Concerned

Inspectors with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) returned to the site of a condensate leak in Washington County on Tuesday to take soil and water samples near a natural gas well owned by a Chevron Corp. subsidiary.

Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. said last week it was “disappointed” and “concerned” over a decision by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to conduct water sampling in Dimock Township, PA, because it duplicates a state investigation, causes regulatory uncertainty and conflicts with Obama administration policy.

Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. says it is “disappointed” and “concerned” over a decision by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to conduct water sampling in Dimock Township, PA, saying the action duplicates a state investigation, causes regulatory uncertainty and conflicts with Obama administration policy.

Elected officials from a wealthy Pittsburgh suburb are urging their constituents to vote against a controversial referendum on the Nov. 8 ballot that would ban hydraulic fracturing (fracking) over fears that its passage would put the suburb in the crosshairs for lawsuits and undermine its drilling ordinance.

A Pennsylvania township has filed lawsuit against its county board of elections, arguing that a referendum put forth by an environmental group that would ban hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in the township violates several state laws and could expose the municipality to legal action by the industry and others.

Almost three months to the day after first enacting a ban on natural gas drilling, the City of Wellsburg, WV, voted 5-3 on Tuesday night to repeal the measure.

ExxonMobil Corp. this week launched a public relations campaign while Chevron Corp. is working with industry groups to assure the public that drilling unconventional wells using hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracking) is safe. The moves preceded separate annual meetings where shareholders voiced growing support for more disclosure about the well stimulation practices.

A congressional push to increase regulations on hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracking) would have little impact on Pennsylvania, according to a regional director of the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).

As a hard-core group of concerned consumers from the San Francisco Bay Area suburbs continues to allege health hazards from smart meters, Pacific Gas and Electric Co. (PG&E) last Thursday proposed a radio wave-free option for customers who are convinced that radio frequencies produced in the meters cause serious health problems. PG&E proposes to simply turn off the radios in the smart meters for customers requesting it.