How does the state know where directional wells actually go? How rigorous is the oversight?

Question from Dennis Devine, Philadelphia, Pa.

• Reid Frazier
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  Reid R. Frazier is an energy reporter for The Allegheny Front, a Pittsburgh-based public media outlet covering the environment in Pennsylvania. His work has aired on NPR and Marketplace.

Oil and gas operators are required to provide information on the location of horizontal bores in reports they give to the Department of Environmental Protection.

When applying for a drilling permit, the operator will submit a detailed schematic of where its horizontal bore will go. During drilling, operators must keep a “detailed drillers log” at the well site that must be available for DEP inspection.

Within 30 days of the completion of drilling, the operator must submit to DEP a well record that provides basic information about drilling operations, including: the depth of each well, the name and depth of formations encountered during the drilling process, information on brine water or methane encountered during drilling (including in formations other than the “target formation”). These detailed reports are publicly available from the DEP. Here is an example.

All reports are is operator-submitted; if it’s found they veer from the drilling plan, for instance by encroaching on an adjacent property, that is a violation of DEP regulations and the driller would be subject to a penalty.

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