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Rep. Mundy Plans Bill To Prohibit Gas Wells From Floodplains
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Rep. Phyllis Mundy (D-Luzerne) this week announced she will soon introduce legislation to protect floodplains from natural gas drilling by restricting well site preparations or drilling from occurring within those areas.
The legislation would amend the Oil and Gas Act of 1984 to: Strengthen well location requirements; change erosion and sediment control permit requirements; require the Department of Environmental Protection to evaluate and track waste from Marcellus Shale wells; and require a collaborative, comprehensive study on the cumulative impacts of all anticipated oil and gas activities throughout the Commonwealth.
Under the bill, DEP would be required to conduct site visits before issuing erosion and sediment control permits due to the damage oil and gas drilling can cause at and around sites. Permits would only be issued to applicants that develop appropriate erosion and sediment control as well as storm water management plans that are compliant with the Clean Streams law and other environmental regulations.
Additionally, the bill would establish a three-year moratorium during which no new permits could be issued for the discharge of drilling wastewater into surface waters. The moratorium would require DEP to evaluate potential alternatives for wastewater disposal. The department would then be required to enforce those alternatives, provided they are environmentally sound.
Within the first six months the moratorium goes into effect, the DEP would be required to establish an online tracking system to monitor the storage, transportation and disposal of oil and gas drilling waste.
Rep. Mundy said that the legislation would require DEP, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the Fish and Boat Commission and the Game Commission to work together to provide an all-encompassing report on the impact of drilling and future oil and gas activities.
"The laws we have on the books in Pennsylvania to monitor drilling are lax in terms of protecting the environment. More needs to be done and my legislation would provide necessary guidelines and protections," Rep. Mundy said.
Rep. Mundy has introduced four other bills to help protect public safety and monitor the Marcellus Shale drilling industry--
-- House Bill 381 (Mundy-D-Luzerne) requiring additional gas well waste production and disposal reporting and tracking.
-- House Bill 2608 would prohibit natural gas drilling companies that use fracking or horizontal drilling from drilling wells within 2,500 feet of a primary source of supply for a community water system, such as a lake or reservoir. The current restriction is only 100 feet;
-- House Bill 2609 would establish a one-year moratorium on the issuance of new natural gas drilling permits to give the General Assembly and Commonwealth more time to put appropriate protections into law and regulation; and
-- House Resolution 864 would urge Congress to pass the Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act. The act would repeal a provision in the federal Safe Drinking Water Act that exempts oil and gas drilling industries from restrictions on hydraulic fracturing operations located near drinking water sources, a provision known as the "Halliburton Loophole." The FRAC Act would also require oil and gas industries to disclose all hydraulic fracturing chemicals and chemical constituents currently considered proprietary rights of the company.
NewsClips: Rep. Mundy Calls For Floodplain Drilling Ban
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8/16/2010 |
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