Cabot Pays $120,000 for Environmental Violations in PA as New Yorkers Debate Gas Drilling Regulations

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and Cabot Oil and Gas Corp. have executed a consent order and agreement regarding Susquehanna County water supplies polluted by migrating gas from Cabot’s natural gas drilling operations.

The Pennsylvania DEP began an investigation early this year when numerous residents of the Dimock Township area reported evidence of natural gas in their water supplies. An explosion that blew apart a concrete slab above a water well in a township resident’s yard was also reported. DEP inspectors discovered that the well casings on some of Cabot’s natural gas wells were cemented improperly or insufficiently, allowing methane gas to migrate to groundwater.

Under the agreement, Cabot must develop a plan that specifically identifies how the company intends to prove the integrity of the casing and cementing on existing wells and fix defective casing and cementing by March 31. If Cabot fails to fix the defective casing and cementing by the March deadline, the company must plug defective wells or implement another alternative as approved by DEP.

Cabot paid a 120,000 civil penalty for violations of the Oil and Gas Act, the Solid Waste Management Act and the Clean Streams Law.

This past week, Cabot provided an interim solution for all of the homes with affected water supplies and must develop a plan by March 31 to restore or replace those affected water supplies permanently. Cabot must submit information on all parties who have contacted the company about water quantity or quality issues to the DEP.

Several other violations that have been corrected by Cabot were addressed in the consent order. In September 2008, drilling mud leached into a spring near the Black 2H well; in January, 100 gallons of diesel fuel spilled at the Gesford 3 well; in February, 25 to 50 barrels of drilling mud spilled into a ditch and field at the B Severcool 1 well and in March drilling mud leaked into Burdick Creek during a spill at the Gesford 1 well.

In September, the PA DEP also fined Cabot Oil and Gas Corp. $56,650 for three spills of a hazardous water/liquid gel mixture at its Heitsman natural gas well in Dimock Township, Susquehanna County.

These environmental violations happen at a time when New York has proposed new regulations for natural gas drilling. It is a hotly contested issue across New York State at public hearings of the NY Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC) environmental review of natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale. At a public hearing in New York City on November 10, many residents and public officials called for a ban on natural gas drilling in New York City’s upstate watershed, which supplies drinking water for 9 million people.
A layer of rock 365 million years old called the Marcellus Shale rock formation extends deep underground from Ohio and West Virginia northeast into Pennsylvania and southern New York and is believed to hold a giant natural gas reserve. Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking is a drilling process, used by companies such as Cabot, to extract natural gas from the earth in which a mixture of water, sand and chemicals is pumped deep underground to break apart the rock formation and release the gas.

The NY Department of Environmental Conservation has recently extended the public comment period on the report and will hold more public hearings until the review period ends Dec. 31. Comments can also be submitted by mail or online at http://www.dec.ny.gov/energy/46288.html.

Environmental hazards can cause serious illnesses or even death among children and adults living in areas where there is pollution, toxic spillage, chemical seepage, improper waste disposal and other environmental issues. Because the companies that cause these hazards often have excellent attorneys and a lot of money available for fighting claims, it is important that you hire an attorney immediately if you feel that an environmental hazard caused your illness or the illness of a family member. Call Napoli Bern Ripka LLP today at 888-529-4669 to discuss your legal options.

Sources:

http://www.ahs2.dep.state.pa.us/newsreleases/default.asp?ID=5722&varQueryType=Detail
http://www.independentweekender.com/news/1.410308
http://www.propublica.org/feature/new-yorkers-tell-dec-no-fracking-way-1111
http://www.wbng.com/news/local/69817402.html
http://www.dec.ny.gov/energy/46288.html
http://www.depweb.state.pa.us/news/cwp/view.asp?a=3&q=549335
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/local/20091002_Environmentalists_fight_natural-gas_leasing_in_Pa__forests.html