PA EHB Blocks Work on Wastewater Injection Well in McKean County

In January, MDN brought you the news that the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) approved a plan by Catalyst Energy to convert an existing conventional gas production well on Route 646 in Cyclone (Keating Township, McKean County, PA) into a shale wastewater injection well (see PA DEP Approves Shale Wastewater Injection Well in McKean…

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Researchers Find Better/Faster Way to Evaporate Marcellus Brine

It’s good to revisit the basics from time to time. When drilling a shale oil or gas well, each well produces “brine,” a super-salty (minerally) water from the depths that keeps flowing long after the well is drilled and is online. This is not surface water; fresh water found down to about 300 feet. This…

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Work on Shale Wastewater Injection Well in McKean County Progresses

In January, MDN brought you the news that the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) approved a plan by Catalyst Energy to convert an existing conventional gas production well on Route 646 in Cyclone (Keating Township in McKean County, PA) into a shale wastewater injection well (see PA DEP Approves Shale Wastewater Injection Well in…

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Phase 1 of Austin Master Serv. Cleanup in Martins Ferry “Complete”

In late July, the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources (ODNR) opened up the shuttered Austin Master Services (AMS) radiological waste management solutions company in Martins Ferry (Belmont County), Ohio, to begin cleanup work at the facility (see Flurry of Activity at Austin Master Services Site in Martins Ferry). AMS is permitted by the ODNR to…

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Wastewater Spill at EQT Well Pad in Greene County, PA

We spotted a report about an aboveground pipeline that flows shale wastewater that sprung a leak and released an estimated 12,600 gallons of brine (salty water from deep below the surface) on the ground in Gilmore Township, Greene County, PA. The pipeline is owned by EQM Gathering, another name for Equitrans Midstream, which is now…

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Va. Researcher “Novel Method” to Extract Lithium from M-U Brine

(From left) Graduate student Peidong Liu and mining and minerals engineering Associate Professor Wencai Zhang analyze water samples in the lab. Photo by Hailey Wade for Virginia Tech. Researchers at Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering have developed a “novel method” for direct lithium extraction from Marcellus produced water to contribute to the high demand for…

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EPA Spending $3.1M to Clean Shuttered Fairmont, WV Wastewater Plant

The Fairmont Brine Processing plant, located at 168 AFR Drive in Fairmont (Marion County), West Virginia, was constructed between 2009 and 2010 by AOP Clearwater LLC. The plant was acquired by Fairmont Brine Processing (FBP) in 2012. FBP began pre-treatment operations at the site in 2013 and fully operated the plant beginning fall of 2014….

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Eureka Temporarily Idles Bradford County Shale Wastewater Plant

Eureka Resources, which operates three frack wastewater treatment facilities in the Marcellus Shale, has idled one of its three plants, the Standing Stone plant in Bradford County, PA. According to an inspection report by the Department of Environmental Protection conducted on August 19, Bob Cooney, Vice President of Operations at Eureka Resources, told the DEP…

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3 Conv. Drillers Sue Multiple OH Injection Wells for Contamination

In April, the Ohio Oil and Gas Commission upheld a regulatory order from the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources (ODNR) suspending operations of three wastewater injection wells located in Torch (Athens County), OH, owned by K&H Partners, a subsidiary of Tallgrass Energy (see Ohio O&G Commission Votes to Shut Down 3 Athens Injection Wells). K&H…

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Eureka Resources Cancels Shale Wastewater Plant Planned for Dimock

In March 2021, Eureka Resources announced plans to build a Marcellus Shale wastewater treatment facility in Dimock (Susquehanna County), Pennsylvania (see Eureka Building Marcellus Wastewater Recycling Plant in Dimock, PA). Yep, that Dimock, the one made famous by the lying Josh Fox of Gasland fame. Both Dimock Township and the Susquehanna County Planning Commission gave…

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Austin Master Services CEO Pays $25,000 Bond to Stay Out of Jail

Last week, MDN exclusively brought you the news that the CEO of American Environmental Services, which owns Austin Master Services (AMS), had filed a brief with Belmont County Court to either forgive or reduce a $1.2 million bond needed to keep the CEO, Brad Domitrovitsch, out of jail (see Austin Master Serv. CEO Asks Court…

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Martins Ferry, OH Mayor Wants AMS Site Shut Down Permanently

According to Public News Service (PNS), a Big Green propaganda outfit funded (in part) by the Fresh Water Accountability Project, the CEO of Austin Master Services (AMS), a frack waste storage facility in Martin’s Ferry, Ohio, was supposed to attend a Belmont County court hearing by phone. He faces contempt-of-court charges for failing to clean…

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Owner of 3 Athens, OH Injection Wells Applies to Permanently Plug

In April, the Ohio Oil and Gas Commission upheld a regulatory order from the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources (ODNR) suspending operations of three wastewater injection wells located in Torch (Athens County), OH, owned by K&H Partners, a subsidiary of Tallgrass Energy (see Ohio O&G Commission Votes to Shut Down 3 Athens Injection Wells). The…

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Martins Ferry Sees No Evidence of Cleanup at Austin Master Serv.

We have been tracking and reporting on the drama surrounding Austin Master Services (AMS), a radiological waste management solutions company in Martins Ferry (Belmont County), Ohio, located close to the Ohio River, since the Ohio Attorney General lodged charges against the company back in March (see our AMS stories here). AMS has stored at least…

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Martins Ferry Council Pressures ODNR to Clean Up AMS Facility…NOW

We have been tracking and reporting on the drama surrounding Austin Master Services (AMS), a radiological waste management solutions company in Martins Ferry (Belmont County), Ohio, located close to the Ohio River (see our AMS stories here). Two weeks ago, a Belmont County Common Pleas Court judge ordered AMS to be fined $200 per day…

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