PA Environment Digest Blog: Residents Around MarkWest Harmon Creek Natural Gas Cryogenic Processing Plant In Washington County Urge DEP To Deny A New Air Quality Permit Because Of Frequent, Ongoing Black Smoke, Incomplete Combustion Violations At The Plant’s Natural Gas/Chemical Flare

On April 6, the Environmental Integrity Project, Clean Air Council and residents living around the MarkWest Harmon Creek Natural Gas Cryogenic Processing Plant in Smith Township, Washington County submitted comments to DEP urging the agency to deny a new Air Quality Permit for the facility based in-part on ongoing and frequent black smoke, incomplete combustion violations from the plant flare.

Residents documented-- through cameras and visual observation-- 43 black smoke violations at the plant flare between October 26, 2025 to February 28, 2026-- an average of one violation every three days over four months. [List in Appendix A of comments.]

Black smoke indicates incomplete combustion of the natural gas and other chemicals going through the flare for safe destruction and is a violation of the facility’s existing air quality permit.

The comments said, “Despite this ongoing noncompliance, which has been reported to DEP, MarkWest has not self-reported any of these incidents that occurred on more than 40 separate days and we are not aware of any action MarkWest has taken to address the root cause of the ongoing visible emissions.”

“Given this ongoing noncompliance, Mark West has clearly demonstrated that they are “likely to cause air pollution or to violate the act, the Clean Air Act or the regulations thereunder applicable to the source” at Harmon Creek Gas Plant, which is grounds for DEP’s denial of this SOOP application under DEP’s regulations.”

“DEP must not, and may not, reward this noncompliant behavior with an operating permit unless and until it can demonstrate consistent compliance with air pollution laws, regulations, and permits.

“Granting the SOOP without such a demonstration would condone ignoring the law and unjustifiably endanger public health.”

DEP took no action on any visible emission violations since 2021, according to DEP’s MarkWest Harmon Plant webpage.

The comments submitted by residents also identified these and other problems with the draft permit--

-- The emission limits in the draft permit are based on outdated estimates of flare and fugitive emissions and do not include the new pollution sources installed at the plant;

-- The permit fails to include clear monitoring, testing, record keeping and report requirements to assure compliance with emission limits for all sources of air pollution at the plant; and

-- DEP fails to include all the changes made to sources of air pollution at the plant in processing lines 1 and 2 and the new processing line 3.

Click Here for a copy of the comments.

Visit DEP’s MarkWest Harmon Creek Gas Processing Plant webpage for more information.

Explosion/Fire

On December 25, 2022, Energy Transfer’s Revolution Natural Gas Cryogenic Processing Plant, also in Smith Township, Washington County, suffered an explosion and fire that resulted in a nine and a half hour uncontrolled release of ethane and other vapors.

The fire burned for 11 hours, according to reports in the Observer-Reporter newspaper.

There has not been a publicly available report on what caused the explosion or how a similar incident could be prevented in the future.

Click Here for more background.

(Photos: Examples of black smoke violations submitted by Cathy & Christopher Lodge near the facility.)

Resource Link - Revolution Gas Plant Explosion:

-- DEP Ongoing Explosion/Fire Investigation: Energy Transfer Reported An Uncontrolled Release Of Ethane For 9.5 Hours From Its Revolution Natural Gas Processing Plant In Washington County [PaEN]

Resource Links - Harmon Creek Plant:

-- Environmental Integrity Project: DEP Made Changes To Permit For MarkWest Harmon Creek Natural Gas Processing Plant In Washington County To Reduce Air Emissions, Improve Accountability [PaEN]

-- Washington County Resident To DEP: Harmon Creek Natural Gas Plant Expansion Will Result In A Huge Increase In Air Pollution, It Should Be Required To Have A Major Air Quality Permit, It Is Not A ‘Minor’ Source [PaEN]

-- Community Speaks Out Against Expansion Of Harmon Creek Natural Gas Processing Plant In Washington County [PaEN]

-- Moms Clean Air Force To DEP: Families In Washington County Are Already Living In The Middle Of Major Natural Gas Industrial Sites - Do Not Expand The Harmon Creek Natural Gas Processing Plant And Make It Worse [PaEN]

-- Center For Coalfield Justice To DEP: Harmon Natural Gas Processing Plant Should Be Required To Apply For A Full Title V Air Quality Permit As They Originally Proposed In Washington County [PaEN]

-- DEP Sets March 11 Environmental Justice Office Hearing On Air Quality Permit For New Pollution Control Devices At Harmon Creek Natural Gas Processing Plant In Washington County [PaEN]

PA Oil & Gas Industry/Public Notice Dashboards:

-- PA Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - April 4 to 17: Failed To Restore 5 Water Impoundments For 3,197 Days; Software Glitch Leaks 704,000 Gallons Of Fresh Water; 166,729 Gallons Recovered From Wastewater Spill [PaEN]

-- DEP Investigating Possible Software Malfunction That Released An Estimated 704,000 Gallons Of Fresh Water From Coterra Energy Shale Gas Water Impoundment In Springville Twp., Susquehanna County [PaEN]

-- DEP: Frontier Natural Resources Failed To Restore 5 Water Impoundments At 3 Shale Gas Drilling Sites In Clinton County For 3,197 Days [PaEN]

-- TheDerrick.com: Who Will Pay The Water Bill? Aqua Pennsylvania Is 'Evaluating Its Options’ For Recovering Money It Spent Operating The Venango Water Company From Oil & Gas Well Owner After Wastewater Spill [PaEN]

-- Residents Around MarkWest Harmon Creek Natural Gas Cryogenic Processing Plant In Washington County Urge DEP To Deny A New Air Quality Permit Because Of Frequent, Ongoing Black Smoke, Incomplete Combustion Violations At The Plant’s Natural Gas/Chemical Flare [PaEN]

-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - April 18 [PaEN]

-- DEP Issues 2nd Air Quality General Permit For Diesel-Fired Nonroad Engines At Homer City A.I. Data Center Campus In Indiana County

-- DEP published notice in the April 18 PA Bulletin announcing the rescission of the Standards and Guidelines for Identifying, Tracking and Resolving Oil and Gas Violations technical guidance and posting a Standard Operating Procedure with the same name and posted on DEP’s website.

-- DEP published notice in the March 28 PA Bulletin announcing the rescission of a technical guidance document Civil Penalty Assessments in the Oil and Gas Management Program and posting with separate Civil Penalty Assessment Standard Operating Procedures for conventional oil and gas well owners and shale gas well owners that have now been posted on DEP’s website.

-- DEP Posted 76 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In April 18 PA Bulletin [PaEN]

-- DEP Invites Comments On Renewal Of Wastewater Permit For Restart Of Constellation Energy’s Three Mile Island Nuclear Data Center Power Plant In Dauphin County [PaEN]

-- DEP Invites Comments On Water Encroachment Permit For Mid-Atlantic Interstate Transmission, LLC Project To Rebuild Power Lines To Three Mile Island Nuclear Data Center Power Plant In Dauphin County [PaEN]

-- DEP Accepting Comments On Stormwater Permit For SNA North LLC/QTS A.I. Data Center Project In Salem Twp., Luzerne County [PaEN]

-- DEP published notice in the April 18 PA Bulletin inviting comments on an Individual Stormwater permit covering 25.87 acres of the Keystone Appalachian Transmission Company (FirstEnergy) Stoney Springs Junction 138kV transmission line project located in Salem Twp., Westmoreland County. (PA Bulletin, page 2143)

Wednesday, April 15, 2026

Residents Around MarkWest Harmon Creek Natural Gas Cryogenic Processing Plant In Washington County Urge DEP To Deny A New Air Quality Permit Because Of Frequent, Ongoing Black Smoke, Incomplete Combustion Violations At The Plant’s Natural Gas/Chemical Flare

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