DEP: K Petroleum Inc. Shale Gas Well Site Had Contaminated Water Flowing Down The Side Of A Storage Tank In Washington County

On August 19, 2026, the Department of Environmental Protection inspected the K Petroleum Inc. Cecil 2 P229 shale gas well in response to a complaint and found contaminated water flowing down the side of a storage tank in Somerset Township, Washington County.

Drilled in December 2009, the Cecil 2 shale gas well is located on a single well site covered with vegetation in an open, sloping farm field.

The site has no secondary containment around three contaminated water storage tanks.

DEP said the two metal tanks have multiple corrosion holes visible at several points around the tanks and were the site of the release.

DEP field measurements of conductivity of the fluid running down the side of one of the metal tanks was “OR (over detectable range),” i.e. higher than the maximum limit of the meter.

Measurements around the base of the tanks found more evidence of contamination.

A representative of K Petroleum was contacted during the inspection and said the metal tanks were “disconnected and empty for several years.”

DEP “recommended remediation of the spill and removal of the production tanks as they are no longer in use and heavily corroded.”

The company man said he would get a contractor to begin the work as soon as possible.

DEP issued multiple violations and requested a response by September 7.

DEP said the “written response should include an incident report, a timeline of remedial measures, and plan for remediation of the spill or release” and quantification of the amount spilled. 

Click Here for DEP’s inspection report + photos.

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: Measuring contaminated water running down a tank; Storage tanks, no secondary containment; Evidence of corrosion holes in both tanks.)

[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:

-- DEP: Diversified Production LLC Contaminated Water Pipeline Release Pollutes Farm Field In Indiana County  [PaEN] 

-- DEP: Iron Cumberland LLC Conventional Well Plugging Results On Subsurface Release Of Cement Into Hargus Creek In Greene County  [PaEN]  

-- DEP: K Petroleum Inc. Shale Gas Well Site Had Contaminated Water Flowing Down The Side Of A Storage Tank In Washington County  [PaEN]

-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - August 22 [PaEN] 

     -- DEP Invites Comments On Air Permit For Montour CT Natural Gas Power Plant Expansion In Montour County To Feed Data Centers  [PaEN]

     -- DEP Invites Comments On Chapter 105 Permit For Expand Operating LLC Double, 16-Inch Shale Gas Water Pipelines In Fox Twp., Sullivan County  [PaEN]

-- DEP Posted 70 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In August 22 PA Bulletin  [PaEN]  

     -- DEP Sets Sept. 15 Hearing On Blythe Recycling & Demolition [BRADS] Landfill Permit Modification Related To Leachate Hauling At Its Facility In Schuylkill County  [PaEN]

     -- DEP Invites Comments On Chapter 105 Permit For A 250 MW Solar Energy Facility In Clearfield County  [PaEN] 

     -- DEP Invites Comments On Chapter 105 Permit For PECO Energy Double 230 kV Transmission Line Crossing Of Schuylkill River In Montgomery County To Serve Data Center Projects  [PaEN]

     -- DEP Invites Comments On Stormwater Permit For PPL Electric Harwood To Harleigh Substation Transmission Line Project In Luzerne County  [PaEN]  

    -- DEP Receives Final Act 2 Land Recycling Remediation Report From Archbald Data & Energy Center, LLC For Site In Lackawanna County [PaEN]

     -- DEP Invites Comments On Total Maximum Daily Load Plan For Baken Creek Watershed, Perry County  [PaEN] 

Related Articles This Week:

-- Middle Susquehanna RiverKeeper: DEP Considering ‘Alternative Enforcement Measures’ To Assure Cleanup Of Eureka Resources Oil & Gas Wastewater Treatment Plants In Lycoming, Bradford Counties  [PaEN] 

-- Environmental Defense Fund Awarded Foxwynd Foundation Grant To Help Locate Conventional Oil & Gas Wells Abandoned By Their Owners In Settlers Cabin Park, Allegheny County  [PaEN]  

-- DEP Invites Comments On Chapter 105 Permit For Expand Operating LLC Double, 16-Inch Shale Gas Water Pipelines In Fox Twp., Sullivan County  [PaEN]  

-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Approved 35 Shale Gas Well Pad Water Use General Permits In July; 223 In 2026  [PaEN] 

-- DEP Finalizes Spill/Release Notification Guidance Under Clean Streams Law  [PaEN]

-- PUC PaOneCall Damage Prevention Committee Announces $128,000 In Penalties For Underground Utility Excavation Violations; Next Meeting Sept. 15

NewsClips:

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: Bidders Circle Shell Petrochemical Plant In Beaver County

[Posted: August 25, 2026]  PA Environment Digest

DEP: Iron Cumberland LLC Conventional Well Plugging Results On Subsurface Release Of Cement Into Hargus Creek In Greene County

On August 17, 2026, the Department of Environmental Protection inspected the Iron Cumberland LLC SB Eagon 1 conventional gas well in response to a notification and found a subsurface release of cement resulted in polluting Hargus Creek during plugging operations in Center Township, Greene County.

The release was the result of a “communication event” between the well while cementing was being undertaken and the creek.

The cement contaminated an unnamed tributary to Hargus Creek and then the creek itself for an unknown distance from where the well was being plugged.

Field conductivity measurements confirmed the contaminated water.

DEP issued multiple violations for the release and requested a response by September 4.

DEP said the “written response should include an incident report, a timeline of remedial measures, and plan for remediation of the spill or release. 

“The Department is requesting how the operator quantified the amount spilled. The Department also requests the waste manifest from the site remediation be submitted upon receipt.”

Click Here for DEP’s inspection report + photos.

Background

On July 1, 2026, DEP ordered Iron Cumberland LLC to plug the nonproducing gas well that had been previously plugged ineffectively as part of an operation to coordinate underground coal mining in the area.  

Read DEP Order here. Read application here.

On August 3, 2026, DEP approved an alternative method for plugging the well that pertained only to that portion of the well bore “from a maximum of 200 feet below the coal to be mined to the surface.”

Read the approved Alternative Method here.

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: Point of subsurface release; Contamination in Hargus Creek.)

[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:

-- DEP: Diversified Production LLC Contaminated Water Pipeline Release Pollutes Farm Field In Indiana County  [PaEN] 

-- DEP: Iron Cumberland LLC Conventional Well Plugging Results On Subsurface Release Of Cement Into Hargus Creek In Greene County  [PaEN]  

-- DEP: K Petroleum Inc. Shale Gas Well Site Had Contaminated Water Flowing Down The Side Of A Storage Tank In Washington County  [PaEN]

-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - August 22 [PaEN] 

     -- DEP Invites Comments On Air Permit For Montour CT Natural Gas Power Plant Expansion In Montour County To Feed Data Centers  [PaEN]

     -- DEP Invites Comments On Chapter 105 Permit For Expand Operating LLC Double, 16-Inch Shale Gas Water Pipelines In Fox Twp., Sullivan County  [PaEN]

-- DEP Posted 70 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In August 22 PA Bulletin  [PaEN]  

     -- DEP Sets Sept. 15 Hearing On Blythe Recycling & Demolition [BRADS] Landfill Permit Modification Related To Leachate Hauling At Its Facility In Schuylkill County  [PaEN]

     -- DEP Invites Comments On Chapter 105 Permit For A 250 MW Solar Energy Facility In Clearfield County  [PaEN] 

     -- DEP Invites Comments On Chapter 105 Permit For PECO Energy Double 230 kV Transmission Line Crossing Of Schuylkill River In Montgomery County To Serve Data Center Projects  [PaEN]

     -- DEP Invites Comments On Stormwater Permit For PPL Electric Harwood To Harleigh Substation Transmission Line Project In Luzerne County  [PaEN]  

    -- DEP Receives Final Act 2 Land Recycling Remediation Report From Archbald Data & Energy Center, LLC For Site In Lackawanna County [PaEN]

     -- DEP Invites Comments On Total Maximum Daily Load Plan For Baken Creek Watershed, Perry County  [PaEN] 

Related Articles This Week:

-- Middle Susquehanna RiverKeeper: DEP Considering ‘Alternative Enforcement Measures’ To Assure Cleanup Of Eureka Resources Oil & Gas Wastewater Treatment Plants In Lycoming, Bradford Counties  [PaEN] 

-- Environmental Defense Fund Awarded Foxwynd Foundation Grant To Help Locate Conventional Oil & Gas Wells Abandoned By Their Owners In Settlers Cabin Park, Allegheny County  [PaEN]  

-- DEP Invites Comments On Chapter 105 Permit For Expand Operating LLC Double, 16-Inch Shale Gas Water Pipelines In Fox Twp., Sullivan County  [PaEN]  

-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Approved 35 Shale Gas Well Pad Water Use General Permits In July; 223 In 2026  [PaEN] 

-- DEP Finalizes Spill/Release Notification Guidance Under Clean Streams Law  [PaEN]

-- PUC PaOneCall Damage Prevention Committee Announces $128,000 In Penalties For Underground Utility Excavation Violations; Next Meeting Sept. 15

NewsClips:

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: Bidders Circle Shell Petrochemical Plant In Beaver County

[Posted: August 25, 2026]  PA Environment Digest

PA Congresswoman Summer Lee, Westmoreland County Leaders Celebrate $1.075 Million Federal Grant To Cleanup Abandoned Mine Drainage In Turtle Creek Watershed

On August 25, Congresswoman Summer L. Lee (PA-12) joined Westmoreland County leaders in Irwin and North Huntingdon to celebrate $1,075,000 in federal Community Project Funding she secured to address abandoned mine drainage from the Biddle Mine and help restore the Turtle Creek watershed.

Congresswoman Lee toured Tinkers Run and Brush Creek, where pollution from the Biddle Mine continues to visibly impact local waterways, including stretches of creek turned orange by mine runoff. 

She also visited the future site of a treatment facility that will help clean polluted water before it reaches the surrounding watershed.

Following the tour, Congresswoman Lee presented Westmoreland County Commissioners with a ceremonial $1+ million check representing the federal investment she helped bring home for the project.

“When you can stand next to a creek and quite literally see the water turning orange from mine pollution, you don’t need anybody to explain why this investment matters,” said Rep. Lee. 

“For generations, communities across Western Pennsylvania have lived with the environmental consequences left behind by industries that built enormous wealth off our region, impacting their health, quality of living, and cleanup costs. That’s why I fought to bring home more than $1 million for this project, so we can clean up these waterways, protect the Turtle Creek watershed, and invest in a healthier future for the people who live here.”

“As a Biddle native this area often served as a playground for me and my friends. Our children today and in the future deserve better. This is a really important project for our environment and our community. And I am so grateful for all of the project partners, including Congresswoman Summer Lee for the federal support,” said Westmoreland County Commissioner Ted Kopas.

The project will support efforts to remediate mine drainage associated with the Biddle Mine and reduce pollution entering Tinkers Run, Brush Creek, and the broader Turtle Creek watershed.

Congresswoman Lee was joined by Westmoreland County Commissioners Ted Kopas, Sean Kertes, and Doug Chew, along with local officials and community partners involved in the remediation effort.

The $1,075,000 investment was included in the Fiscal Year 2026 federal funding package as a Community Project Funding request secured by Congresswoman Lee.

Click Here for the complete announcement.

Related Articles This Week:

-- The Citizens’ Voice: Small But Mighty: Eastern PA Coalition For Abandoned Mine Reclamation Celebrates 30 Years Of Revitalizing Region’s Coal Land   [PDF of Article]

NewsClips:

-- The Citizens’ Voice: Small But Mighty: Eastern PA Coalition For Abandoned Mine Reclamation Celebrates 30 Years Of Revitalizing Region’s Coal Land   [PDF of Article]

-- WESA/The Allegheny Front: DEP To Study Whether 11,000 Acres In Westmoreland County Is ‘Unsuitable’ For Coal Mining

-- Observer-Reporter: Coal Miner Sues For Wrongful Termination Claiming Coal Company Retaliated After Worker Raised Safety Concerns 

-- WVIA: US DOE Secretary Visits Schuylkill County Coal Waste-Fired Power Plant To Promote American Energy

[Posted: August 25, 2026]  PA Environment Digest