Sunoco Spills Large Volume of Industrial Waste into Marsh Creek Lake, Chester County Drinking Water Source
CHESTER COUNTY, PA (August 11, 2020) – Yesterday, Sunoco Pipeline L.P. (part of Energy Transfer) released at least 1000 gallons of horizontal directional drilling (HDD) fluid, an industrial waste, into Marsh Creek Lake, the center of Marsh Creek State Park and a reservoir for much of Chester County’s drinking water. Drilling fluid contains clay and chemical additives and can smother aquatic life. The release occurred during Sunoco’s drilling as part of its construction of the Mariner East hazardous liquids pipeline system. Photographs from the park last night show a large plume of gray water snaking hundreds of feet into the lake. It is unclear what the impact will be on the health of the Lake and the public drinking water systems that rely on it.
More than a year ago, Clean Air Council and allies urged the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to stop Sunoco from going ahead with new HDD plans at Marsh Creek State Park because of the high risk of spills, which even Sunoco’s own geologist identified. Clean Air Council wrote, “Sunoco again has failed to take seriously the danger its construction poses to drinking water supplies and other water resources.” More than 250 people wrote to DEP, asking it to deny the proposal to put Marsh Creek State Park at risk. Nonetheless, DEP approved the plans as Sunoco requested on January 23, 2020. As the statewide grand jury report on fracking recently concluded, DEP often has not used its powers to protect people from the gas industry, and as a result, “companies were free to continue environmentally hazardous activities that DEP had the power to stop.”
“DEP has failed Pennsylvanians when we need them most,” said Joseph Otis Minott, Esq., Executive Director and Chief Counsel of Clean Air Council. “Our lakes and parks are among our few refuges during the pandemic and they are more critical than ever. By letting Sunoco proceed in the face of clear warnings of the destruction it would cause, DEP has made what amounts to a willful decision not to protect the public. Residents are weary and they are frustrated. Do your job, DEP. Step up, Governor Wolf. Fines are not enough. Shut it down.”
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Clean Air Council is a member-supported, non-profit environmental organization dedicated to protecting everyone’s right to a healthy environment. The Council is headquartered in Philadelphia and works through public education, community advocacy, and government oversight to ensure enforcement of environmental laws. For more information, please visit www.cleanair.org.
See Comments on Report for HDD PA-CH-0100.0000-RD (HDD# S3-0290) by Clean Air Council, the Delaware Riverkeeper Network, and Mountain Watershed Association, available at http://files.dep.state.pa.us/ProgramIntegration/PA%20Pipeline%20Portal/MarinerEastII/HDD_Reevaluation_Reports/LittleConestogaRoadCrossing/1st%20comment%20period%20-%20Clean%20Air%20Council%20-%206-11-19%20-%20Little%20Conestoga%20Road%20Crossing%20-%2065.%20Comment.pdf.
See Comments for First Public Comment Period, DEP Permit HDD Reference # PA-CH-0100.0000-RD, http://files.dep.state.pa.us/ProgramIntegration/PA%20Pipeline%20Portal/MarinerEastII/HDD_Reevaluation_Reports/LittleConestogaRoadCrossing/1st%20comment%20period%20-%20Little%20Conestoga%20Road%20Crossing.pdf.
See January 23, 2020 letter from DEP to Sunoco Pipeline L.P., available at http://files.dep.state.pa.us/ProgramIntegration/PA%20Pipeline%20Portal/MarinerEastII/HDD_Reevaluation_Reports/DEP_Response/DEP%20Final%20Response%20-%20Little%20Conestoga%20Road%20Crossing%20-%201-23-2020.pdf.
