Thursday PA Environment & Energy NewsClips 10.13.22

Are You Telling Your Story?

Senate returns to session October 17, 18, 19, 24, 25, 26, November 15 [Adjourn for year]

     -- Committee Schedule

House returns to session October 24, 25, 26, November 14, 15, 16 [Adjourn for year]

     -- Committee Schedule

TODAY’s Calendar Of Events 

 

TODAY 9:00: Agenda Posted. DEP Mining and Reclamation Advisory Board meeting.  DEP Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation’s River Street Facility, 29 North River St., Plains, Luzerne County. Contact Daniel Snowden dsnowden@pa.gov or 717-783-8846.  (formal notice)

 

-- EQB Adopts Final-Omitted Reg. Limiting Methane Emissions From Conventional Oil & Gas Facilities; And A First-Ever State MCL For PFOS/PFOA  [PaEN]

-- Post-Gazette: DEP Races To Finish Regulations To Limit Methane Emissions From Oil & Gas Facilities With $450 Million In Federal Highway Funds At Stake

-- StateImpactPA - Rachel McDevitt: DEP Moves Reg. Forward To Limit Methane Emissions From Conventional Gas Wells, Seeks To Beat Federal Deadline 

-- PA Capital-Star: The Spread Of PFAS ‘Forever Chemicals’ Is Even Worse Than You Thought

 

-- DEP Begins Accepting Applications For $103.4 Million In Abandoned Mine Reclamation Grants Starting Oct. 24  [PaEN]

 

-- Guest Essay: Keystone 10 Million Trees Partnership Celebrates 5 Million Trees Planted -  By Cindy Adams Dunn, Secretary of DCNR  [PaEN]

 

-- PA Capital-Star: Chesapeake Bay Leaders Resolute Even As Cleanup Targets Become More Elusive

-- Lancaster Farming: Parting Words From Retiring Ann Swanson: Focus Chesapeake Bay Cleanup Efforts On Farming 

-- ​​NRCS-PA Awards Nearly $300,000 To Four Conservation Innovation Grant Projects In PA [PaEN]

-- The Burg: Trees For Free: PASA Sustainable Agriculture Group To Hand Out Vouchers For 10,000 Trees In Harrisburg Thru Oct. 21 

-- PennDOT Invites Businesses To Learn About New National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Grant Program In Nov. 1 Webinar, 8 In-Person Stakeholder Sessions Beginning Oct. 13  [PaEN]

-- Inquirer: Charging An Electric Vehicle In Philly Is A Challenge

-- U.S. EIA Projects Home Heating Costs Will Increase Most For Natural Gas - 28%, Heating Oil - 27%, Electricity - 10%, Propane 5% This Winter  [PaEN]

 

-- Marcellus Shale Coalition: EIA - Appalachia Produces Third Of U.S. Natural Gas

 

-- Post-Gazette: Severe Weather Led To Record Number Of PA Power Outages In 2021

-- Capital & Main - Audry Carleton: How The Promise Of A Clean Energy Future In PA Could Be Undone By Powerful Oil & Gas Industry  [Part III]

-- WSJ: Westinghouse Deal Latest Signal Of Nuclear Power Revival

-- PennEnvironment: Speeding Up Solutions To Sewage Overflows, Runoff Pollution In Pittsburgh’s 3 Rivers

-- WESA: Report Finds ALCOSAN’s $2 Billion Sewage Cleanup Plan Isn’t Enough To Eliminate Sewage Overflows

-- TribLive: Environmentalists, Elected Officials Want More Done To Keep Sewage Out Of Pittsburgh Rivers

-- Penn State Oct. 17 EarthTalk Webinar To Discuss Large-Scale Solar Trends, Impacts And Implications  [PaEN]

-- Still Time To Register For 2022 Statewide Litter Summit In Lancaster Nov. 1-2  [PaEN]

-- Warren Times: Middle School Students Learn During Conewango Creek Cleanup

-- Register Now For Oct. 29 Pike County Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event  [PaEN]

-- PA Capital-Star Guest Essay: PA’s Rachel Carson’s ‘Silent Spring’ At 60 - Four Essential Reads

-- Gov. Wolf Welcomes Home PA Task Force 1 From Deployment To Hurricane Ravaged Florida

-- Williamsport Sun Editorial: Work On Flood Prevention Important

-- Wilkes-Barre Times Editorial: PREPARE Act Good First Step Toward Extreme Weather Readiness

-- York Daily Record: Kiwanis Lake Now A ‘Smart Lake’ Teaching Students How To Keep Their Aquatic Neighborhood Healthy

-- MCall: Fall Foliage Has Arrived In The Poconos, When Will Lehigh Valley See Its Peak?

-- DailyLocal.com: Delaware County-based Brandywine Conservancy’s Efforts To Preserve Land From Development Nears 70,000 Acre Mark

-- WeConservePA: New Trail Maintenance Data Highlights A Range Of PA Trails

-- Warren Times Editorial: Is Now The Time To Add New State Parks, High Cost For Natural Gems

-- PA/NJ Chapter American Chestnut Foundation Update: Fall Meeting Nov. 12; Upcoming Events; Seeking Volunteer Historians; iNaturalist App Observations

-- AP: Prosecutor: Fisherman Caught Cheating At Fishing Tournament Charged [Including PA Angler]

-- Inquirer - Frank Kummer: Official-Looking Bigfoot Warnings Dot PA’s State Parks, Who Put them There?

-- PennLive - Marcus Schneck: Last Mountain Lions In PA Revealed In History, Folklore And Newspapers

-- Erie Times - Brian Whipkey: Top Game Commission Official Shares Insights On Losing 110 Pounds Before Hunting Season

-- PennLive - Marcus Schneck: State Game Lands Grow By 158 Acres In Lebanon, Lancaster Counties

 

6th Oil/Natural Gas Spike: True Energy Independence Means Renewables

[There Is No Limit To What Oil/Natural Gas Industry Can Make You Pay]

 

-- U.S. EIA Projects Home Heating Costs Will Increase Most For Natural Gas - 28%, Heating Oil - 27%, Electricity - 10%, Propane 5% This Winter  [PaEN]

 

-- Reuters: EIA: U.S. Home Heating Bills Expected To Surge Up To 28% This Winter With Spike In Natural Gas Prices

 

-- WSJ: OPEC+ Oil Supply Cut Could Tip Global Economy Into Recession, International Energy Agency Says

 

-- Reuters: European Natural Gas Prices Whipsaw As Infrastructure Risks Rattle Nerves

 

-- AP: Report: Bomb Threat Led To Evacuation Of Norway Natural Gas Processing Plant

 

-- Financial Times: Chevron Oil Chief Blames Western Governments For Energy Crunch; Climate Policies Make Energy Markets More Volatile

 

American Rescue Plan Funding

 

-- $11 Billion In Federal American Rescue Plan Funding To PA State Government, Local Governments Has Yet To Be Invested.  What’s Your Community Doing?

PA Politics - Everything Is Connected

-- Sen. Haywood Proposes Legislation To Disqualify Insurrectionists From PA Ballots

-- Post-Gazette: Federal Judge Rejects Change In Venue For Trial Of Fayette County Man Charged With Crimes Related To Assault On U.S. Capitol

-- WHYY: Penn State Is About To Host The ‘Proud Boys’ Founder, And Its Students Are Protesting  

-- AP: Supporters Of Ex-President Get Split Verdict In Philadelphia Weapons, Election Case

-- Erie Times: Shapiro Calls On Republican Gubernatorial Candidate Mastriano To Rescind Invitation To Alt-Right Operative Jack Posobiec

-- Erie Times: Shapiro Campaigns In Erie, Explains His Vision For PA Education

-- PennLive - Jan Murphy: AirTag Leads To Discovery Of Dumpster Filled With Stolen Shapiro, Fetterman Campaign Signs In Chester County 

-- TribLive: Fetterman Addresses Criticism Over Need For Closed Captioning During His Stroke Recovery

-- AP: NBC Reporter’s Comment About Fetterman Having Difficulty Following Their Conversation Draws Criticism

-- PennLive - John Baer: Voters Need To Use Some Basics To Decide Fetterman v. Dr. Oz For U.S. Senate

-- Post-Gazette: A Mike Doyle Dilemma: Voter Confusion Between Retiring Democrat And Republican Newcomer Sends Summer Lee Team Scrambling

-- Politics PA: PA Senate Preview - Philadelphia Region

-- WHYY: Latino Voters Across PA Are Ignored Until Right Before An Election, How Are Philly-Area Agencies Filling The Gap?

-- LancasterOnline: Lancaster County Will Count Any Undated Mail-In Ballots, But Keep Them Separate

-- Reading Eagle: PA Official, Voter Advocacy Groups Criticize Ballot Drop Box Policy In Berks

-- Inquirer Editorial: From The Courts, New Threats To Voting Access And Police Accountability

-- Post-Gazette Editorial: Caution On Term Limits For Lawmakers

-- Spotlight PA: Penn State Wavers On Funding For Center For Racial Justice, A Key Commitment Following 2020 Protests

-- Inquirer: Study: PA Students Have More K-12 Educational Opportunities Than National Average, But Racial Disparities Are Among The Worst

-- TribLive Editorial: Book Bans Can Threaten Local Control

-- WITF: Nearly $1 Million Awarded To PA Groups Helping Immigrants Become Citizens

-- MCall - Paul Muschick: Carbon Monoxide Scare At Allentown Daycare Could Have Possibly Been Prevented If PA Lawmakers Did Their Jobs

-- Scranton Times Editorial: Legislative Negligence On Carbon Monoxide Nearly Deadly At Allentown Daycare Center

-- PennLive: How Does PA Crime Compare To U.S. Trends? Nobody Knows

-- Inquirer: PA Now Officially Agrees - Deaths From 1985 MOVE Bombing In Philadelphia Were Murder, Not Accidential

-- Inquirer: Man Arrested In Philly H.S. Shooting Was Sold Ammo Despite Felon Status, Police Say

-- City & State PA: Push To Compensate Wrongfully Convicted Gets A Bipartisan Backing In Harrisburg

-- Post-Gazette: Steelers Legend Art Rooney Sr.’s Secret Life In The Rackets

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[Posted: October 13, 2022]  PA Environment Digest

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DEP: Shell, Pipeline Contractor Assessed $670,000 Penalty For Falcon Ethane Pipeline Construction Violations In Allegheny, Beaver, Washington Counties

On October 13, the Department of Environmental Protection announced it has executed a $670,000 consent assessment of civil penalty with Shell Pipeline Company LP and its contractor, Minnesota Limited LLC, for violations of its permit and Pennsylvania laws and regulations that occurred in 2019 and 2020 during construction of the company’s Falcon pipeline project. 

Between March 14, 2019, and April 9, 2021, DEP and the Allegheny, Beaver, and Washington County conservation districts, on DEP’s behalf, conducted at least 67 inspections of the pipeline construction sites to determine compliance by Shell Pipeline Company and Minnesota Limited with permits as well as state laws and regulations. 

DEP and the conservation districts observed violations resulting in sediment pollution from pipeline construction sites entering waters of the Commonwealth as well as violations that had the potential to cause sediment pollution into waters of the Commonwealth. However, no visual aquatic impacts were observed. 

The violations included five inadvertent returns, eight sediment discharges, failure to comply with permit conditions, failure to implement or maintain effective erosion and sediment best management practices, and failure to stabilize the site upon cessation of earth disturbance activity. 

DEP also found that Shell Pipeline Company and Minnesota Limited failed to notify DEP of inadvertent returns as required. 

The approximately 45.5-mile-long Falcon pipeline crosses through portions of Allegheny, Beaver, and Washington counties connecting ethane production facilities in Houston, Pa. to a petrochemical facility in Monaca, Pa., which is permitted to Shell Chemical Appalachia LLC. 

A separate segment of the pipeline connects ethane production facilities in Scio and Cadiz, Ohio and crosses through Beaver County the petrochemical facility.

 Shell Pipeline Company received an erosion and sediment control general permit for the project and coverage under Chapter 105 encroachment permits in Allegheny, Beaver, and Washington counties in December 2018. 

Approximately 608 acres of land were disturbed during construction of the pipeline. 

Pipeline construction is complete and construction sites have been temporarily stabilized. Shell Pipeline Company and Minnesota Limited are in the process of achieving permanent stabilization. 

Shell Pipeline Company has agreed to pay a $670,000 civil penalty. 

In addition, the company will pay cost recovery in the amounts of $21,339 to DEP; $1,824 to the Allegheny County Conservation District; $1,496 to the Beaver County Conservation District, and $2,611 to the Washington County Conservation District. 

Of the total payment to DEP, $479,464 will go into the Commonwealth’s Clean Water Fund and $211,875 will go into the Encroachments Fund. 

Click Here for a copy of the penalty assessment.

For more information on the pipeline, visit DEP’s Falcon Ethane Pipeline webpage.

Related Articles - Major Oil & Gas Criminal/Monetary Penalties Last 2 Years:

-- House Committee Fails To Address $70 Million In Penalties On Natural Gas Pipelines Or Real Concerns Of People Living Near Gas Production & Distribution Facilities

-- AG Shapiro: Energy Transfer/Sunoco Convicted Of Criminal Charges Related To Construction Of Mariner East 2 & Revolution Natural Gas/Liquids Pipelines In PA

-- Sunoco/Mariner East Pipeline To Pay $4 Million In Damages And Restore Lake At Marsh Creek State Park Polluted By A Spill In Chester County

-- Federal Court Approves DEP, EPA, DOJ Settlement With Chesapeake Appalachia For Failure To Identify, Protect Wetlands At 76 Gas Well Drilling Sites, $1.9 Million Penalty

-- PUC Imposes $1 Million Penalty On Energy Transfer Company For 2018 Revolution Pipeline Explosion In Beaver County

-- DEP Collects $497,000, Fish & Boat Commission Collects $25,855 In Penalties For Latest Violations Involving Mariner East 2 Pipeline Construction In Lebanon County

-- DEP: Range Resources Pays $294,000 Penalty For Delaying The Plugging Of 42 Conventional Oil & Gas Wells In 8 Counties

-- DEP: Olympus Energy Natural Gas Driller Fined $175,000 For Water Quality Violations In Allegheny County

-- DEP Collects $147,250 Penalty From Rice Drilling B LLC For Erosion & Sedimentation Violations In Greene County; DEP Found Rice Had Hundreds Of Other Violations, Including Abandoning Wells Without Plugging Them

-- DEP Collects $140,000 Penalty From ETC Northeast Field Services For Pipeline Construction Violations In Beaver County

-- DEP Order Requires Payment Of $125,000 Penalty For Latest Revolution Natural Gas Pipeline Construction Violations In Beaver County

-- DEP Collects $85,000 Penalty For Mariner East 2 Pipeline Construction Violations In Blair, Cumberland, Juniata, Lebanon Counties

-- AP: PUC Judge: Sunoco/Energy Transfer Failed To Protect Delaware County Community During Construction Of Mariner East Pipeline, $51,000 Penalty Proposed

-- AG Shapiro: Southeast Directional Drilling Pleads Guilty To Contaminating Water Supply In Washington County, To Pay $15,000 Fine

NewsClip:

-- WESA/The Allegheny Front - Reid Frazier: How Shell’s New Ethane Cracker In Beaver County Will Impact Air Quality, Jobs, Property Values [And The State Budget]

Related Articles This Week:

-- EQB Adopts Final-Omitted Reg. Limiting Methane Emissions From Conventional Oil & Gas Facilities; And A First-Ever State MCL For PFOS/PFOA  [PaEN]

-- U.S. EIA Projects Home Heating Costs Will Increase Most For Natural Gas - 28%, Heating Oil - 27%, Electricity - 10%, Propane 5% This Winter  [PaEN]

[Posted: October 13, 2022]  PA Environment Digest

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