On December 12, the Better Path Coalition delivered signatures from 65 organizations, institutions, and businesses, and more than 2,700 individuals on a letter and petition calling on Governor-Elect Shapiro to ban road spreading of conventional drilling waste.

The delivery comes with the release of the Coalition’s update of its Moratorium Morass report on the anniversary of its release.

Documents obtained through a Right-to-Know request submitted to the Bureau of Waste Management raise new concerns that road spreading of toxic, radioactive drilling waste may have gone unreported in the four years since the Department of Environmental Protection put a moratorium on the disposal method.

In 2021, conventional oil and gas operators reported disposing of 977,671 gallons of their wastewater by road dumping.  Read more here.

Operators reported road dumping a total of 3,259,405 gallons of their wastewater from 2018 through 2021.

Oil & Gas Waste reports include entries on road spreading from 37 companies since 2018. However, in the three years before the moratorium, 114 companies reported road spreading.

“Pennfield has obtained a Co-Product status instead of Waste with our brine. What this means is you don’t have to report spreading and it can be spread all year round. I know this is hard to believe because D.E.P. doesn’t make anything easy, but it’s true…,” the company told townships that were potential customers in a 2020 letter included in the RTK response.

The coproduct status Pennfield mentions refers to a program managed by BWM that allows owners of a waste product to make a determination that their waste can be used in place of a commercial product that performs the same function as long as the waste is no more dangerous to health and the environment than the commercial product is.

Conventional drillers took advantage of the Coproduct Determination loophole so they could continue road spreading after the DEP’s moratorium went into effect.

The number of companies that believed as Pennfield did that reporting was not required under the Coproduct Determination program is unknown and must be investigated.

“The DEP had no idea how much waste the industry was generating before the moratorium because of their deeply flawed reporting system. Now, thanks to the use of the Coproduct Determination loophole, the DEP has even less of an idea. Road spreading of unconventional waste was banned in 2016. It’s time for the ban to be extended to conventional waste too. Governor-Elect Shapiro must make it a top priority to bring this dangerously mismanaged practice to an end,” said Karen Feridun, Co-founder of the Better Path Coalition and the report’s author.

Click Here for the updated report on road dumping conventional wastewater.

Health/Environmental Impacts

Multiple studies over the last 10 years have documented the negative health and environmental impacts from road dumping conventional drilling wastewater.

In September, DEP said publicly, again, the road dumping of conventional wastewater does not meet the requirements of residual waste regulations and as a result is illegal.  Read more here.

DEP has, in-fact, designated 84 townships where road dumping has occurred as “waste facilities.”  Read more here.

The conventional oil and gas industry reported in April, the state Attorney General’s Office is investigating the illegal disposal of conventional wastewater.  Read more here.

DEP banned road dumping of wastewater from unconventional shale gas drillers in 2016 which is chemically very similar to the wastewater produced by conventional operations.

On May 26, Penn State University and the Department of Environmental Protection released a new study of spreading conventional oil and gas wastewater on unpaved roads by Penn State researchers, who found the wastewater running off the roadways after spreading contains concentrations of barium, strontium, lithium, iron, manganese that exceed human-health based criteria and levels of radioactive radium that exceed industrial discharge standards.

The study also found the wastewater is only about as effective as rainwater at controlling dust, but worse for the environment.

“The ineffectiveness and potential pollution of wastewater spreading make the practice an unsuitable alternative for dust suppression on Pennsylvania roads, the team reported to the DEP’s Office of Oil and Gas Management.”  Read more here.

Sign The Petition

The Better Path Coalition is encouraging individuals and groups to sign a petition urging Governor-Elect Josh Shapiro to make banning the road spreading of conventional drilling wastewater a priority in his incoming Administration.

“One of your first acts when you take office must be a ban on road spreading of ALL drilling waste.”

Click Here to sign petition.   Click Here to sign a letter to Governor-Elect Shapiro.

DEP Public Notice Dashboards:

-- Pennsylvania Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard -  Dec. 10 to 16  [PaEN]

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

-- DEP Posted 69 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In The Dec. 17 PA Bulletin  [PaEN] 

Related Articles - Road Dumping:

-- Attorney General’s Office Reported To Be Investigating Conventional Oil & Gas Operators For Illegally Road Dumping Drilling Wastewater  [PaEN]

-- DEP Tells Citizens Advisory Council Road Dumping Conventional Oil & Gas Wastewater Still Does Not Meet Residual Waste Regulations; Remains Illegal   [PaEN]

-- Millions Of Gallons Of Conventional Oil & Gas Wastewater Spread Illegally On Dirt Roads, Companies Fail To Comply With DEP Waste Regulations  [PaEN]

-- Conventional Oil & Gas Drillers Reported Spreading 977,671 Gallons Of Untreated Drilling Wastewater On PA Roads In 2021  [PaEN]

-- DEP Lists 84 Townships As ‘Waste Facilities’ Where Conventional Oil & Gas Wastewater Has Been Disposed Of By Road Spreading; Municipalities Need To Do Their Due Diligence    [PaEN]

-- Penn State Study: Potential Pollution Caused By Road Dumping Conventional Oil & Gas Wastewater Makes It Unsuitable For A Dust Suppressant, Washes Right Off The Road Into The Ditch  [PaEN]

-- The Science Says: Spreading Conventional Drilling Wastewater On Dirt & Gravel Roads Can Harm Aquatic Life, Poses Health Risks To Humans - And It Damages The Roads  [PaEN]

-- New Penn State Study Shows Road Dumping Oil & Gas Drilling Wastewater Has Little Dust Suppression Benefit, Contains Pollutants Harmful To Human Health, Agriculture, Aquatic Life   [PaEN]

-- Penn State Study Recommends Only Using Nontoxic Products Or Highly Treated Drilling Wastewater To Remove Radium, Oil, Metals Before Road Spreading  [PaEN]

-- Penn State Study: Using Oil & Gas Well Brine As Dust Suppressant Less Than Ideal  [PaEN]

-- A First-Hand Account Of How Repeated, Unlimited Road Dumping Of Oil & Gas Drilling Wastewater Is Tearing Apart Dirt Roads And Creating Multiple Environmental Hazards [PaEN]

-- Environmental Health Project - Part 1: Personal Narrative Of Environmental, Health Impacts From Oil & Gas Drilling On Siri Lawson, Warren County  [PaEN]

-- Environmental Health Project - Part II: Personal Narrative Of Environmental, Health Impacts From Oil & Gas Drilling On Siri Lawson, Warren County  [PaEN]

-- DCNR Bans Use Of Oil & Gas Wastewater On Its Over 6,500 Miles Of Dirt, Gravel Roads  [PaEN]

-- Allegheny National Forest: Commercial Alternatives For Dust Suppression Makes The Practice Of Road Dumping Conventional Drilling Wastewater ‘Unnecessary’ On Roads [PaEN]

-- You Are Looking At A Map Of Future Dumpsites For Conventional Oil & Gas Drilling Wastewater If Road Dumping Is Approved By General Assembly  [PaEN]

-- How The Conventional Oil & Gas Drilling Industry Eliminated Any Restrictions On The Disposal Of Millions Of Gallons Of Its Wastewater On PA’s Dirt & Gravel Roads  [PaEN]

Related Articles This Week:

-- Better Path Coalition: 65 Organizations, Businesses, 2,700+ Individuals Petition Gov.-Elect Shapiro To Ban Road Dumping Of Conventional Oil & Gas Wastewater  [PaEN]

-- Citizen Complaints Result In DEP Issuing PA General Energy More Violations At Loyalsock Creek Gas Pipeline/Water Withdrawal Construction Site In Lycoming County  [PaEN]

-- DEP Consent Agreement Allowing Shale Gas Drilling To Resume Under Dimock, Susquehanna County Sets New Drilling, Water Supply Protection Standards, Imposes $444,000 Penalty  [PaEN]

-- Republican Herald/Scranton Times Editorial: DEP Professes Unwarranted Faith In Shale Gas Drillers  [PaEN]

-- DEP Assesses $600,000 Penalty For Illegal Disposal Of Over 1,800 Truck Loads Of Oil & Gas Waste Drill Cuttings In Fayette County  [PaEN]

-- DEP Issues Notice Of Violation To Shell Petrochemical Plant In Beaver County For Air Quality Violations In Sept. - Oct.  [PaEN]

-- AG Shapiro: Free Water Evaluations Begin For Homeowners Affected By Construction Of Mariner East 2 Natural Gas Liquids Pipeline  [PaEN]

-- Pittsburgh Union Progress - Laura Legere: Decaying Allegheny County Conventional Oil & Gas Wells To Be Plugged With Federal Funding Boost

-- Bloomberg: A Massive Natural Gas Leak In Pennsylvania Is Adding To Climate Scrutiny

-- Presentations Now Available From Shale Gas & Public Health Conference In Nov. Hosted By PA League Of Women Voters & University Of Pittsburgh Graduate School Of Public Health  [PaEN]

-- PA Capital-Star Guest Essay: It’s Time Pennsylvania Residents, Regulators Demand Health Risks From Shale Gas Fracking Be Addressed - By Clean Air Council

-- EPA Accepts Final DEP Oil/Gas Facility VOC/Methane Emission Limits Regulation For Review, Stops Imposition Of Federal Highway Funding, Other Sanctions  [PaEN]

-- Ohio River Valley Institute Decarbonization Pathway Relies On Zero Emissions Resources, Energy Efficiency, Increased Electrification Is Less Costly Than Natural Gas, Carbon Capture Options  [PaEN]

-- CNX Unveils Appalachia-Focused Vision For The Future, Promoting New Natural Gas Development, Use - ‘Produce It Here. Use  It Here - First’  [PaEN]

NewsClips This Week:

-- WJAC: Cambria County Couple Files Lawsuit Against Sunoco Over Mariner East Pipeline Construction They Said Made Their Property Nearly Uninhabitable By Eliminating Their Water Supply, Bulldozing Their Barn, Causing Sinkholes

-- Altoona Mirror: Cambria County Couple Sue Sunoco Over Mariner Pipeline Damage; Raw Sewage Coming Into Kitchen Sink

-- StateImpactPA - Susan Phillips: ‘Gasland’ Driller Will Pay Millions For New Water System In Dimock

-- Capital & Main - Audrey Carleton: PA Lets Polluter Resume Shale Gas Drilling In Dimock Protected Zone, Outraging Residents At Fracking’s ‘Ground Zero’ 

-- AP: Pennsylvania Lifts Ban On Shale Gas Drilling In Polluted Dimock, Susquehanna County

-- The Allegheny Front - Reid Frazier: Western PA Contractor Fined $600,000 For Illegal Dumping Over 1,800 Truck Loads Of Oil & Gas Waste 

-- StateImpactPA - Rachel McDevitt: Natural Gas Stoves Can Hurt Indoor Air Quality, Consumer Advocates Say

-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: Shell’s Flaring At Beaver County Ethane Plant Pushed Company Over Air Permit Limits, Data Shows

-- Beaver Times: Regulators Say Shell Exceeded Emissions Cap During Cracker Plant Startup

-- New Castle News: DEP: Opening Of Shell’s Western PA ‘Cracker’ Plant Caused Pollutants To Spike

-- The Allegheny Front - Reid Frazier: Shell Air Pollution Soars During Startup Of Beaver County Ethane Plant

-- TribLive: Shell Issued Violation Notice For Exceeding Air Pollution Limits During Startup Of Beaver County Ethane Plant 

-- Post-Gazette Guest Essay: Petrochemical Plants Are An Environmental And Economic Dead End For Southwestern PA - By Breathe Collaborative

-- Post-Gazette Guest Essay: Shell Petrochemical Plant Represents Western PA’s Economic Future - By Pittsburgh Works Together

-- Scranton Times Editorial: Tie State Taxpayer Subsidies Of Petrochemical Plants To Environmental Compliance

-- Inside Climate News - Jon Hurdle: Decarbonization Program Would Eliminate Most Emissions In SW PA By 2050, New Study Finds

-- Environmental Health News: Western PA Can Meet Its Climate Goals, If The Region Stops Subsidizing Natural Gas

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: CNX Resources Lays Out Appalachia First Vision For Economic Growth

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: CNX’s Nick DeIuliis Speaks About Why Appalachia First Is Best Approach For Pittsburgh, Appalachia

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: Industrial Energy Consumers Of America Write Gov. Wolf, Others Urging Building More Natural Gas Pipelines

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: Industrial Energy Consumers Of America Write Gov. Wolf, Others Urging Building More Natural Gas Pipelines

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: Rice Acquisition Of NET Power A Bet On Carbon Capture And Storage And Natural Gas Transition

-- PennLive: Residents Evacuated Just Before Natural Gas Explosion Flattened Their Home In Dauphin County

-- PennLive: 92-Year-Old Man Survived Massive Natural Gas Explosion That Pulverized Neighbor’s Home 30 Feet Away In Dauphin County

-- MCall - Ford Turner: Special Report: More Than 125 Natural Gas Odor Reports In Pottstown, Montgomery County In The 29 Months Before Deadly Home Explosion

-- Observer-Reporter Guest Essay: Natural Gas Powering Our County And Beyond - By Chair Of Washington County Commissioners  [IFO: Natural Gas Price Increased 95% Over Last Year ]

-- Marcellus Shale Coalition: 12 Days Of Marcellus - ‘On The First Day Of Marcellus, Natural Gas Gave To Me’

-- Bob Donnan Blog: The 12 Days Of Christmas And Other  Christmas Carols About The Real Impact Of Natural Gas Industry In Pennsylvania

-- Bob Donnan Blog: Real Shale Gas History: Spying & Psychological Operations On PA Citizens 2010-14

-- Bob Donnan Blog: Real Shale Gas History: 12 Articles On Shale Gas Development In PA As Told By The Families and Communities That Experienced It

-- Inside Climate News: Q/A With Eliza Griswold Pulitzer Winning Author Of Deep Dive Into Fracking In PA, How Extractive Industries ‘Gut’ Communities

-- StateImpactPA - Rachel McDevitt: PA Natural Gas Prices Rise [94.7%] As Production Falls, Report Says

[Posted: December 12, 2022]

12/19/2022