly (A2108). The bill went to Christie’s desk and we pondered whether or not Christie would stick to his principles (see Will NJ Gov Christie Veto Frack Wastewater Ban a 2nd Time?). The good news is that Christie has stuck to his principles and last Friday he vetoed this latest anti-drilling snow job…
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Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Research | Statewide PA

Earthworks Attacks PA DEP, Post-Gazette Gives Them Helpful Hand
August 11, 2014August 11, 2014

The increasingly anti-drilling Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (PPG) has once again written an article that is woefully lacking. MDN has written numerous times about the Earthworks, an virulent anti-drilling and anti-fossil fuel organization. Based in Washington, D.C., Earthworks hasn’t met a molecule of carbon they like–perhaps to the point of self-loathing the carbon in their own bodies (the human body is made up of 18.5% carbon). On the “heels” of a sham report by Pennsylvania’s anti-drilling auditor general, Eugene DePasquale (see Anti-Drilling PA Auditor General Criticizes DEP in “Report”), the PPG continues to slam the sterling job done by the men and women at the state’s Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) by quoting from a “study” issued last week by Earthworks…
Read More “Earthworks Attacks PA DEP, Post-Gazette Gives Them Helpful Hand”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Broome County | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide NY | Statewide PA

Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin Pair of Drive-by Anti-Drilling Articles
August 11, 2014August 11, 2014

Yet another pair of drive-by articles on shale drilling appeared in the Sunday edition of the Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin. First, a front page story built on a false premise–that the recent sham report by the politically ambitious (and anti-drilling) Auditor General of Pennsylvania issued three weeks ago contains “lessons to be learned” for New York. Pennsylvania’s anti-drilling Democrat Auditor General Eugene DePasquale took office promising to conduct an anal exam of the Dept. of Environmental Protection. Apparently he couldn’t find good dirt on the agency from 2012 onward, so he went back in time using the wayback machine to dig up old news and try to construct a report that says the PA DEP has big problems (see Anti-Drilling PA Auditor General Criticizes DEP in “Report”). That sham report, written by a man who’s seeking to make a name for himself so he can run for governor of PA in the future (and someone who heavily promoted wind farms, the energy source that “lost” to shale gas), is used as the basis for an article by a Gannett reporter to further the meme that shale drilling in NY is too risky and should not happen…
Read More “Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin Pair of Drive-by Anti-Drilling Articles”
Energy Companies | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Range Resources Corp | Regulation | Washington County

Robinson Twp, PA Offers a Preview into Future of NY Frack Debate
August 8, 2014August 8, 2014

One of the original seven selfish townships in Pennsylvania that sued the state over the Act 13 Marcellus Drilling law because of its zoning provisions–and won–has just become less selfish. In fact, the town, Robinson Township in Washington County, PA, has done a complete reversal. Two of the three anti-drilling supervisors were voted out of office last November. On their way out they tried to pull a fast one by passing super restrictive zoning (in December). Last night, the incoming two supervisors who are pro-drilling repealed the law and passed one of their own that’s favorable to the drilling industry. Below we take a look at Robinson’s complete reversal, which offers a fascinating preview into what’s coming to townships across New York State when Gov. Andrew “man child” Cuomo finally decides to make a decision to allow fracking…
Read More “Robinson Twp, PA Offers a Preview into Future of NY Frack Debate”
Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | NGLs | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Regulation | Statewide PA | Sunoco Logistics

Sunoco Logistics Update on Mariner East Pipeline
August 8, 2014August 8, 2014

On Wednesday midstream company Sunoco Logistics released their second quarter 2014 update. There’s essentially no discussion or reference to the Mariner East pipeline, which is currently bogged down in litigation and regulation (see Setback for Mariner East NGL Pipe – Judges Say Not Public Utility). However, in the follow up and ubiquitous analyst call that usually accompanies the release of these updates, Sunoco’s top management had quite a bit to say about Mariner East 1 and 2, as well as other projects in the Marcellus/Utica…
Read More “Sunoco Logistics Update on Mariner East Pipeline”
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…
Read More “More Problems for Range Resources with SWPA Impoundments”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Mahoning County | Ohio | Regulation

Fourth Time the Charm for Youngstown Frack Ban Measure?
August 5, 2014August 5, 2014

You’ve got to hand it to those anti-drillers in Youngstown. When anti-fracking insanity takes hold–it goes deep. Anti-drillers have successfully gotten enough signatures to put a ballot measure before voters three times now. The measure would enact a ban on fracking in Youngstown. Not that anyone actually wants to drill in the City of Youngstown. However, passing such a ban would a) force some employers to relocate out of town (not an empty threat, they’ve said it many times), and b) send a signal loud and clear that Youngstown wants to drop out of the flourishing Utica Shale bonanza taking place in the state. Makes no difference to the fracking insane that they will royally screw the city with such a ban–they’ve just collected enough signatures to put the measure on the ballot a fourth time…
Read More “Fourth Time the Charm for Youngstown Frack Ban Measure?”
Industrywide Issues | Regulation

US Dept of Transportation Proposes New Rules for Shale Oil Trains
August 5, 2014August 5, 2014

MDN entered the debate over whether or not the movement of shale oil trains, specifically from the Bakken Shale of North Dakota, should be revealed to the public or not, based on security concerns (see New York Caves to Anti-Drillers Again: Discloses Oil Train Movements). Our interest is based on the fact that such oil trains, loaded with Bakken light crude (which contains some NGLs or natural gas liquids like propane and ethane) move through the Utica/Marcellus region–through Ohio and New York on their way to the Port of Albany. Last week we brought you an interesting viewpoint/opinion from someone else (see Revisiting the Bakken Crude Shipment Through NY Debate). The Dept. of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) has issued a draft set of new rules (see the official 65-page document below)…
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