Water testing advised prior to gas drilling

If any privately owned water supply located near a gas well goes bad within six months after a gas drilling operation is completed, state law automatically assumes the problem is caused by the drilling operation.

So said Bryan Swistock, water resources extension specialist for Penn State University, during a water quality workshop Wednesday at Lycoming College.

"Gas companies are presumed responsible for any water supply within 1,000 feet of a gas well," he said. "After 1,000 feet, the burden of proof shifts to the homeowner."

That is why it important for homeowners to have their water tested by an independent laboratory before a gas well is drilled, he said.

Most gas drilling companies will offer to test well or spring water prior to drilling, he said. Companies must notify homeowners living within the 1,000 feet of the proposed well site that they intend to drill a well, he said.

Swistock said that if a gas company offers to test a homeowner's well water, let them. However, make sure the person taking the sample is employed by an independent water testing company, and not the gas company, he said.

Although there are no set testing standards, bacteria, ph, alkalinity and total dissolved solids levels are most often tested, he said.

The test must be performed by an independent state-certified laboratory for it to stand up against a legal challenge, he said. The homeowner should stipulate in their lease with the gas company that they be provided with the results of the test, he said.

Once a gas well has been drilled, the six-month clock begins, Swistock said. Unless a complaint is lodged against the company within the six-month period, no test will be performed, he said.

Otherwise, it is up to the homeowner to make sure the water is tested before the time runs out, he said.

Swistock said the test should be performed within two or three months of the completion of the drilling operation to allow enough time for test results to be returned from the laboratory.

James A. Clark, a McKean County extension educator, also was on hand to discuss general water quality issues of private water supplies.

It is rare for a gas drilling operation to degrade the quality of the water in privately owned wells, but homeowners should be prepared in case it does occur, he said.

According to Clark, 95 percent of all water quality complaints lodged with the state Department of Environmental Protection against gas drilling companies turn out to be caused by conditions such as leaking pipes or contaminated surface water.

Homeowners need to do more to take care of their wells, which are often in disrepair or are poorly constructed to begin with, he said.

"Most problems with private water supplies identified by homeowners who think they have a problem caused by gas drilling turns out to be something else," he said. "A lot of people are concerned about gas wells impacting private water systems when the reality is, we have to think abut how we're treating our water system."

Also attending the workshop was Tioga County planner James Weaver.

"We're dealing with a lot of gas issues in Tioga County," Weaver said. "We're part of the Marcellus Shale gas rush and there are a lot of questions being asked about it."

"Water, from my perspective, is the biggest concern, from a community and regional level," he said. "We're trying to stay abreast of things with the education program the cooperative extension has been putting on.