Well-Completion Operations Suspended in NEPA
According to this morning's Times-Tribune, Chesapeake Energy has suspended its well-completion operations in parts of Pennsylvania and West Virginia until further notice due to an accident at a natural-gas well in Leroy Twp. The accident, which occured late Tuesday, released hydraulic fracturing fluids into the environment, including into Towanda Creek and nearby tributaries.
Emergency crews working at the scene of the accident successfully stopped the flow of fluids on Thursday night. This means that for about two full days, chemicals such as
chloride, sulfate, arsenic, barium, iron, magnesium, and strontium, were flowing into the waters of Bradford County. The DEP has been testing the water of the Towanda Creek, nearby tributaries, and the Susquehanna River, for traces of these chemicals, and although no results have been published to date, seven crews responsible for Chesapeake Energy's well completion operations have been put on "stand-down status."
If you have questions about how natural gas drilling in the
Marcellus Shale might impact you and would like to discuss your legal options regarding the unintended effects gas drilling could have on your drinking water or the value of your land, you should talk to an attorney who can advise you of your legal rights. These are important concerns that you should address immediately.