Follow these links to spreadsheets showing the violations and inspections occurring between February 28 to March 6--
Click Here for violations issued. Click Here for inspection entries.
[Note: There were many more violations issued by DEP than PA Environment Digest can highlight here.]
Enforcement Actions Taken Last Week
So far this year, DEP took these actions as of February 27--
-- NOVs Issued In Last Week: 23 conventional, 4 unconventional
-- Year To Date - NOVs Issued: 588 conventional and 176 unconventional
-- Enforcements 2025: 50 conventional and 36 unconventional (orders, agreements)
-- Inspections Last Week: 245 conventional and 371 unconventional
-- Year To Date - Inspections: 2,690 conventional and 4,247 unconventional
3 Abandoned Conventional Well
Butler County - John E. Knoll [1,067 Days]
March 5, 2026 inspection of the J. Serszynski 6 conventional oil and gas well in Fairview Township found the well continued to be abandoned and not plugged. The owner also failed to submit production, waste generation and well integrity reports since the well was registered in 1995. Original violations issued April 3, 2023. Violations continued. Response requested by March 20. DEP inspection report. Knoll holds 6 permits.
Greene County - HR McClure
February 26, 2026 inspection of the Gordon Heirs 1 and Gordon Williams 2 conventional wells in Franklin Township found the wells continue to be abandoned and not plugged (original violation Jan. 15, 2026). The owner also failed to submit production, waste generation and well integrity reports (original violation Aug. 27, 2024). No change in the wells since January inspections. Response requested from owner by March 17. McClure holds 19 permits.
100 Abandoned Conventional Well Violations In 2026
So far in 2026, DEP issued or continued 100 notices of violation for conventional oil and gas well abandonment.
1 Shale Gas Abandoned Well Violation
Bradford County - Blackhill Energy LLC
February 9, 2026 routine inspection of the Rodney Wood 1 shale gas well in Athens Borough found the well abandoned and not plugged as a result of inactive status expiring on Nov. 12, 2025. Violations issued. Response requested by March 25. DEP inspection report. Blackhill holds 102 permits.
5 Abandoned Shale Gas Well Violations In 2026
So far in 2026, DEP issued or continued 5 notices of violation for shale gas well abandonment.
Injection Well Seismic Event
Allegheny County - Penneco Environmental Solutions LLC
March 4, 2026 inspection of the Penneco Sedat 3A oil and gas wastewater injection well in Plum Borough was conducted as a result of a seismic event recorded at the Sedat 3A monitoring station on Feb. 7, 2026 at 5:26 a.m.
The epicenter of the event was near Murrysville, Westmoreland County approximately six miles from the injection well.
Penneco reported normal operations at the injection well on the day of the seismic event.
At the time of the seismic event the injection rate was near 1035 psi before, during and after the event. Penneco stopped injection on the well at about 10:30 a.m. the day of the event.
DEP’s inspector for Westmoreland County will follow-up with an investigation of the event.
No requests made by the injection well owner. DEP inspection report. Penneco holds 6 permits.
Conventional Well Spills/Releases
Allegheny County - Raymond D. Langer [1,141 Days]
February 25-26, 2026 follow-up inspection of the Choeller 1, Lorish 1 and J. Riddle 2 conventional oil and gas wells in Robinson Township found no progress had been made in cleaning up the site and documents submitted related to remediation were not adequate. The owner has not compliance with a March 24, 2025 Compliance Order to clean up spills on the site. Original violations issued Jan. 11, 2023. Violation for failing to comply with DEP order continued. No response requested. Raymond D. Langer holds 22 permits. Langer, Raymond D. holds one permit (Lorish 1).
Mercer County - OWS Acquisition Co LLC
March 5, 2026 inspection of the Rose of Sharon Unit 1 conventional oil well in Hermitage City in response to a Fire Department notification of a spill. The inspection found a storage tank had overflowed and a majority of the production wastewater was contained within diking around the tank, however, evidence of the release could be seen as far as 200 feet away from the tank. The did not appear to flow into a nearby creek. Steps to contain the release and excavate contaminated soil were underway during the inspection. The Shenango Valley water intake was about one mile downstream of the spill and Aqua Pennsylvania was notified as a precaution. Violations issued. Response requested by March 20. DEP inspection report. OWS acquisition holds 1,072 permits.
Washington County - Frank L. Washabaugh Oil [255 Days]
February 26, 2026 inspection of the WM Johnson 1 conventional well in Cross Creek Township found no additional steps had been taken to cleanup a release on the site as a result of a compliance order issued by DEP on June 16, 2025. Violations were issued on June 25, 2025 and January 6, 2026 for failing to comply with that order. Violations continued. No response requested from well owner. DEP inspection report. DEP compliance evaluation. Washabaugh Oil holds 5 permits.
Shale Gas Erosion/Sedimentation Violations
Washington County - Range Resources Appalachia LLC
March 3, 2026 routine inspection of the John Hunter shale gas well pad in Donegal Township found multiple and significant erosion and sedimentation violations along access road to the pad. Violations issued. Response requested by March 23. DEP inspection report.
Shale Gas Well Transfer Violation
Washington County - Big Dog Energy LLC
March 3, 2026 administrative review of the transfer of 17 wells on the Cowden shale gas well pad in Hopewell Township from Diversified Prod LLC found the new owner did not notify DEP of the transfer. Inspection report not online.
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.
[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 - Feb. 28 to March 6 - Abandoned Conventional Wells Hit 100; Investigating Seismic Event Near Wastewater Injection Well; Well Transfer Violations [PaEN]
-- DEP Investigating Seismic Event Near Penneco Environmental Oil & Gas Wastewater Injection Well In Plum Boro, Allegheny County [PaEN]
-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - March 7 [PaEN]
-- DEP Invites Comments On Air Quality Permit For MarkWest Harmon Creek Natural Gas Processing Plant In Washington County [PaEN]
-- DEP Accepting Comments On Chapter 105 Permit For 8 Mile, 24-Inch EQT ARO LLC Water Pipeline To Support Shale Gas Development In State Forest Land In Lycoming County [PaEN]
-- DEP Invites Comments On Chapter 105 Permit For A Double 16-Inch Expand Operating LLC Water Pipelines To Support Shale Gas Development In Standing Stone Twp., Bradford County [PaEN]
-- DEP Accepting Comments On Chapter 105 Permit For Double 16-Inch Expand Operating LLC Water Pipelines To Support Shale Gas Development In Forkston, North Branch & Windham Twps., Wyoming County [PaEN]
-- DEP Posted 74 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In March 7 PA Bulletin [PaEN]
Related Articles This Week:
-- Environmental Quality Board Meets March 10 On Final Stream Redesignations Package; Report Due On DEP Review Of The Petition To Increase Setbacks From Shale Gas Wells, 4 Other Petitions [PaEN]
-- PA Shale Gas & Public Health Conference: Dr. Gary Allison - 75% Of Shale Gas Chemical Disclosure Listings Hide What’s In 200 Million Pounds Of Materials Used In PA Fracking; A Colorado Law Would Fix That [PaEN]
-- Protect PT To Hold Workshops In Plum Boro March 12, Monessen March 19 On How To Protect Your Community From Environmental Threats Caused By Shale Gas Development [PaEN]
-- DCNR House Budget Hearing: House Republicans Propose More Shale Drilling In State Forest Land, Under State Parks; Gas Drilling Has Caused The Loss Of 30,000 Acres Of Core State Forest Land So Far [PaEN]
-- PUC Issues Cybersecurity Advisory To Electric, Natural Gas Other Utilities Amid Growing Global Tensions [PaEN]
-- Senate PUC Budget Hearing: PUC Chair Says PJM Market Auction Not Designed For Data Center Demands; PA Needs Diversify Fuels Used To Generate Electricity; Bring Your Own Power Critical [PaEN]
-- Guest Essay: Pennsylvania Needs To Act Now To Prevent A New $700 Million Increase In Electric Costs For Ratepayers - By Steve DeFrank, Chairman, Public Utility Commission [PaEN]
-- Sen. Yaw Urges FERC To Allow PJM To Keep Charging Pennsylvania Ratepayers Record High Capacity Auction Prices For Power, But Charge Other States Even More [PaEN]
-- House Committee Reports Out Bills To Require Data Centers To Disclose Energy, Water Use, Direct DCED To Develop Model Data Center Ordinance [PaEN]
-- New Comprehensive Report Lays Out Case For 3-Year A.I. Data Center Moratorium To Be Introduced In Pennsylvania [PaEN]
-- Penn State Extension Hosts April 7 Webinar On Data Centers - State And Local Regulation [PaEN]
-- Energy Efficiency Alliance: March 12 Webinar - How Virtual Power Plants Strengthen Our Grid, Protect Ratepayers [PaEN]
NewsClips:
-- WESA/The Allegheny Front - Reid Frazier: MarkWest Spills Over 1 Million Gallons Of Drilling Fluid Into Abandoned Coal Mine During Pipeline Construction In Washington County
-- Bradford Era: No Injuries In Overnight Fire At American Refining Group Refinery In Bradford, McKean County
-- The Allegheny Front: Ohio - Water Districts, Municipalities Join Call For Oil & Gas Wastewater Injection Well Moratorium
-- The Derrick: War In Iran To Cause Massive Disruption In Oil Industry, According To Oil City Native & Middle East Expert Andrew Tabler [PDF of Article]
-- AP: Oil And Gas Prices Rapidly Rise As President’s War On Iran Shows No Signs Of Letting Up
-- War Profits: Windfall Profits Tax On The Oil & Gas Industry? Household Rebates To Offset Spiking Energy Costs
-- Inside Climate News - Kiley Bense: How Will President’s War On Iran Affect Your Utility Bills?
-- Williamsport Sun: Oil, Gasoline Prices Rise Sharply Throughout The Region
-- Warren Times: Gasoline Prices Skyrocket After Iran Air Strikes
-- Financial Times: Coal Prices Jump As Utilities Seek Alternative To Spiking Natural Gas Prices Due US President’s War With Iran
-- Utility Dive: US Warns Energy Companies To Increase Security In Response To Potential Threats From Iran; Utilities Lack Tools To Guard Grid From Drone Attacks
-- Reuters: There Is Little LNG Producers Can Do To Immediately Replace Lost Qatari Cargoes
-- Pittsburgh Business Times: How PA Natural Gas Producers May Help Ease The Impact Of President’s War On Iran On LNG Exports; European Gas Prices Jump 40% [War Is Good For The Oil/Gas Industry]
-- TribLive/AP: Energy Prices Surge As Tanker Disruptions And Facility Shutdowns Rattle Global Supply [US Natural Gas Prices Linked To World Markets Thanks To LNG]
-- Bloomberg: European Natural Gas Prices Hit 3-Year High As Qatar LNG Halt Rocks Markets [US Natural Gas Prices Linked To World Markets Thanks To LNG]
-- The Economist: The Nightmare Iran Energy Scenario Is Becoming Reality [PDF of Article]
-- Bloomberg: President’s War On Iran Has Traders Staring Down An Energy Crisis [War-Caused Price Spikes Good For Oil & Gas Companies, Bad For Consumers]
-- Financial Times: US Shale Drillers Resist Quick Ride To Rescue For Iran War Oil Disruption [PDF of Article]
[Posted: March 7, 2026 ] PA Environment Digest
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