From February 25 to March 3, DEP’s Oil and Gas Compliance Database shows oil and gas inspectors filed 532 inspection entries that resulted in reporting 27 violations of environmental regulations-- 16 violations by the conventional oil and gas industry and 11 violations by the unconventional shale natural gas industry.

So far this year-- as of February 24-- DEP issued 566 formal notices of violation to conventional operators and 191 to unconventional shale gas operators based on 2,203 inspections of conventional facilities and 3,897 inspections of unconventional shale gas facilities.

Alpha Wells Inc. was again given another notice of violation for failing to plug a conventional well upon abandoning it in Clarion County.

Cameron Energy Co received an NOV for failing to properly dispose of fluids when an inspector found an uncontrolled flow of crude oil coming out a conventional well in Warren County.

Dorso LP was given notices of violation for failing to submit well integrity and production and waste generation/disposal reports for three conventional wells in Westmoreland County.

The production and waste report is critical to understanding how much wastewater and other waste those wells generated and where it was disposed of.

The annual integrity report is critical because it helps ensure the operator is taking the steps needed to prevent natural gas, oil or contaminated water leaks from oil and gas wells.

On the unconventional shale gas side, Chesapeake Appalachia LLC (Bradford County), Clean Energy Exploration & Production LLC (Tioga County) and Seneca Resources Co. LLC (Tioga County on DCNR State Forest land) all were given NOVs for spills and discharges.

Well Plugging Inspections

DEP inspected three more conventional well plugging sites funded by the new federal conventional well plugging program in Allegheny County-- two in Ohio Township and one in Kilbuck Township-- and found no violations.

Report Violations

To report oil and gas violations or any environmental emergency or complaint, visit DEP’s Environmental Complaint webpage.

Check These Resources

Visit DEP’s Compliance Reporting Database webpage to search their compliance records by date and operator.

Sign up for DEP’s eNOTICE service which sends you information on oil and gas and other permits submitted to DEP for review in your community.

Violation Details

Violations Reported - Conventional

1 -- Failure To Plug The Well Upon Abandoning It

1 -- Drilling, Altering, Operating A Well Without A Permit

1 -- Discharged Waste Into Waters Of Commonwealth

1 -- Failed To Properly Dispose Of Fluids, Wastes, Drill Cuttings

1 -- Operated A Residual Waste Processing Or Disposal Facility Without A Permit

1 -- Failed To Collect Brine And Properly Manage Wastewater

3 -- Failed To Submit Well Integrity Report

3 -- Failed To Submit Well Production & Waste Management Report

1 -- Failed To Design, Implement, Maintainn Erosion & Sedimentation BMPs

Company/Location/Violations - Conventional

Clarion County

-- Alpha Wells Inc. - Monroe Twp. - TW Phillips 1

     -- Failure To Plug The Well Upon Abandoning It

     -- Drilling, Altering, Operating A Well Without A Permit

Crawford County

-- Dannic Energy Corp - Athens Twp. - Elmer G Snow 1

     -- Discharged Waste Into Waters Of Commonwealth

     -- Failed To Collect Brine And Properly Manage Wastewater

     -- Operated A Residual Waste Processing Or Disposal Facility Without A Permit

Warren County

-- Cameron Energy Co. - Sheffield Twp. - Lot 434 434 SB 24

     -- Failed To Properly Dispose Of Fluids, Wastes, Drill Cuttings (uncontrolled flow of crude oil)

Washington County

-- Dallas Energy LLC - Buffalo Twp. - Hagerty J1

     -- Failed To Design, Implement, Maintainn Erosion & Sedimentation BMPs

Westmoreland County

-- Dorso LP - Hempfield Twp. - Betler SMMB 2

     -- Failed To Submit Well Integrity Report

     -- Failed To Submit Well Production & Waste Management Report

-- Dorso LP - Hempfield Twp. - Betler SMMB 3

     -- Failed To Submit Well Integrity Report

     -- Failed To Submit Well Production & Waste Management Report

-- Dorso LP - Hempfield Twp. - Betler SMMB 4

     -- Failed To Submit Well Integrity Report

     -- Failed To Submit Well Production & Waste Management Report

Violations Reported - Unconventional Shale Gas

3 -- Failure To Prevent Substances From Reaching Waters of Commonwealth

3 -- Operated A Residual Waste Processing Or Disposal Facility Without A Permit

3 -- Failed To Contain Wastes Or Regulated Substances In Tanks Or Other Storage Structures

Company/Location/Violations - Unconventional Shale Gas

Bradford County

-- Chesapeake Appalachia LLC - Tuscarora Twp. - Floydie 22HC

     -- Failure To Prevent Substances From Reaching Waters of Commonwealth

Tioga County

-- Clean Energy Exploration & Production LLC - Delmar Twp. - Whispering Pines Well Pad 4H

     -- Failed To Contain Wastes Or Regulated Substances In Tanks Or Other Storage Structures

     -- Operated A Residual Waste Processing Or Disposal Facility Without A Permit

-- Seneca Resources Co LLC - Delmar Twp. - DCNR TR007 Pad D

     -- Failure To Prevent Substances From Reaching Waters of Commonwealth

     -- Failed To Contain Wastes Or Regulated Substances In Tanks Or Other Storage Structures

     -- Operated A Residual Waste Processing Or Disposal Facility Without A Permit

-- Seneca Resources Co LLC - Delmar Twp. - DCNR TR007 Pad K

     -- Failure To Prevent Substances From Reaching Waters of Commonwealth

     -- Failed To Contain Wastes Or Regulated Substances In Tanks Or Other Storage Structures

     -- Operated A Residual Waste Processing Or Disposal Facility Without A Permit

[Note: If you believe your company was listed in error, contact DEP’s Oil and Gas Program.]

[Note: These may not be all the NOVs issued to oil and gas companies during this time period.  Additional inspection reports may be added to DEP’s Oil and Gas Compliance Database.]

PA DEP Public Notice Dashboards:

-- Pennsylvania Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - Feb. 25 to March 3; More Well Plugging Sites Inspected [PaEN]

-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices/Opportunities To Comment - March 4 [PaEN]

-- DEP Posts 63 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In March 4 PA Bulletin  [PaEN]

PA Oil & Gas Compliance Reports

-- Feature: 60 Years Of Fracking, 20 Years Of Shale Gas: Pennsylvania’s Oil & Gas Industrial Infrastructure Is Hiding In Plain Sight [PaEN]

-- Conventional Oil & Gas Well Owners Failed To File Annual Production/Waste Generation Reports For 61,655 Wells; Attorney General Continues Investigation Of Road Dumping Wastewater  [PaEN] 

-- DEP Issued 754 Notices Of Violation For Defective Oil & Gas Well Casing, Cementing, The Fundamental Protection Needed To Prevent Gas Migration, Groundwater & Air Contamination, Explosions  [PaEN]

-- DEP Report Finds: Conventional Oil & Gas Drillers Routinely Abandon Wells; Fail To Report How Millions Of Gallons Of Waste Is Disposed; And Non-Compliance Is An ‘Acceptable Norm’  [PaEN]

-- DEP 2021 Oil & Gas Program Annual Report Shows Conventional Oil & Gas Operators Received A Record 610 Notices Of Violation For Abandoning Wells Without Plugging Them  [PaEN]

-- PA Oil & Gas Industry Has Record Year: Cost, Criminal Convictions Up; $3.1 Million In Penalties Collected; Record Number Of Violations Issued; Major Compliance Issues Uncovered; Evidence Of Health Impacts Mounts  [PaEN]

Related Articles This Week:

-- Bay Journal: PA Conventional Gas Wells Routinely Abandoned, Left Unplugged - By Ad Crable, Chesapeake Bay Journal  [PaEN]

-- PA Capital-Star Guest Essay: It’s Time To Hear Bold Leadership On Oil & Gas In Gov. Shapiro’s Budget Address - By Melissa Ostroff, EarthWorks, Member Shapiro Transition Team   [PaEN]

-- Better Path Coalition, FracTracker Alliance Release Pennsylvania Is Worth Protecting, A Visual Reminder Of The People, Places & Natural Resources Worth Protecting From Environmental Devastation, Climate Change  [PaEN]

-- Senate Committee Meets March 6 On Bill Prohibiting Elected Officials In Local Governments From Moving To Cleaner Energy Sources To Combat Climate Change  [PaEN]

-- Senate Committee Meets March 8 To Consider Bill Allowing General Assembly To Kill Regulations By Doing Nothing [PaEN]

-- Senate Hearing On Electric Grid Reliability: Natural Gas Continues To Have Reliability Problems; Renewables Aren’t Coming Online Fast Enough; Energy Office To Be Proposed  [PaEN]

-- Sen. Yaw Proposes Independent Energy Office To Promote Development Of PA’s Diverse Energy Portfolio - Natural Gas, Nuclear Power, Coal [PaEN]

-- Post-Gazette: Smoke Stacks From Closed Hatfield’s Ferry Coal-Fired Power Plant Demolished, Closing Chapter In PA Industrial History In Greene County: ‘I’m Ecstatic. It Was The Dirtiest, Dirtiest Place Ever.  It Put A Blight On Our Community’

-- PJM Interconnection Study Shows Renewable Energy Sources Not Coming Online Fast Enough To Replace Fossil Fuel Plants; Critical Path Analysis Started To Avoid Grid Reliability Risks  [PaEN]

-- Latest PJM Interconnection Electricity Capacity Auction Shows Price Decrease, But Mixed Results In PA [PaEN]

-- Independent Fiscal Office Reports 4th Quarter 2022 Natural Gas Production Decreased 1.6%; Average Price Increased By 82.5% Compared To Last Year [PaEN]

-- Senate Republicans, 4 Democrats Pass Resolution Urging Restart Of Keystone XL Oil Pipeline Abandoned By Company [BTW Not In PA]   [PaEN]

-- Republicans On Senate Committee Report Out Bills On Decommissioning Solar Energy Facilities, Limiting 1 Use Of PFAS Chemicals, Resolution Calling For Restart Of Keystone XL Pipeline  [PaEN]

-- Solar United Neighbors Helping Lancaster Residents Harvest Sunshine With New Solar Co-Op  [PaEN]

-- Observer-Reporter Guest Essay: Natural Gas Pipelines Can Secure Our Energy And Economic Future - By Republican Sen. Bartolotta  [DEP hasn’t denied any pipeline permits in PA, But they are the most heavily penalized for violations of any industry in PA history]

-- Washington & Jefferson College Hosts March 8 Webinar On Renewable Natural Gas  [PaEN]

[Posted: March 4, 2023]

3/6/2023