On January 3, the Department of Environmental Protection announced the Shell Petrochemical Plant Beaver County Environmental Mitigation Community Fund is now accepting applications for community projects to benefit the environment, health and/or quality of life for communities in Beaver County.
The deadline for applications is February 29.
To help answer questions about how to apply for the grants, DEP and the Environmental Mitigation Community Fund Advisory Board have scheduled in-person and virtual question/ answer sessions for potential applicants.
The Mitigation Fund is part of a $10 million settlement DEP signed in May 2023 to resolve air pollution violations up to that point. Read more here.
Air pollution and water pollution violations continued after that agreement. Read more here.
Advisory Board In-Person Sessions
The Advisory Board will hold in-person Q/A sessions on--
-- January 31: Penn State Beaver Student Union Building Lodge, 100 University Drive, Monaca starting at 6:00 p.m.
In-person meeting livestreams will be offered online by RiverWise through the organization’s Facebook page to maximize community participation and access. Click Here for access to the livestream.
Virtual Q/A Session
The Advisory Board will hold virtual Q/A sessions on--
-- January 24: 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
-- February 13: 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Click Here to register.
Virtual Office Hours With DEP EJ Special Deputy Secretary
DEP Special Deputy Secretary for Environmental Justice Fernando Trevino will hold virtual office hours for prospective applicants via Microsoft Teams or phone every Tuesday through January 30 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Click Here for Microsoft Teams access. Join by phone: 267-332-8737 Conference ID: 192 759 632#
To Apply For A Grant
Visit DEP’s Shell Petrochemical Plant Environmental Mitigation Community Fund webpage for information on applying for a grant.
DEP Shell Compliance Page
Visit DEP’s Shell Petrochemical Plant Compliance webpage for information on continuing air pollution violations, inspection results and actions taken by DEP.
NewsClip:
-- Financial Times: Petrochemical Glut Makes New Plastic Cheaper Than Recycled
Weekly PA Oil & Gas Industry Public Notice Dashboards:
-- PA Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - Jan. 13 to 19; 9 Abandoned Conventional Wells; 4 Abandoned Shale Gas Wells; Freshwater Pipeline Break; Ice & Snow [PaEN]
-- 4 Months Later, XTO Energy, Inc. Said They Will Plug 4 Shale Gas Wells DEP Found To Be Abandoned And Not Plugged In September [PaEN]
-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices/Opportunities To Comment - January 20 [PaEN]
-- DEP Posted 41 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In January 20 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:
-- DEP Releases Final Guidance On Environmental Considerations In Using Trenchless Technology To Construct Natural Gas, Other Pipelines [PaEN]
-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Sets Feb. 1 Hearing On Water Withdrawal Requests, Including 8 Related To Shale Gas Development; And On Cooperative Fish Nursery General Permit [PaEN]
-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Approves 25 Shale Gas Well Pad Water Use General Permits In Bradford, Lycoming, Potter, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Tioga, Wyoming Counties [PaEN]
-- Senate Environmental Committee To Hold 2nd Joint Hearing With Ohio Legislature On Electric Grid Reliability Feb. 1; Will It Address Natural Gas Infrastructure Vulnerabilities? [PaEN]
-- PJM Interconnection Issues New Cold Weather Alert For Western Region Jan. 19-22 [PaEN]
-- CFA Approves $27 Million In Watershed, Recreation Projects Funded By Act 13 Drilling Impact Fees; Fees Dropping $104 Million In 2024; New Grant Round Opening [PaEN]
-- DEP Hosts In-Person, Virtual Q/A Sessions On Applying For $5 Million Shell Petrochemical Plant Mitigation Grants In Beaver County [PaEN]
-- Health Effects Institute Hosts Annual Conference April 28-30 In Philadelphia; Call For Abstracts [PaEN]
-- PA Cong. Thompson, Deluzio Introduce Bipartisan Bill To Provide Flexibility To States Implementing The Federal Conventional Orphan Oil & Gas Well Plugging Program [PaEN]
NewsClips:
-- WJAC - Stoker Wieczorek: Equitrans Rager Mountain Gas Storage Area Leak Site Not Cleaned Up Over A Year Later In Cambria County
-- Reuters: Severe US Cold Snap Prompts Peak Power, Natural Gas Demand, Drop In Gas Production [Freeze-offs Caused 17 Billion Cubic Foot Reduction In Gas Production; 19.6 Bcfd Reduction During Winter Storm Elliott; 20.4 Bcfd Reduction In Feb. 2021]
-- Marcellus Drilling News: US Natural Gas Prices Make Huge Jump On Deep Freeze; Some Shale Gas Prices Increase By 400%
-- TribLive Letter: Proliferation Of Natural Gas Operations In Bell Township, Westmoreland County Raise Concerns - Cody Deluisio
-- Reuters: US Natural Gas Demand Eyes Record As Arctic Blast Dents Output
-- Reuters: US Natural Gas Supplies Drop Due To Frozen Wells, Record Demand Forecast Due To Extreme Cold [Again]
-- Reuters: US LNG Natural Gas Feedgas To LNG Plants Drops To One-Year Low By Arctic Freeze, Problems At Freeport LNG Plant In Texas
-- Bloomberg: US Deep Freeze Force LNG Natural Gas Exporters To Cancel, Delay Shipments
-- Bloomberg: EU Sees Natural Gas Storage Levels More Than Half Full By Winter’s End
-- Bloomberg: LNG Natural Gas Tankers Divert From Red Sea As Qatar Warns Of Escalation
-- Financial Times: The LNG Natural Gas Glut Will Chill The Gas Ambitions Of Oil Majors
-- Financial Times: US Energy Security Role In Question As Natural Gas Exports Receive New Scrutiny
[Posted: January 16, 2024]
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