Thursday NewsClips

Corbett Wants To Get Rid Of Keystone Fund
Marcellus Gas May Bring Big $$$ To Tioga County
Marcellus Shale Driller Offers Water To Franklin Home
Frack Water Withdrawals To Displace 32 Households In Lycoming
Lawsuit Planned On Driller Oversight In Washington
PA Enviro Groups Issue Report Cards To Drilling Law Vote
Western PA Natural Gas Customers Set For Relief
Conference Predicts Greater Reach For CNG Vehicles, Utica Shale
Upper Allen Twp. OKs Bonds For Chesapeake Bay Sewer Upgrades
Western PA Homes Cut Off By Sudden Release Of Mine Water
Lower Swatara Twp OKs Stricter Floodplain Regulations
DEP Fines Hawbaker For Air Quality Violations In Bradford County
NRC Says Despite Lapses, Nuke Plant Is Safe
Click Here for PA Capitol Digest NewsClips

DEP Invites Students, Teachers To Peregrine Falcon Workshop April 3

The Department of Environmental Protection invites teachers, non-formal educators, homeschooled students, youth groups and scout leaders to attend a Peregrine Falcon Educators’ Workshop, “WILD in the City,” on April 3 in Harrisburg.

            The workshop is sponsored by DEP and the Game Commission in cooperation with ZOOAMERICA North American Wildlife Park. It will be held in the Rachel Carson State Office Building auditorium from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

            Since 1997, countless Peregrine falcons have made their home on a ledge off the 15th floor of the Rachel Carson State Office Building. Peregrine falcons, which are an endangered species in Pennsylvania, were extremely rare in the state for many years. 

            Through reintroduction programs, they have adapted to life in urban environments like Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Williamsport.

            Each year, DEP and the Game Commission track the birds’ activities and share educational information through, among other things, the popular online Falcon Cam. The Rachel Carson nest site has been active and reproducing young Peregrine falcons for the past 12 years.

            Workshop participants will explore the successes of Peregrine falcon reintroduction in Pennsylvania, examine falcon specifics, learn about endangered species and observe falcons in Harrisburg. 

            Several Peregrine falcon experts will speak to the group, including Dan Brauning, Chief of PGC’s Wildlife Diversity program; ZOOAMERICA education coordinator Elaine Gruin; DEP environmental educators Jack Farster and Ann Devine; and Project WILD coordinator Theresa Alberici.

            To register for the free workshop, call DEP’s Environmental Education and Information Center at 717-772-1644 or send email to: adevine@pa.gov by March 27. Space is limited, so registrations will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. 

            Those who have not attended the workshop in the past will be given first consideration, while others will be placed on a waiting list. Participating teachers are eligible for 5.0 Act 48 credit hours. Lunch and refreshments will be provided.

            For more information about this and other environmental education opportunities through DEP, visit DEP's PA Falcon Cam webpage.

Wednesday NewsClips

So, Is Dmock's Water Really Safe To Drink?
Webinars Offer Lessons On New Drilling Law
PPG, Ford City Sued Over Environmental Issues
Environmentalists Re-File Suit Against PPG Over Ford City Dump
Air Quality Improves Around Allegheny County Coke Works
Clean Air Efforts Show Results At Clairton Coke
User Fees Or Tolls On Barge Operators Uphill Battle
Mine Subsidence In Blakely Doubles In Size, Gets Filled
Op-Ed: Fukushima Japan, A Year Later
Column: Hawk Mountain Magic
Academy Of Natural Sciences Celebrating Its Bicentennial
Click Here for PA Capitol Digest NewsClips

DEP To Host 4 Online Sessions On New Marcellus Shale Law In March, April

The Department of Environmental Protection will host online information sessions on implementing Act 13, which Gov. Tom Corbett signed into law in February to further protect the environment and place more stringent regulations on the natural gas drilling industry.

            DEP will offer four one-hour sessions, starting with a general overview of Act 13 on March 27; details on permitting and notifications on April 3; information about environmental protection and enhancement on April 10; and a session on inspections and enforcement on April 17.

            “Act 13 reaffirms our strong commitment to safe, responsible, environmentally sensitive and transparent natural gas development here in Pennsylvania,” DEP Secretary Mike Krancer said. “Our intent with these sessions is to explain the law and answer whatever questions people may have.”

            Act 13’s environmental provisions for unconventional gas operations, which take effect April 16, include increased setbacks from buildings and waterways; limited development in floodplains; and increased time and distance provisions in which gas drillers are presumed liable for water contamination until evidence proves otherwise, among other things.

            Operators must also register their hydraulic fracturing fluid ingredients with FracFocus.org, a website created by the Ground Water Protection Council and Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission to make such information accessible to the public.

            The sessions, which will begin at 1 p.m., will be presented live through Cisco WebEx software. There is a maximum of 500 attendees to each session due to technological limitations. DEP will post recordings of the presentations on its website.

            For more information, visit DEP's Act 13 webpage.

Casey To EPA: As Gas Prices Spike, Consider Pittsburgh Summer Gasoline Waiver

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) Friday called on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to consider granting a temporary waiver for Pennsylvania for summer gasoline blend requirements, which would help alleviate supply constraints and combat skyrocketing prices at the pump.

            Today on the same issue, Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Michael Krancer  sent a letter to EPA Region III Administrator Shawn M. Garvin saying DEP is "closely following the low RVP gasoline situation and we are in the process of evaluating alternative supply options for this summer in light of the three refinery closures in southeastern Pennsylvania."

            “In dealing with rising gas prices, the Pittsburgh region faces the additional challenge of a requirement to use a special kind of gasoline in the summer months,” Sen. Casey said. “During this difficult economic time and because of potential supply shortages that could further increase prices, the EPA should consider a waiver that will give consumers in southwest Pennsylvania a break at the pump this summer.” 

            Standing at a Citgo station, Sen. Casey made the case that the EPA should consider granting  a waiver that would temporarily release the seven-county Pittsburgh region from the requirement to use a special gasoline blend during the summer months, if the Commonwealth requests it. 

            Supplies of the blend are limited and shortages could be exacerbated by decreased refining capacity, Sen. Casey wrote in a letter to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson. These supply shortages could further increase the price at the pump and burden consumers at a time when the economy needs a sustained boost.

            While there is no quick fix to the issue of rising gas prices, Sen. Casey has laid out a series of common-sense steps to combat the problem, including:

-- Pushing legislation to give the U.S. tools to crack down on collusive practices of oil producing countries;

-- Urging the Administration to quickly enact strong rules to eliminate excessive oil speculation, which jacks up the price of gasoline; and

-- Boosting Pennsylvania’s natural gas industry to support energy independence and encourage the use of natural gas as an alternative fuel, reducing demand for gasoline.

            A copy of the letter Casey wrote is available online.

            DEP Letter To EPA

            In today's letter to EPA, DEP Secretary Krancer expressed the hope EPA "will exercise appropriate discretion and latitude with respect to any requests which may come from Gov Corbett this summer for a waiver of the low RVP gasoline requirement..." for the seven county Western Pennsylvania region that includes Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Washington and Westmoreland counties.

            Secretary Krancer pointed out a recent report by the Federal Energy Information Administration outlined the potential for gasoline supply shortages and significant price increases as a result of the closing of three Pennsylvania refineries which together produce as much as one-third of the low RVP gasoline the Pittsburgh area needs to comply with federal ozone air pollution standards.

            A separate earlier report issued in January by the PA Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association came to similar conclusions: the closure of the refineries would result in much higher prices for gasoline in Pittsburgh if not shortages of fuel complying with the RVP standards.

            In his letter, Secretary Krancer raised the potential of substituting summer reformulated gasoline (RFG) as a replacement for low RVP gasoline in Pittsburgh.  RFG is required by federal law in the Philadelphia area and other major urban areas along the east coast.

            That option would still mean the seven-county Pittsburgh Region would be an island with a unique gasoline blend requirement not shared with any other area within hundreds of miles.
            Gasoline prices in recent weeks in Pittsburgh have already been as much as 38 cents a gallon higher than the same gasoline right across the border in Ohio.

            Legislative Action

            In early March, the state Senate passed Senate Bill 1386 sponsored by Sen. Elder Vogel (R-Beaver) and Sen. Tim Solobay (D-Washington) to set aside the low RVP fuel requirement for Pittsburgh in the face of the significant supply issues coming to light.

            The bill is now in the House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee chaired by Rep. Scott Hutchinson (R-Venango).

Tuesday NewsClips

Counties Flock To Drilling Impact Fee
DEP Asks Driller To Help Remedy Franklin Twp Methane Spike
New Figures On Shale Gas Optimistic
Marcellus Pumps Up Steelmaker
Editorial: The Cracker Plant, More Numbers Please
Column: Marcellus Industry Will Shun Ohio If Taxes Raised
Williams Buys Marcellus Gas Pipeline System For $2.5 Billion
PA Holds Nutrient Credit Auction
West Branch Susquehanna River Sojourn May 19-25
Future Of Flood Hit Borough Discussed
What Sets Pennsylvania's Gas Prices?
Congressional Hearing Focuses On Philadelphia Area Refineries
NRC To Air Report On Shippingport Plant
Locked & Dammed: Neglect Erodes River Commerce
Click Here for PA Capitol Digest NewsClips

Monday NewsClips

Somerset To Seek Payment For Marcellus Gas Wells
Allegheny County Considers Stricter Drilling Controls
Editorial: Smart Power Diplomacy?
Saving Jobs Key Issue At Homer City Plant Hearing
Sunoco Logistics Closes Tamaqua Heating Oil Terminal
Congress Sets Hearing On Refinery Closings
Ohio River Lock & Dam Decades Late, Billions Over
Dreaded, Costly Emerald Ash Borer Arrives
Click Here for PA Capitol Digest NewsClps

Rachel Carson Peregrine Falcons Have 4 Eggs

The peregrine falcons nesting on the Rachel Carson Building (DEP and DCNR headquarters) are incubating four eggs this season.  Click Here for the FalconCam on their nest.  You can watch the Peregrine Falcon nests in Pittsburgh by clicking on this link.

Sunday NewsClips

Gas Pipeline Proliferation Worries Marcellus Outreach Butler
Nockamixon Drilling Proposal Tests New State Law
$400 Monthly Rents Faded Out In Lycoming
Op-Ed: Shale Gas, Second Chance
Sierra Club Reverses On Natural Gas Drilling
State's Shell Deal Trades Tax Losses With Long-Term Jobs
Excitement Over Shell Cracker Plant Tempered With Realism
Editorial: Cracker Site Is Brimming With Promise
Dark Days For Coal: Can Exports Save It?
Locked And Dammed: Locks & Dams On Brink Of Failure
Funding Dip Has Natural Biodiversity Hitting Books
Green Thumbs Invited To Learn From Master Gardeners
Click Here for PA Capitol Digest NewsClips