CLEARFIELD – On Thursday well over 100 people attended an Environmental Resources and Energy hearing regarding House Bill 2213.
HB 2213 would:
-Require the DEP to inspect Marcellus well sites during each drilling phase;
-Extend to 2,500 feet, from 1,000 feet, the presumed liability of a well polluting a water supply;
-Require disclosure of the chemicals used in the hydraulic fracturing – fracking – of the natural gas from the earth;
-Update bonding requirements to cover the costs of decommissioning a well;
-Clarify local governments’ traditional authority to regulate oil and gas activities.
Testifying at the hearing were:
-John Hines, deputy secretary for water management, state Department of Environmental Protection;
-Thomas W. Beauduy, deputy director, Susquehanna River Basin Commission;
-John Baillie, senior attorney, PennFuture, Pittsburgh office;
-Kathryn Z. Klaber, president, Marcellus Shale Coalition and David Spigelmyer, vice chairman of the MSC and vice president of government relations for Chesapeake Energy.
The purpose of the hearing was to solicit concerning HB 2213. This bill would amend the existing Oil and Gas Act of 1984.
Testimony during the hearing lasted a little over two hours. For the full article on the hearing, check back with GantDaily Saturday morning.