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The House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee is scheduled to hold a hearing April 24 on Pennsylvania's newly expanded abandoned conventional oil and gas well plugging program and on updating conventional oil and gas well bonding requirements.
These individuals are tentatively scheduled to provide comments--
-- David Hess, Former Secretary of DEP
-- Kelsey Krepps, Sierra Club
-- Kurt Klapkowski, Acting DEP Deputy Secretary for Oil & Gas Management
-- Arthur Stewart, Cameron Energy
-- Adam Peltz, Environmental Defense Fund
Corrective Legislation
On April 19, Rep. Vitali introduced House Bill 962 that restores the authority of the Department of Environmental Protection to adjust bonding for conventional and unconventional oil and gas wells every two years.
In July and November of last year, legislation was passed that prevented DEP from increasing conventional oil and gas well bonding amounts for ten years. Read more here.
The new corrective legislation is designed to set bond amounts closer to what taxpayers have to pay to plug wells abandoned by conventional operators.
House Bill 962 retains the exemption from any bond for any oil and gas well drilled prior to April 18, 1985.
Routine Well Abandonments
In December, DEP issued a report finding conventional oil and gas operators routinely abandon wells since bonding amounts are insignificant. Bond amounts are no deterrent to prevent abandonment. Read more here.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported in November 2021 DEP had only $15 per well available to plug the number of active conventional oil and gas wells now on the books with DEP and estimates are state taxpayers are financially responsible for $5.1 billion or more of well plugging costs due to woefully inadequate well bonding requirements. Read more here.
Well Plugging Program
Pennsylvania is due to receive up to nearly $400 million in federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding for its new conventional Abandoned Well Plugging Program.
With the first year’s funding of about $25 million, DEP expects to plug about 249 conventional wells. Read more here.
Unfortunately, DEP reports conventional operators continue to abandon wells faster than DEP can plug them.
The December report issued on conventional wells found between 2017 and 2021 conventional operators abandoned 2,246 wells without plugging them. Read more here.
Visit DEP’s Well Plugging Program webpage for more information.
The hearing will be held in Room G-50 Irvis Building starting at 10:00 a.m. Click Here to watch online.
Rep. Greg Vitali (D-Delaware) serves as Majority Chair and can be contacted by calling 717-787-7647 or sending email to: gvitali@pahouse.net. Rep. Martin Causer (R-Cameron) serves as Minority Chair and can be contacted by calling 717-787-5075 or by sending email to: mcauser@pahousegop.com.
Related Articles - Well Bonding:
-- 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’ [12.29.22]
-- House Environmental Committee Meets April 25 On Bipartisan Bills To Provide School Solar Energy Grants, Local Notice Of Toxics Violations [PaEN]
PA Oil & Gas Public Notice Dashboards:
-- Pennsylvania Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - April 15 to 21; 10 Abandoned Well NOVs; New Crude Oil Leak; Defective Casing/Cementing [PaEN]
-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices/Opportunities To Comment - April 22 [PaEN]
-- DEP Posts 75 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In April 22 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:
-- House Environmental Committee Sets April 24 Hearing On Plugging Abandoned Conventional Oil & Gas Wells; New Bill Restores Authority To Increase Conventional Well Bonding [PaEN]
-- Inside Climate News: Gov. Shapiro Provides Fresh Support To Key Changes Recommended In 2020 Grand Jury Report To Tighten Regulation Of The Natural Gas Drilling Industry To Better Protect Public Health, Environment [PaEN]
-- New State Health Plan Identifies Health Issues Related To Natural Resource Extraction, Climate Change In Top 5 Threats To Health Outcomes; No Update On University Of Pittsburgh Oil & Gas Health Impacts Study [PaEN]
-- Independent Regulatory Review Commission Approves Final Emergency Regs Setting VOC/Methane Emission Limits On Conventional Oil/Gas Operations [PaEN]
-- Concerned Residents, Advocates Call On DEP For The Opportunity To Comment On Proposed Roulette Oil & Gas Waste Injection Well In Potter County [PaEN]
-- DEP/Equitrans Settlement: DEP, Preempted By Federal Law, Withdraws Order, Closes NOVs Against Equitrans For Cambria County Natural Gas Storage Leak Releasing 1 Billion Cubic Feet Of Natural Gas [PaEN]
-- PA Supreme Court Upholds DEP’s Authority To Protect Public Resources, Playgrounds From Adverse Impacts Of Shale Gas Well Operations; Do Not Mistake This Win For Adequate Protection [PaEN]
-- Citizen Complaint Results In Discovery Of An Unreported Crude Oil Spill Affecting Over 2,400 Feet Of Stream At A Cameron Energy Conventional Well Site In Forest County [PaEN]
-- Bay Journal: Shale Gas Drilling, Development Yields Both Fears, Funding For Pennsylvania Public Lands - By Ad Crable, Chesapeake Bay Journal [PaEN]
-- Scranton Times Editorial: Local Leaders, DOT Must Stop Plant In Wyalusing, Bradford County From Shipping LNG Natural Gas By Rail Or Truck Or Both To Philadelphia [PaEN]
-- Inquirer - Frank Kummer: Environmentalists Being Kept Out Of Philadelphia LNG Natural Gas Export Task Force Meeting
-- American Journal Of Transportation: PA LNG Task Force Takes Testimony On Expanding Natural Gas To PA Ports
-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission May 4 Hearing On Water Withdrawal Projects, Including 12 Related To Shale Natural Gas Drilling [PaEN]
-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Approved 39 Water Use Permits For Shale Gas Well Drilling Pads In Bradford, Clinton, Lycoming, Potter, Susquehanna, Tioga and Wyoming Counties [PaEN]
-- Intense, Bright White Light From The Shell Plastics Plant Turns Night Into Day For Many Neighbors Of The Beaver County Plant [PaEN]
[Posted: April 19, 2023]
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