Water log

Threatened streams of North Central PA raise questions about water resources and gas well drilling

By RICHARD A. ROSS

SETTING THE STAGE: The heat is rising as the debate sparked by gas drilling rages across our communities. Feeding that firestorm of opposing viewpoints are good people who speak with passion from both sides.

This story is about fire and water. Inflamed by our passions on drilling, we easily forget that water is a vital part of the discussion. Potable water is not only our most valuable life-sustaining resource, it is inarguably diminishing worldwide.

For those of us who enjoy a plethora of lakes, streams and the Delaware River or the Susquehanna River and whose wells provide a constant flow of water from the tap, the larger picture about an impending water crisis hasn’t registered yet, as it has with millions of people who have only a few drops a day to drink or wash in. You don’t have to go to the arid parts of the globe to hear about water shortage or contamination. Some people have speculated that future wars will be fought over water, which is being bought up and resold by corporations like Pepsi Cola and Coca Cola who are already turning great profits on one of nature’s free gifts.

Sportsmen have already taken note of decreasing surface water beset by climate change. For people like trout fisherman Dan Morris of Woodland, PA, the prospect of gas companies pumping millions of gallons of water for well hydrofracking from streams already under great drought duress creates much apprehension.

When the United States Geological Survey (USGS) website that reports on the daily flow of local streams notified the public that as of September 30 many of its monitoring stations would no longer be reporting data, Morris and other sportsmen became seriously concerned. After decades of reportage, budget cuts from one of its contributing partners — the Army Corps of Engineers— had purportedly prompted this blackout.

USGS Williamsport Office Chief Randy Durbin sought to reassure a concerned public. “We’re confident about finding other sources of funding to keep information accessible,” he said. But Morris and others noticed that the monitoring sites destined to go dark coincide with areas slated for drilling in both New York and Pennsylvania.

Durbin maintains there is no connection. The Army Corps of Engineers budget shortfall affects the Susquehanna and Potomac riverbasins.

Like the gas storage fire that burned for nearly two weeks in Leidy Township, PA, the incendiary debate burns on. Using insights gained from observations of the trout streams, talks with USGS personnel, photographs and charts, perhaps we can throw some water on the raging debate.

NORTH CENTRAL PA — On September 24, my neighbor Bruce Grund and I, residents of Cochecton, NY, took off for a nearly five-hour drive to Kettle Creek and the First Fork of the Sinnemahoning Creek in Potter and Cameron counties. Grund has great memories of fishing there with his wife’s cousin, Dan Morris of Woodland, PA, when the streams were deep and full of trout.

Gas drilling leases have been signed by many in the area, one of the most beautiful and pristine places in the Northeast. Ahead of the Upper Delaware River Valley, gas companies are seeking permits from the Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC). At its last meeting on September 11, the SRBC granted the approval of the withdrawal of more than 30 million gallons per day from the river basin in response to 34 applications from drilling companies.

As of this writing, it is unclear if that approval included the removal of up to 4.9 million gallons of water per day requested by Pennsylvania General Energy Company, L.L.C. from the First Fork Sinnemahoning Creek, Emporium Public Water, Galeton Public Water, East Fork Sinnemahoning and other water sources in the region, a number of which we visited. As the accompanying photos show, areas once teeming with water are barely running or already bone dry due to persistent drought. A view of the streams in wetter times offers a stunning basis of comparison.

Spreading the news of

low water

At a recent family reunion in Pennsylvania, Morris, a second cousin to Bruce’s wife, Peggy, alerted Grund to the dangerously low waters of local streams and dams. That conversation was part of Grund’s reversal of a prior decision to lease his land. (See Community Conversations on page 12.

Trout fishermen have encyclopedic knowledge about streams and water. In the cool days of early spring when the Sinnemahoning, which is a tributary of the Susquehanna River, is chest deep, the waters flow clear and clean and anglers abound. But this September, the streams merely trickle by, making catch-and-release fishing impossible. Aquatic life is vanishing too as Mayfly breeding is disrupted, potentially damaging a vital food source for trout. Lake reservoirs have become dry beds of cracked mud and people worry about their wells too.

Then there is the concern of pollution of water from fracking. “I’ve had my water tested,” said one of Morris’s friends who used to work on a compressor for a gas drilling company but who didn’t want his name mentioned.

After breakfast and some initial discussion, Grund and I followed behind Morris and his friends to observe the local waterways. This is an encapsulated view of what we saw.

• The George P. Stevenson Dam Reservoir was nearly bone dry. Durbin explained that in order to keep the downstream flow of the First Fork of the Sinnemahonig going, they had to release 21-22 cubic feet per second (cfps) while the incoming supply above the dam is only eight to ten cfps. Signs offering information about duck species, boats sitting on a dried up launch and “No Fishing” signs were strange sights.

• Stream beds were down to a mere few inches of water. Rocks normally submerged were exposed.

• We met USGS stream monitor Emily Eggler from the Williamsport office who was collecting data on stream flow and water purity. “We have a gauge upstream,” she noted, referring to a solar-powered monitoring station that was uploading data to a satellite for the USGS. Eggler noted that the USGS collects data and analyzes it. It is not a regulatory agency. “My job is to do a detailed and accurate measuring of the water,” she noted but she admitted that the low flow due to weather conditions could be adversely impacted by a large withdrawal of surface water.

• We observed a number of places where eight-inch pipes were in streams or nearby streams that were already extremely low. Nearby signs advised of rough roads due to gas drilling areas.

• Four large tanks were situated near a well site. Two were open and accessible, with round portals within the reach of a child, and at least one other was leaking an unspecified liquid on the ground. There was no one nearby to monitor the tanks.

• Tanker trucks were backing up to the dam site and leaving with water for the fire burning in a gas storage facility. Here the visceral connection between gas, fire and water was clearly in evidence.

At Kettle Creek, the water was flowing at least 10 feet below its high water mark from the spring. Morris said it is often low this time of year, but a couple of years ago, he and fellow sportsmen were fishing in it until late August.

“I’m not against people signing up for gas leasing, but I am gravely concerned about the effects on the water and this beautiful area,” said Morris.

For a photo album click here.