On January 10, the Department of Environmental Protection announced it has authorized an Air Quality Plan Approval to allow an onsite leachate treatment and evaporation system to be installed at Westmoreland Sanitary Landfill, located in Rostraver Township, Westmoreland County. 

[This is one of a series of actions DEP has taken related to leachate generated in part by shale gas drilling waste deposited in the landfill and the refusal of the Belle Vernon Municipal Authority to accept the leachate for treatment because the leachate was “upsetting” the wastewater treatment process.  Click Here for more.]

Leachate is moisture which is produced by waste itself and stormwater that infiltrates the landfill’s waste. Leachate from landfills must be treated onsite or transported to a separate treatment facility.

Evaporating liquid leachate at Westmoreland Sanitary Landfill would eliminate risks of spills, impacts, and traffic associated with trucking leachate offsite for disposal, according to DEP. 

The air quality plan approval establishes emissions limitations and monitoring requirements.

DEP is currently reviewing a waste permit modification application, which, if approved, would authorize the use of the evaporator system for the treatment of the landfill’s leachate.

Both the plan approval and waste permit modification must be obtained prior to operation.  

“DEP carefully and thoroughly reviewed the application while also considering feedback from the public,” said DEP Southwest Regional Director Jim Miller. “This authorization meets or exceeds the air quality regulations and includes a number of safeguards and conditions to be protective of public health and the environment.” 

The approved leachate treatment and evaporation system includes extensive pre-treatment of the leachate.

The evaporator will include a three-stage demisting filtration system with a 99% removal efficiency of filterable particulate matter.

The air quality plan approval also includes numerous measures to monitor pollutants that may be emitted through the evaporation process and/or present in the leachate and assure compliance with emission limitations.

Monitoring Radiation Risk

Modeling and calculations using accepted scientific methods show any radionuclides emitted into the air will not pose a health risk.

Radiation monitors will be placed in six onsite locations and will measure 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and be analyzed regularly, DEP explained.

DEP explained how the radiation monitors will work in the Comment/Response Document [page 9] associated with the Air Quality Permit--

Thermoluminescent dosimeter radiation [TLDs] measurement devices will be maintained at six locations, measuring 100% of the time.  “The devices measure the radiation exposure a person would receive while occupying the area.”

“They [TLDs] will be analyzed quarterly [every three months] where the results will be compared against the Pennsylvania gamma exposure limits to members of the public.”

In addition to the six TLDs locations, onsite radiation monitors will run continuously 24 hours a day, 7 days a week regardless of operation of the evaporator. [page 11]

“Perimeter monitor filters will be changed out on a weekly basis and analyzed for total alpha and total beta/gamma radiation. Alpha and beta/gamma are associated with the decay of Radium-226 and Radium-228.

“The weekly results of the filter analysis will be compared against the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) air discharge limits for Radium-226 and Radium-228.”

The plan approval also requires that a third-party conduct an audit inspection of the leachate pre-treatment and evaporation system every 12 months.

Audits would include a full system inspection, cleaning, instrument calibration, training of operating staff, operator certification, and system restoration as needed.  

On November 1, 2023, DEP executed a consent order and agreement that also requires Westmoreland Sanitary Landfill to take extensive proactive measures to detect, correct, and prevent future violations.

Click Here for a copy of DEP’s cover letter.  Click Here for a copy of the Air Quality Plan Approval.  Click Here for a copy of the modeling and calculations related to the permit.   Click Here for a copy of the Comment/Response Document.

Supporting documents as well as additional permitting and compliance information are available on the DEP’s Southwest Regional Office Westmoreland Sanitary Landfill webpage.

For more information on environmental programs in Pennsylvania, visit DEP’s website, Report Emergencies, Submit Environmental Complaints; Click Here to sign up for DEP’s newsletter; sign up for DEP’s eNotice; visit DEP’s Blog,  Like DEP on Facebook, Follow DEP on Twitter and visit DEP’s YouTube Channel.

Related Article - Westmoreland Landfill/Shale Gas Waste:

-- DEP Collects $62,475 Penalty From Westmoreland Sanitary Landfill Under Agreement To Correct Violations, Improve Environmental Protections At The Facility  [PaEN]

-- Inquirer Guest Essay: DEP Needs To Evaluate Health Impacts Of Evaporating Leachate From A Westmoreland Landfill Accepting Shale Gas Drilling Waste  [PaEN]

-- DEP Fines Westmoreland Sanitary Landfill $24,000 To Resolve Waste Violations; Drilling Waste Impacts On Leachate [PaEN]

-- Joint Conservation Committee: Belle Vernon Municipal Authority Taking A Stand Against Pollution From Drilling Waste [PaEN]

Related Article - Radioactive Shale Gas Waste:

-- DEP Reports Shale Gas Operations Sent Over 138,000 Cubic Feet Of Radioactive TENORM Waste To Low-Level Radioactive Waste Facilities For Disposal In 2022 - Over  911,000 Cubic Feet Since 2017  [PaEN]

PA Oil & Gas Industry Public Notice Dashboards:

-- PA Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - Jan. 4 to 12 - 9 More Abandoned Conventional Wells; Leaking Wastewater Tanks; Rager Mountain Gas Storage Area Cleanup Continues; Pipeline Land Slips  [PaEN]

-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices/Opportunities To Comment - January 13  [PaEN]

-- DEP Posted 61 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In January 13 PA Bulletin  [PaEN] 

2023 Oil & Gas Compliance Reports:

-- DEP Issued At Least 512 Violations To 95 Conventional Oil & Gas Operators For Abandoning Wells Without Plugging Them In 2023; 10 Shale Gas Operators Were Issued NOVs For Abandoning Wells  [PaEN]

-- DEP Issues Record 6,860 Notices Of Violation To Conventional Oil & Gas Operators In 2023-- Nearly 52% More Than In 2021; ‘Culture Of Non-Compliance’ Continues  [PaEN] 

-- 2023 Shale Gas Operator Compliance Report: 1,310 Violations; Explosions; Pad Fire, Evacuation; Uncontrolled Gas Venting; Frack-Outs; Polluting Water Supply; Spills; Pipeline Crashing Thru A Home; More  [PaEN]

-- PA Environment Digest: Articles On Oil & Gas Facility Impacts

Related Articles This Week:

-- Environmental Hearing Board Allows Protect PT Appeal Of Olympus Shale Gas Well Permits In Westmoreland County To Proceed; Olympus Was Trying To Deprive Protect PT Of Its Rights  [PaEN]

-- PJM Interconnection: Winter Weather Forces Natural Gas Pipeline Fuel Restrictions, ‘Conservative Operations’ Declared To Assure Electric Grid Reliability Through Jan. 17  [PaEN]

-- DEP Issues Water Quality Certification For Equitrans Project To Replace Abandoned Natural Gas Storage Wells In Greene County Due To Coal Mining  [PaEN]

-- DEP Reviewing Equitrans Act 2 Soil Cleanup Report On Rager Mountain Gas Storage Area Conventional Well That Failed Venting 1.1 Billion Cubic Feet Of Natural Gas In Cambria County  [PaEN]

-- DEP Issued Air Quality Permit For Leachate Evaporation System At Westmoreland  Landfill With Special Radiation Monitoring Due To The Disposal Of Shale Gas Drilling Waste  [PaEN]

-- DEP Sets Feb. 27 Hearing On Helix Ironwood Gas-Fired Power Plant Air Quality Permit Renewal, Lebanon County  [PaEN]

-- No False Solutions PA Coalition Issues Position Statement On Hydrogen, Carbon Capture & Storage, Chemical Recycling Of Plastics, Other Climate 'Solutions'  [PaEN]

-- Jewish Earth Alliance, Beth Am Israel Hosting Jan. 23 Online Program Rethinking Our Connection To Fossil Fuels - A Discussion  [PaEN]

-- Evangelical Environmental Network: EPA Proposes Waste Charge On Methane Leaking From Large Oil & Gas Facilities  [PaEN]

NewsClips This Week - Oil & Gas:

-- Bob Donnan Blog: Fracking Groundwater Study Underway In SW PA

-- TribLive: Olympus Energy Contends Natural Gas Compressor Station For Penn Twp. Not Harmful To Environment In Westmoreland County

-- Bob Donnan Blog: What’s Not To Hate About Natural Gas Compressor Stations?

-- The Center Square - Anthony Hennen: PA Natural Gas Pipeline Capacity Problem Persists [Industry Points To Out-Of-State Pipeline Delays As Examples]

-- The Center Square - Anthony Hennen: Partisan Split On Energy, Environment Makes Compromise Unlikely

-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: Chesapeake Energy Buys Southwestern Leapfrogging EQT As Biggest Gas Producer In US

-- Bloomberg Columnist: US Oil And Gas Boom Doesn’t Feel Like One To Workers

-- Wall Street Journal - Kris Maher: Democrat PA Gov. Shapiro, CNX Fracking Executive And The Deal They Struck, Can It Work?

-- TribLive Editorial: Hydrogen Isn’t Clean If It Adds To Climate Pollution; Biden’s Rules Are A Good Start

[Posted: January 10, 2024]

1/15/2024