Hats off to WVDEP.. looks like they've grown a pair :^) Coz we know that Gov Earl Ray Tomblin is in the back pocket of Chesapeake Energy. Just look at this pic of the site. It is an unbelievable mess!
Think about it.. up until now the horizontal drillers/hydraulic fracturers have drilled mostly flat or undulating country. West Virginia is a different kettle of fish. West Virginia consists of mainly "ridges and hollers".. virtually straight up and straight down. Combine that with the propensity for clear-cutting maybe 5 to 7 acres for a well pad.. having huge wastewater ponds literally hanging off the sides of mountains.. and WV's 45 to 60 inches per year rainfall.. you can see the massive potential for slippage, sedimetation and erosion that exists on and around well pads in our state. I believe that over-topping and collapse of waste water impoundments will become a regular occurrence. Thousands of huge trucks delivering millions of gallons of fluids to a single well for one "frack" on WV's hilly winding roads will massively accelerate road damage and cause erosion problems, as well as noise, fumes, inconvemience and of course danger for road users.. and it will be county and state taxpayers picking up THAT bill. The $10,000 first well permit fee will, basically, cover a couple hundred yards of secondary road resurfacing.. I believe that drilling these mountains will be an unmitigated environmental disaster in many ways and I'm sure we will be finding all about that in the years and months ahead.
GLEN EASTON - Citing an "imminent danger" to people, the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection ordered Chesapeake Energy to stop operating at the Ray Baker well pad in southern Marshall County.
This is the same pad the DEP and the Army Corps of Engineers are requiring Chesapeake to repair because of slipping soil and "discharging pollutants into the adjacent stream."
"This seems to have been a problem site from the beginning. There have been a number of issues," said department spokeswoman Kathy Cosco regarding the site along Valley Run Road. "They have been ordered to cease operation on all wells at that pad until these issues are addressed."
Stacey Brodak, Chesapeake corporate development director, said the company stopped working on the wells earlier this year - prior to the department's Dec. 7 order - as workers sought to fix the pad.
"The complex design and extensive earth-moving work necessary to restore the Baker pad slips are expected to take several months or longer," said Brodak. "We continue to work diligently at the site to remove mud and debris from slips, and continue to work closely with the appropriate regulatory agencies involved."
Records show the DEP originally cited Chesapeake for "pollution of the waters of the state" at the Baker site in February. Additional citations for, among others, creating an "imminent danger," at the site came in October. These citations preceded those from earlier this month for similar problems.
"There are a number of issues with this whole pad," added Cosco. The department believes it will take Chesapeake a year to correct the problems before the company can resume drilling, she said.
"We recognize there are weather issues this time of year, but we are requiring them to give us weekly updates," she added.
Brodak previously said Chesapeake is working "around the clock to reinforce and restore the Ray Baker site in a safe and environmentally responsible manner."
In order to resume operations at the pad, the department is requiring Chesapeake to:
-- Properly secure all well heads and install protective cages around them.
-- Remove the sediment and debris from the road and unnamed stream.
-- Reclaim all affected areas to ensure a stable slope.
-- Install erosion and sediment control devices.
LINK TO ORIGINAL ARTICLE
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