PA Environment Digest Blog: DEP: Petro Erie Inc. Has 2nd Major Conventional Oil & Gas Well Wastewater Spill In Sugarcreek Boro, Venango County; Previous Spill Contaminated The Village Of Reno’s Water Supply

Saturday, October 25, 2025

DEP: Petro Erie Inc. Has 2nd Major Conventional Oil & Gas Well Wastewater Spill In Sugarcreek Boro, Venango County; Previous Spill Contaminated The Village Of Reno’s Water Supply

On October 2, 2025, the Department of Environmental Protection inspected the Lower Reno 1 conventional oil and gas well wastewater tank battery owned by Petro Erie Inc. in Sugarcreek Borough, Venango County in response to a complaint of a wastewater spill.

National Fuel Gas reported a spill of an estimated 300 gallons of conventional wastewater was discharged onto the right-of-way of a pipeline they were constructing adjacent to the storage tanks.

Photos in DEP’s inspection report and a video of the spill provided by National Fuel Gas show the spill originated at the storage tanks. DEP Oct. 2 inspection report.

Eight days before the spill on September 24, DEP did an inspection of the tank site following up on previous violations it issued. DEP Sept. 24 inspection report.

According to the inspection report “the operator was ordered to get these tanks into compliance and clean up the contaminated material around the tanks. Moody and Associates was contracted to do the sampling required for this site and reported the site remediated.

“This work appeared to have been completed during the site visit corroborating Moody's findings, closing out the previous violations.”

DEP noted, however, “While the previous violations are closed, the [wastewater aboveground storage tanks] were in questionable condition.” DEP Sept. 24 inspection report.

During the inspection on October 2, DEP said the well owner was contacted about setting up a meeting on the spill and cleanup.

Multiple violations were issued. A response requested by October 31. DEP Oct. 2 inspection report.

Major Spill In Same Area

DEP said Petro Erie, Inc. was also responsible for a conventional well wastewater spill on July 20, 2023 that contaminated a spring serving as a water supply for the Venango Water Company serving the Village of Reno in Sugarcreek Borough, Venango County.

Petro Erie, Inc. has made little progress in cleaning up that spill or reimbursing the water company for the significant costs involved in replacing the water supply as required by an August 2023 DEP cleanup order. Read more here.

Petro Erie appealed DEP’s cleanup order to the Environmental Hearing Board in September 2023 saying it lacks the financial ability to comply with DEP’s order and the appeal has been pending ever since.

The Public Utility Commission had to step in to issue an order in August 2023 requiring Aqua Pennsylvania to temporarily operate the Venango Water Company to assure customers would still be supplied with water after the spill. Read more here.

The PUC has a proceeding underway to determine who will own and operate the Venango Water Company and six other related water and wastewater companies after the two principal owners resigned after the spill. Read more here.

The PUC proceeding was put on hold in August while the Administrative Law Judge reviewed the testimony presented during the proceeding. No schedule of future hearings has yet been released. Read more here.

Through motions filed in the EHB appeal, it was learned in March 2025 the state Office of Attorney General is investigating the July 2023 spill and possible criminal wrongdoing. Read more here.

The EHB appeal is on hold until December 31 when a report is due from the parties to the appeal.

On September 2, 2025, DEP inspected the Lower Reno 6 well site that was the location of the July 2023 spill in Sugarcreek Borough, Venango County and found the well was in the process of being plugged. DEP inspection report.

No other inspection reports were posted online on the Lower Reno 6 well site.

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: Oct. 2 spill area + Wastewater tanks; Sept. 24 photo of storage tanks from the other side with pipeline construction in back of the tanks.)

[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:

-- PA Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - Oct. 18 to 24: 14,280 Gallon Shale Gas Wastewater Spill; 2nd Major Spill By Conventional Well Owner; Failure To Address Pipeline Slope Failure For 1,440 Days [PaEN]

-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - October 25 [PaEN]

-- DEP Posted 81 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In October 25 PA Bulletin [PaEN]