This week, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, U.S. EPA, and U.S. Department of Justice announced a settlement with MarkWest Liberty Midstream Resources, LLC and Ohio Gathering Company, LLC (MarkWest) expected to reduce volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions in Ohio and Pennsylvania by more than 90 percent. The settlement addresses alleged violations of the Clean Air Act for failure to obtain permits and keep records associated with maintenance activities that resulted in VOC emissions.
Under the settlement, MarkWest is expected to spend approximately $2.6 million to install and operate technologies that minimize VOC emissions at its facilities throughout eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania in the Utica and Marcellus shale formations. MarkWest also will implement two Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEPs) involving the installation and operation of ambient air monitoring stations located upwind and downwind of MarkWest compressor stations; one SEP requiring the dissemination and demonstration of a proprietary MarkWest technology for reducing VOC emissions; and one community environmental project for emissions monitoring equipment in Pennsylvania.
For more information on the settlement, please visit the MarkWest Clean Air Act Settlement Information Sheet.
