DEP to require companies to list chemicals used at each gas well

DEP to require companies to list chemicals used at each gas well
Direct Url - http://thetimes-tribune.com/news/dep-to-require-companies-to-list-chemicals-used-at-each-gas-well-1.711837

(Note this is not my work)
by laura legere (staff writer)
Published: April 2, 2010

CLARKS SUMMIT - Gas drilling companies operating in Pennsylvania will have to provide the names of chemicals used at each well site under regulations proposed by the state's environmental oversight agency.

The requirement, which was added last week to the most recent draft of proposed well construction regulations, was discussed by the head of the Department of Environmental Protection's Bureau of Oil and Gas Management at a meeting of the Abington Council of Governments Thursday night.

The new proposal would require each company to include a list of the names and the total volume of chemicals used to hydraulically fracture each well as part of a report the drillers submit once each well is completed.

The regulations, if approved, will give a well-by-well picture of the chemicals that are mixed with water and sand and injected underground to break apart gas-bearing rock formations including the Marcellus Shale.

Scott Perry, who was appointed director of the bureau in mid-January, said the requirement was just added now to the suite of regulations first proposed in September "because we heard what the concerns of the public were."

Although drillers provide the department with Material Safety Data Sheets that outline what chemicals the companies plan to use at a well site, Mr. Perry said that prior to the new completion report requirements "we didn't ask for what chemicals were used to frack a well.""It's important for transparency, for people to be able to see what's going on," he said. The list will not include the volumes of individual chemicals used at a well site, he said.

He also insisted that even though the department is proposing to strengthen its disclosure requirements, hydraulic fracturing is not a threat to water supplies.

"There has never been any evidence of fracking ever causing direct contamination of fresh groundwater in Pennsylvania or anywhere else," he said.

"If I honestly thought that fracking was causing a direct communication with groundwater resources, I wouldn't be talking about how we have a chemical list. That is the ultimate half-measure. I would be saying, 'This cannot occur.' "

The proposed regulations will be presented at a meeting of the Environmental Quality Board on May 19, Mr. Perry said.

Contact the writer: llegere@timesshamrock.com
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This was part of my comments to the proposed legistation - I still believe it does not require the release of proprietory data - but it is important to note the MSDS sheets and information have always been included as part of the permitting process.  Also - this report will be generated after completion to document what was actually used.

Looking for environmental or water quality monitoring equipment for field work.