Trucks hauling Marcellus drill cuttings must pass a radiation monitor

From an Article of Media News Group, The Mercury, Pottstown, PA, August 2, 2019

AUDUBON, PA — J.P. Mascaro & Sons has announced that it has been awarded more than $7.5 million in municipal waste collection and recycling contracts, as well as a renewal of its operating permit for the Brooke County Landfill in Brooke County, West Virginia.

According to Sam Augustine, director of sales for the waste service company, long-term municipal contracts for waste collection and recycling were also awarded by Muhlenberg and Hamburg in Berks County, Catasauqua in Lehigh County and Newton in Westmoreland County. “We look forward to serving these communities and their residents,” he said in a statement.

J.P. Mascaro & Sons is headquartered in Audubon, Montgomery County and has more than 50 years’ experience. “Municipal contracts are a core component of our business operations,” according to Pat Mascaro, president of J.P. Mascaro & Sons.

In other business, a J.P. Mascaro & Sons related company — Valero Terrestrial Corp. — was awarded a new five year operating permit for the Brooke County Landfill in Colliers, Brooke County, West Virginia.

The Brooke County facility is one of two Mascaro-related landfills in West Virginia; a second facility is the Wetzel County Landfill in New Martinsville.

The Brooke and Wetzel County Landfills serve as the primary disposal facilities for waste collected by the two operating divisions of Solid Waste Services of West Virginia Inc., the Mascaro-related collection company that serves municipal, commercial and industrial customers in the panhandle region of West Virginia and in eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania, according to the company.

“The Brooke County Landfill is an important component of the operational infrastructure of the Mascaro-related waste service businesses in West Virginia, Ohio and Pennsylvania,” Ryan K. Inch, J.P. Mascaro director of engineering, said, in a statement. “These businesses not only serve our municipal, commercial and industrial customers, but also are important to the thriving Marcellus and Utica Shale gas development activities occurring in that three state regional area.”

For more information about J. P. Mascaro & Sons, visit www.jpmascaro.com.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

See also: Penna. Attorney General investigating wastewater case from landfill that accepts fracking waste | StateImpact Pennsylvania, Reid Frazer, May 24, 2019

The investigation comes a week after a judge barred the Westmoreland Sanitary Landfill in Rostraver Township from sending its wastewater to the nearby Belle Vernon Municipal Authority waste treatment plant for 90 days (now permanently).

The issue involves the landfill’s leachate — water that percolates through the landfill and gets collected for disposal. The landfill is permitted to send 50,000 gallons of the leachate per day to the treatment plant. But, according to a complaint filed by district attorneys in Washington and Fayette counties, the landfill had been sending 100,000 to 300,000 gallons of leachate per day.

Beginning last spring, the treatment plant started seeing levels of pollution in its discharge to the Monongahela River go up and exceed state and federal limits. The treatment plant determined the contamination was coming from the landfill, which accepts fracking waste including radioactive drill cuttings.

Red trace is the Hammerhead Pipeline

From the West Virginia Rivers Coalition, December 2, 2018

You can submit comments to WVDEP on the Hammerhead Pipeline, a 25-mile, 30-inch gathering line in Monongalia, Marion and Wetzel Counties. The pipeline would impact 500 acres and approximately 128 streams and wetlands.

On Monday, December 3, the WVDEP will be holding a public hearing on the proposed pipeline at the Morgantown City Council Chambers from 6:00-8:00PM where you can submit comments on the project’s stormwater and sediment control permit. This permit regulates polluted runoff from oil and gas development. Learn more about stormwater permits here, and view our fact sheet and suggested comments.

WV Rivers reviewed the Hammerhead Pipeline’s stormwater permit application and found that it lacks critical information the WVDEP needs to certify that the project will be able to meet permit requirements. Thorough scrutiny of stormwater permits is critical for the protection of WV’s streams.

In addition to the public hearing, you can submit comments online by emailing dep.comments@wv.gov, with the permit number WVR311199 in the subject line. Read our fact sheet and submit your comments to WVDEP by Thursday, December 13.

West Virginia Rivers Coalition
3501 MacCorkle Ave SE #129
Charleston, WV 25304

Fracking industry trucks in Wetzel County, WV. (Bill Hughes)

From an Article by Barbara Harbac, Wetzel Chronicle, October 25, 2017

Members of the Wetzel County Oil and Gas Task Force came together Friday, Oct. 20 at the Mollohan Center. Members and community residents addressed issues concerning increased traffic caused by an increase in industry activities. Ray Renaud, from the Wetzel County Office of Emergency Management (WCOEM), informed the task force that there had been a significant decrease in the number of accidents related to gas and oil traffic in the last three years. He credits the reduction in accidents to Southwestern Energy Company’s (SWN) procedures regarding pilot truck drivers.

Renaud pointed out, “Southwestern has a policy they escort every truck with an escort pilot vehicle and we have problems with that, the way it’s escorted but it made a remarkable difference in the number of accidents we face.”

This decrease in accidents led the committee to believe that any oil and gas company truck that can’t maintain its lane, due to sharp turns or narrow roads, should be accompanied by an escort truck.

Renaud stated that the task force’s Road Safety Committee wanted to develop a uniform set of best practices for trucks traveling on Wetzel County roads. He informed the committee that he was meeting with the Commissioner of Highways on Monday to present the framework for having these best practices adopted.

Resident Dian Wilson is an emergency responder, but noted she was not speaking on behalf of her department. Wilson questioned why trucks are traveling so close to their escort vehicles. She stated that, even when she was stopped on the road in her emergency vehicle, some trucks nearly hit her. Wilson suggested that if the pilot cars were further ahead of the trucks, they could warn the drivers of oncoming traffic.

Others were also concerned. Bill Hughes spoke to the committee about the oil and gas traffic on Doolin Run road. He remarked that EQT also had pilot trucks that were not far enough away from the trucks they were guiding, to make a difference. He stated that the companies did not coordinate or communicate with each other. Hughes cautioned, “Doolin is a dangerous road in daylight, good weather, in a small vehicle.”

He then presented pictures of trucks allegedly carrying hazardous materials, sitting in the ditches on Doolin Run road, as well as four truck long convoys passing each other. Hughes cautioned, “The more and more we see this, the more and more we know we’re on borrowed time.”

In other news, Brian Jones, transportation director for Wetzel County Schools, handed out a schedule of days school will be in session and educated the committee on how to be notified, via automated phone calls, of last minute changes due to inclement weather.

Jones went on to address the task force about an incident that happened on Co. Rd. 89, Proctor Run Rd. He explained that a school bus was unlawfully passed on the left-hand side while it was stopped on the road with its lights flashing. Jones presented pictures and videos to the committee, taken from the cameras installed on the bus. Although these pictures clearly displayed the truck involved in the incident, the license plate number was not captured from the video. It was noted that it was a Ford 350 with dual wheels and a generator or fuel tank on the back.

Jones emphasized, “This is a $60,000 or $70,000 truck. A typical land owner out 89… I don’t envision them driving this truck, typically.” He then urged, “This practice must stop. We can’t be in such a hurry that we place residents or pedestrians at risk.”

The operator driving the bus that day stated that he always pulls over to let traffic pass when there is a place to do so. He understands that people live out that road and are trying to get to work on time. Jones reminded, “We want to be a good neighbor; we want to be kind, and we want to be courteous.”

The next meeting of the Oil and Gas Task Force is scheduled for January 19 at 10 a.m.

The Wetzel County LEPC (Local Emergency Planning Committee) also met at the Mollohan Center on October 20.

Ray Renaud updated the committee on WCOEM obtaining two radiation gauges used for contamination and survey, and two wearable devices that alert the user if they are in a radiation field.

Larry Couch, present on behalf of Blue Racer, reported that the plant now has two portable air monitors available to test for hazardous chemicals. He advised the committee that he could bring them the air filters in the event of an emergency. Couch stated that there was a table-top exercise in Marshall County that Blue Racer, Westlake, Covestro, Marshall County Emergency Management and Wetzel County Emergency Management participated in, that was intended to prepare the agencies for a chlorine leak.

Couch went on to state, “A lot of the public doesn’t understand everything industries have to do to protect their people and the public and I think all that came out, and I think that helped to open some eyes.”

Sapp inquired about a full-scale exercise on November 2. Couch explained that Westlake would be conducting that exercise, so he was not aware of all the details. He believes that there will be a mock casualty, and mock injuries during the exercise. It is expected that both Wetzel County Hospital and Reynolds Memorial Hospital will be participating in this exercise as well.

The next meeting of the L.E.P.C. is January 19, at 11 a.m.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

See also: Marcellus-Shale.us

Sent from my iPad

Bill Hughes in Wetzel County

WV-DEP Recognizes Bill Hughes for Public Service & Community Involvement

From an Article of the State Journal, Page 25, October 14, 2016

William (Bill) J. Hughes of Wetzel County has received the Spirit of Environment Protection Award from the WV Department of Environmental Protection (WV-DEP).

“Mr. Hughes exemplifies what it means to be an engaged citizen, and his commitment to environmental protection is an inspiration to many,” said John M. S. King, environmental resource analyst with the Office of Environmental Advocate.  “He dedicates countless hours at great personal expense each year to  public education and community involvement.”

In 2015 Hughes served on a panel discussion at West Virginia State University and participated in speaking engagements across the region, including the Appalachian Institute, Wheeling Jesuit University, West Virginia University College of Law and Water Resource Conference of the Virginias.

In addition, he provided experiential tours of Wetzel County gas fields for educational institutions and non-profit organizations.  He also was able to identify and effectively communicate several environmental concerns with industry representatives and WV-DEP officials. His detailed and informative communications helped prevent further impacts to the environment and demonstrated how an effective citizen reporting system should work.

>  >  >  >  >  >  >  >  >  >

New OVEC director looking forward to growing organization

From an Article by Jeff Jenkins, MetroNews, October 4, 2016

Huntington, WV — The new executive director of the Huntington-based Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition says the biggest challenge for the organization in the future will be to help residents of Appalachia transition away from a coal-based economy.

Natalie Thompson began OVEC executive director October 1. “We’ll be finding ways to help those who need to find jobs and a way to stay in West Virginia,” Natalie Thompson, who took over the top job at OVEC last week, told MetroNews.

Thompson grew up in Beckley and had family members who were coal miners. Her bio says her grandfather was a mine foreman who “lamented the change from underground to mountaintop removal mining, and especially the destruction of the family’s beloved Kayford Mountain.”

Those responses helped shape her environmental consciousness, Thompson said.

“(Coal) is a way to make money but seeing the way that greed conquered and the coal is taken away and taken care of but the people weren’t,” she said.

She began working with the environmental activist group 13 years ago. In recent years, she’s headed up projects focused on campaign finance reform and energy efficiency. She replaces Janet Keating who retired after 24 years with the organization.

OVEC relies heavily on volunteers for its outreach. Thompson was recently part of the hiring of a volunteer membership coordinator, she said.

“She’s fresh on the books with us and we hope she will strengthen that area of our organization,” Keating said. “We have hopes of bringing more people in that are interested in our issues.”

OVEC, which will celebrate its 30th anniversary next year, recently purchased the building that houses its headquarters in Huntington.

Thompson is looking forward to her new role to “help ensure the protection of health and the environment in all of Appalachia.” “It’s always been a passion of mine to protect West Virginia and its beauty. It’s my home state and my land,” she said.

See also: www.FrackCheckWV.net

Explosions & Fires Occur in Marcellus Operations

Gastar to Sell Leases & Wells in Wetzel & Marshall Counties to Concentrate on Oklahoma

From an Article in the Marcellus Drilling News, October 15, 2015

What a difference a few months, or even a week, can make. In August, Gastar Exploration, which owns roughly 60,000 acres of leases in the Marcellus/Utica mostly in Marshall and Wetzel counties in West Virginia, was talking up their drilling program in the northeast.

Just last week we reported on Gastar CEO Russ Porter’s talk at OGIS in San Francisco about the Marcellus/Utica and what’s ahead for his company. Lately it seems like Gastar, which also drills in the Mid-Continent region of the country, has been giving a little more love to Mid-Continent area because gas prices in the northeast remain stubbornly low. Looks like the Mid-Continent is about to get all of Gastar’s love.

The company announced yesterday they’ve put all of their Marcellus/Utica assets up for sale, including leases and drilled/producing wells …

The press release is mostly about Gastar’s Mid-Continent operations, with just a small mention at the end about the Marcellus/Utica – but wow, what a mention!  More like a bombshell:

Gastar Exploration Inc  today announced that it has entered into a definitive purchase and sale agreement to acquire additional working and net revenue interests in 103 gross (10.2 net) producing wells and certain undeveloped acreage in the STACK and Hunton Limestone formations in its Area of Mutual Interest (“AMI”) from its AMI partner, Husky Ventures, Inc. (“Husky”), and certain other parties (collectively “Sellers”). The purchase price is approximately $43.3 million, subject to certain adjustments and customary closing conditions, and the conveyance of approximately 11,000 net non-core, non-producing acres in Blaine and Major Counties, Oklahoma to the Sellers. The transaction is expected to close on or about November 30, 2015, with an effective date of July 1, 2015. After closing, the AMI joint venture with Husky will be dissolved. The acquisition will be funded with borrowings under Gastar’s revolving credit facility.

In order to allow the Company to concentrate on the significant opportunities identified in its existing Oklahoma assets and to improve the strength of its balance sheet, the Company has engaged Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. to market its Marcellus Shale and Utica/Point Pleasant acreage, which are primarily focused in Marshall and Wetzel Counties, West Virginia. These assets include producing wells and acreage located in the liquids-rich Marcellus Shale and high-deliverability, dry-gas Utica Shale/Point Pleasant plays.

“With this strategic Mid-Continent transaction, we are consolidating our working interest in our core Mid-Continent acreage and will be able to operationally control development decisions going forward,” said J. Russell Porter, Gastar’s President and CEO. “We believe this acreage is not only productive for the Hunton Limestone formation but also very prospective for the Meramec Shale and Woodford Shale STACK play, with additional upside from the Oswego and Osage formations. In addition, the contemplated sale of certain of our Marcellus and Utica assets should allow us to further reduce leverage while enhancing our liquidity position to allow for the future development of our extensive Mid-Continent position.”

Gastar Exploration Inc. is an independent energy company engaged in the exploration, development and production of oil, condensate, natural gas and natural gas liquids in the United States. In West Virginia, Gastar has developed liquids-rich natural gas in the Marcellus Shale and has drilled and completed its first two successful dry gas Utica Shale/Point Pleasant wells on its acreage. Gastar has engaged Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. to market its Marcellus Shale and Utica Shale/Point Pleasant assets in West Virginia.*

*Gastar Exploration Inc. (Oct 14, 2015) – Gastar Exploration Announces Acquisition of Mid-Continent Interests and Marketing of Appalachian Basin Assets

#  #  #  #  #  #  #  #  #  #

See additional information about Explosions & Fires in Wetzel and Marshall Counties, etc.

NYMEX Natural Gas Price $2.62 (9/29/15)

Stone Energy Curtails Nearly All Appalachian Production on Low Prices

From an Article by Jamison Cocklin,  NGI News, September 26, 2015

Stone Energy Corp. has shut-in its largest field in the Appalachian Basin, curtailing between 100 and 110 MMcfe/d of Marcellus Shale production to offset low commodity prices and negative differentials that had reached “unacceptable levels,” the company said.

Stone said its Mary Field in West Virginia, where it holds 39,200 acres, would be shut in until further notice. That leaves the company with 25 MMcfe/d of Appalachian production still flowing in its Heather and Buddy fields — smaller positions also located in West Virginia.

The Mary Field is home to one of West Virginia’s first deep dry Utica Shale wells in Wetzel County, where Stone tested the Pribble 6HU last December at a five-day peak rate of 30 MMcf/d.

The company drilled 38 Marcellus wells in the region last year and completed 34 of them. In the second quarter, the company produced 292 MMcfe/d, of which 144 MMcfe/d was produced from its Marcellus and Utica shale positions.

Stone said stagnant oil and natural gas prices further reduced by negative basis differentials and fees for transportation, processing and gathering had reduced operating margins in the basin. The shut-ins are expected to reduce the company’s forecasted third quarter guidance from 234-246 MMcfe/d to 225-231 MMcfe. If the wells remain offline, Stone said, full-year guidance would likely be adjusted lower from the current 252-264 MMcfe/d.

Cash flow impacts are not expected to be reflected in the company’s third quarter financial results. With the Mary Field offline, Stone indicated that it would narrow its focus even more to the deepwater Gulf of Mexico (GOM), which was already anticipated to account for 88% of capital expenditures this year. The company said those assets are yielding higher margins.

Stone’s deepwater drilling rig has completed scheduled maintenance and would resume operations in the coming days under the company’s current plans. It intends to mobilize that rig to finish completion of the company’s Amethyst discovery, in which it has a 100% working interest, before it moves on to drill three other GOM development prospects

While Amethyst is expected to begin producing in 1Q2016, the Vernaccia exploration well, which is being operated by Italy’s Eni SpA, is expected to be spud next month. Stone has a 22% working interest in that deepwater well.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>

US Horizontal Rig Count Down 7% in Five (5) Weeks

From a Report by Alex Chamberlin, marketrealist.com, September 26, 2015

According to the Baker-Hughes oil services company, the US horizontal rig count decreased by 11 rigs in the week ending September 25th as part of 5 consecutive weekly drops.  In those last five weeks, 48 rigs (7%) have been taken off-line.

And, in the past 12 months, some 718 (54%) of the horizontal drilling rigs have been shut down. These rigs peaked at 1372 in November of last year and the operational count is now at 629.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Inside Shale, WAJR, 1440 Radio, Morgantown, WV

Note: It was announced today that of the 20 drilling rigs of Antero Resources operating in West Virginia, some five (5) are currently operating. (Antero Resources has been very active in Doddridge and Tyler counties here in West Virginia.)

< The NYMEX price for natural gas currently stands at $2.62 >

See also: www.FrackCheckWV.net

Marcellus wastes @ Wetzel Co. Landfill

W.Va. Continues to Wrestle with Radioactive Drilling Waste

From an Article by Glynis Board, WV Public Broadcasting, September 17, 2015

In the growing wake of the natural gas boom, West Virginia has been trying to figure out what exactly to do with waste generated by the oil and gas industry. The waste presents unique challenges because there’s so much of it, and because it’s often laced with some pretty toxic stuff. The answer by and large is to bury the solid waste in municipal landfills – the same landfills that accept our household trash. A recent study conducted by the state’s Department of Environmental Protection says the practice is safe, for the most part. But many people are skeptical and worried about what’s going to happen in the long term.

A few weeks ago I drove up along Cider Run road to the entrance of the Wetzel County landfill and pulled over.

You can’t drive in unless you’re just dropping a load off, and the company that operates this facility didn’t respond to my requests to enter and have a look around. Save for the sign and the weigh station, it really just looks like any other back holler in West Virginia. The single lane road to the landfill follows a creek along a valley between forested hills that curve steeply up and away.

Wetzel County Solid Waste Authority member, Bill Hughes, was with me. He also hasn’t been allowed into the facility, but he’s spent time at the entrance monitoring traffic.

Hughes is a grandfather-of-nine who’s lived in the area for over 40 years. He’s been lobbying lawmakers and writing opinion pieces questioning the safety of how natural gas companies go about drilling and what they do with waste.

“The yellow goal posts that you’re seeing,” Hughes said pointing to the weigh station at the entrance of the landfill, “those are referred to as Ludlum detectors and they are looking for radiation.”

Radioactive Waste

Landfills that accept drill cuttings are required to have radioactivity detectors because waste rock and mud pulled from rock formations deep in the ground is often laced with radioactive materials.

But Hughes and other people are worried that radioactive waste is getting into their landfill in spite of the detectors, and possibly leaching out. In response to concerns about the drilling waste, the legislature asked the DEP to commission a study. That study was released earlier this year.

“The research ‘found little concern’” DEP said, “regarding leachate associated with ‘drill cuttings that were placed in approved landfills.”

But it also found that the leachate is toxic, and that it does contain radioactive material. “It’s clear that the discharge concentrations of several of the parameters are exceeding what the state water quality limits are,” said the director of the West Virginia Water Research Institute, Paul Ziemkievicz, who took a closer look at the DEP study. “But remember these leachates are not going directly into the waters of the United States.”

Dilution Solution

The radioactive material doesn’t go directly into groundwater or rivers, because there are multiple liners around the landfill. The liquid collects in those liners and is pumped out. It’s usually taken to a wastewater treatment facility. But the treatment facilities are not designed to accept industrial wastes. They’re owned by local governments and are the same places that treat sewage and other municipal wastewaters … waters which are then discharged into rivers. The DEP’s study demonstrates that these facilities are currently diluting the leachate to safe drinking water quality standards.

But some people are still worried.  “I want to refrain from being alarmist, but I will say that much of the data are alarming,” said Marc Glass, a remediation specialists who works for the Morgantown-based environmental consulting firm, Downstream Strategies.

“The amount of environmental contaminant that we’re generating,” Glass said, “we’re taking from a place that’s safely sequestered in the earth and mixing them in our environment on a large scale.”

Concentrating NORM

There are several different constituents in the waste that you might not want to tango with, among them is what’s called Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material or NORM.

According to the World Nuclear Association, NORM is basically everywhere at low levels. It’s not like gamma radiation which can penetrate steel walls. NORMs are mostly particles that are unlikely to penetrate most any hard surface – even skin can be an effective barrier. This type of radioactive material is really only a harmful, cancer-causing agent if ingested – as in breathed in or swallowed.

Water experts like Ziemkievicz are not overly concerned about current levels of radioactive waste being discharged into the environment, but they ARE worried about the long-term implications of current practices. “With radioactivity you’re always concerned about accumulation,” Ziemkievicz said, “not the immediate concentration you might be getting out of an effluent.”

Other experts are also concerned about accumulation, especially given the amount of waste we could conceivably generate over the next 30 years or more. Glass, over at Downstream Strategies, believes the DEP leachate study miscalculated how much waste will be produced in the future. About 16 hundred wells exist today, but about 4000 have been permitted. DEP anticipates another 5,000 to 15,000 wells are yet to be drilled.

“Even if we made conservative assumptions,” Glass said, “my best guess based on the sources [the DEP] cite, we should be looking at maybe even 70,000 or 100,000 Marcellus shale well equivalents of what we will be disposing of in the next 20 to 50 years.”

Conclusions

Glass says the DEP’s study indicates that West Virginia needs to reevaluate how we’re treating the leachate from landfill because it’s not effective, and he says we should expect that problem to get much worse as the scale of drilling increases.

The DEP is recommending improved monitoring of leachate, groundwater and even water wells around landfills, but some groups don’t think the state can be trusted to handle the problem. The National Resources Defense Council and the West Virginia Surface Owners Association, among others, are threatening to sue the federal Environmental Protection Agency to force it to step in.

See also: www.WVsoro.org

Four Trucks in Five Minutes

SWA Opposes Disposal “Cell” in Wetzel Landfill

From an Article by Lauren Matthews, Wetzel Chronicle, March 11. 2015

Bill Hughes of Wetzel County Solid Waste Authority appeared before the Wetzel County Commission March 4 to give updates regarding a case before the Public Service Commission.

The case in question is Case Number 13-0832-SWF-CN, named Lackawanna Transport Company, dba Wetzel County Landfill. The case deals with the Wetzel County Landfill’s application for an amendment to their Certificate of Need. The fulfillment of this application would enable the landfill to build a special cell where drilling companies could dispose of drilling waste.

Hughes noted that the case started in June 2013. He added that 96 letters have since been sent into the PSC regarding the case, all but one objecting to the landfill’s application. A decision is expected within the next several months, with final briefs being filed in mid-March.

Hughes expressed criticism of the legislature in that “there’s a lot of loose ends that the legislature did not account for,” when passing bills regarding disposal of drilling waste. “The PSC doesn’t know what to do with this case,” Hughes noted.

“The legislature says to take the drill waste to landfills,” Hughes noted, but added that “we don’t have proper waste characterization,” expressing concern about possible hazardous materials in the waste. Hughes noted that in the past two years the Wetzel County Landfill has taken “half a million tons” of drilling waste, that is only “partially characterized.”

Hughes noted that Cider Run Road, which leads to the landfill, is “trashed.” “The roads are torn up. All the trucks are now going to a well pad. There is a well pad above the landfill . . . all that traffic – the municipal solid waste traffic, drill cuttings traffic, a holding pond up there . . . all that uses one road. It has caused a lot of congestion, and it’s in deplorable condition.”

Hughes noted that with all the drill waste the landfill has taken in, and consequent revenue, “you’d think they could fix the roads.”

“There’s a lot of residential traffic on those roads,” Hughes notes, adding that a local resident testified before the PSC as to all of the trucks damaging the roads.”

Hughes stated that the State is not quite willing to help. “As you guys know, Charleston folks tend to live in Charleston. I have not been able to convey to them that this is an inconvenience for the neighbors.”

“This landfill now has a 40-year lifespan based on current consumption,” Hughes stated, noting that the landfill previously had a 120 year lifespan.

“Drilling has slowed down, but it’s a temporary lull,” Hughes added. “We have many unresolved issues, some environmental, some traffic, and everything in between. We have yet to have a clue as to what’s going in the ground.”

Hughes referenced House Bill 107, which imposes a dollar per ton fee put on drilling waste, “that goes to the state to help repair the roads.” “Nothing has happened,” he added, noting that the fee is not dedicated just to the landfill operation. “It’s any road affected by drilling operations.”

“I have thousands of photographs,” Hughes stated. “You have 200 trucks going through there per day. I sat there myself for two hours, and saw 20 trucks going one way and then the other road. It’s absurd to allow that road, which is a residential traffic road, to get in that condition. I was down there yesterday, and it’s getting worse with the freezing and thawing. There are fractured pieces of roads; it’s all busted up. They need to have it widened, with a ditch and drainage.”

“The money is there, but there is no political will to let it happen.”

The current case involving the WCSWA and the Wetzel County Landfill (owned and operated by Lackawanna Transport Company) can be found on the West Virginia Public Service Commission’s site, accessed at www.psc.state.wv.us.

After accessing the website, choose “Case Information” from the menu on the right hand side of the page. Then choose “Case” under the Search heading on the right hand side of the next page. Several options are available. Choose to search by Case Number, and in the drop-down menu choose “Is.” 13-0832-SWF-CN

Cider Run Road 1-19-2015

Click the case number link, and then choose “Count total letter . . . ” Choose the case number link again, and this will lead you to all activity records involved in the case. Visible under Case 13-0832-SWF-CN’s files on the website are opening statements from counsel for both the WCSWA and Wetzel County Landfill (Lackawanna Transport Company – LTC)

To: WV Legislature; From: Steve Conlon (Wetzel County, WV)

Subject: Rebuilding gas industry impacted roads

Sent via Email:  January 23, 2015

It is encouraging to see some concern about our gas-industry impacted roads. HB 2080 is obviously a response to this need,  a condition and a situation which is beyond the abilities of the WV Departent of Highways to rectify. Thank you for being concerned!

Some of you know me. I’ve lived in Wetzel County on a gravel/dirt road for 42 years which has given me ample time to study roads, geography and bureaucracy. Wetzel/Marshall road history could be accurately divided into  BC (before Chesapeake Energy) and AC (after Chesapeake Energy). It has now been 8 years since gas industry activity started here. Certainly we’ve “seen it all here”. Roads have been destroyed, widened, rebuilt. Sharp curves have been removed. Some homes have been removed.

Some of our roads have been in terrible condition for years and have been repaired to a much higher quality than before. Typically asphalt secondary roads get downgraded to gravel patches which are dusty and muddy. Road maintenance gets passed from the DOH to gas company sub-contractors.

Since District 6 DOH is between 50-70 employees short, we see little supervision or prodding. Few people complain or speak up. Those who do find a circuitous path to little action.

Obviously, the State is not charging the gas companies the correct amount for using our roads. HB2080 gets us the money, but it takes it out of our own pocket. If the severance tax is our profit, why should we spend it on damages they incurred. In 2007, the WV Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Highways had no idea what the “road bill” (cost) would be for each well. Now we know how many trucks, what size, what weight, and how many trips. This information can be combined with a study of the access roads to each pad  and a “road impact fee” can be calculated for every gas well. This is a very simple business calculation. The DEP and the DOH have all this information.

I have been outspoken for several years concerning funding for our road system. We are currently experiencing low fuel prices which gives legislators a perfect window for correcting inadequate road funding. Recently I have heard many “creative” funding scenarios which are seriously worrisome. I watched the Governor’s so called Blue Ribbon Commission on Highways run “dog and pony” shows and then submit a report of little value.

Fees are not taxes. We need to own up to fees. We need to very calmly have the nerve to charge the gas industry companies for their road impacts. And, I am willing to pay more for my vehicular impact. Now is the time. Bury HB 2080. Let’s try a different angle.

Thanks, I appreciate the job you do for West Virginia.

Steve Conlon, Thistledew Farm, RR 1 Box 122, Proctor, WV 26055

>>>>>>>>>>>>>

See also:  www.FrackCheckWV.net and www.Marcellus-Shale.us

Mom's Driveway Under Attack

Mom’s Driveway: Just another “minor project” in the Wetzel Marcellus gas field

From Bill Hughes, Wetzel County Resident, May 5, 2014

I was recently asked to watch over a parcel of property by the son of an elderly woman. Stone Energy has a very active footprint nearby and he was concerned that his Mom’s driveway access and the mailboxes and everything nearby would be disrupted, blocked, damaged, etc.

Parts of the problem situation described and shown above and below have existed for over two years. I have not tried to get anyone to focus on this since up till now it has been a lesser problem when compared to some of the erosion and sedimentation issues of the ongoing natural gas operations in our region.

However in the past few months there has been a very large increase in traffic, both small and larger heavy equipment operating in and thru the unprotected stream bed. It seems that there are preparations for a well pad in progress up the hill. I have been told that in the future a bridge might be built. The standard solution seems to be just to dump more limestone and keep on trucking.

The traffic across Little Fishing Creek here has included, among others: Dump trucks; track hoes, ukes (articulated dumps) rollers, service trucks; utility trucks, pickup trucks; employees pickups; water-withdrawal pump tender’s pickups; diesel fuel delivery trucks; etc.

The water storage pond on the Conley property can be seen on Google Earth. It has been and is part of Stone Energy’s central water management system. All the earth moving equipment to construct the pond was brought up by way of the Little Fishing stream crossing shown in these pictures.

Trucks have been driving thru the creek here at low flow or high flows, without regard for the weather conditions. Larger equipment has been moved thru the steam bed in this unprotected stream crossing. There are no culverts or pipes. In addition to the mechanical service vehicle driving thru the graveled stream bed, a large Sheepfoot’s roller was also driven thru the stream bed.

For a few years, piles of limestone have been regularly stored at the banks of the stream in order to be conveniently placed into the stream bed as often as needed to keep the stream bed passable for the gas industry service vehicles. Dozers and other earth moving equipment would frequently cross thru as needed.

When it comes to industrial activities involving stream crossings of heavy equipment, large trucks, limestone fill materials, and multiple crossings per day, I believe that a bridge needs to be built FIRST—then comes the road improvements, the ponds, laydown areas, and support equipment  for the well pad (s).  Can Mom use her driveway as she normally did?  And, what about the residents that have years of tranquil living in these (and our other) locations throughout the Marcellus region?

Little Fishing Creek & Impacting Roller