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Marcellus Shale: Oil & Gas Waste Violation at Jersey Shore Borough

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Pennsylvania citizens should watch the ditches on the sides of the roads and the creeks because that stuff has to go somewhere!

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

COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA
Dept. of Environmental Protection
Northcentral Regional Office
208 West Third Street, Suite 101
Williamsport, PA 17701

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
6/23/2009

CONTACT:
Daniel T. Spadoni
Phone: (570) 327-3659

DEP SAYS JERSEY SHORE BOROUGH EXCEEDS WASTEWATER PERMIT LIMITS

WILLIAMSPORT – The Department of Environmental Protection today ordered Jersey Shore Borough to immediately stop accepting wastewater from oil and gas drilling for treatment at the borough’s sewage treatment plant.

“DEP approved Jersey Shore borough’s request to accept limited amounts of oil and gas wastewater for disposal in July 2008,” said DEP Northcentral Regional Director Robert Yowell. “That approval was predicated on the borough following the requirements submitted in its gas well wastewater acceptance plan. The borough has not met the conditions of the plan.”

The order requires the borough to immediately stop accepting all oil and gas wastewater delivered to the plant. Further, any oil and gas wastewater currently on site must be removed and disposed at another approved facility or sent to the treatment plant at a significantly reduced rate approved by DEP to ensure it does not adversely affect the treatment system.

Any future acceptance of oil and gas wastewater by Jersey Shore requires a prior approval by DEP of an amended wastewater discharge permit for which the borough must apply.

DEP sent a notice of violation letter to the borough in April for discharge permit violations that could be attributed to the acceptance of the oil and gas wastewater. The letter required the borough to evaluate the wastewater acceptance process.

Last week, DEP staff conducted a follow-up inspection at the plant that revealed many significant problems, including lack of proper pollutant load tracking; lack of proper flow restrictions; and failure to follow proper sample analysis prior to sending the wastewater to the sewage treatment plant.

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About Sharon Wilson

Sharon Wilson is considered a leading citizen expert on the impacts of shale oil and gas extraction. She is the go-to person whether it’s top EPA officials from D.C., national and international news networks, or residents facing the shock of eminent domain and the devastating environmental effects of natural gas development in their backyards.

Comments

  1. Thanks for the warning, we will be on the lookout in Bradford Co. for this type of toxic waste dumping. All the more reason why we need more inspectors,regulations,
    penalties and prison sentences for these well operators.

  2. Thanks for the warning, we will be on the lookout in Bradford Co. for this type of toxic waste dumping. All the more reason why we need more inspectors,regulations,
    penalties and prison sentences for these well operators.

  3. It's nice to know that our state government is doing what it is supposed to do!
    voiceofreason

  4. I was born and raised in williamsport and then travelled the United states in my career. If the residents of lycoming county allow the gas drilling to happen, in about 10 years, all the ground water will be so contaminated that it will not be able to be drank or used at all and then the susquahana river along side of williamsport all the way up through lock haven and onward to the last gas well upstream wil;l be dead with no fish and vegetation left alive. The river will be so contaminiated that it will not be safe to even enter the water for boating or tubing or skiing. The Hiawatha boat tours might as well go out of business now because the river will be a dead contaminated chemical dump. All water in the upper pennsylvania basin eventually flows into the river. Remember all the road side springs that flow from the water table out the pipes that we got jugs of water from and couild drink it??? that very same conduit still exist and the contaminated chemicals that the gas companies will pump out of the wells will find its way into the river. Good by williamsport forever. and ever. Imagine looking over the look out on the pike in south williamsport and seeing a dead baren river valley !!!