The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said Thursday initial test results of water samples taken from 11 households in Dimock Township, PA, do not indicate any levels of contamination from natural gas drilling.

EPA officials said in January the agency would take water samples from about 61 homes in the Susquehanna County community, much to the chagrin of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and Cabot Oil & Gas Corp., which both maintained that Dimock’s water is safe (see Shale Daily, Jan. 27; Jan. 23).

Houston-based Cabot said it was vindicated by the EPA’s findings.

“Cabot is steadfastly committed to environmental stewardship, collaboration with state regulators, and compliance with all applicable federal, state and local laws,” the company said. “We are pleased that data released by EPA today on sampling of water in Dimock confirmed earlier findings that Dimock drinking water meets all regulatory standards.”

(To read the full story go to shaledaily.com).

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