May 20, 2018 3 min read

Quite simply, modern drilling operations and techniques require modern protections. That’s why it’s so egregious that some legislators in Harrisburg would cave to the influence of oil and gas lobbyists and pursue passage of legislation that seeks to return rules for conventional (shallow) gas wells to where they were in the ’80s. That is not a typo – there really are state legislators like Washington County Reps. Jason Ortitay and Bud Cook, ostensibly sent to Harrisburg to work for the people, who are seeking to roll back safeguards for our air, water and health to where they were several decades ago.

By taking us on a journey back in time via H.B. 2154, they are reviving antiquated policies that among other things would exempt certain wastewater treatment facilities from water protection requirements, removes a requirement for drillers who negatively impact a water supply to restore it to Safe Drinking Water Act standards and remove language requiring additional review of well-site impacts to public resources, such as state parks and forests.

This process completely ignores the advances in science and technology that have occurred. The rationale being offered- that conventional oil and gas operations are benign and have little impact on the environment discounts the reality on the ground. All types of oil and gas wells are developed with toxic chemicals and large volumes of water, disturb land and generate polluting waste. Today, most conventional operations rely on hydraulic fracturing (fracking). Also, the state Department of Environmental Protection’s 2016 Oil and Gas Annual Report reported violations by conventional oil and gas operations rose nearly 80 percent in 2016. In 2016, the DEP performed 15,858 inspections of conventional oil and gas facilities and found 1,800 violations for a 11.35 percent violation rate or 88.65 percent compliance rate. DEP took 376 enforcement actions against conventional drillers based on those violations. Conventional well violations increased from 1,024 violations in 2015 to 1,834 violations. This is five times the number of violations as Marcellus Shale drilling operations and 3.5 times the number of enforcement actions.

Oil and gas development and distribution have changed dramatically since the mid-1980s, so it is essential that our oversight of this industry continue to move forward with the times, not take one giant step backward. Legislation such as H.B. 2154 serves greedy corporate interests and no one else.

Our representatives in Harrisburg would serve their constituents best by supporting Gov. Wolf’s plan to curb methane pollution from thousands of existing sources in the commonwealth, instead of advocating for misguided policies. Having already put the cart before the horse, we need to saddle that steed up for the long ride ahead.

Steve Hvozdovich is Pennsylvania Campaigns Director for Clean Water Action in Pittsburgh.