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Three horizontal wells are being drilled by
CNX Energy
in 2010 over the objections of some residents who are concerned
about their water quality being affected. There was a spill at Cross
Creek Lake, a fishing lake at a county park in western Pennsylvania in 2009.
The authority responded to resident's concerns with this statement,
"MAWC will
be very vigilant in the protection of our source of supplies from
any contamination." Furthermore, these projects would "…improve the overall financial condition of the MAWC
and thus benefit ratepayers."
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Two Marcellus drilling sites can be seen in the photo above,
one toward the top left edge of the photo and the other toward the
middle.
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CNX Gas drilling site next to the 1,300 acre Beaver Run
Reservoir owned by the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County
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Marcellus Shale drilling in progress
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Sun reflects off a black pit liner at the drilling site. For
some reason, the largest impoundment dam doesn't have a liner.
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These new gas wells at Beaver Run Reservoir will be
approximately 7,000 deep with 2,000 foot horizontals through the
Marcellus Shale layer
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Drilling site overlooks the reservoir that provides drinking
water to 150,000 customers in Westmoreland County near Pittsburgh,
Pa
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"Special
consideration should be give to well operations that
occur in proximity to water bodies (natural or man-made)
that are utilized for drinking water (e.g. reservoirs
and lakes) where even on individual adverse impact can
have tremendous, perhaps irreparable, economic and
social cost. Concepts used in other regulatory programs
such as the Surfac Mining Conservation and Reclamation
Act, where areas are deemed unsuitable of extraction
when in proximity to large scale water supplies, may be
appropriate for oil and gas controls. Further, Drinking
Water Suppliers should specifically be given notice and
opportunity to comment on any proposed permit plan or
application within a certain distance of identified
storage or source areas."
Pre-Permitting and Site Assessment Considerations
Developing the Marcellus
Shale
Pennsylvania
Environmental Council
2010 |
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A second CNX site near the reservoir with two impoundment
dams. One impoundment dam is lined, while the the other is not.
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The initial drilling is being done with a smaller drilling rig
prior to a larger rig being brought in for the final horizontal
drilling phase.
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Production pit full of 'Mr Yuk' flowback.
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UPDATES
IUP students to test Beaver Run Reservoir for
drilling problems
JUNE 1, 2011 - Indiana University of Pennsylvania
students will begin collecting samples today from the
Beaver Run Reservoir to determine whether Marcellus
shale deep-well drilling has affected the drinking water
supply.
Full story More drilling set around Beaver Run reservoir
OCT. 16, 2010 - Consol Energy plans to drill eight more
Marcellus shale natural gas wells near the Municipal
Authority of Westmoreland County's water treatment plant
at Beaver Run reservoir in Washington Township. That
means Consol will have roughly 60 gas wells — Marcellus
and the more common shallow-drill — surrounding Beaver
Run Dam by 2012.
Full story |
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