The groups and individuals said a hearing should be held because--
-- Major Facility: This power plant is a major facility covered by a Title V Air Quality Permit;
-- Emissions Impact Environmental Justice Areas: The power plant’s emissions heavily impact environmental justice areas [with a 99.5 Penn EnviroScreen pollution burden rating]:
-- Significant Public Interest: There is significant public interest in this facility and this permit. “The community has been meeting with organizers from EIP, EHP, and MWA regularly for many months expressing concerns about this permit and wanting to prepare for a public hearing.
“The DEP is well aware of this, as DEP’s [staff] was present on a virtual meeting that included more than 30 community members regarding the Tenaska TVOP, held at the Turkeytown VFD community meeting room on April 30, 2025.”
A hearing in the municipality hosting the facility was specifically requested.
“Residents who live near the Tenaska Westmoreland facility have been dealing with Tenaska’s operation and breathing its emissions since it was first permitted with a Plan Approval in April 2015, but this is the very first operating permit proposed for this plant.
“This is the first time impacted residents have been able to formally comment on an operating permit for this major emitter of pollutants despite it being built and allowed to “temporarily operate” for a decade.
“A public hearing allowing DEP to hear from the community about improvements needed for this permit is important, especially given that some people are more comfortable providing their comments verbally than in writing.
“Failing to grant a public hearing to this community would be devastating to concerned community members and would be, frankly, unkind.”
“DEP should use its discretion to grant a public hearing because the Facility is a major source polluter of several pollutants and a significant emitter of other pollutants and the people most at risk of being harmed by exposure to these pollutants deserve to have their voices heard by DEP as it is making permitting decisions.“
-- Do Not Delay The Permitting Process: DEP should grant the request for a hearing now rather than wait until the end of the comment period further delaying the permit process.
“Via a telephone conversation on October 6, 2025, DEP’s [staff] informed EIP’s Lisa Graves Marcucci [of EIP] that DEP intends to wait until the end of the public comment period to decide whether to grant this public hearing request and that the determining factor for holding a public hearing would be if any technical issues were raised in written comments that would substantively change the permit.
“This is detrimental to the permitting process and a waste of DEP’s resources for several reasons.
“First, basing the decision to hold a public hearing only on technical comments that would substantively change the permit effectively removes the public from the participation process.
“And this approach, if taken, signals to the public that their voices do not matter and that it is not worth the DEP’s time to listen to concerns from folks who have waited nine years to be heard.
“Also, if DEP were to grant the request for a public hearing, waiting until the end of the comment period to decide on whether to hold a hearing would cause significant delay in the permitting process because then DEP would have to first notice the public hearing in the Pennsylvania Bulletin and then schedule the hearing for at least 30 days later to comply with Pennsylvania rules.
“And, if DEP were to deny the request, the citizens who had hoped and planned for a public hearing would be denied that opportunity.
“As such, Requesters respectfully ask that DEP act with urgency and respond to this request by the end of this work week, or sooner if possible.”
Click Here for a copy of the letter.
[Editor’s Note: On the same day the Tenaska Title V permit was published in the PA Bulletin for comment, DEP published a notice saying it would hold a hearing and comment period on the renewal of the Title V Air Quality Permit for the Brunner Island coal/natural gas power plant in York County. (PA Bulletin, page 6997)]
PA Oil & Gas Industry Public Notice Dashboards:
-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - October 11 [PaEN]
-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - October 18 [PaEN]
-- DEP Posted 85 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In October 11 PA Bulletin [PaEN]
-- DEP Posted 64 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In October 18 PA Bulletin [PaEN]
Related Articles This Week:
-- Rep. Vitali Introduces Legislation To Increase Setbacks From Unconventional Shale Gas Wells From 500 Feet To 2,500 Feet From Homes, 5,000 Feet From Schools, Hospitals [PaEN]
-- Inquirer Editorial: The Language Of ‘Opportunity’ Surrounding Shale Gas Fracking And A.I. Data Centers Sounds Distressingly Familiar As PA Joins Rush To Latest Promised Economic Boom [PaEN]
-- In Case You Missed It: A.I./Data Center Articles - NewClips From Last Week - October 20 [PaEN]
-- DEP Invites Comments On Sabre Energy Chapter 105 Permit For Proposed Shale Gas Water Withdrawal On Exceptional Value Muncy Creek In Penn Twp., Lycoming County [PaEN]
-- DEP Proposes To Deny Eureka Resources Water Quality Permit Renewal For Standing Stone Oil & Gas Wastewater Treatment Facility In Bradford County [PaEN]
-- DEP Issues Approvals For Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company Northeast Supply Enhancement Quarryville Pipeline Loop, Compressor Station In Chester, Lancaster Counties [PaEN]
-- Inside Climate News: New Jersey Officials Consider New Permit Requests For Transcontinental Northeastern Supply Enhancement Pipeline
-- DEP published notice in the October 11 PA Bulletin announcing an opportunity to bid on plugging 44 abandoned conventional oil and gas wells in the Allegheny National Forest in Highland Township, Elk County at taxpayer expense. Mandatory pre-bid meeting October 22 and 23. Click Here for bid document.
-- DEP Invites Comments On Homer City Generation Chapter 105 Permit Covering Permanent Loss Of 441 Feet Of Stream To Develop Part Of A.I. Data Center Campus In Indiana County [PaEN]
-- Delaware RiverKeeper Network Files Lawsuit Challenging DRBC Gibbstown LNG Gas Export Facility Dock Permit [PaEN]
-- Environmental Groups, Citizens Request DEP To Hold Public Hearing On The First Title V Air Quality Permit For Tenaska Natural Gas Power Plant In Westmoreland County [PaEN]
-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Sets Oct. 29 Hearing On Proposed 2026 Program Fees And 15 Water Withdrawals, Including 3 For Shale Gas Development [PaEN]
-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Approves Water Withdrawal Requests For 11 Shale Gas Development Operations, 2 Power Plants [PaEN]
-- State Fire Commissioner Makes $250,000 Available To Help Fire, Rescue And EMS First Responders Prepare For Gas Well Fires, Explosions
-- PUC Approves 6.6% Philadelphia Gas Works Rate Increase, Keeps Weather Normalization Adjustment; PGW Required To Develop A 'Pathway' For Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions [PaEN]
NewsClips:
-- Inside Climate News - Kiley Bense: Scientists Find Evidence PA Townships’ Water Contaminated By Shale Gas Frack-Out [Townships Declare Disaster Emergency]
-- PennLive Letter: Some PA Lawmakers Are Trying To Silence Local Voices On Shale Gas Development - By Dr. Barbara Brandom, Concerned Health Professionals Of PA
-- The Allegheny Front: Shale Gas Drilling Waste Again Poses Threat To Monongahela River [Westmoreland Landfill]
-- Tribune-Democrat: New US Policy Pulls Back From Renewable Energy Just As Demand Swells [Part I] [PDF of Article]
-- Warren Times Observer Guest Essay: Natural Gas, A.I. Data Centers And The Future Of Pennsylvania’s Economy - By Kurt Knaus, PA Energy Infrastructure Alliance [PDF of Article]
-- PennLive Letter: Gov. Shapiro’s Natural Gas Claims For A.I. Data Centers Don’t Hold Water - By Karen Feridun, Better Path Coalition
-- Inside Climate News: New Jersey Officials Consider New Permit Requests For Transcontinental Northeastern Supply Enhancement Pipeline
-- The Derrick: New Energy Demands From A.I. Data Centers Takes Center Stage At Drake Energy Dialogues [PDF of Article]
-- Warren Times: Shale Gas Driller PA General Energy Makes $600 Donation To Support Warren Student ‘Containment Zone’ Haunted House Fundraiser [PDF of Article]
-- WESA - Rachel McDevitt: Carnegie Mellon Research Behind New Global Map Of Power Plant, Refinery, Other Air Pollution
-- Ohio River Valley Institute: New Report On State Implementation On Federally-Funded Methane Emissions Reduction Conventional Oil & Gas Well Plugging Program
-- WV Governor Morrisey: West Virginia, Diversified Energy Launch First-Of-Its-Kind Conventional Well Plugging Fund
-- Wall Street Journal: West Virginia To Unveil Privately Funded Oil & Gas Well Plugging Fund To Retire 20,000 Conventional Wells [Diversified Energy] [PDF of Article]
-- AAA Gasoline Prices: National- $3.04 Ohio- $2.82 PA- $3.21 [10.18.25]
-- AAA Gasoline Prices: National - $3.08 Ohio- $2.77 PA- $3.26 [10.11.25]
-- Baker Hughes: PA Natural Gas Drilling Rigs - 17 - Same For 3 Weeks [10.18.25]
-- Baker Hughes: PA Natural Gas Drilling Rigs - 17 - Same As Last Week [10.11.25]
-- US EIA Forecasts 36.6% Increase In Natural Gas Prices By January 2026
-- US EIA: Winter Fuels Outlook: Electricity Costs In Mid-Atlantic Expected To Increase 6% Driven By Increases In Natural Gas Costs, Rapid Demand Growth [A.I. Data Centers]
-- WJAC: Natural Gas Leak Prompts Lengthy Repair, Evacuations In Downtown Ebensburg
-- Post-Gazette: White Powder Found In Envelope At Peoples Natural Gas Was Flour, Employees Briefly Sheltered In Place
-- Beaver Times: Report Says Shell Petrochemical Plant Falling Short On Promises
-- Financial Times: Energy Companies To Spend $50 Billion On 8,800 Miles Of New Pipelines In US To Fulfill A.I. Data Center, LNG Gas Export Demands
-- Bloomberg: JP Morgan: US Can’t Generate The Power It Needs Without Wind, Solar
-- Bloomberg: IEA Raises Its Estimate For Record Oil, Natural Gas Liquids Oversupply In 2026
[Posted: October 9, 2025] PA Environment Digest
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