DEP: Jon Day impoundment contaminated groundwater

DEP: Jon Day impoundment contaminated groundwater
The leaking impoundment in Amwell Township also contaminated more soil than previously thought

PITTSBURGH – State environmental regulators said a leak at the Jon Day impoundment contaminated groundwater with chloride as crews removed nearly 12,000 tons of soil from the Marcellus Shale drilling operation in Amwell Township.

A monitor at the site found the contamination in the groundwater supply Friday, nearly two months after a tear in the impoundment’s 30-millimeter thick liner was discovered, state Department of Environmental Protection spokesman John Poister said.

“We really don’t know the extent of the groundwater contamination,” Poister said.

He said inspections revealed chloride in the soil and groundwater, which was a result of Southpointe-based Range Resources storing brine water in the impoundment, but no other materials or chemicals.

Poister said DEP is estimating up to 15,000 tons of contaminated soil must be trucked from the impoundment to area landfills as crews dig deeper into the ground. That amount of contaminated soil is significantly higher than original estimates when Range Resources workers found a tear in the liner April 16 while cleaning the impoundment.

“This is a very unusual case,” Poister said. “It’s atypical.”

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