Middletown Coalition
for Community Safety
January 2018
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MCCS in the News
Delco council tables risk assessment study for pipeline
Delco Times, January 31, 2018
Both Republican and Democrats said they intended to continue the discussion and were hopeful that a common ground compromise could be crafted.
“I understand that the quality of this risk assessment is paramount. I just hope that you will work together and come up with a risk assessment that we all, quite frankly, can be proud of.” - Rose Tree Media School Board President Jeffrey Koenig
Bring on the pipeline risk assessment study
Delco Times, January 25, 2018
Those who for months have opposed Sunoco’s massive $2.5 billion Mariner East 2 pipeline project have just scored a couple of significant victories...
Council Chairman John McBlain and new Democratic Councilman Brian Zidek will set up the parameters for the study, then will put the project out for bid for outside consultants.council,,
“We have a huge regulatory gap where no one at the federal or state level is looking out for the safety of the residents and you have an out-of-state corporation basically putting their pipeline through the regulatory hole.”- Eve Miari, a member of the Middletown Coalition for Community Safety
Bring on the pipeline risk assessment study
Delco Times, January 25, 2018
Those who for months have opposed Sunoco’s massive $2.5 billion Mariner East 2 pipeline project have just scored a couple of significant victories...
Council Chairman John McBlain and new Democratic Councilman Brian Zidek will set up the parameters for the study, then will put the project out for bid for outside consultants.council,,
“We have a huge regulatory gap where no one at the federal or state level is looking out for the safety of the residents and you have an out-of-state corporation basically putting their pipeline through the regulatory hole.”- Eve Miari, a member of the Middletown Coalition for Community Safety
Feds cite Sunoco for Mariner East 2 violation during construction in Ohio
State Impact NPR, January 25, 2018
The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration issued a “Notice of Probable Violation” to Sunoco Pipeline on Jan. 11, after an inspector observed “numerous coating scrapes” on at least five sections of pipe, and several sections had “severe coating damage.” ...
“It’s frightening to think about how many other instances of substandard construction there may be on Mariner East because a leak of hazardous, highly volatile liquids in a densely populated area could be a catastrophe.” Eric Friedman, a member of the Middletown Coalition for Community Safety
Delaware County Council looks into risk assessment of Mariner East 2 pipeline
State Impact NPR, January 24, 2018
Delaware County Council agreed there’s a need to conduct an assessment study to find out what’s the risk of having the Mariner East pipelines near homes, schools, and businesses...
“Those citizens who live in any sort of proximity to the pipeline deserve to know what the risks of living close to that pipeline might be.” - Delaware County councilman Brian Zidek
According to Eric Friedman (of Middletown Coalition for Community Safety), Sunoco using the word “safe” doesn’t mean much... “We don’t want to know if you’re a safe operator, what we want to know is what are the chances that we’re going to lose an elementary school full of kids.”
County council OKs public call for risk assessment study on Mariner East 2 pipeline
Daily Times News, January 24, 2018
Delaware County Council has agreed to conduct a risk assessment study of the Mariner East pipelines coming through the county after 10 people asked them to do so at Tuesday’s agenda meeting.
Sunoco has had more leaks than any other pipeline operator with 296 leaks in its pipeline since 2006. “I don’t think the probability of a leak can be discounted and I think some assessment of the risk ... is warranted,” -Eric Friedman of the Middletown Coalition for Community Safety
"No governing authority is taking ownership of a risk study, many claiming it's not their jurisdiction, from the governor to the state Department of Environmental Protection to the Public Utility Commission...This is not just a concern for people who have the pipeline going through their backyard. It’s not in my backyard but it’s in our community and it’s a great concern for public safety. We really feel that the health, safety and welfare of the residents of Delaware County is jurisdictional to the county council and we ask you to do your due diligence.”-Eve Miari, Upper Providence resident
Daily Local News, January 23, 2018
Sunoco Logistics Partners used their power of eminent domain to coerce residents to sign easements allowing construction of two new Mariner East pipelines (ME2 and ME2X)...
The gas and oil industry refers to liquefied hydrocarbons as natural gas liquids (NGLs). The federal government, however, classifies them as “hazardous, highly volatile liquids.” NGLs are liquid only under very high pressure or extremely cold temperatures...
Pennsylvanians, especially residents of Chester County, are in peril. It is essential to be informed, vigilant, and politically proactive to defend our safety and wellbeing.
Worried Residents Say New Pennsylvania Pipeline Is Not Worth the Risk
CBS News January 22, 2018
Thousands of people in Pennsylvania are expressing concerns about the safety of a multi-billion dollar gas pipeline being constructed across the state...
When asked the worst-case scenario. "An explosion. If there were to be a leak in the pipeline, the gas escapes, it goes back into its gaseous state, It's odorless, it's colorless. As long as it goes undetected, it's just waiting for an ignition source to set it off. And if it explodes, the blast zone is anywhere from 1,000 to 2,000 feet." - resident Virginia Verslake
Arguments about Sunoco’s mega-pipeline rage on
Times Herald News, January 15, 2018
Sunoco has discharged drilling fluid more than 100 times, including four times this fall over a four-day period at the same location in East Goshen, Chester County...
"Serious concerns about the safety of the Sunoco’s Mariner East pipelines are not going away, In fact, they’re only growing and so are voices." - State Sen. Andy Dinniman, D-19. State Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee Member
“This pipeline will run directly through densely populated neighborhoods and right past schools, leaving our children vulnerable. Everyone should understand the risks. I am asking that this assessment be conducted and shared with the public before the project is permitted to resume.” -State Rep. Chris Quinn, R-168 of Middletown Township
Pa. DEP Slams Brakes On Sunoco Pipeline Construction
GK Men, January 13, 2018
Eric Friedman, spokesman for the Middletown Coalition for Community Safety, has been busy fighting the pipeline from his home turf in Delaware County. Residents in central Pa. have concerns about the Sunoco Pipeline construction near their properties. State Rep. Chris Quinn, R-168 of Edgemont, suggested a course of caution. "In my district alone, pipeline construction has contaminated nearly two dozen wells, disrupted businesses, created significant environmental damage and resulted in the development of an expanding sinkhole that now threatens at least two private homes and is within 100 feet of Amtrak's Keystone Line", State Sen. "We must know the risk and we must know it before drilling resumes"...
Pennsylvania DEP shuts down construction on Sunoco gas pipeline
Daily Local News January 3, 2018
State Rep. Carolyn Comitta, D-156, along with six Chester and Delaware County residents, met with Gov. Wolf on Dec. 20...Karen Feridun, Pennsylvania resident and founder of Berks Gas Truth, added: “The Department of Environmental Protection’s temporary suspension of Sunoco’s permits is a toothless act that falls far short of providing any real protection to communities in the path of the Mariner East 2 pipeline. The company has demonstrated itself to be indifferent to public health, safety, and property rights and to the regulatory process. It’s time for the DEP to shut down this unnecessary and dangerous pipeline once and for all.”...
Groups put pressure on Wolf to halt Mariner East 2 construction
Delco Times, January 3, 2018
“The governor has been asked by thousands of concerned Pennsylvanians to halt the construction and assess the risk to vulnerable, dense populations across our commonwealth.. Rather than addressing this request, Gov. Wolf directed his Department of Environmental Protection to take long-overdue enforcement action with respect to massive destruction associated with Sunoco’s botched and willfully noncompliant construction activities.” - Eric Friedman spokesperson for the Middletown Coalition for Community Safety ...
ME2 in the News
The pipeline debate: Bring on the risk assessment study
Heron's Nest, January 26, 2018
And so the debate rages on, with Sunoco crowing about the economic benefits, and citizens saying those should not outweigh residents' concerns about safety.
At this point, doing the risk assessment study and thoroughly airing the findings might be the only way to settle this dispute...
Mariner East 2: Texts raise questions about Wolf administration role in permitting process
State Impact, January 26, 2018
A senior staffer for Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf asked the state’s chief environmental regulator not to send letters to Sunoco detailing problems with its permit applications for a controversial pipeline project until the governor was updated, according to text messages obtained through a lawsuit...
Philadelphia-based Clean Air Joe Minott, executive director of the Council , says the texts show a level of involvement by the governor’s office that ”goes way beyond” DEP keeping the governor’s office updated...
“I don’t know if there’s a smoking gun here but there sure is a lot of smoke” - Eric Friedman, a Delaware County landowner
The disturbing implications of Sunoco’s federal “Notice of Probable Violation”
Dragonpipe Diary, January 25, 2018
Last week, PHMSA issued a Notice of Probable Violation to Sunoco that is directly related to the construction practices it is using for the Mariner East Pipeline. While Sunoco has been cited for many violations at both the state and federal level, this one in particular is very troubling...
The problem here has many layers but what it comes down to is:
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Damage to the pipe reduces its strength; and
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Any damage to the protective coating provides a path to accelerated corrosion
The public safety risks with highly volatile liquids are too high to risk a leak that can cause mass casualties. Governor Wolf should insist that Sunoco uncover the pipe that is already installed and prove it is satisfactory. Otherwise, we may learn of their deficiencies the hard way—and no one wants that to happen.
Sunoco’s response: Exton plan is still the same. Comment deadline: Tues. (Jan. 23)
Dragonpipe Diary, January 19, 2018
Sunoco has provided very limited answers and has not changed anything. It is still planning the same route that goes right by the library and requires clearing of much of the wetland there...
We are currently in a 5-day “public comment” period for this plan (NOT two weeks, like the first time around), and it is critical that you send your comments to the DEP before it ends on January 23...
THE PERILS OF THE MARINER EAST PIPELINE
Philadelphia Citizen, January 18, 2018
"Mariner East may not be the result of a vast conspiracy or individual wrongdoing, but the reality is just as troubling: a regulatory gap that no one is stepping up to fill."
You don’t have to be a dyed-in-the-wool environmentalist or own a property along the course of the pipeline to want these issues addressed...
“I think the governor owns this pipeline. His administration pushed DEP to make the permitting happen and happen quickly. And at this point it’s his administration that has the power to revoke the permits.” - Alex Bomstein, senior litigation attorney for the Clean Air Council
Some concern about pipeline is too little, too late
Daily Times, January 14, 2018
"It is difficult to take seriously the validity of an economic assessment performed on the behest of Sunoco....
Home equity is one of the major sources of investment that people put their money in, whether for retirement or other uses. A negative impact on property value will have overall economic assessment of the pipeline."- Philip Block, Chester Heights, Democratic Candidate for State Representative in the 168th Districtlong term consequences on the economic health of the community and must be accounted for in any...
Trump’s pipeline agenda just went through a disastrous week
Think Progress, January 12, 2018
This week was the worst in recent memory for developers of energy pipelines...
“Now is not the time to sit back and bask in a false sense of relief. It’s a time to push back with everything we have left.” -Elise Gerhart (whose family’s property is getting crossed by the pipeline)
Philadelphia Inquirer, January 11, 2018
What critics also find frustrating is this: Despite Sunoco Logistics’s “egregious and willful” violations that included explicitly ignoring DEP warnings, why haven’t any fines been meted out for the latest violations that led to the stop-work order?
To environmentalists frustrated by the state’s handling of the pipeline — intended to transport natural gas from the energy-rich Marcellus Shale region to a Marcus Hook facility where much of it would be shipped to overseas markets — that is the equivalent of Sherlock Holmes’ notorious “dog that did not bark.”
AFTER DOZENS OF SPILLS, CONSTRUCTION HALTED ON MARINER EAST 2 PIPELINE
Sane Energy Project, January 10, 2018
"This order does not hold ETP accountable for the damage they have already done, or the crimes they have committed. It does not bring clean water to those who have already lost it. It does not bring justice to those whose rights have been violated, including our environment. Now is not the time to sit back and bask in a false sense of relief. It's a time to push back with everything we have left.”-Elise Gerhart, impacted landowner in Huntingdon, PA
“They’re just trying to get away with something that’s real cheap and ya know bury me in the ditch with the rest of their junk,” Ralph Blume., impacted landowner in Cumberland County
What needs to be done to make Mariner East 2 safe
Delco Times, January 10, 2018
"These liquefied gases carry astronomical explosive energy per mile of pipeline, far more than traditional natural gas methane. By any combustion mathematics, this means the blast radius from instant ignition will be significantly greater than an equivalently sized and pressurized natural gas pipeline." ...1) Do the risk assessment that should have been done before starting this project so you actually know what you are dealing with and release it to the public for peer review. ...The stakes are too high and free passes only increase the risk of disaster. -Seth Kovnat, Former Middletown Township Resident...
Economic benefits alone won’t resolve pipeline concerns
Delco Times, January 10, 2018
Critics and opponents of the plan are not impressed. The environmental group Food & Water Watch blasted the findings as “dubious research,” and sounded an alarm raised by residents. Economic benefits should not come at the expense of the security and safety of residents...
Rep. Chris Quinn, R-168 of Middletown, this week sent a letter to Gov. Wolf asking that the state conduct a full risk assessment on the Mariner East 2 project before Sunoco is allowed to resume work. The study would analyze the potential for catastrophic harm should a leak or other malfunction occur. Quinn also urged that the results of such a study be made public...
Energy Transfer (ETP) Arm's Mariner East 2 Suffers Setback
NASDAQ, January 9, 2018
The partnership's pricing chart is not impressive...
Sunoco’s value-of-life calculation
Dragonpipe, January 9, 2018
We cannot allow lives to be treated as mere dollar amounts...
Report: Mariner East pipelines could have a $9 billion financial impact
State Impact, January 9, 2018
The report, published Monday, uses project budgets and standard modeling to forecast potential economic benefits, including spending and employment, between 2014 through 2019. The report does not factor in social and environmental costs, or potential loss of property values...
Report: Sunoco Pipeline will be a boon to region’s economy
The Mercury News, January 9, 2018
Economic benefits are not swaying opponents, who continue to point out a series of problems during construction and opposition to a pipeline carrying these materials through densely populated neighborhoods....
“The existence of such a benefit would hardly justify jettisoning these core American values...An accident in densely populated southeast Pennsylvania would cost billions." - Eric Friedman, Del-Chesco United for Pipeline Safety
“This pipeline will run directly through densely populated neighborhoods and right past schools, leaving our children vulnerable, Everyone should understand the risks. I am asking that this assessment be conducted and shared with the public before the project is permitted to resume.” - State Rep. Chris Quinn, R-168 of Middletown Township.
Dragon Pipe, January 9, 2018
Every day the pipes are not operational is one more day our community is safe. Sunoco has the worst safety record in the industry. This should not be an out-of-sight/out-of-mind issue. When this is out of sight, we are in the most danger...
Pipeline will be a boon to region’s economy and add hundreds of jobs
Daily Local, January 8, 2018
“One weapon deployed during this propaganda blitzkrieg is the assertion that the Mariner East export project provides an economic benefit to our area. On the basis of this supposed benefit, we Pennsylvanians should accept the destruction of our property values, the endangerment of children and seniors, and the infringement of private property rights guaranteed by the Constitutions of Pennsylvania and the United States." - Eric Friedman, Del-Chesco United for Pipeline Safety
“The very first page of the report, Econsult contradicts Sunoco’s argument of ‘need’ by mentioning natural gas prices being low due to oversupply. Sunoco is attempting to artificially create ‘need’ for an already saturated marketplace." - West Goshen activist Tom Casey
State Rep. Chris Quinn, R-168 of Middletown, Monday wrote a letter to Gov. Tom Wolf, asking his administration to conduct a full risk assessment of the Mariner East 2...
Activists dismiss report portraying Sunoco Mariner pipeline as $9.1B bonanza
Philly Inquirer, January 8, 2018
"Construction has generated vociferous political and legal challenges along its route, resulting in the ouster of two local township boards in the November election and an ongoing legal battle organized by the environmental groups led by the Clean Air Council."
Frozen pipe(line construction)
WITF, January 8, 2018
Over the course of construction, a number of spills have taken place, and homeowners have seen their well water contaminated with mud. Sunoco was also discovered to be drilling in some areas without appropriate permits. StateImpact Pennsylvania energy reporter Susan Phillips, joins us to explain the background of the pipeline situation, and talk through what might happen next...
PA Pipeline Delayed, But Its Critics Push for More
Public News Service, January 8, 2018
HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Environmental groups are calling on the state to cancel construction of the Mariner East 2 pipeline..."What we really need is a full revocation of this permit, and a full plan to shut this pipeline down. I think it's very easy to read this as still a plan to let this pipeline be built." - Sam Rubin, Food and Water Watch...
PUC should reverse Sunoco pipeline decision
Delco Times, January 7, 2018
I wish that I, a mere taxpayer in Pennsylvania, could join others and file a formal complaint with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission about the extremely hazardous gas pipeline called the Mariner East2 being currently built within a few yards of my 55+ Community, “Hershey's Mill,”...
For those living along Sunoco's Mariner East 2 pipeline, a human chain of frustration
Pittsburg Post-Gazette, January 7, 2018
Patrick Robinson is one of 105,419 people who live along the 350-mile, a 17-county corridor of the Mariner East 2 natural gas pipeline. Landowners have been complaining about cloudy water, permit violations, illegal drilling and dumping since construction began almost a year ago... Mr. Robinson says “I have lived here 14 years and never had an issue until they started digging...
“I don’t know how they got away with some of the stuff they did.”
Urge legislators to enact pipeline policy
Daily Local News, January 6, 2018
East Goshen Township recently adopted a resolution regarding the need for policy changes with respect to oil and gas pipelines in Pennsylvania. This resolution has been shared with Governor Tom Wolf, Senator Tom Killion, Representative Carolyn Comitta, and the elected officials of every other municipality in Chester County. Change, if it is to occur, needs to happen at the state level. To that end, we believe that this resolution is a powerful document that can serve as a template for state legislators to help restore local control over zoning and land use decisions in Pennsylvania. ...
Local Community Takes Step To Stop Pipeline Project
CBS Philly, January 5, 2018
A local community is taking another step to stop the project. The Uwchlan Township Board of Supervisors has hired the Curtin and Heefner law firm as township solicitor. “Several years ago, Curtin and Heefner worked with several environmental groups to defeat Act 13, which took away communities rights to protect themselves from fracking,” said Sam Bernhardt of “Food and Water Watch.” ...
Uwchlan targets action against Mariner East 2 pipeline
Daily Local, January 5, 2018
Township voters firmly voiced their opinion at the polls in November ... “(Pipeline construction) is a major issue for a significant number of residents,” Miller said. “When you look at the turn-out and margin of victory, we were given a mandate to move forward with this action.” ...
Sunoco’s ‘egregious’ behavior leads to suspension of Mariner East 2 pipeline construction
Nation of Change, January 5, 2018
"The pipeline, which is estimated to cost $2.5 billion and will be 350 miles long at completion, will carry natural gas liquids from the Marcellus Shale in Western Pennsylvania and eastern Ohio to an export terminal near Philadelphia. The majority of it will then be sent to a plastics manufacturer in Scotland, further merging two planet-killing industries." ...
Mariner East 2 shutdown is latest in a spate of challenges to major Sunoco project
State Impact, January 5, 2018
The Mariner East 2 pipeline’s shutdown was big news this week — and, as Sunoco has said it plans to do what’s required so it can start construction again, there is more to come.
StateImpact Pennsylvania has been following this story for years, and you can track the history of the project, its promises and its problems through our collected reporting...
Uwchlan targets action against Mariner East 2 pipeline
Daily Local, January 5, 2018
The Mariner East 2 pipeline has been the target of consistent citizen protests. Now Uwchlan Township may be ready to take legal action against the plan....“The residents of Uwchlan Township overwhelmingly believe this project is wrong for our community,” -Rebecca Britton, newly elected member of the Downingtown School Board and leader of the Uwchlan Safety Coalition...
More on Battle of Mariner East 2
Delco Times, January 5, 2018
There were 32 violation notices filed against the Mariner 2 Pipeline in 2017. It's those violations that prompted the Pennsylvania DEP to suspend Sunoco Pipeline, LP's construction permitsSen. Andy Dinniman, D-19, of West Whiteland, one of the fiercest critics of the way the state has handled oversight of this project, is vowing to turn up the heat just a day after the state Department of Environmental Protection shut down all construction on the project across the state until Sunoco officials can satisfy the state that they have a plan to abide by all permitting procedures....
DEP halts Mariner 2 Pipeline construction
WTAJ, January 5, 2018
There were 32 violation notices filed against the Mariner 2 Pipeline in 2017. It's those violations that prompted the Pennsylvania DEP to suspend Sunoco Pipeline, LP's construction permits...
Score one big battle for critics of Mariner East 2
DelcoTimes, January 5, 2018
The problems - and citizen concerns - have not gone away. The pipeline incurred several incidents with spills, runoffs and problems with private water wells. Finally, the state apparently had heard enough...
Pa. shuts down construction on SXL's Mariner East 2 line
The Africom, January 5, 2018
DEP directed the company to submit details on how it plans to prevent drilling mud spills - or "inadvertent returns" - that have challenged the project in their dozens since construction began last February. A Sunoco spokesman could not be reached for comment.
PennLive, January 4, 2018
“I haven’t had water since June,” said Rolfe Blume of Upper Frankford Township.
Since the beginning of construction of the Mariner East 2 pipeline, which passes through his property, Blume said his well water has been infected with a yellow slime. “I can’t cook, I can’t drink it..."
PA Gov Wolf Shows His Marbles to Sunoco by Shutting Down Pipeline
Goose In the Gallows, January 4, 2018
More often than not the job performance of the PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) falls somewhere between gross negligence and willing co-conspirator in responding to environmental violations by the oil and gas industry. Any guesses as to why?...
Local officials turn up heat to ensure safety of pipeline process
Delco Times, January 4, 2018
Dinniman, D-19 of West Whiteland, said Thursday that the state has not, and is not, fully overseeing the safety of the pipeline process. The senator is inviting a group of citizens, civic leaders and elected officials to meet next week at his office to consider funding a study of the pipeline project with private money. “The governor didn’t solve the problem in terms of protecting public safety, and if the state doesn’t do it we’ll perform a risk assessment ourselves,” Dinniman said. Delaware County’s state Sens. Tom McGarrigle, R-26 of Springfield, and Tom Killion, R-168 of Middletown, also called for stringent safety measures...
Pennsylvania Suspends Mariner East 2 Pipeline Construction
Eco Watch, January 4, 2018
Construction has been plagued by numerous spills and contaminated drinking water supplies for homes in Silver Lake Township, Pennsylvania. State regulators had discovered that Sunoco was drilling under streams without permits when a spill contaminated a high-quality creek in Berks County, Pennsylvania, the order notes—and then found unpermitted construction at over a half-dozen other locations along the pipeline's route.....
Pennsylvania officials halt construction of the Mariner East II gas pipeline
Midwest Energy News, January 4, 2018
Pennsylvania officials halt construction of the Mariner East II gas pipeline after developers used unauthorized drilling methods that leaked..
Heron’s Nest: Battle of Mariner East 2
Delco Times, January 4, 2018
Sen. Andy Dinniman, D-19 of West Whiteland, one of the region’s fiercest pipeline critics, and the citizen group Del-Chesco United for Pipeline Safety continued to express serious doubts about the wisdom of putting a pipeline carrying these materials in close proximity to schools, day care facilities, parks, libraries and senior living centers.”....
Sunoco gas pipeline shuts down construction
Sun Gazette, January 4, 2018
The Department of Environmental Protection said it ordered work on the Mariner East 2 pipeline to stop until Sunoco complies with the terms of its permit. DEP has issued dozens of environmental violations to Sunoco since May, contending the company has demonstrated a “lack of ability or intention” to comply with the state’s clean streams law and other environmental regulations....
Pennsylvania Stops Construction of Sunoco’s Mariner East 2 Pipeline
USA Herald, January 4, 2018
In a statement, the department’s Secretary Patrick McDonnell said, DEP has no alternative but to suspend Sunoco’s permits until it can demonstrate it can and will to follow all requirements...
State suspends work on Mariner East pipeline project
The Tribune-Democrat, January 4, 2018
The State Department of Protection has again suspended construction work on a $2.5 billion liquid gas pipeline that will run through Cambria County...
UPDATE 1-Pennsylvania halts work on Sunoco's Mariner East 2 NGL pipeline
Reuters, January 3, 2018
Environmental regulators in Pennsylvania on Wednesday ordered Energy Transfer Partners LP’s (ETP) Sunoco Pipeline unit to stop work again on its Mariner East 2 natural gas liquids pipeline after numerous violations of its construction permits...
Mariner East 2 violations latest in reckless practices by Energy Transfer Partners
Oil Change International, January 3, 2018
“Energy Transfer Partners pipelines are disasters for the climate, dangers to our communities, and risky for investors. States like Pennsylvania are right to push pause on the dangerous construction, but should go one step further and halt these projects for good.” - David Turnbull, Strategic Communications Director at Oil Change International,
Pennsylvania shuts down construction on Sunoco gas pipeline
Ap News, January 3, 2018
Pennsylvania environmental officials ordered Sunoco on Wednesday to halt construction of a natural gas pipeline across the southern part of the state, citing a series of spills and leaks of drilling fluid and other "egregious and willful violations" of state law that have plagued the $2.5 billion project..
Pennsylvania shuts down construction on Sunoco gas pipeline
Washington Post, January 3, 2018
Pennsylvania environmental officials ordered Sunoco on Wednesday to halt construction of a natural gas pipeline across the southern part of the state, citing a series of spills and leaks of drilling fluid and other “egregious and willful violations” of state law...
Pennsylvania Shuts Down Construction On Sunoco Gas Pipeline
MSN, January 3, 2018
Pennsylvania environmental officials have ordered Sunoco to halt construction of a natural gas pipeline across the southern part of the state; KDKA's Andy Sheehan reports....
DEP halts construction of Sunoco's $2.5B Mariner East pipeline
The Hill, January 3, 2018
DEP alleges dozens of legal violations by Sunoco since May, including releases of fluids into waterways, multiple unauthorized uses of horizontal drilling, unauthorized construction over a creek, violation of an order to re-evaluate construction techniques and unauthorized construction in a wild trout fishery...
DEP halts construction of Sunoco's $2.5B Mariner East pipeline
Bar Chart, January 3, 2018
"Today's announcement is a step in the right direction, but the only responsible course of action for Governor Wolf is to stop the Mariner East 2 altogether," Sam Rubin of Food & Water Watch said Wednesday. "This project, which was greenlighted with flawed permits, was never going to be safe for the people of Pennsylvania."
Pennsylvania shuts down construction on Sunoco gas pipeline
Pittsburg Post-Gazette, January 3, 2018
The DEP said nothing short of halting construction would shake Sunoco’s demonstrated “lack of ability or intention to comply” with state laws that safeguard commonwealth land and waterways. Since permits were issued in February 2017, Sunoco has racked up dozens of violations for spills of drilling mud along its path, some flowing into sensitive streams and others clouding water supplies for nearby residents. Between May and September last year, the DEP chronicled more than 30 spills in southwestern Pennsylvania — 2 in Allegheny County, 10 in Washington and 18 in Westmoreland. The DEP also documented numerous instances of Sunoco not following conditions of its permits...
Gov. Wolf Bows to Public Pressure, Suspends Mariner Pipeline Construction
Food & Water Watch, January 3, 2018
“Today’s announcement is a step in the right direction, but the only responsible course of action for Governor Wolf is to stop the Mariner East 2 altogether. This project, which was greenlighted with flawed permits, was never going to be safe for the people of Pennsylvania. What we really need is a full and permanent halt to construction and a full, transparent, and public assessment of the risks associated with the Mariner East 2. The movement to stop the pipeline will be using this temporary halt to build the power we know we’ll need to protect communities from Mariner East once and for all.”
DEP orders work to stop on Mariner East 2 pipeline project
ABC 69 News, January 3, 2018
"One of the violations that led to this decision occurred in Berks County, when Sunoco operated outside of its permit to do horizontal directional drilling (HDD) that led to a drilling mud spill in the Hay Creek watershed that the company then failed to report," said Kareint Feridun, Berks Gas Truth's founder. "It is demonstrative of the utter lack of regard Sunoco has for the health and safety of communities along the route and for the regulatory process."...
DEP suspends construction on Sunoco gas pipeline
ABC27 News, January 3, 2018
The Department of Environmental Protection has ordered Sunoco to suspend construction on a natural gas pipeline that crosses 17 Pennsylvania counties. Wednesday’s order cites a series of violations regarding the Mariner East 2 pipeline, including violations at three construction sites in the Harrisburg area...
Pennsylvania DEP Shuts Down Sunoco Pipeline Construction
NBC Philadelphia News, January 3, 2018
The pipeline known as Mariner East II has been beset by construction issues and allegations of permit violations over the past year...
Pennsylvania shuts down construction on Sunoco gas pipeline
6 ABC News, January 3, 2018
The Department of Environmental Protection announced Wednesday that it has ordered work on the Mariner East 2 pipeline to stop until Sunoco complies with the terms of its permit. DEP has issued dozens of environmental violations to Sunoco since May....
Pennsylvania stops construction of Energy Transfer Partners pipeline for ‘egregious’ violations
Think Progress, January 3, 2018
“Suspension of pipeline construction was the only option, DEP says...”
Pennsylvania Shuts Down Construction On Sunoco Gas Pipeline
CBS Philadelphia News, January 3, 2018
“There was no single violation that prompted this suspension,” McDonnell said. “We’ve seen a pattern of knowing violations of permits..”
Pennsylvania DEP says enough is enough, halts work on Mariner East 2 pipeline
Philly Voice, January 3, 2018
The state Department of Environmental Protection on Wednesday ordered Sunoco to stop construction of a natural gas pipeline across Pennsylvania, citing "egregious and willful violations" of law...
DEP halts construction of Sunoco's $2.5B Mariner East pipeline
Philly, January 3, 2018
The order also requires Sunoco to address the impacts of its pipeline construction to private water wells in Silver Spring Township, Cumberland County. The DEP's full order suspending the permits can be found on its website. A list of the notices of violations issued to Sunoco for Mariner East 2 can also..
DEP ANNOUNCES SUSPENSION OF MARINER EAST 2 PIPELINE CONSTRUCTION PERMITS
Clean Air Council, January 3, 2018
Clean Air Council applauds Governor Wolf’s DEP for finally standing up and taking this necessary action in response to Sunoco’s pattern of blatant disregard for public health and safety, Pennsylvania drinking water supplies, and other natural resources,” said Joseph Otis Minott, Executive Director and Chief Counsel of Clean Air Council. We look forward to DEP holding Sunoco accountable on this suspension and all future actions that may need to be taken to protect Pennsylvania residents.”
Mariner East 2 violations latest in reckless practices by Energy Transfer Partners
#STOPETP, January 3, 2018
“Energy Transfer Partners pipelines are disasters for the climate, dangers to our communities, and risky for investors. States like Pennsylvania are right to push pause on the dangerous construction, but should go one step further and halt these projects for good.”
DESMOG, January 3, 2018
“What we really need is a full and permanent halt to construction and a full, transparent, and public assessment of the risks associated with the Mariner East 2,” Food & Water Watch organizer Sam Rubin said in a statement. A May Food & Water Watch report called attention to the role that Mariner East II would play in efforts to convert ethane from fracked gas wells into a new glut of plastics, citing the health hazards for workers and communities near petrochemical manufacturing, as well as the growing plastics gyres in the Pacific Ocean...
DEP suspends all construction on Mariner East 2 pipeline
State Impact, January 3, 2018
Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection on Wednesday suspended all construction on Sunoco’s Mariner East 2 pipeline, saying it has violated the conditions of two kinds of permits...
DEP stops construction on Mariner East 2 pipeline after multiple violations
PennLive, January 3, 2018
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has suspended all work on the Mariner East 2 pipeline after citing multiple violations...
PA suspends Sunoco pipeline construction permits
Bucks County Herald, January 3, 2018
The suspension also was for violating a settlement agreement between Delaware Riverkeeper Network, Clean Air Council, and Mountain Watershed Association, PADEP, and Sunoco. “This order provides further evidence that the project should never have been authorized by DEP in the first place,” said Maya van Rossum, the Delaware Riverkeeper. In August, the groups entered into a settlement with PADEP and Sunoco to prevent spills of drilling fluid associated with Sunoco’s horizontal directional drilling, to protect drinking water supplies and the state’s fragile ecosystems, to provide timely notification to PADEP and the public of any such spills, and to provide the public with additional opportunities to comment on Sunoco’s activities...
Pa. shuts down construction on Sunoco gas pipeline
Star-Gazette, January 3, 2018
Today’s announcement is a step in the right direction, but the only responsible course of action for Governor Wolf is to stop the Mariner East 2 altogether,” Sam Rubin of Food & Water Watch said Wednesday...
Pennsylvania DEP shuts down construction on Sunoco gas pipeline
Delco Times, January 3, 2018
Work on the pipeline was indefinitely suspended statewide by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, which said the project would remain stalled until Sunoco complies with the terms of its permitting process.The ruling comes in the wake of the most recent problem with the project, with the DEP citing the company for drilling without the proper permitting in a section of the pipeline near Harrisburg.
Public got sold out in deal for Mariner East 2 money
Delco Times, January 3, 2018
ME2 itself is blasphemous in real and known consequences to the regional environment, the lost value on local homes and safety of township residents, and it makes a mockery of the honesty promised by our Home Rule Charter...
Berks Gas Truth Statement on DEP’s Suspension of Mariner East II Permits
Berks Gas Truth, January 3, 2018
Communities have paid the price for the DEP’s reckless rush to permit.
We will continue to fight for a halt to this unnecessary pipeline and the other unnecessary and dangerous infrastructure projects planned for Berks County that will affect the same watershed. We’ve seen too many people lose private water supplies. We’ve seen too much environmental degradation...
DEP halts Mariner East 2 pipeline construction
Unionville Times, January 3, 2018
The shutdown comes less than a month after state Sen. Andy Dinniman called on Gov. Tom Wolf to halt construction on the pipeline, citing well contamination, sinkholes and other issues tied to the pipeline construction in Chester County...
Pennsylvania DEP shuts down construction on Sunoco gas pipeline
The Mercury News, January 3, 2018
Work on the pipeline was indefinitely suspended statewide by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection...
DEP suspends Mariner East 2 pipeline construction permits
The Sentinel, January 3, 2018
"This project was flawed from the start, and it is disgraceful that these flaws have manifested themselves in such a way that the public’s health and environment have been significantly impacted."...
DEP Suspends Mariner East 2 Construction Permit
Environmental Defense Fund, January 3, 2018
“Governor Wolf and the DEP made the right call. This action proves that irresponsible companies can no longer pollute without consequence. Continued vigilance from the Wolf Administration will be critical to protect Pennsylvanians’ air and water and to ensure all oil and gas companies operate more responsibly within the commonwealth.”
DEP Suspends Mariner East 2 Construction Permit
DEP NEWSROOM, January 3, 2018
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has issued an order suspending the construction permits associated with the Mariner East 2 pipeline until the permittee, Sunoco Pipeline, L.P. (Sunoco) meets the requirements outlined in the order. Sunoco must cease all construction activity on the pipeline project...
DEP accuses Sunoco of unauthorized drilling
Daily Local News, January 2, 2018
Plans call for the Sunoco Mariner East 2 pipeline to stretch from Marcellus Shale deposits in West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Ohio, to the former ... and reporting requirements, which are published by the DEP, making Mariner East 2 not only the largest construction project to date in Pennsylvania...
Spill sites for Sunoco pipeline in Westmoreland County under evaluation
Tribune-Review, January 2, 2018
Five problematic drilling sites for the Mariner East 2 pipeline in Westmoreland County are ..
Letters to the editor: 2018: A new year for citizen involvement
Daily Local News, January 2, 2018
Numerous public officials have addressed concerns. Among those who have called for halt in construction to permit expert risk assessment are State Reps. Comitta, Corbin, Krueger-Braneky, Milne; State Sens. Dinniman, Leach, Rafferty; and Congressman Meehan. At the local level, members of municipal governing...
Sen. Dinniman: 6 Sunoco Mariner East 2 pipeline questions that need answers
The Berks-Mont News, January 1, 2018
As we enter a new year, serious concerns about the safety of the Sunoco's Mariner East pipelines are not going away. In fact, they're only growing and so are our voices. Important questions about these pipelines — pipelines carrying highly volatile natural gas liquids such as butane and propane – will...
YEAR IN REVIEW: Twists and turns complicate Sunoco Mariner East 2 pipeline construction
The Mercury News, January 1, 2018
Amid strong opposition...a series of protests, dozens of demonstrators held signs high and chanted. Some attended a press conference in Harrisburg with elected representatives, and six members of the public met with Gov. Tom Wolf to voice their concerns...