The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Michael Krancer says air emissions associated with Marcellus Shale production are a “small fraction of air pollution in the state.” The DEP announced the release of air emissions data collected in 2011. In the announcement, Secretary Krancer stressed that air emissions in the state have dropped since drilling [...]
The Department of Environmental Protection released new air quality permit rules for natural gas production sites. DEP says the new emission limits are “75 to 90 percent stricter than current limits for the largest, most common types of engines used at compressor stations.” Compressor stations help transport the gas along pipelines and in the process [...]
Acting under a court order to update its soot standards, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced stricter regulations late last week. Exposure to soot (also known as fine particulate matter) is linked to many health problems including heart disease, diabetes, asthma, and premature death. The new rules will tighten air quality standards related to [...]
A peer-reviewed study published last week shows air quality impacts near drilling sites in rural Colorado. “An Exploratory Study of Air Quality Near Natural Gas Operations,” conducted by The Endocrine Disruption Exchange, was published in the journal Human and Ecological Risk Assessment. The study is the first to measure air quality before, during and after drilling [...]
Environmental groups from across the country have signed on to a petition asking the EPA to include the oil and gas industry in a national database of chemical releases. The Toxics Release Inventory requires companies to report the quantity of chemicals that end up in the air, water, land, landfills, and treatment facilities. Congress established [...]
Imagine a chart tracking U.S. greenhouse gas emissions since 2005. Do you imagine a line heading up, or down? It’s down actually. Emissions are decreasing, thanks to the weak economy, more use of wind and solar power, and the sudden influx of cleaner burning natural gas. So where does that leave Pennsylvania’s former energy titan, [...]
The Clean Air Council has appealed a permit issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to Angelina Gathering Company for a compressor station expansion in Herrick Township, Bradford County. Compressor stations push natural gas through pipelines toward processing plants or the end-user. In addition to emissions from the compressor station, nearby natural gas operations [...]
Environmental groups have bought air time in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, Wilkes-Barre, and cities across the country aimed at garnering support for reduced carbon emissions from power plants. The ads begin airing Wednesday, ahead of the expected EPA proposal to cut pollution from new plants. The ads showing children with breathing aides were created by the [...]
Back in October, the environmental group Clean Air Council told the EPA that the state Department of Environmental Protection was not doing its job of informing the public about potential air pollution related to natural gas production. Environmentalists worry about emissions from compressor stations, which help move gas through interstate pipelines. Those emissions can include [...]
Our most popular Burning Question, as voted on by StateImpact readers, is one that came from Howard Weissman. Weissman wants to know what the impact would be if federal regulations that apply to other industries were applied to the natural gas industry. Here’s Howard’s query: Even though I don’t live in Pennsylvania (I’m in Delaware) I [...]
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