Involving

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) settled a Clean Water Act (CWA) case for wetlands violations, requiring PDC Mountaineer (PDCM) to pay a penalty of $177,500 to resolve violations involving construction activities at Marcellus Shale gas extraction facilities in northern West Virginia. According to EPA, Bridgeport, WV-based PDCM failed to apply for necessary permits to discharge fill materials into wetlands or streams in Harrison County, WV. PDCM, which also agreed to restore and/or complete mitigation projects at four sites in the state pursuant to separate CWA orders, did not admit to violating the CWA. Earlier this month, PDC Energy reported that PDCM, a joint venture of PDC and Lime Rock Partners V LP, completed three horizontal Marcellus wells since mid-September. The wells were expected to be turned-in-line by year’s end, once a permit for a gathering line river crossing is received, PDC said.

Atlas Pipeline Partners LP, which serves producers in West Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas, surpassed a record for processed natural gas volumes in 3Q2012, which were up 36% from a year ago, executives said Wednesday.

A group of six Senate Republicans has called on President Obama to not issue an executive order on cybersecurity involving U.S. government and national critical infrastructure, such as natural gas and electric transmission facilities, arguing that the legislative process is a better way to enhance cybersecurity (see Daily GPI, Sept. 13).

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s $25 million swaps threshold level for trades involving “special entities,” such as publicly owned utilities, will drive non-bank firms out of the natural gas and electricity markets, leaving trading to big banks like J.P. Morgan, Bank of America and Goldman Sachs, said a major producer group Monday.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Friday approved a proposed phased compliance program for certain swaps involving foreign swap dealers (SDs), foreign major swap participants (MSPs), U.S. SDs, U.S. MSPs, and foreign branches of U.S. SDs and MSPs.

Citing the the recent disclosure of a “crucify them” enforcement approach by a former Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) official and several missteps involving agency investigations into allegations of water contamination from hydraulic fracturing, Congress last Wednesday was called upon to exercise greater oversight over the agency’s regional officials and their activities.

Citing the the recent disclosure of a “crucify them” enforcement mentality of a former Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) official and several agency missteps involving the use of hydraulic fracturing to develop unconventional gas, Congress Wednesday was called upon to exercise greater oversight over EPA’s regional officials and their activities.

Citing the the recent disclosure of a “crucify them” enforcement approach by a former Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) official and several missteps involving the regulation of hydraulic fracturing, Congress Wednesday was called upon to exercise greater oversight over the agency’s regional officials and their activities.

Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), who has been at the forefront of the chamber’s efforts to address cyber vulnerabilities involving the nation’s critical infrastructure, sent a letter to the American Gas Association (AGA) Thursday expressing concern about a recent report that said AGA-developed standards to protect data transmitted by control systems were abandoned because of the costs.