PA Environment Digest Blog: Environmental Quality Board Adjourns Without Discussing Or Acting On Any Of 3 Pending Oil & Gas Rulemaking Petitions

On September 9, the Environmental Quality Board adjourned its meeting without discussing or taking any action on any of the three oil and gas industry-related rulemaking petitions pending before the Board, including a petition to increase setbacks from shale gas wells.

The Board did take action to approve five other rulemaking packages during its hour-long meeting--

-- Final Corrections to Additional RACT (Air Quality) Requirements for Major Sources of NOx and VOCs for 2015 Ozone Standard (RACT 3) - Summary - Vote: 19 to 0

-- Final-Omitted US Nuclear Regulatory Commission Consistency Rule Incorporation By Reference (Radiation Protection) - Summary - Vote: 19 to 0

-- Final Triennial Review of Water Quality Standards Regulation - Summary - Vote: 15 to 4

-- Proposed Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Fee Increases - Summary - Vote: 17 to 2

-- Proposed Safe Drinking Water Revised Consumer Confidence Report Rule - Summary - Vote: 19 to 0

And heard a presentation on a Statement of Policy: Water Quality Toxics Management Strategy (Fee Cyanide) - Notice

2 Oil & Gas Petitions

After considering these six other EQB agenda items, Jacob Finkel, Governor’s Office of Planning and Policy, and Rep. Greg Vitali (D-Delaware), Majority Chair of the House Environment and Natural Resource Protection Committee, made a motion to delay discussion of the two oil and gas-related rulemaking petitions on the agenda until the next EQB meeting.

The reason given by Finkel was the current meeting’s full agenda.

The petitions were on the Board agenda to discuss whether to formally accept the petitions for further study by DEP.

The motion to delay was approved by a vote of 13 to 6 and the Board meeting was then abruptly adjourned.

The two petitions included--

-- Conventional Oil & Gas Industry Rulemaking Petition On Setting Attainable Bottom Well Depth During Well Plugging. DEP determined the petition met criteria to be considered for study.

-- Shale Gas Industry Rulemaking Petition On Onsite Processing Of Production Wastewater. DEP determined the petition met criteria to be considered for study.

DEP had been scheduled to discuss this second petition on September 11 at a meeting of the agency’s Oil and Gas Technical Advisory Board, but because the EQB took no action DEP only gave a status report. Read more here.

This second petition 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.

Increasing Shale Gas Well Setbacks Petition

Last week, Rep. Vitali announced his intention to make a motion to bring another rulemaking petition to increase setbacks from shale gas wells up for discussion at this Board meeting. Read more here.

The Board also has to make a decision on whether to accept this petition for further study by DEP.

Discussion of the petition, submitted by the Clean Air Council and Environmental Integrity Project on October 22, 2024, was Tabled at the April EQB meeting because the Board did not have enough time to consider information submitted at the last minute by the shale gas industry.

After Tuesday’s EQB meeting, Rep. Vitali said, “I was asked not to make the motion to remove the petition regarding setbacks from the table today, because there have been discussions with the petitioner and the Administration. And there was an agreement that today would not be the best time to consider the petition.”

Rep. Vitali also said, “I was supportive of the motion to postpone the two petitions related to oil and gas [already on the agenda], because I think it's appropriate that the setback petition, which also relates to oil and gas, be considered at the same time as these two petitions.”

DEP Secretary Jessica Shirley said at Tuesday’s meeting there are enough agenda items for another EQB meeting, including consideration of three rulemaking petitions, but did not say when that meeting would be held.

The next scheduled meeting of the EQB is October 14.

Background - Setbacks Petition

The 358-page rulemaking petition asked to increase setback distances from shale gas wells from a minimum now of 500 feet to at least 3,281 feet. Read more here.

Specifically, the petition proposes--

-- 3,281 feet from any building;

-- 3,281 feet from any drinking water well;

-- 5,280 feet from any building serving vulnerable populations (e.g., schools, daycare centers, hospitals); and

-- 750 feet from any surface water of the Commonwealth.

In November, 2024, DEP announced it had determined the petition meets the initial criteria to be considered by the Board for study, including that the Board has the statutory authority to adopt a regulation setting more protective setbacks from shale gas wells.

In March, 2025, DEP said it would recommend the Board accept the petition for study, but at the same time said, “the recommendation does not infer a rulemaking ultimately will be developed.” Read more here.

The gaps in the consideration of the petition were caused by the lack of Environmental Quality Board meetings.

For available handouts and more information, visit the Environmental Quality Board webpage. Questions for the EQB should be directed to Laura Griffin, laurgriffi@pa.gov or (717) 772-3277.

(Photos: top- Range Resources Augustine Drill Pad in Cecil Township; Augustine Drill Pad showing scale of operation; bottom- Map of Shale gas wells (red dots), conventional oil and gas wells (blue/green dots) in Cecil Township (DEP Oil & Gas Program); 523 feet from nearest house; Well pad gas flare from bedroom window near Augustine well pad (WTAE). Other photos Courtesy of The Energy Age Blog.)

Resource Links - Setbacks:

-- 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]

-- 7 Years Ago, People From Over 70 Households Gave First-Hand Accounts Of How The PA Shale Gas Industry Impacted Their Health, Lives And Communities To A State Grand Jury Describing The ‘Sometimes Harsh Reality’ Of These Operations [PaEN]

-- State Dept. Of Health Apologizes For Not Listening To Communities Suffering Health Impacts From Shale Gas Development; New Health Study Results ‘Just The Tip Of The Iceberg’ [August 2023]

-- University Of Pittsburgh School Of Public Health Studies Find Shale Gas Wells Can Make Asthma Worse; Children Have An Increased Chance Of Developing Lymphoma Cancer; Slightly Lower Birth Weights [August 2023]

-- State Dept. Of Health Invites Citizens To File Environmental Health Complaints Related To Natural Gas Development; Health Will Also Review Environmental Test Results [September 2023]

-- State Dept. Of Health Pushing For Changes To Reduce Adverse Health Impacts From Natural Gas Development [November 2023]

-- Part I - Environmental Impacts: State Dept. Of Health, Penn State Medical Webinars On Caring For Persons Living & Working In Communities With Oil & Natural Gas Extraction [January 2025]

-- Part II - Health Impacts: State Dept. Of Health, Penn State Medical Webinars On Caring For Persons Living & Working In Communities With Oil & Natural Gas Extraction [March 2025]

-- New State Health Plan Identifies Health Issues Related To Natural Resource Extraction, Climate Change In Top 5 Threats To Health Outcomes [April 2023]

-- 2025 PA Shale Gas & Public Health Conference Attended By Nearly 480 People Featured Health Experts, Scientists, Advocacy Groups On Health, Environmental Impacts Of Shale Gas Development [February 2025]