The following information is an update of recent,
local, state, national, and international legal developments relevant to shale
gas:
Federal Jury Holds
Cabot Oil & Gas Corporation Responsible for Dimock Area Water Contamination
On March 10, 2016, a jury in the U.S. District Court
for the Middle District of Pennsylvania found against Cabot Oil & Gas
Corporation, holding it responsible for environmental contamination from its
natural gas extraction activities in Pennsylvania. The jury’s verdict finds Cabot Oil &
Gas Corporation to have negligently operated wells in the Dimock area that
interfered with plaintiffs’ use and enjoyment of their property. Cabot was
ordered by the Court to pay the sum of $4.24 million to be divided based on
each plaintiffs’ damages. Plaintiffs filed a complaint on November 19, 2009,
alleging that Cabot negligently discharged pollutants near plaintiffs’ homes
and water wells. More information on the case is available at docket no.
3:09-cv-2284.
West Virginia
House Reviews Senate Bill Addressing Private Nuisance Claims
On February 4, 2016, West Virginia Senator Ryan Ferns
introduced Senate Bill No. 508 to the General Assembly pertaining to civil claims
for private nuisance alleged to result from oil and gas operations. The bill would
prevent landowners from bringing a lawsuit against any person engaged in oil
and gas activities based on private nuisance unless the landowners could show that
the activity at issue is carried out in violation of laws, license, permit or
other governmental authorization. The bill passed the Senate by a vote of 20 to
12 on February 23, and is currently pending in House Judiciary Committee.
Idaho Legislature Establishes
Oil and Gas Conservation Commission
On March 7, 2016, the legislature of the state of
Idaho passed Senate Bill No. 1339 giving
authority to the newly created state Oil and Gas Conservation Commission to
regulate oil and gas activities. The Commission will have power to oversee the
Idaho Department of Lands’ regulatory process for permitting oil and gas wells.
The Commission also will have authority to review and reverse any Department of
Lands’ decisions. SB 1339 was passed in anticipation of future oil and gas
development in the state of Idaho while only minor natural gas drilling
activities have taken place in the western part of Idaho.
Constitution Pipeline
is Expected to be Operational by October 2016
In a media advisory dated March 10, 2016,
Constitution Pipeline Company, LLC, announced that the new Constitution
pipeline is scheduled to be operational by October of this year. The
Constitution pipeline project will be approximately 124 miles in length and
will deliver 650,000 dekatherms per day (Dth/d) of natural gas supply from
Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania, to an interconnect site in Schoharie County,
New York. Constitution Pipeline Company, LLC, explained that “pending receipt
of the Clean Water Act Section 401 Water Quality Certification from New York
State Department of Environmental Conservation and the Clean Water Act Section
404 permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Constitution anticipates
beginning limited mainline construction in the summer of 2016.”
Written by Chloe Marie - Research Fellow
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