On April 1, 2025, the Department of Environmental Protection inspected the Winner 6 shale gas well pad and 3 million gallon water impoundment in East Keating Township, Clinton County owned by Frontier Natural Resources and found the pad and impoundment had not been restored.
DEP issued the original permit for the well site and impoundment in October 2011.
DEP issued the original violations for failure to restore the well pad and the water impoundment on July 14, 2017.
In an August 14, 2017 response to the violations at that time, the owner did not address the restoration of the impoundment, but promised -- “our intent is to come into compliance and meet all regulations.”
DEP’s April 1 inspection report found the owner “failed to restore the well site, remove or fill all pits used to contain produced fluids or industrial wastes and remove all drilling supplies and equipment not needed for production within nine months after drilling completion of drilling of a well(s).”
There is also a plugged shale gas well on the site DEP issued a permit for in August 2011.
A log kept for erosion and sedimentation inspections by the owner was found to be up-to-date, so someone was visiting the site regularly.
DEP recommended the owner apply for a new erosion and sedimentation control permit.
Three other inspection reports were completed during the April 1 visit all saying the same things, sometimes with different photos: DEP inspection report. DEP inspection report. DEP inspection report
DEP made no other requests of the owner on these inspection reports.
The original permit for the impoundment was issued in October 2011 and it was first inspected on January 31, 2012 by DEP. Violations were issued for improper disposal of residual waste and improper disposal of drill cuttings during that inspection. Read more here.
Since then DEP issued multiple violations at the site up to and including those in the April 1 inspection report. Read more here.
Frontier Natural Resources holds permits for this one shale gas well pad, the Tenman LNG Gas Production facility in Covington, Lackawanna County and Phoenix Resources waste facility in Duncan Township, Tioga County. Read more 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: Impoundment in 2017, impoundment in 2025 from DEP 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:
-- DEP: Shale Gas Driller Failed To Restore 3 Million Gallon Water Impoundment, Well Site For Nearly 8 Years In Clinton County [PaEN]
-- DEP: Nearly 7 Year Struggle Continues To Cleanup Multiple Conventional Oil Well Spills At Site In Economy Borough, Beaver County [PaEN]
-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - April 5 [PaEN]
-- Environmental Quality Board Invites Comments On Spill Notification Regulation Changes; May 15 Virtual Hearing [PaEN]
-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission April 24 Hearing On Water Withdrawal Requests, Including Renewal Of 2 Shale Gas Water Projects [PaEN]
-- DEP To Use General Permit To Implement New Federal Oil & Gas Facility Methane Reduction Regulation [PaEN]
-- DEP Announces Availability Of Air Quality General Permit For Gaseous Fuel-Fired Spark Ignition Internal Combustion Engines (GP-16) [Copy of GP-16]
-- DEP Posted 83 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In April 5 PA Bulletin [PaEN]
Related Article This Week:
-- Environmental Health Project Releases New White Paper: PA's Shale Gas - What We Can Do Now To Better Protect Public Health [PaEN]
-- Environmental Health Project: Lois Bower-Bjornson Shares Her First-Hand Experiences With Shale Gas Health, Environmental Impacts In Washington County [PaEN]
-- Environmental Hearing Board Denies EQT Shale Gas Motion To Exclude Evidence Of Medical Conditions, Toxicology Reports Related To A Landowner Appeal Of A DEP Water Supply Contamination Determination [PaEN]
-- House Environmental Committee Meets April 7 On Bill To Establish DEP Environmental Justice Permit Review Program To Analyze, Consider Cumulative Impacts Of Pollution From Some New Facilities [PaEN]
-- DEP Climate Change Committee Meets April 22 On Microgrids, Abandoned Oil & Gas Well Plugging, Update On Federal Clean Energy, Climate Funding Programs [PaEN]
-- Marcellus Drilling News: PA Supreme Court Upholds Rule Of Capture In Resurrected Trespass Case [PDF of Article]
-- Guest Essay: The Real Waste In Pennsylvania Government - Criticizing The Right Of Citizens To Petition Their Government For Change - By Terrie Baumgardner, Resident Of Aliquippa, Clean Air Council Outreach Coordinator [PaEN]
-- Utility Dive: US DOE Offers 2 National Energy Technology Laboratory Sites In Pittsburgh For Colocating Data Centers, Related Power Plants [PaEN]
NewsClips:
-- Inside Climate News - Jon Hurdle: PA Health Advocates Say Gov. Shapiro Has Let Residents Down On Shale Gas Fracking Protections
-- PA Capital-Star Guest Essay: Still Room For Frontline Community Protections From Shale Gas Impacts In Gov. Shapiro’s ‘Lightning’ Energy Plan - By Alison Steele, Environmental Health Project
-- Capital & Main - Audrey Carleton: Chesapeake Energy, Fined $1.9 Million For Damaging Wetlands In PA, Is On New Federal ‘Fast Track’ Permit Approval List
-- TribLive: Decision On 2nd Oil & Gas Wastewater Injection Well In Plum Boro, Allegheny County To Come In June, Zoning Board Says
-- Bradford Era: Another Oil & Gas Wastewater Injection Well Proposed In McKean County; Hearing Will Only Be Held By Public Request [PDF of Article]
-- Chesapeake Bay Journal - Karl Blankenship: Report Says Pennsylvania Poised To Be Geothermal Energy Leader
-- Post-Gazette - Ford Turner: Lawmakers Praise Homer City Power Plant/Data Center Project, But It Won’t Address The Potential Electric Grid Generation Gap
-- Wall Street Journal: Homer City Coal Power Plant Was Just Imploded To Make Way For An A.I. Data Center, The Country’s Largest Natural Gas Power Plant [PDF of Article]
-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: Homer City Reinventing Itself As Datacenter Campus With Lots Of Natural Gas Power To Supply It
-- TribLive: Homer City Site: Large Gas-Fired Power Plant To Support Data Center
-- Pittsburgh Business Times: Homer City Coal Power Plant Site To Become A.I. Data Center With Massive Gas-Fired Power Plant
-- Williamsport Sun Editorial: Sen. Yaw’s Bill To Prohibit Bans Of Any Energy Sources Correct
-- Energy Choice Matters: Peoples Natural Gas Rate For Gas To Increase Another 14% April 1
-- Altoona Mirror: Peoples Natural Gas Raises Gas Rate Another 14% April 1
-- Reuters: Oil, Gas, Refined Product Imports Exempt From President’s Tariffs [The Things They Buy Are Not]
-- The Center Square: Critics: Climate Change Lawsuit Against Oil & Gas Companies On Tenuous Legal Grounds [Bucks County Example]
[Posted: April 5, 2025] PA Environment Digest
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