Opposition voiced on proposed fracking waste injection well in Plum
PLUM BOROUGH (KDKA) — The Environmental Protection Agency will hear the public's input before deciding whether to approve a permit for a new fracking disposal injection well in Plum Borough.
The well would be the second oil and gas wastewater injection well at Penneco Environmental Solutions' location on Old Leechburg Road. If the EPA approves it, then the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection will have to give approval as well.
Residents who live near the current injection well said they don't want a second injunction well near their homes because it'll increase concerns about possible impacts on drinking water, air quality, truck traffic and noise.
Many residents, borough officials, and environmental groups oppose the new well.
"We are very concerned because this is a well that they are proposing to change or turn a conventional gas well into an injection well. This is what they did with the first well and the first well, shortly after they started accepting fluids, actually had a casing failure," said Gillian Graber, the executive director of Protect PT.
Before the EPA makes a final permitting decision, the public is invited to a public hearing on Tuesday from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Plum Community Center.
Protect PT's Executive Director Gillian Graber fears the wells could impact drinking water.
"Not just for private well owners, but also for the drinking water for the entire Pittsburgh region, giving the proximity to the Allegheny River and to Little Plum Creek," Graber said.
Graber said there are also concerns about impacts on the quality of life for those who live near the well site.
"Lots of truck traffic, that's only going to increase, and there has been a lot of air contamination. We have air monitors up at residents' homes around the well site, and we're seeing spikes in volatile compounds in the air," she said.
Penneco Environmental Solutions did not respond to our request for comment. On the company's website, it states reasons why injection wells are safe, including how the wells are constructed using several layers of protective materials, and how they are highly regulated by the EPA.
Protect PT is asking the regulators to deny the draft permit for the second well and revoke the permit for the well that's already in place.
"We won't know about this contamination until it's too late," Graber said.
Several borough leaders and borough council oppose the injection well and encourage residents to attend the public hearing on Tuesday.
Plum's Borough Manager Michael Thomas declined an on-camera comment Monday due to a pending appeal against the borough's zoning board, which approved the Penneco application months ago.
An EPA spokesman said there was a virtual hearing in June, but the EPA decided to schedule an in-person meeting on the draft permit due to multiple requests from the public.
The EPA spokesman also said, "The public was provided notice of the draft permit to solicit comments and is not a final agency action. After the public hearing, EPA will review all comments received prior to the hearing, as well as testimony given during the hearing. After considering all additional information and comments, EPA will make a final permitting decision and prepare a "Response to Comment" document to accompany the final agency decision."
D. Marc Jacobs Jr., the senior vice president of Penneco Environmental Solutions, shared this statement:
"Several opposition groups have latched onto a false narrative claiming that the Sedat 3A injection well had a casing failure. This is patently false and some of them know it. Their narrative is based on a misinterpretation of a FOIA document communication. They simply don't understand what they are reading. There was never a casing failure at the Sedat 3A well. No injection fluids were ever released from within the confines of any new or legacy casings or any construction features of the well at any time. At no time were any permit parameters violated. At no time did any fresh groundwater or subsurface stratigraphy come in contact with injection fluids. Penneco's operations at the Sedat UIC facility are in full compliance with all state and federal permit conditions maintaining a heightened obligation to the environment and those most directly impacted."