DEP Revokes Erosion and Sedimentation Control Permits for Two Gas Companies

N E W S R E L E A S E COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA

Agency Also Issues Notice of Violation Letters to Three Licensed Professionals

Williamsport – The Department of Environmental Protection has revoked three erosion and sedimentation control general permits previously issued to Ultra Resources Inc. and Fortuna Energy Inc. due to technical deficiencies, and has sent notice of violation letters to the three licensed professionals who prepared the applications.

“DEP took this action because of numerous technical deficiencies discovered after our approval of the permits,” said DEP Northcentral Regional Director Robert Yowell.

The erosion and sedimentation control general permits are required whenever more than five acres of earth will be disturbed during construction of natural gas well drilling pads or natural gas pipelines.

As part of an expedited permit review process that DEP announced earlier this year, a licensed professional engineer, surveyor, geologist or landscape architect must submit a notice of intent and supporting documentation to DEP, including a certification that the information submitted meets the permit requirements.

DEP staff performs an administrative completeness review, but relies on the professional’s certification that the application is technically correct and meets all the permit requirements.

The technical deficiencies in both permits included inaccurate calculations, failure to provide best management practices where required, and lack of proper technical detail.

The permit revocations mean that Ultra Resources and Fortuna Energy must immediately halt all earth disturbance activities at the sites except those necessary to install or maintain erosion and sediment control or post-construction and site restoration best management practices.

The Ultra Resources permit was for sites in Gaines and Elk townships, Tioga County, and Pike and Abbott townships, Potter County. The Fortuna permit covered sites in Ward and Jackson townships, Tioga County.

DEP has revoked permit for this site
Toxic sludgepit, Tioga State Forest, Ward Township - Fortuna Energy
(Note red pickup truck {dot} for scale)

Neither company is eligible to re-submit notices of intent requesting the expedited permit process for those locations.

The three permits were appealed to the state Environmental Hearing Board by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation in August and September, prompting DEP officials to re-examine the permits to determine if they met the regulatory requirements.

In its letter to the three licensed professionals, DEP warns that additional enforcement action may be taken against them, including possible referral to the Department of State, Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs for disciplinary action.

The licensed professionals receiving the letters include James Gensel of Fagan Engineers in Elmira, N.Y.; Karl Matz of Larson Design Group Inc. in Williamsport; and K. Robert Cunningham of Cunningham Surveyors in Wellsboro.

For more information, call 570-327-3659 or visit www.depweb.state.pa.us keyword: Oil and gas.

DEMAND ACCOUNTABILITY!

PennFuture, Chesapeake Bay Foundation Decry Plan to Abandon Severance Tax on Marcellus Shale, Sell off State`s Public Lands to Drillers

Chesapeake Bay Foundation Announces Lawsuit against
DEP for Lax Permitting

HARRISBURG, Pa.--(Business Wire)--

Jan Jarrett, president and CEO of Citizens for Pennsylvania`s Future
(PennFuture), and Matthew Royer, attorney for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, today called on the Pennsylvania legislature to abandon plans to sell off the state`s public lands to multi-national drilling companies tapping the Marcellus Shale formation and instead institute a tax on the natural gas removed anywhere in Pennsylvania. Their remarks came one day after the Chesapeake Bay Foundation filed a legal challenge to erosion and sediment control permits issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) for drilling
activities on Tioga State Forest.

"This is just one of several a legal challenges we have filed because DEP is not doing its job to make sure our State Forests and other stream and wetland resources are protected from the environmental impacts of drilling," said Royer. "Instead of protecting the environment, DEP is rubber stamping permit applications without any formal review. DEP`s permit review process consists of simply making sure all the paperwork is in the permit application. Unbelievably,
they are not conducting any environmental review of the plans that drilling companies are required to submit in order to minimize environmental impacts. Pennsylvania`s precious water resources-our rivers, streams, and wetlands-are at risk due to the lack of thorough DEP oversight.

...

"Abandoning the severance tax on natural gas and immediately opening up hundreds of thousands of acres of state land to gas drillers is a giveaway to multi-national energy corporations directly at the expense of Pennsylvania taxpayers," said Jan Jarrett. ...

"If Pennsylvania does not assess a severance tax we are allowing the industry to foist the costs of drilling onto taxpayers - wear and tear on local roads, the costs of environmental regulation and oversight, damage to natural resources, strains on policing and emergency services.
That`s an insult to Pennsylvania taxpayers," continued Jarrett.

Read the complete article from Reuters HERE.

In a subsequent report from Reuters, Jon Hurdle writes:
The foundation argues that restraints on drilling companies were weakened when the DEP told county conservation districts in March that they no longer had authority to review permit applications for erosion and sediment control. They are urging the agency to restore the local oversight of drilling applications.

The DEP's new policies violate environmental laws including the federal Clean Water Act, the appeal alleges.

DEMAND ACCOUNTABILITY!

NEW DEP EROSION AND SEDIMENT AND STORMWATER REGULATIONS

PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD OPENS
Public Information Meetings Scheduled Statewide

HARRISBURG – Environmental Protection Secretary John Hanger today announced that the Environmental Quality Board will accept public comment on proposed changes to Pennsylvania’s erosion and sediment control and stormwater management regulations, which are expected to significantly improve and protect water quality in Pennsylvania.

The proposed changes include requirements for establishing and protecting existing streamside and riverside forest buffers and increasing protection for exceptional value waterways, incorporate existing post-construction stormwater management requirements into state regulation to bring Pennsylvania into line with federal requirements, and enhance agricultural stormwater management provisions beyond plowing and tilling to include animal heavy -use areas.

The new regulations also include an updated permit fee structure and a new permit-by-rule option offers a simplified permitting process for eligible low-risk construction projects that will reduce permitting delays while improving oversight of projects by the department.

“We are shifting the focus of water quality protection from reviewing paperwork to holding permittees more accountable, conducting more on-the-ground inspections to verify that best management practices are being implemented and maintained, and increasing protections for our waterways,” Hanger said. “These changes improve the permitting process both from an environmental and administrative perspective, and will provide greater protection to the environment through better coordination with and accountability from all involved in land development.” The Environmental Quality Board, which promulgates Pennsylvania’s environmental regulations, will conduct three public hearings to accept public comment on the proposed amendments. Prior to the hearings, DEP will conduct public meetings to explain the proposed rulemaking and to respond to questions from participants. The 90-day public comment period runs through Nov. 30.

The public meetings and hearings will be held as follows: • Sept. 29 at the Cranberry Township Municipal Building, 2525 Rochester Road, Butler County. The public meeting is at 4 p.m. and the public hearing is at 5 p.m.

• October 1 at the Department of Environmental Protection, Southcentral Regional Office, Susquehanna Room B, 909 Elmerton Ave., Harrisburg. The public meeting is at 4 p.m. and the public hearing is at 5 p.m.

• October 5 at the Salisbury Township Municipal Building, 2900 South Pike Avenue, Allentown. The public meeting is at 4 p.m. and the public hearing is at 5 p.m.

Individuals wishing to present testimony at a hearing are requested to contact the Environmental Quality Board, P.O. Box 8477, Harrisburg, PA 17105-8477, (717) 787-4526, at least one week in advance of the hearing to reserve a time to present testimony. Oral testimony is limited to 10 minutes for each witness. Witnesses are asked to submit three written copies of their oral testimony to the chairperson at the hearing. Organizations are limited to designating one witness to present testimony on behalf of the group at each hearing.

Persons in need of accommodations as provided for in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 should contact the board at (717) 787-4526 or through the Pennsylvania AT&T Relay Service at (800) 654-5984 (TDD) to discuss how the board can accommodate their needs.

For more information, visit www.depweb.state.pa.us, then select “Public Participation.”

DEMAND ACCOUNTABILITY!