Report states gas wells undercounted in Pennsylvania

There are nearly 500 more gas drilling wells in Pennsylvania than the state’s Department of Environmental Protection has listed as in production, and 182 of them aren’t on the Marcellus Shale permit list, according to a new report.

An inquiry by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette unearthed the discrepancy, and further analysis showed that such a miscounting constitutes a 12% error rate in reporting.

These figures are widely quoted by industry and environmental groups, so a mistake has far-reaching consequences, including for lawmakers creating policy proposals based on the data.

The paper reported that the discrepancies stemmed from improper reporting of wells by drilling companies as well as a lack of oversight by the appropriate regulatory agencies.

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Image credit: Drilling Contractor