The Register-Herald, Beckley, West Virginia

Editorials

March 31, 2011

Drill site spill

Incident accentuates need for new regulations

Department of Environmental Protection inspectors rolled into a Marcellus shale gas well drilling site near Salem in Harrison County last week and discovered that drilling mud (which the DEP website says is used in the drilling process to remove cuttings from the well bore) had found its way into a nearby stream, identified as Indian Run.

DEP officials said no fish kill was present, and a Salem town official said the mud spill posed no threat to the drinking water supply, thank goodness for that; but it causes us to pose the question — what if?

The event itself just accentuates the need for West Virginia’s leaders to come together and get new laws on the books as it relates to gas and oil drilling.

Earlier this month the Legislature, for whatever the reasons, failed to pass legislation that would have laid the groundwork for needed regulations as the state prepares for the natural gas industry push to tap into the lucrative Marcellus shale.

Legislators are still trying to explain why it failed; however, it’s now vital for them to put the past behind and move forward on getting meaningful laws on the books to protect West Virginia financially and environmentally.

We haven’t seen much movement on this issue the past three weeks, other than the DEP, with acting Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin’s blessing, saying it can handle regulatory issues with the current laws on the books and that the agency just needs to hire more inspectors.

Respectfully, we disagree with that assessment and approach and are becoming a bit concerned that the upcoming gubernatorial primary election has relegated this critical and complex issue to a position in which it is not receiving immediate or adequate attention.

Our lawmakers have got to become more aggressive on developing a new set of standards that can both benefit our economy and protect our lands and waterways. It’s their duty, their responsibility.

Until they get it done, West Virginia remains in a very tenuous state of limbo.

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Editorials