{"id":19865,"date":"2020-01-21T08:51:56","date_gmt":"2020-01-21T13:51:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/?p=19865"},"modified":"2020-01-21T11:03:17","modified_gmt":"2020-01-21T16:03:17","slug":"pennsylvania-bill-gives-conventional-drillers-pass-to-cut-corners-lets-communities-pay-the-price","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2020\/01\/21\/pennsylvania-bill-gives-conventional-drillers-pass-to-cut-corners-lets-communities-pay-the-price\/","title":{"rendered":"Pennsylvania bill gives conventional drillers pass to cut corners, lets communities pay the price"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>In recent years, Pennsylvania has become an epicenter of the nation\u2019s hydraulic fracturing boom. But even as production from \u201cunconventional\u201d wells \u2013 those using horizontal drilling and fracking \u2013 has grown, nearly 90% of the state\u2019s 120,000 active wells are older, \u201cconventional\u201d vertical ones that typically rely on traditional drilling methods.<\/p>\n

What does that mean for Pennsylvanians? Quite simply, it means that smart, commonsense policies for conventional wells matter. A lot.<\/p>\n

However, the state legislature is considering SB 790<\/a>, which could unravel well-established oil and gas protections while shifting many costs associated with conventional production to taxpayers. As the bill makes its way through the legislature, here are some key facts to keep in mind:<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Pennsylvania\u2019s drinking water could be at risk. <\/strong>Current state law ensures that if drilling operations disrupt or contaminate private sources of drinking water, the driller must provide a replacement that meets Safe Drinking Water Act standards. SB 790 removes that requirement, and would allow oil and gas operators to damage water supplies without having to make clean drinking water available.<\/p>\n

The problem of orphaned or abandoned wells, already a burden to taxpayers, could get much worse. <\/strong>Pennsylvania has hundreds of thousands of orphaned and abandoned wells across the state, and faces extraordinary cleanup costs associated with them. SB 790 would limit oil and gas operators\u2019 financial responsibility to clean up after themselves, and leave taxpayers to pick up the tab. Some potential solutions would be to:<\/p>\n