PA Environment Digest Blog: DEP: Day 128 - Seneca Resources Failed To Stop Wastewater Seeps, Cleanup Contamination From A May Spill At The Vandergrift Shale Gas Well Pad In Charleston Twp., Tioga County

On September 18, 2025, a DEP follow-up inspection of the Seneca Resources Vandergrift shale gas well pad in Charleston Township, Tioga County found multiple areas that were still contaminated and wastewater was still seeping out of a fill slope from a large spill discovered during a May 13, 2025 complaint inspection.

The May inspection found two large areas of distressed vegetation with evidence of a wastewater release in one area 50 feet wide extending down the well pad slope about 120 feet and another area 20 feet wide and stretching 65-70 feet down slope as a result of what Seneca said were leaking valves and wastewater flowing from an open pipe during well plugging operations. Read more here.

Many of those same areas were still showing evidence of contamination in this latest inspection and there was “a wet area of soil 10 feet up from the base of the fill slope and within the approximate center of the west excavated area that field tested above 4000 uS conductance.”

DEP said contaminated liquid was flowing through an area excavated to remove contaminated soil below the fill slope and into and out of a catch basin sump.

In addition, there was evidence of erosion channels on the fill slope and excavated areas of the field next to the well pad.

The bottomline-- remediation of the spill was nowhere near complete, contaminated fluids were still flowing from the well pad and found in the shale gas well “cellars,” and from seeps in the fill slope of the pad.

DEP “recommends” taking these actions--

-- Continue monitoring the area for contamination.

-- Continue remediation efforts as necessary.

-- Continue collecting fluids that demonstrate elevated conductance on the well pad, in the excavated areas around the well cellars, in seeps from the fill slope, in the collection sump at the northwest corner of the location and other areas on the location as discovered.

-- Assess the temporary compost filter socks and temporary stabilization. Apply maintenance as necessary.

You can chart the lack of progress in cleaning up this wastewater spill through DEP’s inspection reports: July 17, 2025; July 24, 2025, August 6, 2025; August 20, 2025; August 26, 2025; and September 18, 2025.

Report Violations

To report oil and gas violations or any environmental emergency or complaint, visit DEP’s Environmental Complaint webpage.

Text photos and the location of abandoned wells to 717-788-8990.

Check These Resources

Visit DEP’s Compliance Reporting Database and Inspection Reports Viewer webpages to search their compliance records by date and owner.

Sign up for DEP’s eNOTICE service which sends you information on oil and gas and other permits submitted to DEP for review in your community.

Use DEP’s Oil and Gas Mapping Tool to find if there are oil and gas wells near or on your property and to find wells using latitude and longitude on well inspection reports.

(Photos: Top- Contaminated soil where excavated contaminated soil was stockpile on the well pad; Erosion and contaminated water coming off well pad; Bottom- Contaminated areas around shale gas wells; Contaminated water in sump.)

PA Oil & Gas Industry Public Notice Dashboards:

-- PA Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - Sept. 20 to 26 - 128 Days Of Cleanup - Not Done Yet; 481 Abandoned Conventional Wells; Conventional Owner Builds 2 Illegal Well Pads [PaEN]

-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - September 27 [PaEN]

-- DEP Posted 58 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In September 27 PA Bulletin [PaEN]