Thursday PA Environment & Energy Articles - NewsClips: 9.17.26

“The people have a right to clean air, pure water, and to the preservation of the natural, scenic, historic and esthetic values of the environment. Pennsylvania's public natural resources are the common property of all the people, including generations yet to come. As trustee of these resources, the Commonwealth shall conserve and maintain them for the benefit of all the people.”

-- Article I, Section 27 Pennsylvania Constitution  [It’s Not A Suggestion]

House Voting Schedule

September 28, 29, 30

October 5, 6, 7, 19, 20, 21

November 9, 10

-- Committee Schedule

Senate Voting Schedule

​​September 28, 29, 30

October 5, 6, 7, 19, 20, 21

November 17, 18

-- Committee Schedule

TODAY’s Calendar Of Events 

TODAY 6:00: In-Person.  Penn State Extension: Tap Talks - Mill Dams & Legacy Sediment, Collusion Tap Works, York.  6:00 to 8:00 p.m.

September 18-- Virtual. Penn State Extension Hosts Webinar On First Investigation Of Stream Health Tool To Track Stream Health.  Noon to 1:30 p.m.

September 20-- Virtual. Sierra Club Pennsylvania Hosts Webinar On Energy Storage In PA, 6:30 p.m.

September 22-- Virtual. Penn State Extension Backyard Stream Repair Webinars (1 of 5) - Evaluating Your Stream.  10:00 to 11:30 p.m.

September 23-- Agenda Posted. DCNR Conservation and Natural Resources Council meeting. Room 105 of the Rachel Carson Building in Harrisburg. 10:00 a.m. to Noon.  Read more here on agenda.

September 25-- Agenda Posted. DEP Low-Level Radioactive Waste Advisory Committee meeting. Room 105 Rachel Carson. 10:00 a.m. (formal notice)

September 30-- House Energy Committee meeting.  Agenda TBA.  Click Here to watch online.

October 14-- In-Person. DEP Public Meeting/Hearing On Major Amendment To Water Quality Permit For Homer City Data Center/Power Plant Complex In Indiana County.  Homer Center High School Auditorium, 70 Wildcat Lane, Homer City. 5:00 to 7:30 p.m. 

-- White House: President Signs New Order Rescinding 2009 Chesapeake Bay Cleanup Executive Order In Part It Said Because It Was Related To Adoption Of Local Stormwater Management Fees “Though Nothing In That Order Required Or Explicitly Justified Such Measures”  [PaEN] 

-- Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Issues National Hours Of Service Waiver For Transporting Gasoline, Diesel Fuel In Response To Global Fuel Supply Chain Disruptions  [PaEN]

-- Wildlife Leadership Academy Celebrates 20 Years Of Inspiring The Next Generation Of Conservation Leaders Nov. 1 At The Rowland Theater In Philipsburg  [PaEN]

-- PJM Interconnection Issues Maximum Generation, Load Management Alerts For Sept. 17 For Entire Service Area Due To Hot Weather, 35,000 MW Of Maintenance Outages; Requested DOE Emergency Order  [PaEN] 

-- WESA - Rachel McDevitt: Federal Energy Officials Praise Duquesne Light Efforts To Make Electric Grid More Resilient

-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Approves 2 Shale Gas Development Water Withdrawal Requests; Total Of 3 In 2026  [PaEN]   

-- Reuters: National Fuel Gas Explores Options For $5 Billion Natural Gas Production Business, Sources Say

-- PA Marcellus Shale Gas Coalition Convenes 2026 Shale Insight Conference In Erie Sept. 22-24 

-- The Allegheny Front: Inadequate Safety And Training Led To 2025 Explosion At Shell Petrochemical Plant In Beaver County, Federal Safety Board Finds 

-- DEP: Shell Petrochemical Plant Fire Resulted In Possible Release Of An Unknown Quantity Of 1,3-Butadiene And Benzene Into The Atmosphere In Beaver County  [PaEN - 6.5.25]

-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Now Accepting Applications For Stream & Watershed Enhancement Mini-Grants  [PaEN] 

-- Penn State Extension: Oct. 22 Webinar On How Large-Scale Solar Energy Facilities Are Regulated By Local Governments  [PaEN]

-- Commonwealth Financing Authority Awards $301,473 Solar For Schools Grant To Allegheny Valley School District In Allegheny County For Installation Of Solar Energy Facility

-- TribLive Guest Essay: Modern Hydropower, PA’s Conservation Opportunity - By Shannon Ames, Low Impact Hydropower Institute

-- Planet Philadelphia Radio: Sept. 18 - How Heatwaves Affect Power Sources, 4:00 p.m.

-- Republican Herald: Trucking Leachate From BRADS Landfill Too Much To Bear, St. Clair Resident Tells DEP At Hearing In Schuylkill County

-- WHYY - Sophia Schmidt: Philly City Councilmember Proposes ‘Zero-Waste’ Bill To Divert 60% Of City Trash From Landfills, Incinerators

--  Erie Times - Brian Whipkey: Experts Explain How Weather Will Impact Fall Foliage Season In PA

-- Tribune-Democrat: Fall Foliage Ride To Be Held On Ghost Town Trail Oct. 4 In Cambria County

-- French & Pickering Creeks Conservation Trust Partners With Landowners Bernie & Kathleen McElroy To Preserve 13 Acres In Chester County  [PaEN]

-- New Freshwater Mussel Conservation Plan To Help Guide Conservation Efforts In Pennsylvania; Nov. 16 Webinar On Mussel Plan  [PaEN] 

 A.I. /Data Centers

-- Capital & Main - Audrey Carleton: Pennsylvania’s Amazon Data Center Boom Fueled By A Lucrative Tax Break [Will Cost PA Taxpayers $2 Billion In Revenue By 2031]

-- PA Capital-Star: PUC Study Warns Of Electricity Shortages Unless Supply Keeps Pace With A.I. Data Center Growth

-- Scranton Times: Lackawanna County Commissioners OK Contract For A.I. Data Center Health Impact Study: ‘Facts, Science, Evidence’

-- Scranton Times: Archbald Boro To Continue Hearings On Project Green Mountain A.I. Data Center Complex On Sept. 30 

-- Scranton Times: Plains Twp. To Host Sept. 22 Hearing On A.I. Data Center Zoning Map Changes To Accommodate Data Centers In Luzerne County

-- KYW: Proposed A.I. Data Center In South Whitehall Twp., Lehigh County Faces Community Backlash: ‘We’re Here For The Long Fight’ 

-- WITF: $10.5 Billion A.I. Data Center Complex Proposed For 157 Acres In Swatara Twp., Dauphin County 

-- Observer-Reporter: Hundreds Turn Out For NextEra Energy Open House On Fayette County 3.75 GW Data Center Natural Gas Power Plant 

-- WTAE: Fayette County Natural Gas Data Center Power Plant Project Divides Community Over Jobs, Environmental Concerns At NextEra Energy Open House  

-- Tri-State Alert:  PA Senate Republican Leader: Legislature Needs To Pick Up Slack From Prior Governors And Boost Energy Production [Nothing About Pausing Data Center Development Causing Spike In Demand] 

-- PA House Republican Policy Committee Hearing: ‘Unleash’ Pennsylvania Natural Gas To Lower Costs, Strengthen Reliability  [Nothing About Pausing Data Center Development Causing Spike In Demand] 

-- Salena Zito’s Middle Of Somewhere Dispatches: Shippingport’s Aligned Data Center/Natural Gas Power Plant Complex Rises In The Age Of A.I. Anxiety  

Storms/Power Outages

-- PEMA To Open Resource Center In Erie Sept. 17-19 To Assist Families Impacted By Severe Storms On Sept. 2-3

-- Observer-Reporter: Washington County Asks Property Owners To Report Flood Damage 

-- Pennsylvania Power Outages: 

International/National Impacts On PA Natural Gas

[Energy Independence Means Renewables]

-- September 17: PA Average AAA Gasoline Price Up 3 Cents From Yesterday To $4.52/Gallon - $1.41/Gallon Higher Than On Feb. 27 [Butler, Greene Counties Highest Average Price at $4.64]  

-- September 17: Average AAA Gasoline Prices: National- $4.43  Ohio- $4.51  PA- $4.52

-- Feb. 27: Average AAA Gasoline Prices: National- $2.98  Ohio- $2.79  PA- $3.11

-- Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Issues National Hours Of Service Waiver For Transporting Gasoline, Diesel Fuel In Response To Global Fuel Supply Chain Disruptions  [PaEN]

-- PennLive: Oil Prices Surge, Pushing Winter Heating Costs Higher For Pennsylvania - Heating Oil, Electricity, Propane, Natural Gas  

-- PennLive: Home Heating Bills Will Cost Up To 31% More This Winter, Report Says

-- PA Capital-Star: Record Diesel Prices hit Farmers In Pennsylvania, North Dakota And Across The Country At The Wrong Time

-- PennLive: Local Businesses Warn Of Steeper Food Prices Due To Record Diesel Prices

-- PennLive: Think Gasoline/Diesel Prices Are Bad? ‘Buckle Up,’ GasBuddy Analyst Says, It’s Going To Get Worse

PA Politics - Everything Is Connected

-- Spotlight PA: ‘Skill’ Gambling Games Face Seizure As Oct. 13 Deadline For PA Legislature To Act Looms

-- TribLive Editorial: Just Show Up For Jury Duty

-- PA Capital-Star: State Treasury Flagged $1.4 Billion In Payment Errors, Saved $75 Million By Preventing Payments To Ineligible Recipients; Lawmakers Say Greater Oversight Needed

-- Erie Times: President’s Tariffs Hit Pennsylvania Consumers, Businesses With $11 Billion In Costs Since 2025 

-- PennLive: PA House Democrats Demand Records On Contracts For Clearfield County ICE Immigrant Detention Facility

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[Posted: September 17, 2026]  PA Environment Digest