There is news that the Region 3 office of the US Environmental Protection Agency According has established a Resource Extraction Task Force to explore how existing EPA regulations and procedures may be used for stricter protection of natural gas extraction in PA, VA, and WV. Headquartered in Philadelphia, this Region 3 Task Force is reported by insideEPA.com to include the Department of Justice and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.

Although limited by the exemption of hydrofracturing fluids from the Safe Drinking Water Act, the agency may be able to use its authority under the Clean Water and Clean Air Acts. Regardless of what happens in the state legislature this Fall, the prospect of stronger enforcement by the EPA, along with its study of the impact of hydrofracturing on water quality, is good news for the environment.

As the ‘gas-patch’ booms, so do the related number of articles and news items. Below are four locally relevant capsules.

Expert Explains Possible Marcellus Health Problems: At a seminar on August 27, Pitt public health expert Dr. Volz described the variety of hazardous air and water contaminants from well wastewater ponds — including benzene, toluene and xylene.

“We have little data now on the species of organic chemicals in the air as a result of gases released from the fracking fluids. Research is needed,” said Dr. Volz, according to the Post-Gazette. “There’s controversy over whether the levels of gases released can produce health effects. But with thousands or tens of thousands of wells and [gas pumping] stations, you can get an idea of what the emissions will be and what the risk will be to human health.” (more…)

On September 4, join Matt Peters for a Forest Watch hike in the Allegheny NF. The group will be hunt for Marcellus gas wells, and visit one of the proposed logging project areas currently in the Scoping phase of the USFS public comment process.

The trip can be a day hike for those who wish to return on Saturday evening, or an overnight for those who want to camp out. Those who camp will share a pasta meal.

To carpool or caravan, meet 8:00 am at the Sierra Club office on North Craig.

Things to bring: camera, GPS, field guide, notebooks, cool weather and rain gear, sturdy shoes, food and water (bag lunch for day hikers)…

For more information, contact Matt Peters at matt at wormsnbats dot com or (412) 320-0739.

Do municipalities have the right to determine whether drilling for Marcellus natural gas be allowed in their district? That is the constitutional question that Pittsburgh Councilman Doug Shields raised at a press conference on August 16. As he proposed a banning of Marcellus drilling in the city, Councilman Shields used the example of a municipality being able to decide whether or not to allow the sale of liquor in its area, as places like Wilkinsburg have done for years. Once allowed, the sale of liquor is then subject to regulation by the state. (more…)

Drilling down 5,000 ft. to Marcellus Shale is a big operation!
Photo: Bill Belitkus

If drilling takes place, and why lease if you don’t intend to drill, seismic testing will be undertaken to determine the character of the shale deposit, then a 3-4 acre well pad will be created, containment ponds built for the fracking fluid, and pipelines constructed for the removal of the extracted gas. Even industry-hired consultant Tom Ridge is quoted as saying “I’d have a tough time putting a rig down next to my tomb or next to anyone I’m related to.” (more…)

Banking giant PNC has gained a fair reputation in Pittsburgh for being a ‘green’ corporate member of the community, but its role in financing the destructive practice of mountain top removal is not so ‘green’.

On the company website is the statement “Among America’s top financial institutions, no company has done more to spur the charge, or energize the green cause than PNC. We have taken the lead when it comes to environmentally and employee friendly construction.”

A Green Building Alliance quote on the Website states PNC is “a corporate leader in green building and employee friendliness.” And from the Urban Land Institute’s Awards for Excellence, PNC was among firms from Japan, the Netherlands and United States recognized for its “powerful impact of thoughtful urban design.” (more…)

So how ‘green’ are Western Pennsylvanian schools? Carnegie Mellon remains the best at #64, but this is down from #31 last year. Other local ‘green schools’ are Allegheny College (#91), Chatham University (#106), and Penn State (#108).   Apparently Pitt and Duquesne did not return the Club’s questionnaire, for whatever reason.

The ranking of 162 schools was based on categories such as energy supply, energy efficiency, food, purchasing, waste, investment, etc.

Highlights include:

• Tom Hoffman writing about City of Pittsburgh legislation — Clean Air and Clean Water Acts
• A beginner’s guide to Marcellus Shale in PA by Don Gibbon
• A list of upcoming outings

And much more!

Letters to the editor, photos, stories from outings and any other submissions can be sent to sierran at alleghenysc dot org or brought to an Allegheny Group meeting.

Following the demolition of the old Turnpike bridge across the Allegheny River at Harmar and Plum in mid-July, Allegheny County decided not to take ownership of the piers for possible construction of a hike/bike trail bridge across the river in the future.

On August 9 the piers were scheduled to be demolished. However, former Allegheny County Council Member-at-Large David Fawcett contacted Turnpike Commission CEO Joseph Brimmeier and persuaded the CEO to halt demolition and retain ownership of the piers for a couple of years. This delay will allow Allegheny County to decide if they indeed want to eventually construct a trail bridge across the river.

Thanks to Mr. Fawcett deserves our thanks, as do all who wrote to County Executive Dan Onorato.

The Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) is putting funds from the Federal stimulus bill (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009) to good use. The Pennsylvania Home Heating Equipment Rebate Program offers rebates for non-electric home heating and water heating equipment. Begun in April 2010, on August 2 the DEP announced that rebates have increased from the original range of $100 to $500 to a range of $250 to $1,000. (more…)

With a surprise bipartisan vote of 48-9, on August 3, the New York Senate approved a temporary moratorium on Marcellus Shale drilling in the state. The moratorium would extend to May 15, 2011, giving the state Department of Environmental Conservation time to formulate guidelines for issuing drilling permits. The bill awaits action when the state Assembly’s recess ends September 15. See the news report video. (more…)

Drilling down 5,000 ft. to Marcellus Shale is a big operation!
Photo: Bill Belitkus

Of the 1,435 violations associated with Marcellus Shale gas extraction, PLTA identified 952 as having harmed the environment, and they were broken down as:

• 268 involving improper construction of waste water impoundments
• 10 involving improper well casing
• 154 involving discharge of industrial waste
• 16 involving improper blowout prevention

The big companies East Resources, Chesapeake, Chief, and Cabot accounted for 449 of these 952 harmful violations. In what some may see as fine understatement, DEP Secretary John Hangar said “The industry as a whole is not operating at an excellent level. We are not demanding perfection, but we are demanding excellence.” (more…)

It is understandable for Congressmen like Rep. Mike Doyle to be frustrated with their colleagues in the Senate. In June 2009, the House passed a Clean Energy Bill (H.R.2454) designed to reduce carbon emissions 80% by 2050, develop electric cars, halt deforestation, and more. In another major step in May, the House passed the Home Star Energy Retrofit Act (H.R.5019) by a vote of 246-161. Finally, last Friday, by a vote of 209-193 the House passed the Consolidated Land, Energy, and Aquatic Resources (CLEAR) Act (H.R. 3534). Local Republicans Murphy, Shuster, and Thompson voted Nay.

This is all serious stuff. For example, the CLEAR Act creates a framework for the restoration of the Gulf of Mexico, places stricter regulations for the siting of energy facilities, for the first time provides full and dedicated funding for the important Land and Water Conservation Fund, and removes the $75M cap liability for clean-up costs. (more…)

On June 9, 2009, Sens. Bob Casey and Chuck Schumer introduced the Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act (S.1215). The purpose of the bill is to repeal the exemption of hydraulic fracturing fluids from the Safe Drinking Water Act and to require oil and gas companies to disclose the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing operations. With S.1215 stuck in committee and with only eight co-sponsors, Sen Casey has now been able to include most of S.1215 into the Clean Energy Jobs and Oil Company Accountability Act (CLEAR) (S.3663) that Majority Leader Reid is trying to get through the Senate.

The gas drilling industry may claim that the chemistries of the fracking fluids are in fact open to the public. If so, then the exemption to the Clean Water Act would not be necessary and nation-wide standards would be acceptable.