Follow these links to spreadsheets showing the violations and inspections occurring between April 25 to May 1--
Click Here for violations issued. Click Here for inspection entries.
[Note: There were many more violations issued by DEP than PA Environment Digest can highlight here.]
Enforcement Actions Taken Last Week
So far this year, DEP took these actions as of April 24--
-- NOVs Issued In Last Week: 114 conventional, 17 unconventional
-- Year To Date - NOVs Issued: 1,641 conventional and 393 unconventional
-- Enforcements 2025: 129 conventional and 81 unconventional (orders, agreements)
-- Inspections Last Week: 396 conventional and 331 unconventional
-- Year To Date - Inspections: 6,074 conventional and 8,502 unconventional
Day 245: Cleanup Of Ongoing Shale Gas Wastewater Release Continues In Susquehanna County
On April 7, 2026, the Department of Environmental Protection conducted a follow-up inspection of the NR-13 shale gas well pad in Great Bend Township, Susquehanna County and found cleanup was continuing of the ongoing shale gas fracking wastewater releases on the pad that started on August 5, 2025. Read more here.
CNX, Leatherwood Sign Order To Plug 5 Coal Bed Methane Conventional Wells
On April 7, 2026, the Department of Environmental Protection signed consent orders and agreements with CNX Gas Company LLC and Leatherwood, LLC to require the plugging of five conventional coal bed methane wells prior to underground longwall mining in Center Township, Greene County.
The consent orders cover the obligations of each company in the transfer of the five wells from CNX Gas to Leatherwood so Leatherwood can plug the wells prior to coal mining operations in Centre Township. Read more here.
11 Abandoned Conventional Well Violations
Butler County - C & K Coal Co.
April 27, 2026 inspection of the Rankin 1 conventional oil and gas well in Allegheny Township found the well abandoned and not plugged. Owner failed to submit production, waste generation and well integrity reports. Well never inspected. Violations issued. Response requested by May 12. DEP inspection report.
Erie County - Steven P. Beach
May 1, 2026 inspection of the Steven Beach 1 conventional well in North East Borough found the well abandoned and not plugged. Well never inspected. Violations issued. Response requested by May 30. DEP inspection report.
Erie County - North East Ind Fuel Co
May 1, 2026 inspection of the North East Ind Park 11 conventional well in North East Borough found the well abandoned, not plugged and owner did not submit production, waste generation and well integrity reports for 2025. Well never inspected. Violations issued. Response requested by May 30. DEP inspection report.
Fayette County - Diversified Production Co
April 29, 2026 compliance evaluation of the Bookshar 2 conventional well in Luzerne Township was not plugged using an approved alternative method and gas was leaking from the well. Failed to comply with order to plug the well. Violations issued. Response requested by May 19. DEP inspection report,
Venango County - WLH Land & Lumber LLC
April 21, 2026 inspection of 3 conventional wells-- Smith 3, Smith 5 and Smith 6-- in Scrubgrass Township found the wells abandoned and not plugged. Wells never inspected. Failed to submit production, waste generation, well integrity reports. Multiple violations issued. DEP staff will try to track down the owner. This is the 4th abandoned well violation in 2 weeks.
Warren County - Glendorn Land Inc.
April 22, 2026 inspection of the A.Carlisle 1, A.Carlisle 2 and A.Carlisle 3 conventional oil and gas wells in Spring Creek Township found the wells abandoned and not plugged. Owner failed to submit 2025 production, waste generation and well integrity reports. Violations issued. Response requested by May 13.
Westmoreland County - Blackrock Enterprises, LLC [990 Days]
April 24, 2026 follow-up inspection of John G. Mailey 1 conventional well in Mount Pleasant Township found the well abandoned and not plugged, failed to submit annual production, waste generation and well integrity reports. No action taken to correct violations. Abandonment and reporting violations go back to Aug. 8, 2023. Violations continued. Response requested by May 14. DEP inspection report.
204 Abandoned Conventional Well Violations In 2026
So far in 2026, DEP issued or continued 204 notices of violation for conventional oil and gas well abandonment.
Shale Gas Spills/Containment Violations
Bradford County - Expand OPER LLC [60 Days]
April 27, 2026 follow-up inspection of the Wygrala shale gas well pad in Wysox Township found the owner failed to clean-up a release of wastewater from a hole in storage tank containment reported on Feb. 26, 2026 [report incorrectly says 2025] impacting an area 75 x 150 feet. Because of the unknown quantity of wastewater released, DEP recommended cleaning up the area using the Act 2 process. It was not done. “Material was being removed from the site during the inspection.” DEP renewed the request. Violations continued. No deadline set. DEP inspection report.
Westmoreland County - Big Dog Energy LLC [31 Days]
April 27, 2026 follow-up inspection of the Schimizzi S&M 1 shale gas well in Hempfield Township found the owner failed to respond to any of the violations issued on March 27, 2026 related to cleaning up spills at the site, putting storage tanks in secondary containment, having an Emergency Response Plan on site and to remove unused equipment from the site. A response was requested by April 16. Multiple violations continued. No specific requests made of owner. DEP inspection report #2.
Conventional Well Spills/Releases
Greene County - Leatherwood LLC
April 22, 2026 inspection of the Alice Auld 1 conventional well site in Morris Township found multiple spills of drilling mud, seeps of wastewater, unstable slope cuts, inadequate erosion and sedimentation and stormwater management controls. Multiple violations issued. Response requested by May 15. DEP inspection report. https://tinyurl.com/2rnt485h
Warren County - Trinity Mineral Partners LLC
April 27, 2026 routine inspection of the Roell Lease Roell 3 conventional well in Sugar Grove Township found evidence of an unreported wastewater leak from storage tanks breaching containment, distressed vegetation leading to a ditch and then Jackson Run 250 feet or so from the tanks. There was also evidence of recent excavation around the tanks. Multiple violations issued. Response requested by May 13. DEP inspection report.
Failure To Restore Conventional Well Pad
McKean County - MSL Oil & Gas Corp [140 Days]
April 27, 2026 follow-up inspection of the Pennzoil Farmout 11 4 70 conventional gas well in Hamilton Township found the owner failed to restore the well pad, the permit to drill the well expired on May 5, 2025 and the well was never drilled. Original violation issued Dec. 8, 2025. Violation continued. Response requested by May 12. DEP inspection report
Shale Gas Casing/Cementing Failures
Wyoming County - Expand OPER LLC [3,966 Days]
April 24, 2026 administrative file review of shale gas wells on the Evelyn WYO and Jack well pads in Windham Township confirmed casing/cementing failures and gas pressures are increasing. Casing violations on the Evelyn pad go back to May 27, 2021 and the Jack pad go back to June 15, 2015. Monitoring continued. Violations continued. https://tinyurl.com/mpnpzxc8
Shale Gas Pipeline Construction Slope Failures
Greene County - EQM Gathering OPCO LLC [EQT]
April 21, 2026 inspection of a portion of the Beta McNicholas to CDP-2 Pipeline construction right-of-way in response to a notification of slope failures occurring on March 26 in Aleppo Township. The permit for this construction was terminated on Dec. 17, 2024. A “super silt fence” was installed for temporary stabilization. Multiple violations issued. Response requested by May 8. DEP inspection report.
Washington County - MarkWest Liberty Midstream & Resources LLC
April 9, 2026 routine inspection of the Backbone to Grahek Pipeline construction site in Donegal Township found areas of slope failure and multiple erosion and sedimentation violations. Response was requested by April 27. DEP inspection report.
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.
[Note: If you believe your company was listed in error, contact DEP’s Oil and Gas Program.]
[Note: These may not be all the NOVs issued to oil and gas companies during this time period. Additional inspection reports may be added to DEP’s Oil and Gas Compliance Database.]
PA Oil & Gas Industry Public Notice Dashboards:
-- PA Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - April 25 to May 1: Violations For Conventional Well Abandonment Top 204; Cleaning Up Shale Gas Wastewater Release For 245 Days [PaEN]
-- DEP - Day 245: Expand Operating LLC Continuing Cleanup Of Ongoing Shale Gas Fracking Wastewater Release From Well Pad In Great Bend Twp., Susquehanna County [PaEN]
-- DEP Signs Consent Orders With CNX Gas, Leatherwood LLC Requiring The Plugging Of 5 Conventional Coal Bed Methane Wells Prior To Longwall Coal Mining In Center Twp., Greene County [PaEN]
-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - May 2 [PaEN]
-- DEP Invites Comments On Chapter 105 Permit For 4.5 Mile EQT ARO Natural Gas Pipeline On State Forest Land In Lycoming County [PaEN]
-- DEP Posted 62 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In May 2 PA Bulletin [PaEN]
-- DEP Accepting Comments On 2nd Stormwater Permit For SNA North LLC/QTS A.I. Data Center Project In Salem Twp., Luzerne County [PaEN]
-- Public Utility Commission Sets July 10 Telephonic Hearing On PPL Condemnation Of 30 Properties For The Sugarloaf 500/230KV Transmission Line In Luzerne County To Serve Data Centers [PaEN]
-- DEP To Hold June 16 Hearing On Water Quality Permit For Rustic Ridge II Coal Mining Permit In Westmoreland County [PaEN]
-- DEP To Hold May 21 Informal Conference To Take Comments On The Proposed Addition Of 7,154 Acres To The Rosebud Mining Company Penfield Coal Mine In Clearfield County [PaEN]
Related Articles This Week:
-- Environmental Health Project Calls On Gov. Shapiro To Address Health Hazards Of Fossil Fuels [PaEN]
-- DEP Receives Federal Funding To Study Human Health Impacts Of Leaking, Abandoned Conventional Oil & Gas Wells; Conventional Regulation Updates Delayed; Reports On Setback Petition By End Of 2026 [PaEN]
-- House Committee Approves Bill To Strengthen State Response To Spills Of Hazardous Substances After Energy Transfer/Sunoco Jet Fuel Pipeline Spill In Bucks County [PaEN]
-- Environmental Defense Fund: Rollback Of Federal Methane Emission Limits On Oil & Gas Facilities Have Wasted $4.8 Billion Worth Of Natural Gas That Could Have Served 22 Million Homes- And Counting [PaEN]
-- US Dept. Of Energy Cyber Threat Center Issues Another Warning To Oil & Gas Industry About Automatic Tank Gauge Manipulation By Malicious Cyber Threat Actors [PaEN]
-- In Case You Missed It: A.I./Data Center Articles - NewClips From Last Week - May 4 [PaEN]
-- PUC Adopts Voluntary Large Load, Data Center Tariff Framework To Help Protect Ratepayers [PaEN]
-- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Approves Extension Of PJM Capacity Auction Price Cap, Floor For Next 2 Auctions [PaEN]
-- Senate Committee Hears Electric Grid Issues Getting Worse; PJM Has Attracted 220 GW Of New Generation Proposals; PJM ‘Backstop’ Procurement Critical To Making Data Centers Pay For New Generation [PaEN]
-- WHYY - Susan Phillips: Gov. Shapiro Says Regulated Electric, Natural Gas, Water Utility System In PA Is ‘Broken’ In Letter To 24 Companies Laying Out New System To Rein In Corporate Profits
-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak & Laura Legere: A.I. Data Center Power Demand May Extend Conemaugh, Keystone Coal-Fired Power Plant Operations, Jobs For Years - But At A Cost
-- PA House Energy Committee Sets May 4 Meeting To Act On More Bills To Address Electric Grid Reliability, Affordability Issues: Authorize Virtual Power Plants, More [PaEN]
-- PA House Passes Bill To Require A.I. Data Centers To Report Water Use, Discharges To DEP [PaEN]
-- Gov. Shapiro Announces $267 Million Investment In 31 PA Industry Projects To Reduce Air Pollution, Cut Energy Costs, Create Jobs, And Combat Greenhouse Gas Emissions In 23 Counties; Next Grant Round Opens May 15 [PaEN]
-- Concerned Citizens Of Montour County: Data Center Developer Wants To Make It Harder For Citizens To Appeal Zoning, Permits; DCED Secretary Explains More On How They Want New GRID Principles To Work [PaEN]
-- Montour County: What A.I. Data Center Developers Don’t Like In Zoning Ordinances: Decommissioning Safeguards For When Their Tech Becomes Obsolete; No Noise Limits On Diesel Generators; No Property Value Impact Studies [PaEN]
-- Tri-County Regional Planning Commission Publishes Model A.I. Data Center Ordinance; Links To Other Model Ordinances [PaEN]
-- Gov. Shapiro Appoints Mark Szybist New Special Counsel For Energy Affordability [PaEN]
-- Pittsburgh Gateways Flips The Switch On New Rooftop Solar Energy System On Energy Innovation Center [PaEN]
-- PA Technical Assistance Program July 16 Webinar On Funding, Incentives For Energy Efficiency Improvements For Manufacturers [PaEN]
-- DCNR: Grid-Scale Solar Energy Installations Are Not Permitted On Any DCNR Lands Or On Lands That Have Received DCNR Grant Funds [PaEN]
[Posted: May 3, 2026] PA Environment Digest
No comments :
Post a Comment