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At 2:02 a.m. on August 28, 2023, DEP received an emergency notification of an uncontrolled venting of natural gas from shale gas well 9H at the Repsol Oil and Gas USA LLC Cummings Lumber well pad in Troy Township, Bradford County.
The natural gas leak resulted in a temporary one-half mile evacuation order around the well pad within Troy Township, according to Bradford County Department of Public Safety. Read more here and as reported by Marcellus Drilling News.
The Troy Area School District also canceled all of its Monday evening activities following the direction of the County 911 Emergency Center to ensure their safety if anything else were to occur. Read more here and as reported by Marcellus Drilling News.
Background For DEP Inspection Report
Repsol said the well started venting natural gas from the producing and surface casing annulus for 10.5 hours starting at 4:00 p.m. August 27 until about 2:30 a.m. on August 28, sometimes intermittently. The DEP inspector was onsite at 5:55 a.m. August 28.
The company said no liquid reportedly came out of the annuli. “but they suspect there was a mist of production fluid emitted.” Production wastewater was flowing from the well at the rate of 1,260 to 2,100 gallons an hour into storage tanks on the well pad.
“Repsol advised people on site to remain at least 75' from the Marcellus well heads. There are 4 combustible gas meters set up ~15 feet away from the well that vented, and 5 more placed at a farther radius from it.”
“Repsol expects Wild Well Control [a well emergency response company with offices in Tioga and Washington counties] to arrive today [August 28] and probably “kill” the well with 20 lb/gal drilling mud.”
“Repsol finished drilling the 6 new Marcellus wells at this site in April 2023. ProFrac hydraulically fractured the 6 new Marcellus wells at this site June 21, 2023 - July 24, 2023. There are 5 older Marcellus wells at this site that were drilled in 2010. 4 are in production and 1 is plugged.”
DEP inspected the other shale gas wells at the well site to determine if they were venting gas or for other violations.
No violations were noted in DEP’s inspection report for any of the wells.
Information on this and other DEP oil and gas well inspections can be found at DEP’s Oil and Gas Compliance Database and the DEP Inspection Reports Viewer.
(Photo: Repsol shale gas wells and monitoring equipment at the Cummings Lumber well pad.)
NewsClips - Natural Gas Leak:
-- Towanda - Daily Review: Natural Gas Leak In Troy Leads To Brief Evacuation Order
-- Towanda - Daily Review: Bradford County Public Safety Provides Update On Natural Gas Leak In Troy Township
-- Troy, PA Chamber Of Commerce (Facebook): Updates On The Natural Gas Leak
-- Marcellus Drilling News: Uncontrolled Release Of Natural Gas At Repsol Shale Gas Well In Bradford County
PA Oil & Gas Industry Public Notice Dashboards:
-- Pennsylvania Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - Aug. 26 to Sept. 1-- Uncontrolled Venting Of Shale Gas Well; 4,600 Gallon Spill Of Shale Gas Wastewater; Cleanup Of Conventional Oil Wastewater Spill Barely Begins [PaEN]
-- DEP Responds To Emergency Notification Of Uncontrolled Venting Of Natural Gas For Over 10.5 Hours From A Repsol Oil Shale Gas Well; Temporary Evacuation Order Issued In Bradford County [PaEN]
-- EQT Shale Gas Wastewater Truck Rolls Over Spilling More Than 4,600 Gallons Of Wastewater In Lycoming County [PaEN]
-- Do Not Consume Water Advisory Lifted In Village Of Reno; Petro Erie, Inc. Barely Begins Cleanup Of Conventional Oil Wastewater Spill Site That Contaminated The Water Supply In Venango County [PaEN]
-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices/Opportunities To Comment - September 2 [PaEN]
-- DEP Posted 62 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In September 2 PA Bulletin [PaEN]
NewsClips This Week - Oil & Gas:
-- The Derrick - Makayla Keating: Reno Water Advisory Lifted [PDF of article]
-- The Derrick: 6 Weeks After Water Supply Contaminated By Conventional Oil Well Wastewater, Emergency Water Supply Distributions Continue In Village Of Reno, Venango County [PDF of article]
-- Warren Times: Natural Gas Well Setbacks Questioned After Health Impact Studies
-- PA Capital-Star: PA Residents Call For Action After Health Studies Link Natural Gas Development To Asthma, Lymphoma
-- Observer-Reporter: Flaws In University Of Pittsburgh’s School Of Public Health’s Studies Of Natural Gas Development’s Impact On Public Health - By David Callahan, President & Lobbyist For Marcellus Shale Gas Industry
-- Marcellus Shale Gas Industry Coalition: University of Pittsburgh’s School of Public Health’s Studies Of Natural Gas Development’s Impact On Public Health Has Methodological Flaws
-- Delco Times: Chester Bankruptcy Receiver Warns Of Projects That Could Handcuff City Finances And Negatively Impact Residents’ Health On Heels Of Hearing On Proposed LNG Natural Gas Export Project In The City [PDF of article]
-- PA Manufacturers Assn: Anti-LNG Natural Gas Export Facility Groups Fail To Realize Local Benefits, Global Implications [Here’s the other side]
-- PennLive Guest Essay: LNG Natural Gas Export Facility Key To Pennsylvania’s Energy Infrastructure - By Marcellus Shale Gas Industry & PA Building Trades Unions [Here’s the other side]
-- PennLive Guest Essay: PA Needs More Pipelines, LNG Natural Gas Export Facilities - By T.J. Rooney, Industry Lobbyist [Here’s the other side]
-- TribLive: 5th Shale Gas Well Pad Planned In Frazer Twp., Allegheny County; Cecil, West Deer Townships Considering More Well Pad Proposals
-- TribLive: Public To Weigh In On Proposed Olympus Energy/Hyperion Leto Natural Gas Compressor Station In West Deer Twp., Allegheny County
-- TribLive: Murrysville Council Approves Ordinance Regulating Oil/Gas Wastewater Injection Wells, Restricting Them To Business Zones
-- TribLive: PA Physicians For Social Responsibility Offers Gas Imaging Camera To Plum Boro Residents Affected By Home Explosion
-- WTAE: PA Physicians For Social Responsibility To Bring Natural Gas Imaging Camera To Plum Boro To Check For Leaks Thursday
-- Now On Demand: Wasted Water: The Impacts of Fracking’s Water Use from Pennsylvania to Colorado Webinar, FracTracker Alliance
-- Forbes Survey Lists Best Employers By State: No Natural Gas Companies Are On The List Of Top 97 Companies In PA; Sheetz Is #20
-- AP: Federal Rule Allowing Rail Shipments Of LNG Natural Gas On Hold To Allow More Study Of Safety Concerns
-- TribLive: PA Physicians For Social Responsibility Offers Gas Imaging Camera To Plum Boro Residents Affected By Home Explosion
-- Observer-Reporter: Coastal Drilling East LLC, Coastal Well Service LLC Must Pay More Than $80,000 To Former Employee Who Suffered Racial Abuse At Company’s Greene County Site
-- The Center Square - Anthony Hennen: Report: Natural Gas Production Plateauing In Appalachian Basin
-- WESA: New Carnegie Museum Of Art Exhibit In Pittsburgh Visits Front Lines Of Fossil Fuels - What It's Like To Live Where Coal, Oil, Natural Gas Are Extracted
-- WTAE: 4.0 Magnitude Earthquake Shakes Part Of Ohio, May Have Been Felt In Pittsburgh Area [Earthquakes have been tied to shale gas drilling, injection wells in Ohio, PA ]
-- KDKA: 3rd Earthquake Hits Northeast Ohio In Past Week Shaking Traffic Cameras
Related Articles This Week - Oil & Gas:
-- Between The Lines Podcast: Pediatrician Dr. Ned Ketyer Explains The Results Of New Studies Of The Health Impacts Of Natural Gas Development On Children And Adults [PaEN]
-- The Center Square: State Dept. Of Health Invites Citizens To File Environmental Health Complaints Related To Natural Gas Development; Health Will Also Review Environmental Test Results [PaEN]
-- DEP Expands Environmental Justice Protections With Updated Policy, Improved Mapping Tool; Enhanced Permit Reviews Start Sept. 16 [PaEN]
-- Scranton Times Editorial: Give Teeth To DEP Environmental Justice Policy [PaEN]
-- DEP Oil & Gas Advisory Board Meets Sept. 5 On Proposed Permit Fee Changes; Well Plugging Financial Assurances To Prevent Abandonments; Environmental Justice Policy; Injection Well Primacy [PaEN]
-- DEP Citizens Advisory Council Meets Sept. 12 On Environmental Justice Policy; DEP Customer Service Initiatives; Risks With Carbon Capture, Sequestration [PaEN]
-- PJM Interconnection Hears Testimony On Making Electricity Market Reforms To Address Nonperformance Of Natural Gas And Other Generators During Winter Storm Elliot; Transition To Clean Energy [PaEN]
-- PUC Safety Division Continues Investigation Into Deadly House Explosion In Plum Borough, Allegheny County [PaEN]
[Posted: August 30, 2023]
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