Out-of-control well spews–in Pennsylvania


[This post was updated with additional story links
and a video clip at 11:51 p.m. on June 4, 2010]

Pennsylvania’s environmental regulators are promising an aggressive investigation into what caused a natural gas well to erupt last night, shooting gas and fracking fluids 75 feet into the air.

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection reported today that:

“At approximately 8 p.m. on Thursday, June 3, the operators of the well, which is owned by EOG Resources, Inc., lost control of it while preparing to extract gas after hydrofracturing the shale. As a result, the well released natural gas and flowback frack fluid onto the ground and 75 feet into the air. The well was eventually capped around noon on June 4. ”

DEP Secretary John Hanger called the incident “serious” and said it “could have been a catastrophic incident that endangered life and property.” 

““When we arrived on scene, natural gas and frack fluid was flowing off the well pad and heading toward tributaries to Little Laurel Run and gas was shooting into the sky, creating a significant fire hazard,” Hanger said. “That’s why emergency responders acted quickly to cut off electric service to the area.”

Hanger said the DEP would investigate “where things went wrong and what enforcement action is necessary.”

The blowout comes at a sensitive time for the oil and gas industry which is fighting off calls for tighter environmental regulations in the wake of the ongoing, deep-water oil well eruption in the Gulf of Mexico.

Related:


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A Poconos protest hike where power towers will rise

The Pocono Record reports today that five environmental groups will set off  on a protest hike tomorrow (Saturday) against a proposed power line that would cross the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area and the Appalachian Trail.

The New Jersey Sierra Club, New Jersey Highlands Coalition, Delaware Riverkeeper, Save the Park and Stop the Lines are sponsoring the protest. They oppose plans by PPL Electric Utilities in Pennsylvania and PSEG in New Jersey for a two-state transmission project aimed at alleviating peak-demand electric shortages.

The power line would follow a pre-existing right of way, replacing
80-foot-tall towers with 195-foot towers.

Hiking against the inevitable

The two utilities that will benefit from construction of the power line are powerful political forces in their respective states.

That fact was underscored in New Jersey when, despite heated opposition from environmentalists and numerous local municipalities in the power line’s path, not a single member of the New Jersey Legislature nor any member of the current or former administration raised an objection to the project.
 
Even those municipalities that have battled the plan are slowly folding their tents and now are accepting monetary settlements with PSEG for costs associated with the power line.
 
Our most recent posts:
Is food waste recycling an investment play?
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Is food waste recycling an investment play?

“Food waste recycling as a new ‘green industry’ presents unparalleled financial opportunities for post-recession growth, particularly in the heavily populated and food waste dense State of New Jersey and the immediate surrounding region.”

Photo: Mosman Council

That bold statement comes from folks at Rutgers University who are planning a day-long forum to explore how food recycling can not only save disposal fees for large-quantity generators but also create profit opportunities for those who turn the waste into soil, fertilizer, and energy products.

New Jersey’s first-ever Investment Forum for food waste recycling will be held on June 16, starting at 8 a.m. and concluding with a reception at 4:30 p.m., at the Cook Campus Center, New Brunswick.

The forum is the creation of Rutgers’ Solid Waste Resource Renewal Group which sees a national food waste recycling trend developing. One example they point to is Walmart’s plan to roll out a 50- state food waste recycling program for its stores sometime later this year. Competition for the “green” business advantage, they say, will drive other businesses, large and small, to follow suit.

Registration for the Investment Forum is $40 for one person, and $25 additional from the same organization; $25 for non-profit or government.

To view the event’s agenda or to registration or obtain information on sponsorships, go to http://www.swrrg.rutgers.edu/InvestForum.html, call 732-932-9155, ext. 233, or email Priscilla Hayes at hayes@aesop.rutgers.edu.

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New rules will affect development in Pennsylvania

New regulations are being developed in Pennsylvania that will impose stricter controls on erosion and sedimentation and post-construction stormwater runoff.

The rules were adopted on May 17 by the Pennsylvania Environmental Quality Board and now go the General Assembly and to the Pennsylvania Independent Regulatory Review Commission for a 30-day review period.
M. Joel Bolstein, an environmental attorney and partner in the Fox Rothschild law firm, says that the new regulations, which amend 25 Pa. Code Chapter 102, are comprehensive and include

“changes to definitions, imposition of enhanced erosion and sedimentation control planning requirements, changes to permit application requirements and increased permit fees, changes to post-construction stormwater management, including long term operation and maintenance, anti degradation implementation, riparian buffer requirements and new permits-by-rule.”


The regulations incorporate updates to the federal stormwater permitting requirements promulgated in two phases in 1992 and 2002. Pennsylvania maintains delegation of the federal program, so some of the new regulations were adopted to implement the second phase of the federal requirements, according to PADEP.
Of particular significance to developers, Bolstein says, is the fact that the new regulations “impose an array of highly technical and onerous post-construction stormwater management (PCSM) requirements.”


Under the regulations, new earth disturbance activities that require permit coverage must have written PCSM plans. The regulations not only address what needs to be in the PCSM plan but also state that the plan itself must be prepared by a person trained and experienced in PCSM design methods and techniques “applicable to the size and scope of the project being designed.”

Writing for his law firm’s In the Zone publication, Bolstein notes that the PCSM plan under the new regulations “must contain a long-term operation and maintenance schedule, which provides for maintenance and inspection of BMPs in perpetuity. PCSM plan stormwater analysis must take into consideration a predevelopment site characterization and assessment of soils and geology and appropriate infiltration and geotechnical studies.”

He says that the changes are comprehensive, require special attention by anyone with a development in the planning stages, and “undoubtedly will have a significant impact on new development throughout the Commonwealth.”


Click here to read Bolstein’s entire article

Click here for a copy of the regulations

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New EPA rule will target sanitary sewer overflows

sanitary sewer overflow  The U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today that it is initiating a rulemaking to better protect the environment and public health from the harmful effects of sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs) and basement backups.

In a news release, the agency said it finds that: "In many cities, SSOs and basement backups occur because of blockages, broken pipes and excessive water flowing into the pipes. SSOs present environmental and health problems because they discharge untreated wastewater that contains bacteria, viruses, suspended solids, toxics, trash and other pollutants into waterways.” The EPA said that the overflows may also contribute to beach closures, shellfish bed closures, contamination of drinking water supplies and other environmental health concerns. Infrastructure issues were discussed at the Coming Together for Clean Water Conference held by EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson on April 15, 2010. The agency says it plans to address these issues "as part of its efforts to protect public health and revitalize local waterways." EPA is considering two possible modifications to existing regulations: (1) establishing standard National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit conditions for publicly owned treatment works (POTWs) permits that specifically address sanitary sewer collection systems and SSOs; and (2) clarifying the regulatory framework for applying NPDES permit conditions to municipal satellite collection systems. Municipal satellite collection systems are sanitary sewers owned or operated by a municipality that conveys wastewater to a POTW operated by a different municipality. As a part of this effort, the agency said it also is considering whether to address long-standing questions about peak wet weather flows at municipal wastewater treatment plants “to allow for a holistic, integrated approach to reducing SSOs while at the same time addressing peak flows at POTWs. “ The EPA plans to hold public listening sessions on the proposed rule.  The public also can submit written comments until 60 days after the rule’s publication in the Federal Register. More information on sanitary sewer overflows, the potential rule and a schedule of the upcoming listening sessions. Our most recent posts:
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‘Price’s Pit’ site in NJ to get $16M treatment plant


A former landfill near Atlantic City, where millions of gallons of chemicals were dumped in the 1970’s, is in line for a groundwater treatment plant to be paid for with federal stimulus funds.

Price’s Pit, in Pleasantville, NJ was considered one of the most dangerous sites in the nation when it was added to the national Superfund list in 1983 because of the chemical brew it contained and its proximity to local drinking water supplies.

In the early stages of its cleanup, nearby residents were connected to water lines, and the Atlantic City Municipal Utilities Authority abandoned wells near the site and relocated them about two miles northwest in 1985.

Construction of the plant will begin this summer and is expected to take up to two years to complete. When it is put into service, the plant will treat about 500,000 gallons of polluted water per day.

Water discharged from the plant will be piped to the Atlantic County Utility Authority’s (ACUA) wastewater plant in Atlantic City for final treatment.

The Press of Atlantic City reports that the federal Environmental Protection Agency will reimburse the city for the volume of water discharged into the ACUA treatment system.

Related:
EPA’s description of the site

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