Huffman: No Need to Reconfigure W.Va. Gas Panel

Charleston Gazette
8 October 2010
By The Associated Press

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) - The state's top environmental regulator said Friday there's no need to reconfigure an industry-heavy task force advising him on gas drilling operations in West Virginia, despite complaints from a coalition of watershed and conservation groups seeking seats at the table.

The Upper Monongahela River Association and the WV/PA Monongahela Area Watersheds Compact complained in a letter to Gov. Joe Manchin earlier this week that the state is not giving adequate attention to the views and voices of nearly two dozen groups.

The Department of Environmental Protection's panel, they argued, is not diverse enough considering the magnitude of problems West Virginia could face from deep horizontal drilling in the Marcellus shale field.

Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Randy Huffman told The Associated Press he understands the concern and is willing to listen to anyone with a suggestion on how to better regulate the rapidly growing industry. But he said the current panel has technical expertise he needs.

"This is not a majority-rule or voting group of people. It's nothing like that. It is truly an advisory group," he said.

"I'm going to make a final decision on what's in the rules," Huffman said. "They need not be concerned about me being overrun by the industry. ... I've got the one vote that counts."

The DEP is reviewing its oil and gas operations amid the growing rush to tap the reserves of the vast shale field that underlies West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio and New York.

Huffman is considering a two-tiered regulatory system - one for conventional wells and one for horizontal wells.

The task force is advising DEP as its staff writes the necessary rules, regulations and legislation. It consists of six former or current industry representatives, a coal association lawyer, a public-interest attorney who founded the West Virginia Surface Owners Rights Organization and a lobbyist for the West Virginia Environmental Council.

Barry Pallay, vice president of the Upper Monongahela River Association, said his group has held more than 13 water-quality forums in the past two years and would bring balance to the panel. His members include mechanical, civil, chemical, marine and petroleum engineers, as well as geologists, safety experts and CEOs.

"This is about bringing the best expertise to the table," he said, "so the DEP can get the benefit of the best there is."

The hydraulic fracturing technology used for Marcellus drilling requires vast amounts of water to break the gas free. The DEP is trying to address not only the source and storage of that water, but how the polluted water is disposed of after drilling.

It's also looking at issues ranging from site-specific permitting plans to legal questions on mineral rights issues.

Watershed and conservation groups are particularly concerned about protecting water resources and water quality, and adopting plans that deal with sedimentation and erosion control.

Pallay's coalition has passed eight resolutions, including some dealing with the need for more inspectors and the need to protect streams and rivers from the harmful concentration of pollutants during low-flow periods.

Both are issues the DEP is already discussing, and Huffman said the coalition might be surprised to learn what else is already on the table.

DEP staff have talked with groups around the state since April, sometimes hosting meetings of as many as 70 people, he said. The door was open all summer, Huffman said, and it still is.

"Whether they have a seat has no impact on the fact that we will listen to them," he said.