The agenda also includes an update on the federally-funded well plugging program and well plugging procedures as well as recruiting new members of the Board to fill vacancies.
Erosion & Sedimentation
Joe Kelly from DEP will present for discussion a new policy for erosion and sediment control and stormwater management related to oil and gas facilities and infrastructure.
Click Here for a copy of the draft policy.
Wastewater Petition
Kurt Klapkowski, DEP Deputy Secretary for Oil & Gas Management, will lead the discussion of a rulemaking petition submitted for shale gas drilling by the Marcellus Shale Coalition to the Environmental Quality Board.
The EQB is meeting September 9 to vote on whether to accept the petition for study.
The proposed regulation would amend Chapter 78a.58(a) to change the current requirement of allowing production wastewater from development, drilling, stimulation, alteration, operation or plugging of oil or gas wells or mine influenced water to be stored for reuse on the well site where it was generated or at the well site where it will be used.
If the change was adopted, the regulation would allow the driller to set up oil and gas wastewater and mine influenced water processing and storage facilities at any well site taking wastewater from any other well site to be processed and/or stored and then taken to any other well site for reuse.
The other provisions of 25 PaCode Chapter 78a.58 (b through h) would remain the same.
Oil and gas wastewater processing and storage facilities on a well site are exempt from permitting under the state Solid Waste Management Act by a provision in the state Oil and Gas Act.
Click here for a copy of the petition.
Public Comment Period
Members of the public who wish to provide comments are requested to register and provide their written remarks at least 24 hours in advance of the meeting to Board Liaison, Todd Wallace at twallace@pa.gov or by telephone at (717) 783-6395.
Click Here for more information.
Join the Meeting
The meeting will be held in Room 105 Rachel Carson Building from 10:00 a.m. to Noon.
Click Here to join the meeting via Microsoft Teams [Meeting ID: 237 761 034 374 Passcode: LG6hQ2Sq ] or by telephone (267) 332-8737 ID: 645 448 688#
For available handouts and more information, visit the DEP Oil and Gas Technical Advisory Board webpage. Questions should be directed to: Todd Wallace 717-783-6395 or twallace@pa.gov.
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: Left- Shale gas well laterals in Freeport Township, Greene County related to water well Declaration of Disaster Emergency; Top Right-- Diversified Prod LLC well plugging with multiple erosion and sedimentation violations and waste fluid tank not in secondary containment; Chesapeake Appalachia LLC shale gas production line wastewater leak; Bottom Right-- One of 53 Griffin Summit Oil Company abandoned conventional well; Worldwide Oil & Gas Corp failed to cleanup spills at 2 conventional well sites for 20 months.)
PA Oil & Gas Industry Public Notice Dashboards:
-- PA Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - Aug. 30 to Sept. 5 - 2nd Township Declares Disaster Emergency; New Shale Gas Well Casing/Cement Failure; 100 Conventional Well Owners Get Violations For Abandoning Wells [PaEN]
-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - Sept. 6 [PaEN]
-- DEP Posted 55 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In Sept. 6 PA Bulletin [PaEN]
Related Articles This Week:
-- Springhill Township Becomes 2nd Township To Declare Disaster Emergency After Residents Were Impacted By A Gas Related Water Contamination Event In Greene County [PaEN]
-- Petition To Extend Setbacks From Shale Gas Wells May Be Back On The Table At Environmental Quality Board Sept. 9 If Motion Succeeds [PaEN]
-- PA Senate Republicans Introduce Bill To Eliminate Need For Any State Permits, Any Public Review Of Permits Before Construction Of A.I. Data Centers, Related Power Plants [PaEN]
-- DEP Oil & Gas Advisory Board Meets Sept. 11 On New Civil Penalty Procedure; Rulemaking Petition To Process/Store Oil & Gas Wastewater From Anywhere On Every Shale Gas Well Site [PaEN]
-- EPA Invites Comments On Draft Permit Renewal For A Columbia Gas of PA Oil & Gas Wastewater Injection Well In Beaver County; Virtual Hearing Oct. 6 [If Requested] [PaEN]
-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Meets Sept. 24 To Consider Annual Budget, Water Withdrawal Requests, Including 11 For Shale Gas Development, 2 Power Plants [PaEN]
-- DEP, Nonprofits File Consent Decree In Federal Court Requiring Beaver County Plastic Pellet Maker To Pay $2.6 Million In Penalties, Restoration Funds For Repeated Water Pollution Violations [PaEN]
-- Independent Fiscal Office Reports 2nd Quarter Increase In Natural Gas Production, New Wells And 60.8% Increase In Price Of Gas Over Last Year [PaEN]
-- PUC Chairman: Model Tariff For Connecting A.I. Data Centers To Local Electric Grid To Be Published For Comment By End Of September [PaEN]
-- In Case You Missed It -- A.I./Data Center Articles & NewClips From Last Week - September 8 [PaEN]
NewsClips:
-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: Greene County Townships Declare Disaster Emergency Three Years After EQT Frack Job [PDF of Article]
-- PennLive - John Beauge: 8,000 Gallons Of Oil & Gas Wastewater Recovered From Eureka Resources Spill In Williamsport: DEP
-- Williamsport Sun: DEP Files Order Against Eureka Resources Bradford County Oil & Gas Wastewater Treatment Facility To Remove Waste [PDF of Article]
-- Middle Susquehanna RiverKeeper: Five Observations About The Eureka Resources Oil & Gas Wastewater Spill In Williamsport As We Continue To Monitor Things 10 Days After The First Report
-- TribLive: Upper Burrell Twp Sets Land Use Regulations For Oil & Gas Wastewater Injection Wells In Westmoreland
-- TribLive: Eastern Gas Transmission & Storage Eyes New Natural Gas Pipeline In Murrysville, Westmoreland County
-- Delco.Today: Hazard vs. Economy: Delaware River LNG Gas Export Terminal Back In Play [PDF]
-- Tribune-Democrat: Cambria County Transit To Complete Switch To Compressed Natural Gas In Urban Fleet In 2027
-- PennEnvironment, Three Rivers WaterKeeper Settle Plastic Pollution Lawsuit Against Styropek USA In Beaver County
-- Pittsburgh Business Times: State Announces $2.6 Million Proposed Consent Agreement Over Plastic Pollution At Closed Plant
-- Western PA Conservancy: Restoring Little Arnot Run From Severe Impacts Of Oil, Timber Industries In Warren County
-- Utility Dive: Rising Natural Gas Prices Expected To Drive Up Electricity Costs
-- Altoona Mirror: Legislative Study Identifies 382 Potential Mine Water Geothermal Sites In PA [PDF of Article]
-- WITF: PA Lawmakers Look Underground For Geothermal Alternative To Cool A.I. Data Centers
-- Marcellus Shale Coalition: Shale Insight Industry Conference To Be Held Sept. 16-18 In Erie
[Posted: September 3, 2025] PA Environment Digest
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