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On September 1, the Department of Environmental Protection said any waste generated by the new conventional oil and gas well plugging program will NOT be exempt from hazardous waste requirements, unlike the same or similar wastes generated from active oil and gas production wells and facilities. Read more here.
And this waste—along with drilling and fracking waste--can contain radioactive elements known as “technologically enhanced naturally occurring radioactive material,” or TENORM. A new NRDC report describes these risks and how weak regulations fail to appropriately protect workers and communities.
On June 10, the Department of Environmental Protection told the House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee the Shapiro Administration supports legislation banning the practice of road dumping oil and gas wastewater and prohibiting its consideration as a coproduct under Residual WasteRegulations.
On September 29, DEP told the Low-Level Waste Advisory Committee shale gas operations in Pennsylvania sent 138,336 cubic feet of radioactive TENORM waste to the Waste Control Specialists low-level radioactive waste facility in Texas for disposal. Click Here for DEP table on TENORM waste. Read more here.
In any event, regulators are loosening safety and security requirements for SMRs in ways which could cancel out any safety benefits from passive features. And if the SMR were located closer to populated areas with no offsite emergency planning, more people could be exposed to dangerously high levels of radiation.
On July 22, the Governor’s Office published an update to the Regulatory Agenda of regulations in development that included a new annual permit fee for unconventional shale gas operations and a schedule for the release of updated waste and other environmental standards for conventional oil and gas drilling. Read more here.
[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.
On September 30, DEP told the Low-Level Waste Advisory Committee shale gas fracking operations in Pennsylvania sent nearly 236,00 cubic feet of radioactive TENORM waste to out-of-state low-level radioactive waste facilities for disposal, more volume than all the industries combined in the four-state Appalachian Low-Level Radioactive Waste Compact.
The following blog post By Tina Curry-Bashioum was posted on the Environmental Health Project website providing a detailed look at the MAX Environmental Yukon Facility hazardous waste disposal site that accepts shale gas drilling waste in Westmoreland County. The decay chain of radium involves the release of radiation.
Randomly selected individual on-site drill cutting and wastewater disposal plans submitted by conventional oil and gas drillers call for drilling wastes to be “dispersed directly to the environment,” according to a review by PA Environment Digest. Ph and conductivity will be tested and reported according to regulations.”
Among the issues raised by the appellants in their appeal were-- concerns the landfill’s operation would attract birds and interfere with the operation of the nearby Grove City Airport; that the oil and gas drilling wastes the landfill was allowed to accept presented a radiation hazard; and the landfill’s compliance history.
A variety of studies have documented that radioactivity is brought to the surface with natural gas and oil production and travels through natural gas pipelines, oil refining systems, natural gas processing and liquid and solid waste disposal and treatment facilities. Haley, M.D.,
million gallons of toxic, radioactive drilling waste on unpaved roads in the Commonwealth. Feridun’s attempt to use the Oil and Gas Division’s Oil and Gas Reporting Electronic (OGRE) system to track where the waste has gone revealed many problems with the system’s design and entries that should set off alarms but don’t.
Even if the resolution is adopted, it would not be binding in the same way as a formal international agreement, but it could still impact how countries regulate marine CDR. Both the London Convention and London Protocol require parties to adopt domestic laws to regulate the “dumping” of “waste and other matter” at sea.
Hess, Former Secretary Department of Environmental Protection The information submitted to DEP’s Bureau of Waste Management from eight conventional oil and gas companies to justify allowing them to dispose of millions of gallons of wastewater by spreading it on dirt roads fails to meet the requirements of DEP’s 25 Pa Code Chapter 287.8
In 2020, Justin Nobel wrote an expose of fracking’s radioactivity, in particular in the wastewater and other wastes produced by natural gas drilling. The Delaware RiverKeeper Network is hosting an August 18 webinar Radioactivity In Fracking - Too Hot To Handle with scientist and author Justin Nobel from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m.
In an effort to further protect Pennsylvania’s waterways and drinking water, the Department of Environmental Program announced it will soon require all Pennsylvania landfills – including those that accept unconventional oil and gas waste – to conduct quarterly testing of leachate for radiological contaminants.
The Department of Environmental Protection has advised 18 municipalities where road dumping of oil and gas wastewater has occurred the practice is illegal and considered waste disposal. DEP labels a total of 84 townships as “waste facilities” where road dumping of the wastewater has occurred. Read more here. Read more here.
Wolf’s PFAS Action Team Report noted there is a concern wastewater plant sewage sludge also contains PFAS and policies are needed to properly manage this waste. Similar concerns would be present in oil and gas waste treatment facilities. Read more here. See Paragraph 71 in appeal.] Read more here. See paragraph 78-98 of EHB appeal.]
Joseph – individually and doing business as Joseph Contracting, John Joseph Contracting, and Perry Stone Supply LLC – to settle violations of the Solid Waste Management Act and Pennsylvania regulations that occurred between 2012 and 2015 in Dunbar, Perry, and South Union Townships, Fayette County.
DEP said 721 of the alternative on-site drill cutting waste disposal plans were for conventional oil and gas well drillers. By avoiding landfills, oil and gas operators also avoid having to comply with the waste disposal regulations that go along with it. 61(d) under the unconventional regulations. Read more here.
Among the issues raised by the appellants in their original appeal were-- concerns the landfill’s operation would attract birds and interfere with the operation of the nearby Grove City Airport; that the oil and gas drilling wastes the landfill was allowed to accept presented a radiation hazard; and the landfill’s compliance history.
On April 5, township supervisors, concerned residents, and advocacy organizations submitted a letter to the Department of Environmental Protection calling on the agency to conduct a proper Public Participation Process for an oil and gas waste injection disposal well in Potter County.
DEP’s eFACTS database file for the Mohr A and B well pads includes DEP approvals for “alternative waste management practices” for land application of drilling waste on the Mohr A and B well pad site dated April, May and October 2011 which match the drilling dates of seven out of the eight wells. Read more here. Read more here.
With proposed federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions by the Securities and Exchange Commission requiring GHG disclosure and new state statutes, including a new Maryland law that requires not only disclosure, but also a mandated reduction in GHG emissions, a greater appreciation of the subject of GHG appears in order.
Plants regulate their salt concentrations much like how our bodies regulate blood pressure. Crop damage radiates inward gradually from the edges of a field, where the salt hits first. But the practice, known as flushing, wastes freshwater. A salt-affected corn plant on a field in Somerset County, MD.
Not Allowed Under Oil & Gas Regulations, But They Still Can Klapkowski explained road dumping is “not allowed under our [Oil & Gas Regulations], and we don’t have any plans to allow it under our regulations, as far as I’m aware of, as of this date.” Read more here. million gallons from 2018 to 2021. Read more here.
Because it's an oil and gas waste, nobody's required to carry these safety data sheets. So if somebody happened to have driven through a pool of this radiated de-icing stuff, you necessarily didn't have to have driven through this, it's now on your car. They're not even required to tell you. Kids put everything in their mouth.
Klapkowski said the waste issue was being discussed, because of, “the scale and scope of the program, things that weren't really talked about much because maybe you can deal with it as a one-off because we were plugging 10 or 20 wells a year. There are some options for waste management that involve on-site disposal. said Klapkowski.
The site is located on a 11-acres parcel with one partially demolished, collapsed, and fire-damaged building, abandoned waste including miscellaneous scrap, large numbers of tanks, totes, and drums in various stages of degradation, and bags of powder coating materials. Notice of new technical guidance documents and regulations?
The study included test results for 17 different dust suppressants for dirt roads and winter road treatments, including five different sources of brine water pumped from conventional oil and gas wells-- three conventional well brine waters regulated by DEP and two sources of brine water pumped from played-out conventional wells.
Click Here To View Or Print The Entire July 24 PA Environment Digest 111 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA Weekly List Of PA Environment & Energy Articles & NewsClips By Topic Marcellus Drilling News/The Allegheny Front: University Of Pittsburgh Study Finds At Least 800,000 Tons Of Fracking Waste Sent To Landfills (..)
Decommissioning of both units will require the disposal of both high level and low-level radioactive waste and the safe, permanent storage of the nuclear fuel used by both units that is still on Three Mile Island. Our information from the radiation protection staff on the island indicated otherwise. Read more here. State Police?
Background On Road Dumping From Penn State’s new study -- Using oil and gas wastewater from conventional wells to control dust was considered a beneficial use of the residual waste on the state’s 25,000 miles of dirt and gravel roads, since it was thought to have a chemical composition and behavior similar to commercial dust suppression products.
Background On Road Dumping From Penn State’s new study -- Using oil and gas wastewater from conventional wells to control dust was considered a beneficial use of the residual waste on the state’s 25,000 miles of dirt and gravel roads, since it was thought to have a chemical composition and behavior similar to commercial dust suppression products.
Corbett when that Deputate was formed to focus more attention on regulating unconventional (shale) gas drilling in Pennsylvania. No replacement has yet been named. Perry was named Deputy for Oil and Gas Management in September 2011 by Gov. Read more here.] Read more here.
Several new regulations controlling methane emissions have been adopted recently, including two new rules for the US oil and gas sector announced last week. For other gases, the GWP depends on two different properties of the gas: how strongly it absorbs infrared radiation; and how long it stays in the atmosphere after it is emitted.
Using oil and gas wastewater from conventional wells to control dust was considered a beneficial use of the residual waste on the state’s 25,000 miles of dirt and gravel roads, since it was thought to have a chemical composition and behavior similar to commercial dust suppression products. Read more here.] mg/L Fe (up to 2.7-times
Related Articles: -- Citizen Complaint, Company Report Results In DEP Inspection Finding 63,000 Gallon Wastewater Spill At Seneca Resources Shale Gas Well On State Game Lands In Elk County; More Leaks, Spills [PaEN] -- DEP Rejects MarkWest Act 2 Cleanup Notification For 10,000 Gallon Natural Gas Condensate Spill At Compressor Station In Robinson Twp., (..)
Click Here to read the 2022 compliance report summary. .” -- “Routine” Venting Of Conventional Gas Wells: DEP’s inspection reports document the fact venting natural gas to the atmosphere is a “routine” part of conventional well drilling, in spite of recently passed Air Quality regulations that limit methane emissions from conventional wells.
PA Bulletin, page 3899 ) Waste Permits -- Chesapeake Appalachia, LLC - Wastewater Storage Facility: DEP invites comments on an application it received for coverage under WMGR163 Residual Waste General Permit for a facility to be located in Franklin Twp., You’ll also get notice of new technical guidance documents and regulations.
Failure to submit the reports, which are vital to determine the condition of the wells and where the waste they generate goes for disposal or treatment, goes back to at least 2021. Read more here. Environmental Protection Agency Underground Injection Well Program. So far the operator has failed to submit the reports. Read more here.
PA Bulletin, page 3638 ) Waste Permits -- EQM Gathering OPCO, LLC: DEP invites comments on an application to modify the Preparedness, Prevention and Contingency and Waste Acceptance Plans under General Permit WMGR123 for a waste handling facility located in Jackson Twp., Susquehanna County. ( Greene County. ( Greene County. (
Senate returns to session September 20, 21, 22 -- Committee Schedule House returns to session September 27, 28, 29 -- Committee Schedule TODAY’s Calendar Of Events -- Daily American: Organizer Welcoming The Public To Annual ‘9-for-9’ Celebration At Quecreek -- StateImpactPA/Reid Frazier: Group Says Tighter Radiation Controls Needed On Drilling Waste (..)
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