CNX Midstream Operations LLC is seeking a state permit to draw water from Westmoreland County’s Beaver Run Reservoir for its horizontal drilling operations.
If the permit is approved by the Department of Environmental Protection, the Cecil-based company would install a 156-foot plastic pipeline to supply the high-pressure water needed to fracture Marcellus shale.
The DEP in Pittsburgh is taking public input until May 4 on the application. The process of hydrofracturing uses high-pressure water, sand and chemicals to release natural gas trapped 4,000 to 8,000 feet underground.
According to the DEP, the company would install a temporary 6-foot-long floating intake system attached to a 10-inch diameter plastic line. The reservoir is owned by the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County and straddles Bell, Salem and Washington townships. It is one of two primary sources of water for nearly 123,000 people, according to the DEP.
If CNX removes water from the reservoir, it would do so with the permission of the municipal authority, and a meter would measure the amount removed, said Matt Junker, municipal authority spokesman.
Neither a spokeswoman for the DEP in Pittsburgh nor Brian Aiello, a spokesman for CNX Midstream, could be reached for comment. The Marcellus Shale Coalition, a Robinson-based trade association for the natural gas industry, said Wednesday that most operators reuse water at multiple locations or share among one another to further reduce freshwater needs.
The National Energy Tech Laboratory analysis that of the water which is used in natural gas production in Appalachia, more than 90 percent is recycled and reused in future operations, according to annual state reporting.
Drillers also can use water from a pipeline in the Bell Point village of Bell Township, which taps into the Kiskiminetas River,
The municipal authority is prohibited from removing more than 35 million gallons a day from Beaver Run Reservoir, Junker said. Drilling companies like CNX Midstream can withdraw no more than 10 million gallons of fresh water a day toward that 35 million-gallon limit.
CNX had an agreement to draw water from the reservoir two years ago that permitted the company to buy up to 3 million gallons of water a day at a cost of $12,885 per 1.5 million gallons.
Unlike in 2024, when there were concerns about selling water during a drought, recent rains have raised the water level in the reservoir to almost 1,048 feet above sea level. That is just below its capacity of 1,050 feet, Junker said Wednesday. The reservoir can hold about 11 billion gallons of water at capacity, according to municipal authority data.
Another drilling company, EQT Corp. of Pittsburgh, formerly Olympus Energy LLC, was granted a state permit last year to use two temporary floating intake systems and a plastic pipeline to pull water from the reservoir. However, Duane Goodsell, source water supervisor at the municipal authority, said he does not believe EQT ever tapped into the water there.
The authority would not permit two drilling companies to pull from the reservoir at the same time, Goodsell said.
Amy Rogers, a spokeswoman for EQT Corp., could not be reached for comment.
Comments accepted
To make an appointment to review the application, or to send comments, contact the DEP Southwest Regional Office, Oil and Gas Management Program, 400 Waterfront Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15222, call 412-442-4281 or email: RA-EPSW-OGSUBMISSION@pa.gov.
Questions should be directed to D. J. Stevenson, 412-442-4281 or email: RA-EPSW-OGSUBMISSION@pa.gov.