Pennsylvania judge temporarily halts Mariner East 2 pipeline drilling construction

A state Environmental Hearing Board judge ordered Tuesday that Sunoco temporarily halt a key drilling method for construction of its Mariner East 2 pipeline. The order came in response to a filing by environmental groups that the process has polluted local waterways in Pennsylvania.

The ruling by Judge Bernard Labuskes Jr. effectively halts work at 55 locations where Sunoco Pipeline LP is using horizontal drilling to install the pipeline. The order expires Aug. 7, when the board will hold three days of hearings on whether construction can continue.

It was the second ruling in as many days blocking Sunoco’s progress on Mariner East 2, at least partly. On Monday, an administrative law judge temporarily blocked construction of a valve-control station in West Goshen Township, Chester County.

Hailing Tuesday’s order was Joe Minott, director of the Clean Air Council, which had sought suspension of drilling for the pipeline.

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