PA Environment Digest Blog: FracTracker Alliance Releases 4th Watershed Oil & Gas Drilling Impact Analysis In Susquehanna River Basin

On November 23, the FracTracker Alliance released its fourth watershed oil and gas drilling impact analysis in the Susquehanna River Basin, this one for the Towanda and Schrader Creek watersheds.

Using FracTracker’s mobile app, on May 20, 2022, five teams of volunteers drove the backroads in the Towanda Creek watershed documenting the oil and gas industry’s industrialization of the watershed and impacts of well pads, pipeline cuts, and other associated infrastructure.

This Atlas represents both the observations made that day, and data collected from public sources that help to illustrate the often out-of-sight resource uses in the Towanda Creek watershed.

The Atlas is filled with maps, photos and narrative related to oil and gas industrialization impacts.

The Towanda and Schrader Creek watersheds are almost entirely in Bradford County with small portions in Lycoming, Sullivan, Tioga counties.

The watersheds include portions of the Loyalsock State Forest and Tioga State Forest and a designated natural area and State Game Lands.

Of the 567 miles of designated streams in the watersheds-- 85.6 miles are Exceptional Value, 78.3 miles are High Quality and 373 miles are cold water fishery.

The water quality in an HQ stream can be lowered only if a discharge is the result of necessary social or economic development, the water quality criteria are met, and all existing uses of the stream are protected.

Exceptional Value waters are to be protected at their existing quality; water quality shall not be lowered.

A total of five oil and gas wells were drilled in the Towanda Creek watershed prior to 2008, according to data from DEP.

Since that time, 372 additional wells have been drilled in the watershed and an additional 378 wells have been proposed but not yet drilled.

Of the 755 total drilled and proposed wells, only six are categorized as conventional wells, with the remaining 749 designated as unconventional wells, which are highly industrialized and require the injection of millions of gallons of fracking fluid in order to yield meaningful production values.

Oil and gas water resources are concentrated along the main stem of Towanda Creek, including 30 interconnections or impoundments and eight surface water withdrawal sites approved by the Susquehanna River Basin Commission.

In 2021, 281 wells reported producing 1,908,292 barrels (80 million gallons) of liquid waste and 54,248 tons of solid waste.

Waste from wells in this watershed was shipped to 86 different sites.

Of the liquid waste, 95,3% was sent to other well pads for reuse, 4.3% was sent to a residual waste processing facility, 0.3% was sent to temporary storage, and a tiny amount - 32 barrels - was sent to a landfill.

For solid waste, 98% went to landfills, with the remainder sent to a residual waste processing facility.

Operators of gas wells in the watersheds have been issued 537 notices of violations since 2008. The distribution is uneven - some well pads have no violations, while others have dozens.

The teams also documented natural gas leaks from the Taylor Compressor Station in Bradford County.

Click Here to view the entire Towanda & Schrader Creeks StoryMap.

FracTracker Alliance has put together similar watershed impact analysis StoryMaps for--

-- Lycoming Creek Watershed, Lycoming County

-- Loyalsock Creek Watershed, Lycoming County

-- Pine Creek Watershed, Clinton, Lycoming, Potter & Tioga Counties

The Johnstown-based FracTracker Alliance supports groups across the United States, addressing pressing concerns about the health effects and exposure risks to communities from oil and gas development.

They provide timely and provocative data, ground-breaking analyses, maps, and other visual tools to help advocates, researchers, and the concerned public better understand the harms posed by hydrocarbon extraction.

Click Here to sign up for regular updates.

NewsClips:

-- AP: Court Plea Hearing Scheduled Tuesday On Criminal Charges Against Coterra Energy [Fmr Cabot Oil & Gas] For Contaminating Water Supplies In Dimock, Susquehanna County

-- AP: PA American Water To Provide Clean Drinking Water To Residents Of Dimock, Susquehanna County Who Have Gone Without For 14 Years Due To Contamination From Shale Gas Drilling

Related Articles This Week:

-- EQB To Meet Nov. 30 To Consider Emergency Regulation Setting VOC/Methane Limits For Conventional Oil & Gas Facilities [PaEN]

-- Delaware River Basin Commission Meets Dec. 7 On Shale Gas Fracking Wastewater Regulations [PaEN]

-- FracTracker Alliance Announces 7 Winners Of 2022 Community Sentinel Award For Environmental Stewardship; Including PA’s Laurie Barr [PaEN]

-- UPDATED: After 14 Days, Efforts To Stop A Natural Gas Leak At A Cambria County Underground Gas Storage Area Have Apparently Been Successful [PaEN]

-- EDF Blog: What A Catastrophic Natural Gas Leak In Pennsylvania Means For Our Climate And Health - By Adam Peltz and Jon Goldstein, Environmental Defense Fund [PaEN]

-- NRDC Blog: How Clean Is Pennsylvania’s New Hydrogen Subsidy? It’s Up To The Feds - By Mark Szybist, Natural Resources Defense Council [PaEN]

-- Beaver County Residents And Allies Launch New Shell Ethane Plant Accountability Campaign [PaEN]