PA Environment Digest Blog: Scranton Times Editorial: Lower Boom On Natural Gas Leaks, Audit Abandoned Gas Well Capping

This editorial first appeared in the Scranton Times on March 10, 2023--

As regulators investigate and lawmakers lament the Feb. 3 train derailment at the Ohio-Pennsylvania border that released carloads of toxic chemicals, state officials have expressed far less concern about the largest natural gas leak in state history.

In November, the 13-day leak at an Equitrans Midstream Corp. gas storage facility in Jackson Twp., Cambria County, released massive amounts of methane.

The Guardian, which reported the leak as part of a story on global methane emissions, used satellite data.

It estimated that the Pennsylvania leak was the second-largest of about 1,000 nationwide, “equivalent to planet-warming emissions from burning more than 1,080 rail cars of coal or from running 360,000 cars for a year.”

Methane is a powerful contributor to atmospheric warming. Though it is far less abundant than carbon dioxide, it is about 80 times more efficient at trapping heat in the atmosphere, thus accounting for about 25% of warming.

The better news is that methane does not last as long as carbon dioxide, so climate scientists have targeted reduced methane emissions as a primary means to produce short-term reductions in warming.

In addition to harming the atmosphere, the massive leak also caused short-term health problems for nearby residents.

“It sounded like two jets were directly above my house,” Doug Harrison, 50, told The Guardian. “I swear to God I thought this is it.” Residents reported headaches, lightheadedness, sore throats, nasal burning, nausea and more.

Like the train wreck, the leak remains under investigation. And, like the train wreck, it points to regulatory failures.

In Pennsylvania, the natural gas industry’s growth and production have far outpaced the Department of Environmental Protection’s ability to regulate it — all the more so because industry proponents in the Legislature have underfunded the agency.

Meanwhile, environmental activists have complained of inadequate transparency regarding the state government’s efforts to diminish another major source of methane leaks — abandoned and orphaned gas wells.

Gov. Josh Shapiro and the Legislature should beef up the DEP’s ability to regulate methane emissions and related public safety concerns.

And Auditor General Timothy DeFoor should audit the DEP’s well-capping program to help ensure its effectiveness.

(Photo: Equitrans natural gas leak from space, Environmental Defense Fund.)

Resource Links:

-- The Guardian: One Of The Worst Global Methane Leaks In 2022 Was In PA - Equitrans In Cambria County; Routine Abandonment, Non-Compliance Of Conventional Gas Wells [PaEN]

-- DEP Methane Overflight Research Study Resulted In Voluntary Reductions In Oil & Gas, Landfill Facilities; Coal Industry Uncooperative [PaEN]

-- DEP Oil & Gas Advisory Board Meets March 13 To Hear Updates On Regulation Of Natural Gas Storage Areas, Chapter 78 Regs; Federal Well Plugging Program, Carbon Capture, Hydrogen Development [PaEN]

NewsClip:

-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: Greene County House That Exploded In 2018 From Natural Gas Leak Stands As A Monument To Leaking Gas Pipelines, Leaking Gas Wells, Leaking Gas Storage Areas