According to PADEP records, between January 1, 2008 and December 31, 2011, 64 different shale gas drilling companies totaled 3,355 violations of environmental laws – that is over 2 violations per day, and about 16 violations per week.
This only includes violations that were discovered!
Department of Interior data on oil and gas companies operating on public lands between Feburary 1998 and February 2011 show that only 125 of the 2,025 documented violations resulted in monetary fines (about 6 percent), and that these 125 violations resulted in $273,875 in fines.
The majority of the safety violations involve faulty blowout prevention, which can lead to watershed contamination, or faulty well casings, which can lead to contamination of underground water supplies.
Analysis of Arkansas inspection records from gas drilling sites revealed widespread violations of the state’s clean water standards, lack of adherence to companies’ own best management practices, and inadequate enforcement to ensure water protection.
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