Governor Edward G. Rendell announced on January 28, 2010 that the commonwealth of Pennsylvania is strengthening its enforcement capabilities in order to protect residents and the environment from the impact of increased natural gas exploration. In order to increase the strength of enforcement capabilities, Governor Rendell has directed the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to hire sixty-eight (68) new personnel. These new personnel are to be funded from higher permitting fees which were instituted in 2009. In addition, DEP plans to strengthen oil and gas regulations in an effort to improve well construction standards and define a drilling company’s responsibility for responding to gas migration issues. The changes in regulations are designed to prevent gas leaks that may pose risks to the public and water quality. Before going through DEP’s formal rulemaking process, the new regulations will be offered for public comment on January 29, 2010.
Specifically, the new regulations will:
• Require the casings of Marcellus Shale and other high-pressure wells to be tested and constructed with specific, oilfield-grade cement;
• Clarify the drilling industry’s responsibility to restore or replace water supplies affected by drilling;
• Establish procedures for operators to identify and correct gas migration problems without waiting for direction from DEP;
• Require drilling operators to notify DEP and local emergency responders immediately of gas migration problems;
• Require well operators to inspect every existing well quarterly to ensure each well is structurally sound, and report the results of those inspections to DEP annually; and
• Require well operators to notify DEP immediately if problems such as over-pressurized wells and defective casings are found during inspections.
A copy of the press release in explaining this issue in detail can be found at the following web address, http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/news_releases/14288.
This article was authored by Rachel Shanteau, Acacia Environmental Group LLC. For more information on the author see here.
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