On August 11, the Clean Air Council reported a spill of at least 1,000 gallons on August 10 in connection with the construction of Sunoco's Mariner East II Pipeline into Marsh Creek Lake in Marsh Creek State Park in Chester County.

Photographs from the park last night show a large plume of gray water snaking hundreds of feet into the lake. It is unclear what the impact will be on the health of the Lake and the public drinking water systems that rely on it.

More than a year ago, Clean Air Council and allies urged the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to stop Sunoco from going ahead with new HDD plans at Marsh Creek State Park because of the high risk of spills, which even Sunoco’s own geologist identified.

Clean Air Council wrote, “Sunoco again has failed to take seriously the danger its construction poses to drinking water supplies and other water resources.”

More than 250 people wrote to DEP, asking it to deny the proposal to put Marsh Creek State Park at risk.

Nonetheless, DEP approved the plans as Sunoco requested on January 23, 2020. As the statewide grand jury report on fracking recently concluded, DEP often has not used its powers to protect people from the gas industry, and as a result, “companies were free to continue environmentally hazardous activities that DEP had the power to stop.”

“DEP has failed Pennsylvanians when we need them most,” said Joseph Otis Minott, Esq., Executive Director and Chief Counsel of Clean Air Council. “Our lakes and parks are among our few refuges during the pandemic and they are more critical than ever. By letting Sunoco proceed in the face of clear warnings of the destruction it would cause, DEP has made what amounts to a willful decision not to protect the public. Residents are weary and they are frustrated. Do your job, DEP. Step up, Governor Wolf. Fines are not enough. Shut it down.”

For more information on programs, initiatives and upcoming events, visit the Clean Air Council website.

(Photo: Discharge going into Marsh Creek Lake.)

NewsClips:

Susan Phillips: Mariner East Pipeline Construction Spills Up To 10,000 Gallons Of Drilling Mud Into Chester County Stream, Lake

Frank Kummer: Drilling Stopped After Leaks Develop Along Mariner East Pipeline, One Affecting Marsh Creek Lake

Susan Phillips: Paddle Protest At Marsh Creek Lake Calls For Mariner East Pipeline Shutdown

Upper Uwchlan Twp. Asks Wolf To Rescind Mariner East Pipeline Construction Permits

PA Energy Infrastructure Alliance: Mariner East Pipeline Inadvertent Returns Simply Political Soapboxes For Pipeline Opponents

Related Articles This Week:

-- Mariner East Pipeline Drilling Stopped Indefinitely At Site Of Leak Into Marsh Creek State Park Lake, Chester County; Pipeline Company Will Be Held Accountable

-- FERC Schedules Virtual Hearings On Regional Transco Pipeline Project To Identify Issues To Be Included In An Environmental Assessment Starting Aug. 18

Related Articles:

-- PUC: Pipeline Safety Investigation Underway Involving Sunoco Pipeline Under Construction In West Whiteland Twp., Chester County

-- PUC Approves 2nd Order On Reporting Integrity Of Sunoco's Mariner East 1 Pipeline, Leaves $200,000 Penalty In Place

-- DEP Issues $1.95 Million Penalty To Sunoco For Mariner East 2 Pipeline Construction Violations At Raystown Lake, Huntingdon County

-- DEP Issues Sunoco $319,461 In Penalties For Mariner East 2 Pipeline Construction Violations In 2017, 2018; Fines Now Total $13 Million+

-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Enters Into $18,500 Settlement With Sunoco Mariner East II Pipeline

-- DEP Issues $30.6 Million Penalty Over ETC Revolution Pipeline Explosion Violations; Lifts Permit Bar

[Posted: August 11, 2020]

8/17/2020