EPA/DOE Award DEP $44.4 Million To Plug Active, Conventional Oil & Gas Wells To Stop Leaking Methane

On December 15, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy announced conditional commitments to 14 states to receive a total of $350 million in formula grant funding to help measure and reduce methane emissions from active, conventional oil and gas wells.

Pennsylvania's Department of Environmental Protection was awarded $44,457,220 from this program.

The funding was made available through the federal Inflation Reduction Act.

On December 5, DEP told the Oil and Gas Technical Advisory Board they submitted a “barebones” application and the details of how the funding would be invested will be developed with a workgroup of the PA Grade Crude [Oil] Development Advisory Council.  

DEP said they are looking at a grant program to conventional operators to plug these wells.  The agency is also looking to develop a mechanism for plugging so-called home-use gas wells that are leaking methane.  Read more here.

These funds are in addition to the new federal well plugging program authorized under the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Act which funds DEP’s conventional oil and gas well plugging efforts.

DEP is expecting an estimated $76 million to plug conventional wells under this program in the coming year.  Read more here.

DEP estimates 80% of the methane emissions from oil and gas facilities come from the conventional oil and gas industry in the state because they have done little or nothing to control them.  Twenty percent comes from the shale gas industry.  Read more here.

The Environmental Defense Fund has estimated conventional wells leaked over 6 billion cubic feet of methane in the Allegheny National Forest of Pennsylvania in just 2019.  Read more here.

In December, 2022, DEP finalized regulations reducing volatile organic compounds and methane from existing conventional and unconventional oil and gas facilities.

The conventional regulations were challenged in Commonwealth Court by conventional oil and gas operators.  Read more here.

There has been no announcement by DEP on how they are implementing their new regulations on conventional or shale gas operators.  

Earlier this month, EPA finalized another set of regulations to reduce methane emissions from oil and gas operations.  Read more here.

In June 2018, DEP finalized an Air Quality General Permit to reduce methane emissions from new unconventional oil and gas operations.  Read more here.

Click Here for the complete EPA/DOE announcement.

(Photo: Conventional well leaking methane in Allegheny County, courtesy Earthworks.)

PA Oil & Gas Industry Public Notice Dashboards:

-- PA Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - Dec.  9 to 15 - 500 Conventional Abandoned Well Violations; 25 Days Of Shale Gas Water Withdrawals Without Permission; Wastewater Pipeline Spill  [PaEN] 

-- PA Oil & Gas Industry Compliance So Far In 2023 - It Isn’t Pretty   [PaEN]

-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices/Opportunities To Comment - December 16  [PaEN]

-- DEP Posted 68 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In December 16 PA Bulletin  [PaEN]  

Related Articles This Week:

-- Former Employees Of Eureka Resources Oil & Gas Wastewater Treatment Company Ask For Criminal Investigation Of Eureka And An Audit Of DEP Over Alleged Workplace, Environmental Violations  [PaEN]

-- Senate Environmental Committee Reports Independent Energy Information Office Bill; Democrats Attempt To Table Environmental Hearing Board Nominee  [PaEN] 

-- EPA/DOE Award DEP $44.4 Million To Plug Active, Conventional Oil & Gas Wells To Stop Leaking Methane  [PaEN]

-- Videos Now Available From PA League Of Women Voters, University Of Pittsburgh School Of Public Health Shale Gas & Public Health Conference; Dept. Of Health Pushing For Changes To Reduce Adverse Health Impacts  [PaEN]

-- House Passes Bill Requiring Registration Of Cryptocurrency Mining Operations, Impact Study  [PaEN] 

-- Carbon County Residents Urge DEP To Deny Stronghold Digital Mining, Inc. Request To Burn Tires To Fuel Its Cryptocurrency Mining Operation At The Panther Creek Power Plant  [PaEN] 

-- CNX Ends Coordination On West Virginia Adams Fork Ammonia Energy Project, Anchor Of ARCH2 Hydrogen Hub Application  [PaEN] 

-- HEI Energy Hosts Dec. 18 Webinar On New Research On Community Exposures To Oil & Gas Development & Groundwater Contamination In Beaver, Greene & Washington Counties  [PaEN]  

-- Independent Fiscal Office Estimates 2023 Act 13 Shale Gas Drilling Impact Fee Revenue Will Drop By Nearly $105 Million, While Almost 400 New Wells Were Drilled So Far In 2023  [PaEN] 

-- House Passes Bill Requiring Registration Of Cryptocurrency Mining Operations, Impact Study  [PaEN] 

-- Carbon County Residents Urge DEP To Deny Stronghold Digital Mining, Inc. Request To Burn Tires To Fuel Its Cryptocurrency Mining Operation At The Panther Creek Power Plant  [PaEN] 

-- House Hearing: Shapiro Administration Supports Expanding Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards; Renewables Lower Energy Costs; Increase Grid Reliability; More Work Needed To Improve Natural Gas Reliability  [PaEN]

-- PJM Makes Multiple Reliability-Focused Improvements To Prepare For Winter To Deal With 70% Natural Gas, Other Generator Nonperformance In 2022  [PaEN] 

-- PUC To Hold Stakeholder Meeting Feb. 7-8 On Act 129 Statewide Evaluator Energy Efficiency Baseline Studies And The 2026 Reference Manual  [PaEN] 

-- WeConservePA Hosts Jan. 22 Webinar On Why Municipalities Should Consider A Utility-Scale Solar Energy Facility Ordinance  [PaEN]

-- Penn State Extension Webinar Dec. 21: Shale Gas Trends For Landowners, Growth & Land Leasing  [PaEN]

NewsClips This Week:

-- Public Herald: I Turned Blue - Workers Share Horrifying Experiences Treating Oil & Gas Wastewater

-- Williamsport Sun: Ex-Employees Seek Criminal Probe Against Eureka Resources Oil/Gas Wastewater Treatment Plant In Williamsport 

-- NorthcentralPA.com: Former Eureka Resources Employees Ask Lycoming County DA Gardner For Criminal Investigation Of Workplace At Oil/Gas Wastewater Treatment Plant

-- Citizens Voice: Former Eureka Employees Ask Lycoming County DA For Criminal Investigation Of Workplace At Oil/Gas Wastewater Treatment Plant

-- Williamsport Sun: Fracking Water Spills At Eureka Resources Oil/Gas Wastewater Treatment Plant In Williamsport

-- TribLive Letter: For Natural Gas Industry, Concern For Health Should Trump Industry Profits

-- Lock Haven Express Letter: Who Does Senator Yaw Represent? - By Karen Elias

-- The Daily Item Letter: We Deserve A Refund, Too, From The Legislature [Pitt Shale Gas Health Studies]  - By Trey Casimir

-- Bob Donnan Blog: Unleashing LNG Natural Gas Exports On Pennsylvania’s Habitat

-- Erie Times Guest Essay: Regulatory Reform Needed To Advance Critical Natural Gas Projects In PA - By American Petroleum Institute PA

-- TribLive Letter: Natural Gas Industry A Win For Pennsylvania - Keystone Contractors Assn.

-- PennLive Guest Essay: Black And Brown Communities Cannot Be Left In The Dark As Energy Innovation Booms - By Fmr ExxonMobil Executive

-- Williamsport Sun Letter: ‘Any Legislation Or Regulation That Seeks To Further Restrict The Development, Transportation or Use Of Natural Gas Will Harm Our Economy, Undermine Personal Property Rights, Weaken National Security And Reverse The Significant Environmental Program Enabled By This Clean Abundant Energy Source’ - By Marcellus Shale Gas Coalition

-- The Center Square - Anthony Hennen: Act 13 Shale Gas Drilling Impact Per Well Fee Revenues To Drop $105 Million

-- Post-Gazette: PA Shale Gas Impact Fee Revenues Drop $105 Million

-- Utility Dive: North American Electric Reliability Corp Board Risks Missing Deadline For Adopting New Generator Winterization Standards To Ensure Grid Reliability  [Response To Winter Storm Elliot Problems] 

-- Reuters: Extreme Cold Still Poses Reliability Challenge For North American Power Generators, Particularly Natural Gas Infrastructure - NERC

-- Utility Dive: US Electricity Load Growth Forecast Jumps 81% Led By Data Centers, Industry 

-- StateImpactPA - Rachel McDevitt: PA Will Have 2 Years To Update Oil & Gas Facility Methane Emission Rules To Match EPA

-- Reuters: US Natural Gas Prices Up 1% On Higher Demand, Record LNG Exports 

-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: Shale Gas Exports Get A Seat At The Global Table: ‘That’s Our Business’  [EQT]

-- Reuters: Freeport LNG Natural Gas Plant Settles With EPA Over Safety Failures In 2022 Texas Blast

-- Offshore Technology: US Gas Producer EQT Explores Sale Of Production Assets Worth $3 Billion In NE PA

-- Reuters: US Natural Gas Producer EQT Explores Sale Of Production Assets Worth $3 Billion In NE PA

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: CNX Pulls Out Of Adams Fork Hydrogen Project

-- PennLive Letter: Let’s Get To Work On PA’s Hydrogen Hubs, Develop Strong Standards - By Rep. Rabb (D-Philadelphia)

-- Herald-Star: Tenaska Outlines Carbon Capture, Storage Project In Shale Gas Formations In SW PA, Southern Ohio

-- The Allegheny Front: COP28 Roundup: Food, Health, Disaster Relief And The Oceans

-- Financial Times: COP28: The New Climate Commitments That Really Count: Oil & Gas Methane Reductions; Tripling Renewables; Boost Energy Efficiency

-- AP: Experts At Odds Over Result Of UN Climate Talks: ‘Historic,’ ‘Pipsqueak’ Or Something Else?

-- Bloomberg: COP28 Deal Signals Role For Natural Gas In Clean Energy Transition

-- Reuters: What Are The Loopholes In COP28 Climate Deal That Could Keep Oil, Gas, Coal Flowing Indefinitely

[Posted: December 15, 2023]  PA Environment Digest