### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 1 1 U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY 2 PUBLIC HEARING 3 COMMENTS ON PROPOSED CLIMATE AIR QUALITY AND PERMITTING 4 RULES FOR THE OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY 5 6- - - 7 TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2015 8 9:05 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. 9- - - 10 WILLIAM S. MOOREHEAD FEDERAL BUILDING 11 1000 LIBERTY AVENUE 12 PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA 13 14 15 16 17 18 ATKINSON-BAKER, INC. COURT REPORTERS 19 (800) 288-3376 www.depo.com 20 FILE NO.: A909469 21 22 23 24 25

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 2 1 EPA PANEL MEMBERS 2 FRED THOMPSON 3BRUCE MOORE 4 SUZANNE WALTZER 5DIANA ESHER 6DAVID COZZIE 7 MARY CATE OPILIA 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 3 1 I N D E X 2 SPEAKER: 3 Matt Todd 4 Henri Azibert 5 Larry Schweiger 6 Joy Bergey 7 Gretchen Dahlkemper 8 Reverend Mitch Hescox 9 Jessica Helm 10 Aaron Jacob Smith 11 Nadia Steinzor 12 Patrice Tomcik 13 Steven Hamburg 14 Steven Hvozdovich 15Amy Nassif 16 Julia Nassif 17 Dan Scheid 18 Mark Gorog 19 Cricket Hunter 20 Jackie Smathers 21 Aviva Diamond 22 Reverend Paul Lubold 23 Dave McMahon 24 Reverend Sandy Strauss 25 Laura Burns

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 4 1 Sister Donna Zwigart 2 Richard Brown 3 Lucyna DeBabaro 4 Maren Cooke 5 Nick Kennedy 6Amanda Lupina 7 Justin Wasser 8 Michelle Boyle 9 Joanne Wagner 10 Melanie Houston 11 Peggy Ann Berry 12 Mark Dixon 13 Joanne Kilgour 14 Hannah Tyler (On behalf of Dr. Randy Kuplognik) 15 Mary Ann Mulroy 16 Barb Grover 17 Paul Fiesel 18 Lois Bjornson 19Anna Hanson 20 Dana Dolney 21 Rachel Filippini 22 Lois Hornbostel 23 Bill Baker 24 Matt Walker 25 Rob Altenburg

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 5 1 Jenny Demjanick 2 Melinda Hughes-Wert 3 Sarah Sanfilippo 4 Sarah Sanfilippo (On behalf of Michele Chapkis) 5 Mollie Simon-Joyce (On behalf of Rev. Amy Reumann) 6 Bergey 7 Melinda Hughes-Wert 8 Ron Golla 9 Bob Donnan 10 Nick Goodfellow 11 Etta Albright 12 Dr. Yousef Zarbalian 13 Jason Gu 14 John Morgan 15 Michael Badges-Canning 16 Randy Sargent 17 Thaddeus Popovich 18 Patricia DeMarco 19 Ron Slabe 20 Barbara Briggs 21 Miriam Lindauer 22 Eva Roben (on behalf of Rev. Dr. Leah Schade) 23 Mollie Simon-Joyce 24 Sage Lincoln 25 Rachel Goldman

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 6 1 Robert Nashikawa 2 Randi Francois 3 Diane Peterson 4 Kyle Gracey 5 Mary Butella 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 7 1 P R O C E E D I N G S 2 (9:05 o'clock a.m.) 3MR. THOMPSON: Good morning, folks. We're 4 going to get started. So if you could take your seats. 5 Okay. We'll get started. 6Good morning. My name is Fred Thompson. 7 I am the chair of today's hearing. Thank you all for 8 coming today. Joining me on the panel today are, to my 9 left, Susie Waltzer. She's with the EPA Office of 10 Atmospheric Programs; Bruce Moore, he's with the EPA 11 Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards; and Diana 12 Esher with EPA Region 3. 13We're here today to hear your comments on 14 EPA's proposed rules relating to the oil and natural 15 gas sector. The specific rules are, 1) Oil and Natural 16 Gas Sectors: Emissions Standards for New and Modified 17 Sources; 2) is Source Determination for Certain 18 Emission Units in the Oil and Natural Gas Sector; and 19 3) Review of New Sources and Modifications in Indian 20 Country: Federal Implementation Plan for Managing Air 21 Emissions from True Minor Sources Engaged in Oil and 22 Natural Gas Production in Indian Country. 23EPA's Administrator signed the proposed 24 rules on August 18, 2015. The proposed New Source 25 Performance Standards would establish methane and VOC

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 8 1 standards for hydraulically fractured wells and require 2 owners and operators to find and repair leaks. The 3 proposed rule also would extend emission reduction 4 requirements further downstream covering equipment in 5 the natural gas transmission and storage segments of 6 the industry that was not regulated in the Agency's 7 2012 rules. 8 The proposed Source Determination Rule 9 clarifies the EPA's air permitting rules as they apply 10 to the oil and the natural gas industry. 11 We're also taking comment on the proposed 12 federal implementation plan to implement the Federal 13 Minor New Source Review Program in Indian Country for 14 oil and natural gas production. That plan, known as a 15 FIP, would be used instead of site-specific minor New 16 Source Review preconstruction permits in Indian 17 country. It would incorporate emissions, limits, and 18 other requirements from six EPA emissions standards, 19 including the 2015 proposed update to the New Source 20 Performance Standards on which we're taking comment on 21 today. 22 If you would like more details on the 23 proposed rules, there are fact sheets available at the 24 registration desk. Before we get started, I'd like to 25 go through a few housekeeping items and ground rules

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 9 1 that will help make today's hearing run smoothly. 2 First, please be sure you have checked in 3 at the registration desk, even if you are not planning 4 to speak today. And if you signed up to speak online 5 or by phone, but haven't told us that you're here, 6please step out to the registration desk and let the 7 EPA staff know that you've arrived. 8 I will call speakers up in pairs. When 9 your name is called, please come to the speaker's table 10 at the front of the room. When I call on you to speak, 11 please state your name and spell it for the court 12 reporter. Your comments will be transcribed and 13 included in the record of comments on the proposed 14 rule. It is important that you tell us which rule or 15 rules you're speaking about. Each speaker will have 16 five minutes to give comments. We have a timer light, 17 which is located here on the table, that turns from 18 green to yellow. That means -- I'm sorry. We have a 19 timer light, again, on the table that will help me to 20 know how much time you have left to speak. When the 21 light turns from green to yellow, that means you have 22 one minute remaining. When it turns red, that's a 23 signal that you are at five minutes and it's time to 24 stop. When you're finished speaking, please remain at 25 the table until the person next to you has completed

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 10 1 his or her testimony. 2 We are here to listen to you today. 3 However, a panel member may ask questions to clarify 4 your comments. I will then call up the next pair of 5 speakers and so on. 6If you have brought a written copy of your 7 testimony, please give that to the staff at the 8 registration desk before you leave today. We will put 9 any written comments submitted today in the official 10 docket for the Proposed Rule. 11 We also have comment cards available at 12 the registration desk, if you would like to submit 13 additional written comments today. 14 If you wanted to comment in writing later, 15 stop by the materials table in the registration desk 16 and pick up a copy of instructions for submitting 17 written comments. Comments must be received by 18 November 17, 2015. And I'll repeat that. Comments 19must be received by November 17, 2015. Let me assure 20 you that the EPA gives just as much consideration to 21 comments received in writing as we do to comments 22 received at public hearings like this one. So, if you 23 have more comments that you would like to provide the 24 EPA, please submit them by the comment period deadline. 25 Your comments will be reviewed.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 11 1 If you have any questions during the day, 2 please see the staff at the registration desk and 3 someone will assist you. Thank you again for taking 4 the time today to share your comments on EPA's 5 proposal. And with that, let's get started. 6At this time, I would like to ask Matt 7 Todd and Henri Azibert to please come forward with 8 testimony. 9Yes, please. Good morning, gentlemen. 10 MR. TODD: Good morning. 11 MR. THOMPSON: Mr. Todd, would you start 12 with testimony, please. 13MR. TODD: It's Matthew Todd. 14 M-A-T-T-H-E-W, T-O-D-D. I'm a senior policy advisor 15 for the American Petroleum Institute, API is a national 16 trade association representing all facets of the oil 17 and gas industry. It supports 9.8 million U.S. jobs 18 and 8 percent of the U.S. economy. API has more than 19 625 members, that include large integrated companies, 20 as well as exploration and production, refining, 21 marketing, pipeline, and green businesses, and service 22 and supply firms. Collectively they provide most of 23 the nation's energy and many will be directly impacted 24 by the proposed regulations we're here to discuss 25 today.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 12 1 In five minutes, it's difficult to speak 2 substantively to the details of each of these proposed 3 actions. However, API does intend to submit detailed 4 comments on each. 5My first point, our industry has 6 voluntarily led the way in its pursuit of improved 7 operations to safely maximize the recovery and capture 8 of these valuable oil and gas resources. We're 9 incentivized to do that. And many of these leaking 10 technologies that have been broadly used by industry 11 were subsequently incorporated by EPA into its Natural 12 Gas STAR Program. 13My second point, even as U.S. oil and 14 natural gas production has surged, methane emissions 15 have declined significantly. For example, methane 16 emissions from hydraulically fractured natural gas 17 wells has fallen nearly 79 percent since 2005; and 18 total methane emissions from the natural gas systems 19 are down 11 percent over the same period. These 20 reductions have occurred during a time when total U.S. 21 gas production has increased 44 percent. 22 This industry has also played a 23 significant role in the 27 year limits on power sector 24 fields in emissions we see today. These trends are 25 indicative of what our industry, when given the freedom

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 13 1 to innovate, can achieve to improve the environment and 2 our nation's energy security. 3What our industry has and will continue to 4 achieve under the current regulatory system without 5 directly regulating methane, dwarfs the emission 6 reduction EPA has estimated in these proposed rules. 7 My third point is that directly regulating 8 methane as proposed in the NSPS rules is unnecessary. 9 The 2012 final rule indirectly regulates methane by 10 regulating natural gas as a surrogate for VOC. Since 11 methane is the primary constituent of natural gas, 12 there are no additional emission reductions that will 13 occur from replacing the surrogate regulatory concept 14 with direct regulation of methane. Therefore, EPA 15 should continue to practice -- the practice of 16 indirectly regulating methane through the use of 17 natural gas as a surrogate for VOC. 18 My fourth point. We urge the EPA not to 19 get in the way of the success story by developing 20 one-size-fits-all regulatory solutions. Our industry 21 is big. It's complex. And operations vary 22 substantially across the nation. As we learned in the 23 development of the 2012 NSPS rule, the EPA should 24 exercise caution in the development of these new rules 25 to allow operational flexibility as it seeks

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 14 1 one-size-fits-all regulatory solutions. 2 Industry must be able to comply with the 3 requirements of these new rules. In the 2012 NSPS 4 rule, the EPA allowed implementation for storage vessel 5 requirements to be phased in to accommodate the vast 6 number of affected facilities. The EPA should consider 7 whether or not a similar compliant schedule is 8 warranted in the proposed NSPS rule. We also urge the 9 EPA to accommodate operators that are currently 10 implementing leak monitoring repair requirements, 11 whether due to existing air permits, state regulations 12 or voluntary commitments to satisfy the federal rule 13 requirements and minimize regulatory fines for those 14 operators. 15Finally, we urge the EPA to coordinate its 16 efforts with the agencies -- with other agencies to 17 avoid implementing duplicative requirements that could 18 potentially hinder the continued production and energy 19 that our nation will continue to demand. 20 The rules we're discussing today are a 21 small slice of the pending regulation that our industry 22 is facing. The EPA has also released proposed control 23 technique guidelines for implementation and the pending 24 revised ozone on air quality standard and pending 25 regulatory requirements from the Department of

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 15 1 Interior's BLM on federal lands will also add the 2 cumulative impact to our industry in future operations. 3 We urge the EPA and the Administration to coordinate 4 their efforts and strongly encourage the EPA to extend 5 its common periods by 60 days to allow a minimum of 30 6 days overlap with the proposed BLM rule. Without this 7 overlap, industry will not have the chance to 8 understand the cumulative impacts and provide 9meaningful feedback to avoid conflicting requirements 10 across the separate agencies. 11 To close, API and its members recognize 12 the importance of developing these valuable resources 13 responsibly. However, the last thing we need is more 14 duplicative and costly regulation that could increase 15 the cost of energy for Americans and undermine our 16 competitiveness with the operations that will bear the 17 brunt of these regulatory regs and represent only 1.4 18 percent of the total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. 19API remains committed to working with EPA, 20 and the Administration identified additional 21 cost-effective control opportunities which would 22 implement and not hinder our ability to provide the 23 energy our nation will continue to demand over the 24 years to come. 25Thanks.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 16 1 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Todd. 2 Are there any follow-up questions from the 3 panel? Hearing none. Good morning. 4 MR. AZIBERT: Good morning. My name is 5 Henri Azibert, H-E-N-R-I, A-Z-I-B-E-R-T. I'm technical 6 director for the Fluid Sealing Association. The Fluid 7 Sealing Association is an organization comprised of 8 sealing devicing technology manufacturers who make 9 devices used to contain fluids and to prevent harmful 10 toxic or otherwise dangerous products escaping into the 11 environment. FSA's technologies are used in every 12 aspect of oil and gas production and refining and 13 generating all industrial activity around the world. 14 These devices are often overlooked and their function 15 is not well-known or understood, yet they fulfill an 16 essential role as a part of our customers in the oil 17 and gas sector to maintain a clean environment and 18 prevent product waste, while allowing industrial growth 19 and profitability. 20 FSA members manufacture the following 21 products that we believe will be helpful in achieving 22 the goals to significantly reduce methane emission. 23 Mechanical seals which are used to seal rotating shaft 24 as they enter the housing of a centrifugal compressor; 25 gaskets, which are used to provide a static seal

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 17 1 between two stationary components. They're used on 2 flanges that connect piping, valves, compressors, 3 pneumatically-driven pumps, instrumentation, and many 4 other types of equipment. Compression packing is 5mostly commonly made of braided fibers and is used to 6 seal valve stems and shafts of reciprocating 7 compressors. Modern fibers and construction methods 8 allow sealing at extremely low emission levels. 9 Expansion joints used for wide flexible connection 10 between pipes and their joining to other equipment. 11 They can reduce the number of piping connections and 12 also limit strains on piping that can create problems 13 in bolted joints. 14 These sealing technologies are extensively 15 used in the oil and gas industry to help contain 16 emissions. Their specific function is to prevent 17 leakage to the environment. The proper use and 18 selection of the right type of sealing products can be 19 significant contributors to a cleaner environment. 20 Although, the FSA does not wish to comment 21 on the purpose of the proposed regulation, nor its 22 justification, it would like to offer its services as a 23 resource on what is technically feasible to contain 24 fugitive emissions. There are questions that have been 25 asked and where applicable if FSA would like to make

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 18 1 comments where combined knowledge of its members can 2 bring clarity and specific information. The -- there 3 are technologies available today to significantly 4 reduce methane emissions in a cost-effective and 5 comprehensive manner. 6The leak detection and repair program have 7 been in use for quite some time now in the petroleum 8 and product refining and chemical processing and have 9proven to be certainly effective to reduce emission 10 levels. Reasonably achievable emission levels are 11 different for different types of equipment. We do 12 agree that the best system of emission reduction is the 13 same for methane as it is for VOCs, or volatile organic 14 compounds. Leak detection and repairs are critical 15 components to reducing methane and VOC emissions. 16 Concerning centrifugal compressor seals, we do agree 17 that dry gas seal technology offers the best solution. 18 Rerouting leakage from wet oil. We're getting 19 compressor seals to capture erratic flares and manage 20 to reduce methane levels by up to 95 percent. However, 21 there are some factors that have been neglected in this 22 analysis. And we'll provide them later in written 23 comments. 24 We also believe that there are 25 circumstances where the switch from wet compressor

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 19 1 seals to dry compressor seal is economically warranted. 2 It is true that the switch to dry gas seal is not 3 technically feasible in all circumstances. But there 4 are instances where it is technically and economically 5 feasible. And the FSA has developed a calculator tool 6 to determine when this is the case. And we'd like to 7 have the use of the tool considered to determine what 8 might be the best system of emission reduction. 9Fugitive emissions are what FSA members 10 concern themselves with. There are several 11 technologies to detect emission levels, as members are 12 not experts in assessing the detection level of all 13monitoring equipment. The members do have considerable 14 experience with EPA Method 21. And we believe it is an 15 accurate method to determine leakage levels, especially 16 in the lower range of what is reasonably achievable. 17 Three emission levels have been listed and 18 questions have been posed as to their reasonableness. 19 There are 500, 2,500 and 10,000 ppm. In the case of 20 valves, it is the opinion of FSA members that leakage 21 level is reasonably achievable from the set seal is 22 less than 100 ppm. And for flangers, the reasonable 23 achievable leakage level is even lower than for valve 24 stems. Although, there are many variations of types 25 and size of valves, it is generally recognized that a

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 20 1 level of 50 ppm or lower is reasonably achievable. 2 FSA members do recognize that there are 3 pieces of equipment that are very specialized and may 4 not be able to meet the general guidelines. Although 5 this is not discussed in detail in the proposed 6 regulation, the FSA would like to point out that a 7 large source of fugitive emissions are not due to the 8 equipment designed or technology or end of life. The 9problem quite often resides in the improper 10 installation in this application. Monitoring, 11 maintaining, and repairing equipment properly requires 12 highly-trained engineers and maintenance personnel. 13 Without rigorous training programs, the result can be 14 significant lack of knowledge of how to properly apply 15 readily available technology. The FSA and other 16 organizations provide generic training material and 17 would like to suggest that these also be considered. 18 So the FSA simply wishes to be considered as a 19 technical resource. And we want to thank you for your 20 consideration. 21 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 22 testimony. 23Are there any follow-up questions from the 24 panel? 25MR. MOORE: No.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 21 1 MS. WALTZER: No. 2 MR. THOMPSON: Gentlemen, thank you both 3 for your testimony. 4 At this time I would like to invite Larry 5 Schweiger and Joy Bergey for your testimony. 6Good morning to the both of you. 7 MR. SCHWEIGER: Good morning. I'm Larry 8 Schweiger. And it's spelled S-C-H-W-E-I-G-E-R. And 9 I'm president of PennFuture, a statewide environmental 10 organization that has been working on energy and 11 climate policies for 20 years. 12 I personally have been involved in this 13 effort to protect our environment from climate change 14 since about 1988. So I guess I've been at it for a 15 while. 16I've had the privilege of seeing the 17 Arctic now on three separate occasions from three 18 separate locations. I've been to Greenland and watched 19 the rapid melt of the Greenland ice sheet. I've had an 20 opportunity to see the Rocky Mountain glaciers. Those 21 in Alaska and also in the Alps. And everywhere I go, 22 the story is the same. We are rapidly changing the 23 nature of this planet. 24 And I want to compliment Gina McCarthy and 25 the EPA for taking this step on methane. I think it's

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 22 1 an important complement to the Clean Power Plan rule. 2 I think it's much needed and long overdue. 3Methane is a potential -- it's a potent 4 greenhouse gas, 84 times as potent as a single molecule 5 of carbon dioxide during the time it remains in the 6 atmosphere, which means, it's a very powerful 7 contributor to the overall threat of climate change. 8 I would also mention that we're now seeing 9methane leaking from the tundra. We're seeing methane 10 leaking from the East Siberian Sea and from other 11 clathrate systems around the planet. So we're -- 12 methane is going to become a big actor, both 13 human-emitted methane as well as natural methanes that 14 are now being released in a very dangerous way because 15 of the overwarming of our planet. 16Methane emissions from oil and gas alone 17 contribute about 25 percent of the total manmade global 18 warming that we're experiencing today. Methane 19pollution also poses a significant threat to public 20 health as a ground level ozone precursor. Methane from 21 gas and oil industry also comes packaged with other 22 volatile organic compounds, which are key ingredients 23 to ground level ozone or small damage as well as a 24 number of air toxins, including benzene, toluene, 25 ethylbenzene, and xylene. Smog is associated with

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 23 1 numerous serious health effects, including asthma, 2 increased respiratory problems, permanent lung damage, 3 and early death from respiratory and cardiovascular 4 threats. 5Air toxics are known or suspected to cause 6 cancer and other serious health problems. Our most 7 vulnerable populations, young people with asthma and 8 seniors with respiratory disorders cannot face another 9 day without proper regulation of methane as a 10 pollutant. 11 In every scenario that I've looked at, 12 unregulated methane leakage from gas development causes 13 gas to be a little better than coal, if at all, for 14 climate change. 15The new standards proposed by EPA are an 16 important first step in addressing this important 17 pollutant. They will require new and modified 18 equipment in the oil and gas field to clean up their 19methane pollution by avoiding leakage, more products to 20 get to the market where they can produce a return 21 offsetting some of the cost and done in a reasonable -- 22 with reasonable payback. 23I'm also impressed that the EPA has 24 estimates the rules will yield a net -- a climate 25 benefit of about $120 to $150 million by 2025.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 24 1 I was struck yesterday by President 2 Obama's comments concerning the overall effort to 3 address climate change, both here in the U.S. and in 4 the world, and recognizing that he started too late. 5And also noting that we're far away from avoiding that 6 two-degree rise that everybody has been warning us 7 about. 8 I think the EPA rules go to a first step, 9but not far enough. The proposed rules only cover new 10 and modified sources of methane emissions. And we're 11 calling on the Wolf Administration today, and we have 12 been calling on the administration in Pennsylvania to 13 regulate those existing sources of methane leakage, 14 both from existing operations as well as addressing 15 those abandoned wells that checker the state. 16By 2018, nearly 90 percent of the methane 17 emissions will come from currently existing oil and gas 18 sources. Strong methane, the emissions standards are 19 needed not only for new sources but for existing 20 sources as well. 21 Methane control is key to the 22 Administration's ability to meet those international 23 goals of reducing carbon emissions by 26 to 28 percent 24 by 2025. 25I'd like to close by saying, I thought the

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 25 1 Pope had it right on his -- his ethical challenges to 2 this important issue of climate. I shudder to think 3 what my grandchildren and my children will face if we 4 fail to act on this important issue. 5Thank you. 6MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 7 comments. Any follow-up questions from the panel? 8 MR. MOORE: No. 9MS. WALTZER: No. 10 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 11 MS. BERGEY: Good morning, EPA. Thanks 12 for coming to Pittsburgh. 13MR. THOMPSON: Good morning. 14 MS. BERGEY: My name is Joy Bergey, J-O-Y, 15 B-E-R-G-E-Y. And I speak this morning in my role as 16 director of the Environmental Justice Center of 17 Chestnut Hill United Church. Based in Philadelphia, 18 the center is an inter-religious program working with 19 congregations and individuals to address the problems 20 of environmental injustice. 21 The Environmental Justice Center thanks 22 the EPA for proposing this rule. We urge that it be 23 implemented quickly and not weakened in any way. In 24 fact, we urge you to strengthen the rule. 25I traveled to Pittsburgh from the city

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 26 1 that just hosted His Holiness Pope Francis, over the 2 weekend. And as Larry said, given the deeply inspiring 3message of the Pope on climate change, can there be any 4 doubt in anyone's mind, at this point, that taking a 5 strong national action to limit climate change 6pollution is an urgent moral imperative. 7 Every major faith tradition calls on its 8 followers to protect those at the margins of society 9 who cannot defend themselves, the young, the old, the 10 sick, the poor. And it is exactly these persons who 11 are being hurt first and worst by climate change. 12 With no national standards in place to 13 address methane from oil and gas wells and with a 14 solid, scientific knowledge that the heat-trapping 15 ability of methane is so much more potent than carbon 16 dioxide. Putting this standard in place as quickly as 17 possible is critical. 18 Since the technology to trap methane 19 already exists and is inexpensive and readily 20 available, we just don't understand why industry hasn't 21 already widely deployed the technology. Nine billion 22 tons of methane and toxic chemicals leaked into our air 23 last year. That's enough to heat five million homes. 24 But industry's unfortunate dragging of 25 their heels shows the rest of us that they will only

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 27 1 act if and when they must. 2 The major faith traditions also call us on 3 to protect and even celebrate the natural world that 4 God has given us. God's love is infinite. The earth's 5 natural resources are not. 6The ways that we generate our power in 7 this country are causing damage to God's world that 8 could take centuries to heal, threatening to deprive 9 our children and their grandchildren of safe and 10 healthy communities in which to live and grow. 11 The rule on which we comment today moves 12 us to better protect the sacred and irreplaceable gift 13 of creation which comes from and belongs to God. We 14 need this rule. Amen. 15MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 16 testimony, Ms. Bergey. Any follow-up questions from 17 the panel? 18 Again, thank you both for your testimony. 19MS. BERGEY: Thank you. 20 MR. THOMPSON: Have a good day. 21 At this time I would invite Gretchen 22 Dahlkemper and reverend Mitch Hescox, H-E-S-C-O-X. 23 Please come forward with your testimony. 24 MS. DAHLKEMPER: Good morning. 25MR. THOMPSON: Good morning.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 28 1 MS. DAHLKEMPER: I was driving down here 2 from Erie yesterday with my toddlers and told them what 3 you guys are doing all day. My six year old said, 4 "Wow. They must really love clean air if they're going 5 to listen to you all day long." 6Yes. This is an important part of the 7 democratic process. I really appreciate you having us 8 here. 9My name is Gretchen Dahlkemper, 10 G-R-E-T-C-H-E-N, D-A-H-L-K-E-M-P-E-R. I am the 11 national field director of Moms Clean Air Force. Moms 12 Clean Air Force is a group of over 570,000 parents 13 across the country who have banned together to protect 14 our children from toxic air pollution. 15Today I'm here to applaud the EPA for 16 taking a step, albeit a baby step, to protect American 17 families from the health and climate impacts of methane 18 pollution from the oil and gas industry and to call on 19 you and EPA to quickly address methane leaks from 20 existing sources. 21 Why do parents like myself care about air 22 pollution from the oil and gas industry? The answer is 23 simple. Industrial pollution from the oil and gas 24 industry harms our children's health and fields global 25 warming, and it wastes billions of dollars of natural

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 29 1 gas each and every year. Standards that reduce methane 2 emissions from oil and gas development will 3 simultaneously reduce emissions and formation of 4 health-damaging air pollutants, including volatile 5 organic compounds, hazardous air pollutants, 6particulate matter, and ozone. Benzene and 7 formaldehyde and other toxic pollution does not belong 8 in the air our children breathe. Reducing methane 9 would reduce the exposure of nearby communities to 10 hazardous air pollutants and the subsequent risks of 11 health effects, including respiratory morbidity and 12 premature death. 13Oil and gas wells, pipelines, compressor 14 stations, and other infrastructure are major sources of 15 air pollution that can harm public health. Communities 16 across Pennsylvania, including here in Western 17 Pennsylvania where I'm from, are suffering under the 18 burden of increased air pollution as a consequence of 19 increased oil and gas development. 20 Recent studies, out of right here in 21 Pittsburgh, indicate that pregnant women and their 22 unborne children living near natural gas infrastructure 23 run a higher risk of heart defects, neurological tube 24 defects, premature birth, low birth weight, still birth 25 and even perinatal death.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 30 1 Children five and under living near 2 natural gas infrastructure have a higher risk of 3 childhood cancers such as leukemia. That's totally 4 unacceptable. 5Natural gas is mostly methane, which can 6 leak all along the oil and gas supply chain. Methane 7 is a powerful greenhouse gas, a big contributor to 8 dangerous climate change. Pound for pound methane 9pollution is 25 times more potent than C02 over a 10 hundred-year period. The oil and gas sector is the 11 leading industrial source of methane pollution. 12 There are simple, effective, and efficient 13 ways to stop methane leaks. Fixes for methane 14 pollution will also cut other air pollutants as well 15 because it is not the only pollution that leaks from 16 the oil and gas industry. Fixes for methane pollution 17 will cut smog forming pollution that triggers asthma 18 attacks, and it will cut air toxics like benzene, a 19 known carcinogen. Children and the elderly are among 20 those most vulnerable to the health hazards of smog. 21 And our children will also suffer the most from runaway 22 climate change. 23This is a national problem and it needs a 24 national solution. Voluntary measures do not work. 25 Today I urge the Environmental Protection Agency to

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 31 1 adapt to the strongest possible rules to reduce methane 2 pollution from the oil and gas industry. This rule is 3 important. It lays the foundation for cutting methane 4 pollution from existing sources, something that 5American families, and those like mine in Pennsylvania, 6 desperately need to protect our communities and our 7 families from an industry that operates as though our 8 backyard are the Wild West without any consequences 9 whatsoever. 10 Parents need to stand strong against 11 polluters to protect our children's right to clean air 12 and a stable climate. Parents ask that the 13 Environmental Protection Agency cuts through the noise 14 created by bipartisanship politics. The monetary 15 influence of the fossil fuel industry and the fear 16mongering from frankly both sides of the argument, 17 ignore it and do what is right for American families. 18 Today I ask you to cut methane emissions from the oil 19 and gas industry, both from new and existing sources. 20 America's children are counting on you. 21 Thank you. 22 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 23 testimony. Any follow-up questions from the panel? 24 MR. MOORE: No. 25MR. THOMPSON: Very good. Thank you.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 32 1 Good morning. 2 REVERAND HESCOX: Good morning. I'm the 3 Reverend Mitch C. Hescox, H-E-S-C-O-X. I lead the 4 Evangelical Environmental Network from New Freedom, 5 Pennsylvania. And when I sit beside Gretchen, I often 6 remind her that we have 750 evangelicals that believe 7 in climate change and protecting our kids around the 8 country, otherwise known as Creation Cares. It's a 9Matter of Life. 10 I'd like to start out with a little story. 11 "Honey, should we fix the natural gas leaks in our 12 home?" "No sweetheart. We just won't light any 13matches. And put signs up all over the place saying, 14 'no smoking allowed.'" 15While we don't encourage smoking, does 16 this sound like a responsible conversation or 17 responsible course of action? And yet, our nation has 18 not fixed the threatening fugitive emissions for us 19 laypeople known as leaks from the natural gas 20 infrastructure around the country. It's well past time 21 to fix these leaks that spew dangerous pollution. 22 As pro-life evangelicals, we have a 23 special concern for the unborn. We want our children 24 to be born healthy and unhindered by the ravages of 25 pollution even before they take their first breath.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 33 1 The medical community has long known the 2 environmental impacts on our unborn children. Although 3 they once thought that a mother would give chemical 4 protection, that has been proven untrue. Studies have 5 shown that smog, VOCs, and air toxins have a 6 disproportionate impact upon life in the womb. 7 A recent study by Stacy and others from 8 the University of Pittsburgh found evidence of low 9birth weight babies with proximate to unconventional 10 natural gas wells in Butler County, Pennsylvania. In 11 McKenzie, from the Colorado School of Public Health, 12 published peer review research linking birth defects 13 and methane production. The authors admit more 14 research is needed. But the correlations in and of 15 themselves demand action to reduce natural gas 16 releases. These leaks of our natural gas 17 infrastructure spew out smog precursors as well as 18 adding to our failing air quality. 19Pennsylvania has already 277,000 children 20 with asthma, according to the American Lung 21 Association. And approximately ten percent of those 22 kids live right here in Allegheny County. And 23Allegheny County's foul air fails in both ozone smog 24 and particulate emissions making the need to stop 25 natural gas leaks urgent. But it's not just a

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 34 1 Pennsylvania problem. 2 As air pollution does not respect state 3 borders, a national policy is needed. With a public 4 policy, it's always hard to take the first step. And 5 the EPA has to be commended for this proposal that 6 calls industry to reduce methane leaks from its new 7 sources across the nation. But much more is needed. 8 These leaks threaten our most vulnerable, 9 as shared earlier, and also add to climate disruption. 10 We want our loved ones, the unborn, and those yet to be 11 born, to have a world free of climate change. Yet 12 today, our natural gas infrastructure, large amounts of 13methane are being released. And as heard several times 14 here before, a pollutant 86 times stronger than carbon 15 dioxide over the first 20 years. And what we do in the 16 next 20 years will determine whether our struggle to 17 overcome climate change will be won or lost. 18 But that's why reducing methane is morally 19 strategic and morally important. For these reasons, 20 37,000 pro life Christians from Pennsylvania alone and 21 almost 92,000 from the states of Colorado, Ohio, New, 22 Mexico, and Pennsylvania have called for strong action 23 to reduce methane emissions. Their request states, as 24 pro life Christians, we want the air that we breathe to 25 be safe for our children. Leaks in our natural gas

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 35 1 infrastructure spew out toxic pollutants cancer-causing 2 agents and climate pollution that place God's creation 3 and our families, especially children, pregnant mothers 4 and the unborn in harm's way. That's why we called our 5 elected officials to support strong regulations to cut 6 this pollution in both new and existing leaks from our 7 natural gas infrastructure. Our children deserve 8 nothing less. 9As we mentioned earlier, that not only is 10 this a first step, but we want to see the EPA move as 11 strong as possible in creating a Section 111 (d) 12 standard for existing sources. But I know my time is 13 short, so I'd just like to state a story that we 14 already heard here today from industry groups yelling 15 foul at another EPA regulation. Many have said that 16 voluntary regulations are enough. But I'd like to 17 point it out that recent studies have shown that 80 18 percent of the natural gas leaks come from 30 percent 19 of the producers. What that tells me is the good guys 20 do a good job. In fact, I met with the leading 21 producers of natural gas recently this year. None of 22 them cried foul over this regulation. They only ask 23 that the performance standard be met. What we need is 24 a good police force that protects our children, cares 25 for God's creation, and acts justly for all people.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 36 1 Thank you very much. 2 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 3 testimony, Reverend Hescox and Ms. Dahlkemper. Thank 4 you both. 5Are there any follow-up questions from the 6panel? 7 MR. MOORE: I would like for you to 8 clarify when you talk about leaks from the 9 infrastructure. 10 REVERAND HESCOX: Yes. 11 MR. MOORE: Are you primarily talking 12 about the newer facilities or are you talking about the 13 infrastructure that gets gas to homes and other -- 14 other end users? 15REVERAND HEXCOX: No. This is only the 16production infrastructure of all of the central ones 17 done (sic). We're not on the massive leaks that we 18 already know exist in the transportation system. This 19 is only dealing with production. 20 MR. MOORE: Thank you. 21 MR. THOMPSON: Additional questions? 22 Panel? All right. Thank you again. 23Okay. At this time I would like to invite 24 Jessica Helm and Aaron Jacob Smith to please come forth 25 with testimony.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 37 1 MS. HELM: Good morning. 2 MR. SMITH: Good morning. 3MS. HELM: Hi. My name is Jessica Helm. 4 I live in Waltham, Massachusetts. And I also want to 5 thank you for the opportunity to offer comment and for 6 sitting here today to hear my statement and those of 7 others in the room. 8 I'm a member of the Sierra Club Board of 9 Directors. And I'm here today to speak in support of 10 the EPA's proposed methane standards for the oil and 11 gas industry. For me, there are two compelling reasons 12 to adopt the strongest possible methane emission 13 standards. Our climate and health, the health of those 14 living near oil and gas wells, pipelines, and 15 compressor stations. Methane's effect on our climate 16 is on the order of 85 times more powerful than carbon 17 dioxide over a 20-year timeframe. This means the 18 methane emitted in the next ten years will be affecting 19 our atmosphere most, just as we most need to reduce 20 greenhouse gases to avert the worst effects of climate 21 change. 22 The oil and gas industry is the largest 23 industrial sources of methane emissions in our country. 24 And these regulations will be an important first step 25 in us reducing that contribution.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 38 1 However, since these regulations only 2 address new and modified sources, I ask that the EPA 3 develop a new rule to cover existing sources. By 2018, 4 16 sources will be contributing 90 percent of the 5 industry's methane. And the U.S. cannot meet its 6 international climate commitments, much less protect 7 the public of the effects of climate change without a 8 rule to cover existing sources. 9The second reason the EPA must adopt the 10 strongest possible methane standards is to protect 11 public health, particularly, the health of our most 12 vulnerable, babies and the elderly, and those without 13 the financial means to access adequate health care or 14 to move away from an oil- or gas-related source of 15 pollution. 16The proposed standards will help protect 17 the health of those near new emission sources by 18 curbing smog in the form of emissions and hazardous air 19pollutants, which are released from oil and gas sources 20 along with methane. 21 Importantly, these regulations extend 22 existing protections under the VOC rule downstream to 23 include transmission storage. This means that 24 individuals near compressor stations and storage 25 locations all along the distribution networks can also

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 39 1 benefit. 2 However, I ask that the EPA also require 3 leak testing in our air and methane emissions controls 4 for storage vessels, liquid only events, intermittent 5 pneumatic control emissions and process at well sites, 6 all of which represent significant possible sources of 7 emissions. 8 These rules are an important first step 9 towards reducing the harm of this industry. However, 10 we must go even further to tap existing sources of 11 methane emissions and ultimately keep all of the dirty 12 fossil fuels in the ground. We must transition swiftly 13 to the cleaner renewal energy sources that we know can 14 provide sustainable good-paying jobs and reduce 15 pollution. To that end, I hope that the EPA will 16 strengthen and finalize these rules and move swiftly to 17 issue standards covering the existing sources. 18 Thank you. 19MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Helm. Are 20 there any questions of the panel? 21 MR. MOORE: No. Okay. 22 MR. THOMPSON: All right, Mr. Smith. 23MR. SMITH: Good morning. 24 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning. 25MR. SMITH: My name is Aaron Jacob Smith.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 40 1 I'm the coordinating attorney for Clean Air Council, a 2 member-supported organization that has been fighting 3 for over 40 years to protect everyone's right to 4 breathe clean air. 5I'm very grateful for the opportunity to 6 offer this testimony to you today. And I'll be 7 testifying on EPA's proposed methane regulations. 8 The Clear Air Council commends the EPA for 9 recognizing that the gas industry has a methane 10 problem. The proposed rules are an important first 11 step in forcing industry to curb the release of methane 12 and the hazardous air pollutants and smog-forming gases 13 that are dumped into our air along with it. However, 14 given the immediacy of the threat posed by climate 15 change and the direct local adverse impact the gas 16 industry is having on the health of Pennsylvania 17 residents, the Council urges EPA to go further. 18 The climate science is clear. We must 19 stop the release of heat-trapping gases. With 20 devastating wildfires ranging to our West and the odds 21 increasing of future Sandy-strength hurricanes ravaging 22 our coasts, delay is not an option. Which makes 23methane pollution an issue of particular concern. It 24 traps far more heat than carbon dioxide. On a 20-year 25 time scale, the release of just one ton of methane has

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 41 1 the same effect as emitting 86 tons of carbon dioxide. 2 Industry claims that methane are 3 dropped -- methane emissions are dropping must be met 4 with both skepticism and an understanding that we 5 cannot tolerate leaks at any level. 6Studies show that emissions factors used 7 by industry to self-report pollution levels may lead to 8 gross under-estimations of total emissions and the 9 inventories failed to include significant sources of 10 air pollution. 11 In a recent review of the Barnett Shale 12 region, researchers estimate that actual emissions 13 could be 1.5 times higher than reported in this 14 Agency's greenhouse gas inventory. 15Further, top down studies measuring the 16methane actually found in the air continue to find much 17 more methane than our inventories would predict. And 18 to the extent that inventories show a drop in 19 emissions, under certain source categories, it should 20 come as no surprise to this agency that the sources 21 most responsible for the drop are those that are 22 subject to your previously-issued New Source 23 Performance Standards. All of this reinforces the 24 importance of the regulations at issue today. Methane 25 pollution continues to be a grave problem and strong

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 42 1 regulations must be imposed. 2 But our climate is not the only system 3 under threat. So too is our health. Escaping from our 4 vast natural gas infrastructure, along with methane, 5 our pollutants that cause cancer, respiratory illness, 6 and other harms. 7 Pennsylvania is now the second largest 8 producer of natural gas in the country. And that 9 achievement has come at the cost of the health of 10 Pennsylvanians. In a comparison with northeast 11 Pennsylvania counties, researchers found that hospital 12 utilization rates were noticeably higher in areas in 13 which gas development has occurred. Among the reasons 14 for the increased hospital visits, cardiovascular 15 disease topped the list. 16To mitigate the threat that the gas 17 industry poses to our climate and health, EPA must 18 adopt rules that are stronger. Most importantly, the 19 EPA cannot ignore the sources of air pollution already 20 in operation. As you've already heard, by 2018, nearly 21 90 percent of well and gas methane emissions will come 22 from sources now in existence. And those -- which are 23 the sources not covered by the proposed rule. This is 24 a gap that must be filled. The draft VOC targeted 25 controlled techniques guidelines will not be enough.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 43 1 States not in the ozone transport region and ozone not 2 attained areas will not benefit from the full effect of 3 the CTGs. Moreover, where CTGs will be applied, they 4 will leave significant sources of pollution unregulated 5 or under-regulated. 6For instance, the transmission and storage 7 and distribution segments are not covered at all. More 8 must required from the sources that will be subject to 9 the proposed regulations. For instance, leak detection 10 and repair must be conducted more often. And the 11 failure to report leaks should not be reported. 12 Monthly LDAR should be mandated for all sites. A site 13 should never be allowed to go for a year without 14 equipment base being checked. 15LDAR monitoring frequency "step down" 16 incentivize operators to fail to find and report leaks. 17 This is bad policy that encourages operators to act 18 contrary to the public interest. 19In addition to LDAR controls, other 20 controls must be strengthened and more sources must be 21 covered. The Clean Air Council expect to submit 22 detailed technical written comments which will address 23 these issues. 24 The shortcomings in the Proposed Rule 25 leads the Clean Air Council to renew its call to the

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 44 1 Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to 2 build off the work that the EPA has done and establish 3 Pennsylvania as a leader in protecting its residents' 4 health. And the DEP must pass best-in-the-nation 5methane regulations that apply common sense controls to 6 all new and existing sources of air pollution in the 7 oil and gas sector. 8 Thank you very much. 9MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Smith. 10 Are there any follow-up questions from the 11 panel? Thank you both for your testimony. 12 MR. SMITH: Thank you so much. 13MR. THOMPSON: At this time I would invite 14 Nadia Steinzor and Patrice Tomcik to please come 15 forward. 16Good morning. Thanks for coming. 17 Thank you. 18 MS. STEINZOR: I'll go first. My name is 19Nadia Steinzor, N-A-D-I-A, S-T-E-I-N-Z-O-R. I'm the 20 eastern program coordinator for Earthworks. For over 21 two decades we've worked to protect communities and the 22 environment from the negative impacts of mineral and 23 energy development, while seeking sustainable 24 solutions. 25We applaud the EPA for recognizing that

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 45 1 oil and gas industry must reduce emissions of methane 2 and VOCs to save both the global climate and the 3 communities that live day in and day out with the 4 negative impacts of operations on their health and 5 quality of life. 6Overall, we struggle to support the 7 proposed amendments. The rules make sense because the 8 industry hopes to vastly expand production, processing, 9 and transmission facilities, all of which leak and 10 pollute. The rules even provide economic benefits for 11 operators, which may now be persuaded to capture 12 methane for sale, rather than simply continuing to 13 release into the air. 14 For the past year and a half, Earthworks 15 has used a forward-looking infrared or FLIR camera to 16 document emissions from well sites, compressor 17 stations, processing plants and other oil and gas 18 facilities in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and five other 19 states. As the merely 150 videos we've produced 20 clearly show, these leak from many sources and often do 21 so unabated. An industry that constantly tauts its 22 technological achievements and has found a way to drill 23 horizontally in deep shale should not have a problem 24 fixing leaks, inspecting facilities, and installing 25 better equipment.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 46 1 Federal rules are necessary because 2 operators generally don't reduce emissions unless they 3 are required to and because most states have chosen not 4 to take this step. 5The industry's promise to consistently 6 apply best practices voluntarily is long past due. For 7 example, there are hundreds of natural gas producers in 8 Pennsylvania and Ohio, yet less than a dozen have 9 joined the EPA's National Gas STAR Program to reduce 10 pollution from natural gas activities. 11 In the meantime, a growing body of 12 scientific evidence confirms the connections between 13 emissions from wells and facilities and health 14 problems, such as respiratory distress, dizziness, 15 headaches, neurological damage, nausea and fatigue, and 16 nosebleeds. 17 Proximity to oil and gas operations has 18 also been linked, through research, to increased 19 hospitalizations, lower birth weights, and higher 20 lifetime cancer risk. Nitrogen oxide is one of the 21 primary VOCs associated with oil and gas development, 22 and forms the ozone or smog that can impair breathing, 23 aggravate asthma and permanently damage lungs. 24 Across the eastern states, drilling, 25 processing and distribution activities are on the rise

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 47 1 in areas already classified as non-attainment for 2 ozone. 3In light of these gray facts, we ask the 4 EPA to, in these current rules, add additional 5 equipment to the list of regulated equipment, in 6particular, storage tanks, liquids unloading, and well 7 site compressor engines. All of these release methane 8 and hydrocarbons on a regular basis. Omitting them 9 runs counter to the emissions reduction goal of the 10 Proposal Rules. 11 We also ask you to shorten the period that 12 operators have to fix leaks. Six months may be 13 convenient for operators. But nearby residents will 14 suffer the consequences of ongoing exposure. As long 15 as leaks remain unaddressed, emissions levels and 16pollution will worsen. Days of exposure is already a 17 risky period. Months is simply unconscionable. 18 We also ask that you quantify and monetize 19 the public health benefits of reducing emissions of 20 VOCs and hazardous air pollutants. Without these 21 metrics included, benefits of the rule are understated 22 giving industry the excuses it seems to claim that they 23 are too costly. 24 Most importantly, as others have here 25 today already, we strongly encourage the EPA to begin

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 48 1 work on rules to cover existing sources of methane and 2 VOC emissions, which the Clean Air Act authorizes you 3 to do. 4 The current rules are vital, but they are 5 only the first step toward achieving full regulatory 6 coverage. Across the Marcellus and Utica Shale states, 7 thousands of wells, compressor stations and processing 8 facilities are now operational. In the next few years, 9most methane emissions from the oil and gas industry 10 will come from sources that already exist today. 11 In closing, Earthworks does not believe 12 that regulating methane will make oil and gas 13 development safe. We've seen damage for far too long 14 in far too many locations. Yet, the proposed rules 15 will reduce emissions and hold the industry accountable 16 for more of the pollution than it causes every day. We 17 look forward to the timely adoption, implementation and 18 enforcement of strong rules which cannot come soon 19 enough for oil and gas field residents. 20 Thank you for your time. 21 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 22 testimony. Any follow-up questions from the panel? 23MR. MOORE: No. 24 MR. THOMPSON: Hearing now Ms. Tomcik. 25MR. MOORE: Patrice Tomcik, T-O-M-C-I-K.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 49 1 My name is Patrice Tomcik. And I'm here 2 today as a mother, a member of the Moms Clean Air Force 3 and a member of the Mars Parent Group. I am the face 4 and the voice of the people who are affected by oil and 5 gas development. I am the advocate for all children 6 who suffer from the effects of pollution from the oil 7 and gas industry. 8 The oil and gas industry is currently one 9 of the largest emitters of methane. Methane is an 10 especially potent climate pollutant. It has 84 times 11 the warming power of carbon dioxide over a 20-year 12 timeframe. It is important to know that methane from 13 the oil and gas industry is released along with other 14 pollutants like volatile organic compounds, otherwise 15 known as VOCs. These VOCs are toxic air pollutants 16 that help to form ground level ozone and smog. 17 Ozone is linked to a variety of serious 18 public health impacts, asthma, emergency room visits, 19 and early death. Children are especially sensitive to 20 toxic air pollutants and suffer these effects more than 21 adults. 22 My children attend the school in the Mars 23Area School District, which is about 30 minutes north 24 here of Pittsburgh. A permanent gas well pad is 25 located approximately half a mile away from the school

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 50 1 campus, which places 3,200 students at ground zero for 2 exposures if its developed. 3Personally, I am especially fearful for my 4 youngest who had leukemia. So I know he's even more 5 vulnerable to the air pollution. He's in a sensitive 6 subgroup of a sensitive group. One of the VOCs found 7 at the gas well pad is benzene, which is a carcinogen 8 and is known to cause leukemia. I fear for my son's 9 health. 10 My friend, Rick, has a son who has asthma. 11 His name is Will. And he attends the Mars Area School 12 District. The family checks the air quality every day 13 to determine what their outdoor activity will be. On 14 days of high ozone, all outside plans are canceled 15 because Will's past history has shown that it can 16 trigger an asthma attack. 17 Rick worries that the potential air 18 pollution from the well pad could trigger an asthma 19 attack, especially on a day when gym class is outside. 20 Will is in the sensitive subgroup of a sensitive group 21 also. 22 Rick and I, along with other parents in 23 the Mars Area School District, are angry that we have 24 to make a difficult choice of having to pull our 25 children from their schools in fear of their health.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 51 1 But for many who live next to the oil and gas 2 development, there is no choice. 3My friend and her daughter, Olivia, who is 4 five years old, live 1,300 feet from a gas well pad. 5 Olivia had nosebleeds and sore throats while the well 6pad was being developed. This is where Olivia lives 7 and plays, near gas development. 8 The family has moved away for fear of the 9 family's health. The current rules and regulations are 10 not protective of Olivia's health. 11 A woman in Washington County, PA lives 500 12 feet from a cryogenic processing plant. She's also 13 surrounded by multiple well pads, pipelines and a newly 14 committed compressor station. The family smell odors 15 in the air and suffers from frequent headaches and 16 watery eyes. Her four-year-old daughter developed a 17 respiratory airway disease since age 1 1/2 and has been 18 diagnosed with pneumonia in the past. Her mother said 19 she had SUMMA canister testing showing spikes in VOCs, 20 and her urine tests have come back positive for many of 21 the same chemicals used or found in the gas industry. 22 The mother suffers from anxiety of what 23 the long-term effects are for her family and is angry 24 because the family's health has already been affected. 25And nobody was there to protect them for five years.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 52 1 Thankfully the family just sold their 2 house one month ago and can't wait to escape. 3 Tragically, there are many people who are unable to 4 move, escape to healthier, cleaner air. Where is the 5 protection? 6The public is left to fight their own 7 protection like we have in Mars, PA. Industry's 8 self-regulating does not work. Only a handful of oil 9 and gas companies participate in the EPA's Natural Gas 10 STAR Program, which is a voluntarily effort to reduce 11 emissions. 12 Nationwide, the people, especially 13 children, need stronger protective emission rules 14 because industry does what is inspected. They do not 15 do what is expected. 16As a mom, I want children now, and in the 17 future generations to have safe, clean environment and 18 to give the opportunity for a healthy life. There must 19be action taken now. This is why I've joined Moms 20 Clean Air Force, along with 570,000 members to fight to 21 limit the methane emissions that contribute to global 22 warming and climate change. 23Thank you very much. 24 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you very much for 25 your testimony. Are there any follow-up questions from

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 53 1 the panel? 2 MR. MOORE: Yes. Could you clarify for us 3 that are -- who are not as familiar with the geography 4 of Pennsylvania, where is Mars located? 5MR. HVOZDOVICH: It's about 30 minutes 6 north from Pittsburgh. 7 MR. MOORE: Thank you. 8 MR. THOMPSON: Additional follow-up? 9 Thank You both very much for your testimony today. 10 MS. STEINZOR: Are you taking -- 11 MR. THOMPSON: At the registration table, 12 please. 13MS. STEINZOR: Thank you. 14 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Okay. At this 15 time I would like Steven Hamburg and Steve Hvozdovich 16 to please come forward with their testimony. 17 Good morning, gentlemen. I'd like to 18 begin with Mr. Hamburg, please. 19MR. HAMBURG: Thanks very much. My name 20 is Steven Hamburg. I'm the chief scientist at the 21 Environmental Defense Fund, where I've lead the largest 22 scientific effort to date quantifying and characterize 23methane emissions across the U.S. natural gas supply 24 chain. 25On behalf of the EDF and our more than one

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 54 1 million members nationwide and 75,000 members here in 2 Pennsylvania, thank you very much for having -- for the 3 opportunity to testify at today's EPA's proposed -- on 4 today's EPA's proposed standards to address methane 5 emissions from oil and gas sector. 6We strongly support the EPA's proposed 7 standards and believe there are several areas where the 8 standards must be strengthened to ensure they are 9 rigorous. 10 The EPA's most recent inventory estimates 11 methane emissions from oil and gas exceeded 7 million 12 metric tons per year, equivalent to the 20-year climate 13 warming effect of 160 coal-fired power plants. 14 But recent scientific studies clearly 15 indicate that methane emissions from the natural gas 16 supply chain are substantially higher than indicated by 17 EPA's inventory. 18 In 2013, in the Barnett Shale region, 19 which was just referred to by another speaker, EDF led 20 the largest effort ever undertaken to quantify methane 21 emissions at this regional scale using multiple 22 simultaneous top-down and bottom-up approaches. The 23 results made it clear that emissions from the oil and 24 gas sector were at least 50 percent higher than 25 estimates based on the EPA greenhouse gas inventory.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 55 1 EPA's inventory of methane emissions 2 provides a solid estimate of many of the components and 3 factors considered. Yet, there are several important 4 factors not being considered in the inventory, 5 including the importance of large emission sources 6 across the natural gas supply chain, as well as 7 significant underestimates of the number of emitting 8 sources, such as compressor stations and pipelines. 9Fortunately, there are readily available 10 low-cost solutions that can substantially reduce 11 emissions. Methane emissions can be cut by 40 percent 12 for only one penny per thousand cubic feet of natural 13 gas produced. States like Colorado, Wyoming and Ohio 14 have already employed common sense solutions that help 15 protect the environment and promote economic 16 development. 17 Industrial areas like Pittsburgh stand to 18 benefit immensely from the reduction in regional 19methane emissions and associated air pollutants that 20 lead to health-harming ozone. More than four million 21 Pennsylvanians live in areas where ozone levels exceed 22 national clean air standards. These are areas that 23 contain over 17,000 oil and gas wells. Applying common 24 sense measures here in Pennsylvania, the second -- 25 nations second largest natural producing state will

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 56 1 capture valuable natural gas for sale while reducing 2 methane emissions. In fact, many Pennsylvania 3 companies are producing equipment that can help reduce 4 methane waste and pollution. 5EPA's proposed standards for new and 6modified sources and CTGs for sources in ozone 7 non-attainment areas are an important step forward. 8 But we urge the Agency to both strengthen them and 9 adopt other clean air measures to help secure cleaner 10 air in Pennsylvania and the rest of the region. 11 I want to highlight three specific issues. 12 One EDF supports the EPA's proposal to cover new and 13modified methane emissions sources. The Agency 14 developed a strong scientific and technical basis for 15 addressing these sources through its peer review, White 16 Paper process. 17 Two, EDF strongly urges EPA to strengthen 18 leak detection and repair provisions. The proposed 19 standards call for semi-annual LDAR monitoring with 20 opportunities for facilities to reduce the frequency of 21 monitoring even further. 22 There is a common finding among dozens of 23 scientific studies that a relatively small number of 24 high-emitting components and sites are responsible for 25 a large fraction of total methane emissions from the

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 57 1 natural gas supply chain. Frequent LDAR to find and 2 fix these leaks is essential to effectively reducing 3methane emissions. These large leaks can emerge 4 anywhere at any time and are difficult to predict when 5 and where they will occur a priori. 6States like Colorado and Wyoming have 7 recognized that more frequent monitoring is necessary 8 and cost-effective. Accordingly, we urge EPA to 9 finalize an LDAR program that requires at least 10 quarterly monitoring and is not subject to adjustment 11 based on a facility's percentage of leaking components. 12 There's no data to suggest that the 13 absence of leaks in a single facility over some period 14 is a good predictor of the probability of a leak 15 developing in the future. 16Three, finally, we respectfully urge EPA 17 and leading states, like Pennsylvania, to build from 18 this important step and take action to address 19 emissions from existing sources. 20 ICF found that existing sources account 21 for almost 90 percent of the oil and gas sector. 22 Moreover, the same technologies and practices that can 23minimize emissions from new sources are likewise 24 capable of reducing emissions from existing sources. 25Building from the -- building from the

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 58 1 steps, EPA's proposal will help reduce emissions in all 2 communities across the country where there is oil and 3 gas development. 4 Again, on behalf of the Environmental 5 Defense Fund, our Pennsylvania members thank you for 6 the opportunity to testify at today's hearing. This is 7 a critical step forward that will begin to secure the 8 needed pollution reductions and avoid waste in domestic 9 energy sources. We appreciate consideration of our 10 comments. 11 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Hamburg. 12 Any follow-up questions of Mr. Hamburg? 13MR. MOORE: No. 14 MR. HVOZDOVICH: Good morning. My name is 15 Steve Hvozdovich and that's H-V-O-Z-D-O-V-I-C-H. I'm 16 the Pennsylvania Campaign Director for Clean Water 17 Action. We are a national nonprofit environmental 18 organization. We have over a million members in the 19 country. And here in Pennsylvania, we have over 20 100,000 members from across the Commonwealth. 21 It is on behalf of not only my 22 organization, but those 100,000 members that I'm here 23 to speak today, many of whom couldn't make it here 24 because of where they live or because of their work 25 schedule. Also, some of your members, across the

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 59 1 country who might not have been able to make it into 2 one of the EPA -- excuse me, one of the EPA hearings. 3So it is on behalf of the Clean Water 4 Action then, I -- we strongly support the EPA's 5 proposed methane pollution standards, which is a good 6 first step in reducing methane pollution from new oil 7 and gas wells. And we encourage the EPA to extend 8 these standards to existing infrastructure. 9Each day the oil and gas industry leaks or 10 intentionally flares methane into the air from its 11 production wells and natural gas distribution 12 infrastructure. Their actions make them the largest 13 industrial source of methane emissions, releasing 8 14 billion metric tons per year, enough to heat 6.5 15million homes. 16Methane is a potent greenhouse gas that 17 pound for pound traps upwards of 80 times more heat 18 into our atmosphere than carbon dioxide in the near 19 term. It comes packaged with other pollutants which 20 are key ingredients in smog. These industrial leaks 21 are like an invisible oil spill happening every day. 22 And the oil and gas industry is getting away with it. 23One recent report predicts that methane 24 emissions will increase five percent in the next five 25 years in the absence of federal emission standards.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 60 1 Hopefully, we won't have to confront that future if we 2 move forward implementing the EPA's proposed plan and 3 expand it to additional pollution sources already in 4 operation. 5Some companies have already taken 6 voluntary steps to reduce methane pollution. But 7 voluntary methane reduction measures have not and will 8 not provide our nation's communities and families with 9 necessary comprehensive health and environmental 10 protections. With thousands of producers around the 11 country, only consistent nationals can ensure the 12 companies have a level playing field and people have 13 the protections they deserve. 14 Tackling -- tackling methane emissions is 15 not just good for health and the environment. It's 16 good for the economy as well. These new standards will 17 create high quality jobs in a growing domestic 18 manufacturing and service sector. According to a new 19 report, there are dozens of companies with locations in 20 nearly every state already manufacturing, selling and 21 supporting the proven and cost-effective methane 22 controls available today to address this problem. 23The efforts in Colorado among energy 24 companies, environmental groups, and state 25 legislature -- and state legislators showed us that we

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 61 1 can work together to find common sense rules to 2 directly limit methane emissions. It is shocking that 3 in that -- coming from that collaboration, as we expand 4 these proposed rules to a more national level, that we 5 would now see opposition to it. When we know that we 6 can work together to reduce methane emissions and 7 protect people's health and the environment. 8 There must be no delay for the EPA's new 9methane pollution standard that will protect Americans 10 with low-cost safeguards that already exist to plug the 11 leaks and stop the pollution. Clean Water Action 12 encourages the EPA to finalize these sensible 13 protections and put similar prevention measures in 14 place with existing facilities, which under the current 15 plan, will be allowed to continue leaking and flaring 16methane into the atmosphere. Thank you. 17 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Hvozdovich. 18 Are there any other questions from the panel? 19MR. MOORE: No. 20 MR. THOMPSON: Okay, gentlemen. Thank you 21 both for your testimony today. 22 At this time I'd like to invite Amy Nassif 23 and Julia Nassif to please come forward. 24 MS. NASSIF: Good morning. 25MR. THOMPSON: Good morning.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 62 1 MS. NASSIF: I do appreciate the 2 opportunity to speak to you in support of the proposed 3 EPA methane regulations. My name is Amy Nassif and I 4 live just north of Pittsburgh in Mars in Butler County. 5 You just heard Patrice speak a little bit about our 6plight up there. 7 This is a large stake-hold for the oil and 8 gas industry. My daughter, Julia, is here with me 9 today. She's my moral support. And she's also here to 10 help give you perspective as you continue to make 11 decisions. Because this isn't about you and I. It's 12 really about her future. 13Last spring I found out that a six well 14 site for unconventional gas drilling was proposed about 15 half a mile away from her school. I joined with other 16 concerned parents. I formed the Mars Parent Group 17 which has now over 400 members in Butler County. 18 We began to collect data and peer-reviewed 19 research regarding the consequences of such a proposal. 20 What alarmed me immediately was the lack of our public 21 officials' knowledge into the health and safety risks 22 for our children near these well sites, let alone any 23 insight to our environment. 24 Over the past year, I've spoken to our 25 local school board, local Township officials, state

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 63 1 representatives, state Senators, DEP officials, and 2 even traveled to Harrisburg to speak to DEP officials. 3Last week I actually had the opportunity 4 to share this information internationally with a 5 British member of Parliament, Kevin Hollinrake. He 6 traveled to Pennsylvania to speak to the Mars Parent 7 Group and others in this state to investigate the 8 consequences of shale development prior to making a 9 decision on permitting it. I took notice immediately 10 that he was investigating prior to making a decision. 11 And that he does not receive financial benefits from 12 the industry. He welcomed information and has returned 13 to England to discuss it with his constituency and 14 fellow members of Parliament. 15As with Mr. Hollinrake, I continue to 16 share the data and research regarding all of the 17 incidents, accidents, methane, VOCs, benzene, and 18 diesel exhaust with all of our local officials. A 19 cautionary plea from a mother that wants to immediately 20 protect her children from this heavy volatile oil and 21 gas industry, and in the long-term, protect her future. 22 Representatives for the EPA, I now find 23myself talking to you. I never thought that I would be 24 sitting here a year and a half ago. I was a PTA mom, a 25 physical therapist, you know, going to soccer practice,

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 64 1 like every other mom out there. But now I'm here in 2 front of you, imploring you to heed these warnings, 3 respect the collateral damage that you've heard, 4 analyze the data that all the experts are bringing to 5 you, and follow that peer-reviewed research. 6The regulations you are now proposing are 7 recognition of what we all need. And that's 8 protection. You will have many more testifying before 9 you today, including experts in industry, that will 10 provide the percentages that are meant to patronize and 11 disregard my statement today, describing my statements 12 as unpatriotic, and possibly even my support of this 13 regulation would cost money or jobs. Regardless, I 14 stand by my statement. I want you to protect my 15 daughter. Her sister, who's in school, she didn't get 16 to come and 3,200 of their friends in the Mars Area 17 School District. 18 The current regulations are not enough to 19protect them or their future. I support, along with 20 the other 400 parents in my group, the EPA's proposed 21 climate, air quality, and permitting rules for the oil 22 and natural gas industry. Self-policing does not work. 23Based on my experiences over the past 24 year, I have resigned myself to the fact that I can't 25make this all go away. I can't fix it either. But I

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 65 1 can ask for your help. The oil and gas industry is 2 getting closer and closer to my children. I demand 3 industry accountability and responsibility. And I 4 certainly do not want any more excuses. 5I appreciate you listening to my statement 6 today. Please remember Julia and her friends as all of 7 this public comment starts to become divisive dialogue. 8 They need better regulations to protect their health 9 and their environment. And the EPA's sole purpose is 10 to take those steps. Thank you. 11 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Nassif. 12 And, Julia, do you have anything you would 13 like to say? No? Well, thank you both for being here 14 today. I thank you. 15At this time I would like to invite Dan 16 Scheid and Mark Gorog to please come forward. 17 G-O-R-O-G. 18 Good morning, gentlemen. 19MR. GOROG: Good morning. 20 MR. SCHEID: Good morning. 21 My name is Dan Scheid. D-A-N, 22 S-C-H-E-I-D. I want to thank the EPA for proposing 23 this standard on methane emissions which is crucial to 24 slow climate change, to improve public health, and to 25 protect our children's future. I also thank you for

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 66 1 inviting public discussion on this issue. It's not a 2 special interest or partisan issue. But it's a vital 3 concern to every personnel living on the planet, and 4 especially every resident of Pennsylvania, and to every 5American. 6I speak today not only as a resident of 7 Pittsburgh but also as a person of faith, as a Catholic 8 who's been inspired by the recent visit of Pope 9 Francis. As some of you may know, Pope Francis issued 10 a major document called Laudato Si on care of our 11 common home in June of this year. In the Laudato Si, 12 Pope Francis continues the Catholic Church's 13 long-standing teaching on climate change, affirming 14 that it is real, that it is a moral issue, and the 15 prudence of it needs immediate and urgent action. 16 Encyclical follows the familiar format for Catholic 17 teaching. See. Judge. Act. 18 The first element is to see what is 19 happening, rely on the best scientific research 20 available. And science is telling us that methane 21 pollution persists for decades. That industry releases 22 millions of tons of methane and toxic chemicals into 23 the air every year. That without new limits on methane 24 pollution, emissions from the oil and gas industry will 25 increase by 25 percent in the next ten years. That in

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 67 1 some areas, methane emissions are even higher than the 2 EPA currently reports. And importantly, especially for 3 Catholic teaching, methane and other toxic air 4 pollutants exposes neighboring communities to harmful 5 pollution and can cause serious health problems, 6 including cancer, asthma, and other respiratory 7 illnesses. Toxic emissions, particularly impact 8 vulnerable groups like children and the elderly, as 9 you've heard in statements already today. 10 The second statement Francis makes is to 11 judge through the lens of faith. That is, to 12 understand and to interpret the ecological crisis 13 according to theological and moral principles from the 14 tradition. There is, as he says, a gospel of creation. 15And some of the principles he lays out include that we 16 need to approach nature with awe, wonder, and joy; that 17 the earth is not just a resource, but indeed is a 18 common home for all. The climate in particular, he 19 tells us, is a common good belonging to all, meant for 20 all. 21 We must pay special attention to the poor, 22 who would be most impacted and have the least power to 23 respond. And looking through with the eyes of faith, 24 we should understand that creator has always intended 25 creatures to live connected to and dependent on each

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 68 1 other. 2 "The gaze of Jesus," he says, "invites 3 us," he says, quote, "to be intensive to the beauty 4 that there is in the world and to perceive the divine 5message of the creator's love in each thing." He says, 6 "Creation is of the order of love." 7 I think Pope Francis takes us to the heart 8 of what is it is to be human. That we are linked to 9 all creatures, humans, the cosmos because of our one 10 creator. And because of this divine plan, we should 11 treat all creatures with love and respect and pay 12 special attention to the vulnerable. 13Finally, in light of these faith 14 convictions and moral standards, Pope Francis calls us 15 to action. Reducing greenhouse gases, he tells us, 16 quote, "requires honesty, courage, and responsibility." 17 We all called to respond, in our individual lives, in 18 our families, in our neighborhoods, our communities. 19And in all of this, national policies also have a vital 20 and indispensable role. 21 Pope Francis specifically challenges 22 elected leaders to have the courage to enact those 23 policies that we need on behalf of future generations 24 and the earth itself. If they do so, he says, quote, 25 "they will attest to their God-given dignity and leave

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 69 1 behind a testimony of selfless responsibility." 2 And so I thank the EPA, again, for 3 proposing stronger methane emission standards. Please 4 embody courageous under the leadership and help us heed 5 the moral call to act. The proposed standards would 6 reduce methane and other toxic air pollution. The 7 standards will protect Americans with low-cost 8 safeguards that already exist. And industry needs 9 these standards to find the impetus to implement them. 10 On behalf of the common good, it is 11 important to act for the health of children, and for 12 the elderly, for future generations, and indeed for us 13 all. 14 So on behalf of the Catholic community, 15 which I'm just one small member, but inspired by Pope 16 Francis, please let us act with love. Let us act with 17 prudence and courage. Let us act with justice. I urge 18 you, do not delay in implementing the EPA's new methane 19pollution standard. 20 Thank you. 21 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Scheid. Any 22 follow-up questions of Mr. Scheid? 23MR. MOORE: No. 24 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 25Move the mic. There you go.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 70 1 MR. GOROG: Good morning. 2 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning. 3MR. GOROG: My name is Mark Gorog. And I 4 am testifying on behalf of the Pennsylvania Department 5 of Environmental Protection, PA DEP, concerning the 6 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, proposed oil 7 and gas sector emissions standards for new and modified 8 sources. 9The proposed New Source Performance 10 Standards, NSPS, published in the Federal Register on 11 September 18, 2015, will reduce volatile organic 12 compounds, VOC, and methane emissions sources, 13 processes, and activities in the oil and natural gas 14 operations. The NSPS proposal will also regulate 15 sources that are not covered under EPA's subpart RR 16provisions adopted in 2012 for the oil and natural gas 17 sector. 18 Methane is a potent greenhouse gas, GHG 19pollutant, and is also the primary component in natural 20 gas. The PA DEP supports EPA's proposed -- proposal to 21 achieve additional VOCs and methane emission reductions 22 from the oil and natural gas sector. As proposed, 23 however, methane emissions will only be reduced as a 24 co-benefit of the VOC emission reductions. 25We urge the EPA to regulate methane

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 71 1 emissions directly from sources in the oil and gas 2 industry under Section 111 of the Clean Air Act. As 3 currently proposed, further reductions in methane 4 emissions from natural gas sources located in dry gas 5 areas of the Commonwealth, i.e., north central and 6 northeast regions would not be achieved under the 7 proposal. 8 PA DEP has had a comprehensive permitting 9program to achieve reductions of air contaminates, 10 including methane, VOCs, and nitrogen oxides, NOX, from 11 sources at natural gas production, compression, 12 processing, and transmission facilities. 13The Department's conditional exemption 14 criteria for sources at well sites and general permit 15 for sources of natural gas compression and processing 16 facilities, GP-5, require source owners and operators 17 to comply with stringent requirements, including a leak 18 detention and repair, LDAR program, for any type of 19 leak. PA DEP's LDAR requirements specifically target 20 reduction of methane emissions. 21 Unlike Pennsylvania LDAR requirements, 22 EPA's proposed LDAR requirements, which apply solely to 23VOC leaks, would not address methane leaks at dry gas 24 drilling, compression, and processing operations. 25EPA is proposing that the first attempt

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 72 1 repairing leaks occur within five calendar days after 2 the leak is detected. Repair of the leak would be 3 completed no later than 15 days after detection of 4 fugitive emissions. 5The PA DEP strongly recommends strong leak 6 detection and repair requirements and is currently 7 evaluating stronger state specific LDAR requirements. 8 Under the NSPS proposal, LDAR surveys 9 would be conducted semi-annually or annually. 10 Consistent with the Department's GP-5 requirements, 11 LDAR surveys should be performed on a quarterly basis. 12 EPA's proposed NSPS do not require any 13major sources to reduce VOC emissions from truck 14 loading operations. We recommend that EPA adopt truck 15 loading requirements consistent with PA DEP's 16permitting conditions, which require at least a 17 95 percent level of control for VOC emissions from 18 truck loading operations. 19The proposed NSPS amendments do not 20 include requirements for pigging operations, which are 21 significant sources of methane and VOC emissions. The 22 EPA should establish regulatory provisions for control 23 or recovery of methane and VOC emissions from pigging 24 operations in the oil and gas industry. 25In the final rule making, we strongly urge

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 73 1 the EPA to address methane leaks directly, not as a 2 collateral benefit of VOC reductions. EPA's final NSPS 3must address dry gas operations, as well as VOC and 4 methane emissions from central impoundments that 5 produce water. 6Thank you for the opportunity to testify 7 on the proposed NSPS for new and modified sources in 8 the oil and natural gas sector. PA DEP will submit 9 detailed written comments to the EPA by November 17, 10 2015. 11 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 12 testimony. Any follow-up questions for Mr. Gorog? 13MR. MOORE: No. 14 MR. THOMPSON: Okay, gentlemen. Thank you 15 very much for being here today. We appreciate it. 16At this time I would like to invite 17 Cricket Hunter and Jackie Smathers to please come 18 forward for testimony. 19Good morning. 20 MS. HUNTER: Good morning. 21 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you both for being 22 here. I would like to start with you. 23MS. HUNTER: My name is Cricket Hunter, 24 just like it sounds. So my name is Cricket Eccleston 25 Hunter. And I am the director of Program and Outreach

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 74 1 for Pennsylvania Interfaith Power & Light, one of 40 2 state affiliates of Interfaith Power & Light for 3 religious response to climate change. 4 Let me begin with thank you. I sat in 5 this building, this room, actually, 14 months ago and 6praised the Clean Power Plan as a good beginning, and I 7 asked the EPA to quickly address extractive emissions, 8 since end use emissions only tell a portion of the 9 story. So thank you. 10 This new proposal is a good beginning, 11 too. We cannot now pretend ignorance about the 12 immediate health effects of VOCs, nor the smog they 13 react to create, nor can we pretend any longer that the 14 volume of escaping methane, the greenhouse gas 80 times 15more powerful than carbon dioxide the first 20 years is 16 negligible. Every time fugitive emissions are 17 estimated and measures -- measured, it seems that the 18 estimates rise. FLIR cameras capture vast undetected 19 emissions even at operations that work hard to use best 20 practices. We cannot possibly count on every one of 21 the 450 companies of oil and gas operations in 22 Pennsylvania alone to use best practices. Not all 450 23 companies are the best. Expand that by including 24 subcontractors, and the opportunity for harm increases. 25No, while we would like to assume the best

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 75 1 of every one of these companies and every one of these 2 workers every day, we need a safeguard. And for the 3 best, we need a level playing field. We need, for 4 companies and their shareholders, to understand that 5 our atmosphere and the air we breathe are not free. 6 They are precious. They are life-giving. 7 Understanding that, how could we, in good conscience, 8 permit new operations as leaky as the old. So these 9 new limits are a good start -- a good start, but -- but 10 compressors at well sites are an important part of the 11 picture, and they are currently omitted. But regular 12 inspections should be required for all operations, 13 quarterly at least, to keep honest people honest, as my 14 grandmother would say, and to catch mistakes. 15But we need methane and VOCs addressed for 16 existing operations too. Or the Clean Power Plan 17 shortsightedly implemented with an eye only on end use 18 emissions will lead us into a three steps forward and 19 two steps back dance that lands us far too close to 20 where we started out. 21 Last week in his address to Congress, Pope 22 Francis elevated the calling of our elected 23 representatives. He said, "You are called to defend 24 and preserve the dignity of your fellow citizens in 25 tireless and demanding pursuit of the common good. For

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 76 1 this is the chief aim of all politics." 2 In that same speech, Pope Francis offered 3 another ideal, one for administering a law, as you are 4 charged with doing. "We protect by means of the law, 5 the image and likeness fashioned by God on every human 6 face." Protect the faces of the workers daily exposed 7 to leaks and smog. Protect the faces of the children 8 in the yard of the neighboring school. Protect the 9 faces of the poor, standing in the way of the next 10 Sandy or Katrina. 11 People of faith will continue to pray. 12 Congregations will continue to serve those at the bust 13 end of boom and bust extraction economy. To feed those 14 hungry because of crop failure, homeless because of 15 storm, or fleeing from warming fueled conflict. We 16 will continue to cut our energy use, becoming better 17 disciplined stewards of the land and of one another. 18 Christians may turn to Matthew 25 for inspiration; 19 truly, I tell you, whatever you did unto one of the 20 least of my brethren, that you did unto me. Others 21 will site the Golden Rule or recall Scripture from 22 their own traditions. We will pray for inspiration and 23 for courage for the full spectrum of hopeful, skillful, 24 and creative work that can bring us back into full 25 community. We will pray with our hearts and hands.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 77 1 And we are asking you to act quickly in your work. 2 Limit the harm we have tacitly agreed to. Limit the 3 harm we are doing to one another and to creation. This 4 proposed limit, though "we will not create more harm" 5 limit is a start. But surely, we can do better. 6 Strengthen this limit and then begin the next one, 7 challenging us to address wrongs already built. 8 Thank you. 9MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Hunter. 10 Are there any follow-up questions from the 11 panel? 12 MR. MOORE: No. 13MR. THOMPSON: Very good. Ms. Smathers. 14 MS. SMATHERS: Good morning. Thank you 15 for this opportunity here today. 16My name is Jacqueline Smathers. And my 17 concern for my three children and the other 3,200 18 children who attend the Mars Area School District is 19 what brought me here today to speak in support of the 20 proposed EPA methane regulations. 21 The catalyst for my involvement in this 22 issue was the announcement of plans by Rice Energy to 23 place six unconventional gas wells six-tenths of a 24 mile from Mars Area School campus where 3,200 children, 25 including my own, congregate daily. Upon this

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 78 1 announcement, a group of parents got together to 2 research what these wells would mean for the children 3 of the Mars Area School District. We formed what is 4 now called Mars Parent Group. 5At the start of this process, we 6 optimistically tried to verify the industry's claim 7 that setting up industrial sites in residential areas 8 and so close to our children's schools is safe. But we 9 found research -- research to support that claim to be 10 illusive. In fact, alarmingly absent. To use words of 11 Dr. Jerome Paulson, the claims of safety were based on 12 wishful thinking. Instead, we found an overwhelmingly 13 base of scientific evidence showing the oil and gas 14 industry is polluting our air with methane and fugitive 15 emissions. Even so, this industry continues to be 16permitted to industrialize our residential communities 17 and expose Pennsylvania families to industrial accident 18 risks and toxic air pollutants. 19Through our research of all available 20 information, my eyes were immediately opened to the 21 huge issues we are facing here in Pennsylvania, with 22 over 10,000 wells permitted, and projections of 196,000 23 to be drilled. 24 Methane emissions have a big impact not 25 only on climate change but also children's health.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 79 1 Studies right here in PA have shown that families 2 living near a heavy oil and gas development have lower 3 birth weight babies, higher incidents of asthma, 4 stillbirth, and cancer in children ages zero to five 5 years, when compared to the rest of PA children. 6Over 380 unconventional gas wells and over 7 40 compressor stations operating within a one-mile 8 radius of Southwestern Pennsylvania public schools. We 9 are surrounded by gas development where we live, work, 10 learn, and play. 11 Despite industry protests, we can enact 12 change to better protect the air we breathe from this 13 pollution. 14 Since industry opposition was voiced, when 15 lawmakers called for the removal of lead from gasoline 16 to protect public health -- similar industry opposition 17 was voiced when lawmakers called for the removal of 18 lead from gasoline to protect public health. Thanks to 19 unleaded gasoline, the Clean Air Act and catalytic 20 converter, we saw methane emissions from passenger cars 21 fall by 77 percent from 1990 to 2009. 22 Parents like myself feel abandoned by our 23 elected representatives of regulators. We have been 24 left to forge ahead on our own to protect our children 25 from these hazards. There has been no health, no

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 80 1 interest from government agencies at the local or state 2 level in helping us truly protect our families, and 3 this must change. We are asking for your help. 4 Eliminating methane emissions from new and 5 existing development is the first of many giant leaps 6 that we must take to protect our children from exposure 7 to the oil and gas industry. Our nation's most 8 precious resource is truly our children. Please don't 9 delay and put the next generation in the position of 10 looking back and wondering why we didn't act when we 11 had the evidence and opportunity to do so. Too often 12 we regrettably learn from hindsight. This does not 13 need to be the case with these regulations. Right now, 14 there's an overwhelming scientific basis, the 15 environmental urgency, and a clear opportunity to take 16 action with conviction and foresight. 17 Thank you. 18 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mrs. Smathers. 19I just want to -- just for clarification. 20 Was it 3,200 children you say were in this school? 21 MS. SMATHERS: We have a five-school 22 campus of 32,000 children in total. 23MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 24 MR. MOORE: I had another clarification 25 question for you. You had mentioned that there were 40

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 81 1 compression stations, and I've got a blank here, number 2 of well sites within a mile of -- 3MS. SMATHERS: Yes. 380, I think it is. 4 MR. MOORE: All right. Thank you both. 5MR. THOMPSON: Thank you both for your 6 testimony. 7 At this time I would like to invite Aviva 8 Diamond and Laura Burns to please come forward for 9 testimony. 10 You can begin by stating and spell your 11 name for the court reporter, please. 12 MS. DIAMOND: Good morning. My name is 13Aviva Diamond, A-V-I-V-A, D-I-A-M-O-N-D. 14 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 15MS. DIAMOND: And I am the Western 16 Pennsylvania field organizer for Moms Clean Air Force. 17 Moms Clean Air Force thanks the EPA for 18 the opportunity to comment. Moms Clean Air Force is a 19 nonprofit and non-partisan environmental organization 20 with over 570,000 members nationally; and approximately 21 30,000 members in Pennsylvania. We are a community of 22 parents fighting for clean air and healthy kids. And 23 our mission is to arm our members with reliable 24 information and solutions through online resources, 25 articles, action tools, and on the ground events.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 82 1 As a representative of Moms Clean Air 2 Force, I am delivering these notecards signed by 3 Pennsylvanians supporting strong standards limiting 4 pollution from oil and gas operations. 5I am a trained biomedical research 6 scientist with a doctorate in Molecular Genetics and 7 Microbiology. As a graduate student and postdoctoral 8 researcher, I've read numerous primary research studies 9 and comprehensively analyzed copious amounts of data to 10 form and be able to defend independent conclusions. I 11 designed experiments utilizing a model system to test 12 the problem and identify an explanation. 13I also hold a Master of Science Degree in 14 Health Care Policy and Analysis and Management from 15 Hines College of Carnegie Mellon University. Here I 16 learned to evaluate multifactorial issues from 17 different perspectives and carefully consider social, 18 economic, and public health approaches to significant 19public policy issues. Mostly importantly, I am a 20 mother to a wonderful one-year-old daughter. 21 My remarks to you today reflect my 22 professional preparation and my personal concerns. 23 Modern medicine demands physicians to first do no harm. 24 In contrast, we, as a people, are permitting our 25 environment to first be harmed and then we look for

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 83 1 solutions to alleviate the problem. I believe a better 2 approach would be to prevent the harm in the first 3 place. Consider dirty, coal-fired power plants to be 4 like cancerous tumors with clearly defined margins in 5 our communities. When producing electricity, the power 6plant belches harmful toxins into the air. And when 7 shut down or effectively removed, the air is, in time, 8 returned to an almost untarnished state. The power 9plant or the tumor is excised and the community is 10 healed. 11 Now consider fracking wells. They are 12 numerous and have spread exponentially throughout 13 Western Pennsylvania. Fracking wells do not have 14 clearly defined margins, as fracking pollution spews 15 into our community's water supply. As such, fracking 16pollution from oil and gas industry is metastatic and 17 indelibly enters our water supply. Removing one well 18 does not have measurable environmental and public 19 health impacts due to the ten new wells that are 20 developed elsewhere in its place. 21 My analogy leads me to the conclusion that 22 fracking is similar to the growth of metastatic cancer 23 on our earth. This is a national problem that needs a 24 national solution. Our country needs the EPA to enact 25 the strongest possible rules to reduce methane

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 84 1 pollution from the oil and gas industry. These 2 regulations are critical to holding industry 3 accountable for creating and sustaining a serious 4 disease on our shared land. 5Science teaches us to be precise and 6 diligent in evaluating complex problems. Public policy 7 teaches us to scrutinize multiple frameworks when 8 considering intricate social issues. Motherhood gets 9 to the true heart of the matter immediately and 10 intimately because it is our children who will most 11 benefit or be harmed by the actions we collectively 12 take. 13Thank you. 14 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 15 testimony. Are there any follow-up questions? 16MR. MOORE: No. 17 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you very much for 18 being here to both of you. 19Is Laura Burns present? No. Just give it 20 to the registration table as well. 21 No Laura Burns? Okay. We're going to 22 take a break. Let's reconvene here at 11:00 a.m. All 23 right. Thank you. 24 (Recess in proceedings.) 25MR. THOMPSON: Okay. Ladies and

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 85 1 gentlemen, we would like to get started again, so if 2 folks could take their seats. Thank you. 3At this time I would like to invite 4 Reverend Paul Lubold and Dave McMahon, I think I have 5 here. Please come forward for testimony. 6MR. LUBOLD: Yes, sir. 7 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning, gentlemen. 8 MR. LUBOLD: Good morning. 9MR. THOMPSON: Thanks for coming. 10 Sir Lubold, if you could state your name 11 and spell it for the court reporter and then begin your 12 testimony. 13MR. LUBOLD: I am Paul Lubold. Last name 14 is L-U-B-O-L-D. 15MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 16MR. LUBOLD: As a leader in the Christian 17 faith community, I want to thank the EPA for proposing 18 to limit methane pollution. I was along with 19 400,000-plus people who gathered last year in New York 20 City to raise the awareness of global climate change. 21 I believe I'm convinced that it is a life-threatening 22 issue. Climate change involves melting polar icecaps, 23 rising sea levels. But that is just the tip of the 24 iceberg. Excuse my word choice. 25Limiting methane pollution will be a

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 86 1 positive step toward controlling an environmental and 2 public health problem. I'm here to raise my voice to 3 urge the EPA to act on the new methane pollution 4 standard. 5In the biblical account of creation on 6 each of the six days, when God finished the daily work, 7 a heavenly voice declared it was good. But on the 8 sixth day, the pinnacle of creation, human beings were 9made and were given the responsibility to care for 10 God's creation that had just been newly created. The 11 Creator looked down that day and said, "It is very 12 good." All was peaceful and serene until we got 13 selfish. Our greed took over. And being caretakers or 14 stewards of God's creation became less and less 15 important as the earth, and all of it is therein, 16became a commodity. Rather than appreciate and care 17 for the earth, humans focused more on what can I get 18 out of it? For all of these centuries, earth's natural 19 resources were thought to be boundless. We thought use 20 it up. They'll be more. And while we were using it 21 up, we weren't too concerned about the repercussions. 22 I had the honor of being a part of panel 23 discussion this past summer. It was in response to the 24 papal encyclical, "praise be to you on care of our 25 common home." I was the protestant representative

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 87 1 sitting on a broad faith panel that included Buddhists, 2 Hindu, Islam, Roman Catholic, Jewish perspectives. 3 This rich, diverse group spoke in unison and expressed 4 appreciation and support for the work done by the Holy 5 Father, who so eloquently identified the crisis that 6 everyone on the planet is experiencing. 7 I quote from the Papal Encyclical. "The 8 earth now cries out to us because of the harm we have 9 inflicted on her by our irresponsible use and abuse of 10 the goods with which God has endowed her." 11 Now, I realize that methane pollution is 12 just one small part of the larger climate change 13 picture. But, again, I offer from the Encyclical, 14 "Climate change is a global problem with grave 15 implications, environmental, social, and economic, and 16political. And it is one of the principle challenges 17 facing humanity in our day." 18 My personal faith believes that the 19biblical creation account is but a part of a larger 20 living, ongoing story. And the God -- the God in which 21 I believe, who on the first five days declared, "it is 22 good." On the sixth day took a handful of dirt, molded 23 it in the form of a human being and breathed life into 24 it. We inhaled. We exhaled. And it was indeed good. 25But God may very well be looking down at

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 88 1 our current generation shaking His head in 2 disappointment. The world grew and became 3 industrialized. We learned to burn things for heat, 4 transportation, to generate power, manufacture goods. 5And when we began to extract fossil fuels from the 6 earth, oh, productivity really took off. 7 I grew up three hours north of Pittsburgh 8 in northwestern Pennsylvania, not far from Drakes well. 9My hometown is in the Allegheny National Forest. 10 That's an area that flourished during the early part of 11 the last century. 12 MR. THOMPSON: Pardon me for breaking in. 13 Thirty seconds. Your time has expired. I'll give you 14 30 seconds to give us your final thoughts, sir. 15MR. LUBOLD: To this day, you can still 16 see and smell the remnants of past oil and gas 17 drilling. I believe that no care was given, no thought 18 was put in methane pollution. The materials still sit 19 there busting away. Methane is still being produced, 20 even more so in current oil and gas drilling. The EPA 21 is in a position to put a limit on that pollution. And 22 I urge them to do so. 23MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 24 comments. 25Any follow-up questions for Reverend

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 89 1 Lubold from the panel? 2 MR. MOORE: No. 3MR. THOMPSON: Go ahead. 4 MR. McMAHON: Hello. Thank you for having 5me here. I apologize if I look any -- out of sorts. I 6 drove up from Charleston this morning. And I hit a 7 traffic jam, a detour, a debate between my GPS and the 8 road signs, and I decided the -- to listen to the GPS 9 one time and against another (sic), I arrived five 10 minutes early. But then, of course, I had to run from 11 the parking garage, because it wasn't raining when I 12 went in the parking garage. But it was raining when I 13 came out. 14 Anyway, my name is David McMahon. I have 15 some quick handouts of my testimony that you may have 16 in front of you. I appreciate you having that. 17 I am -- I'm a lawyer. I'm also a 18 co-founder of the West Virginia Surface Owners Rights 19 Organization. Our organization has 800 dues-paying 20 members, 500 of them own the surfacing, not the 21 minerals. So they get no benefit when the driller 22 shows up and say, "We're going to put a pad." If -- 23 sometimes we can stop them; sometimes we can't. 24 But we do know that other minerals that 25 are often the subject to old leases, offering flat-rate

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 90 1 royalties, that are converted now. But basically, 2 surface owners. 3I'm also speaking on behalf of the West 4 Virginia Environmental Council. They regret very much 5 they could not have a personal representative here. At 6 the last minute, their officers and appropriate board 7 members that would be perfect to come, could not make 8 it. The E-Council is an umbrella organization for all 9 of the environmental organizations in West Virginia. 10 My handout, No. 1, if you kind of search 11 down through these materials, is a list of the members 12 of the environmental council for whom I'm also 13 speaking. And, again, I urge the lack of a personal 14 representative should not show a lack of support for 15 the strongest possible curbs on EPA minutes from well 16 sites. 17 I'm going to speak first on behalf of the 18 surface owners as opposed to the entire E-Council. The 19 whole pollutions are affected by air pollution. Whole 20 populations are affected by climate change. The 21 surface owners, who do the well pads, are the ground 22 zero of pollution. 23If you look at my handout No. 2, the first 24 picture, a woman there with Stacy. She and her husband 25 literally built this house themselves. Bought some

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 91 1 quiet place in the country. I think they contracted 2 out the foundation and the plumbing. They did the 3 electrical. They framed it in. That's their roof. 4 They were there about two years. Then page 2 happened. 5If you look at page 2, if you could still 6 find them in this picture, two years later now. 7 The 625 foot that I've got marked off 8 here, West Virginia passed some -- the Horizontal Well 9Act a couple of years ago. They said the house 10 couldn't be within 625 feet. You can see that some 11 surface owners still need lots of protection because 12 that isn't nearly enough. 13Also, that Act had studies that the 14 legislators were supposed to follow up on with our 15 local DEP. That never happened. 16But the third page is a different pad. I 17 represent these people who tried to keep that pad from 18 coming on them. This is -- nine wells were drilled on 19 this pad. A total of 9.7 miles, a horizontal well pad. 20 Well bores were drilled from this pad on my clients. 21 According to the driller's permit, that -- 22 that well pad has a potential of emitting 92 tons of 23VOCs, volatile organic compounds. 40 tons per year of 24 other pollutants that are subject to the National 25Ambient Air Quality Standards. 26,000 tons of

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 92 1 greenhouse gases and 8 tons per year of hazardous air 2 pollutants. That's after the treatment that is 3 required by the permit that you see there on that pad. 4 The point that I want to make most 5 strongly is money should not be an issue. They can 6 afford this. As West Virginians, we certainly do not 7 want their oil and gas industry. We don't want them 8 not make the same mistakes with the oil and gas 9 industry that we made with the coal industry. This 10 left behind a legacy of environmental problems, acid 11 mine drainage, and poor health issues. We don't want 12 the same thing to happen for poor health and air 13 pollution, et cetera, with oil and gas. 14 Page 4 of that last one -- I'm sorry, it 15 actually folds out. I forgot. On page 4 of the 16 handout, there's a map that shows the horizontal wells 17 that are drilled from my client's pad like that. All 18 of the red lines are the wells that were drilled. 19Page 5 shows that the company that drilled 20 them said there would be 1,688 cubic feet of gas 21 generated from every foot of horizontal well pad. So 22 if you multiple that out, I assume three dollars for 23 Mcm, which is a little high now, you get -- remember, 24 the estimated ultimate recovery from the wells on this 25 one pad, over the life of the wells, $250 million. A

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 93 1 quarter billion dollars of gross -- of gas that's going 2 to be generated from this one well pad. There are lots 3 of pads out there. 4 I did a separate analysis of another case 5 where I determined that the Marcellus Shale gas is 6 worth $85,000 per acre in, for example, Marshall 7 County, West Virginia. That doesn't include the 8 liquids that they also sell. And I've seen some 9 royalty statements that show that people making as much 10 money on that. So whatever is required, no matter what 11 they say, the drillers can afford it. 12 My third handout is a set of pictures 13 taken by members of the Environmental Council that 14 shows actual pollution. The first page is -- that's a 15 completed site with a dehydrater on site. That's an 16 air permit. That's the pollution that's coming off. 17 Oh, I see red. I'm sorry. 18 You can view the rest of the pictures 19 yourself. I appreciate that. 20 I just wanted to say the E-Council and the 21 West Virginia surface owners rights organization are 22 the strongest possible controls on methane and other 23 emittents from gas pads and other equipment. 24 Thank you very much. 25MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 94 1 testimony. Before you go, Reverend Lubold, I would 2 like to submit your written comments downstairs. 3MR. LUBOLD: I gave them. I did. 4 MR. THOMPSON: You did. Because I'd 5 like -- I'd like to review what you're going to submit 6 sometime during the process. 7 MR. LUBOLD: I turned them in downstairs. 8 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you very much. 9MR. LUBOLD: I'd also like to add that the 10 E-Council will turn in written comments with an 11 addendum. 12 MR. THOMPSON: Are there any follow-ups? 13MS. WALTZER: You mentioned that estimated 14 92 tons of VOCs. What was that? What did that 15 represent? 16MR. MCMAHON: That's when the -- when the 17 driller applied for a permit with our local 18 environmental protection in West Virginia, according to 19 the potential to emit on that permit, that's how much 20 they stated they would be -- would be emitting -- that 21 potential to emit over a year from this well pad after 22 all of this pollution equipment was functioning 23 properly. 24 MS. WALTZER: Thank you. 25MR. MCMAHON: That number is stated in my

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 95 1 comments. 2 MR. THOMPSON: Additional follow-up? 3 Gentlemen, thank you both for being here today. 4 MR. MCMAHON: Thank you very much. 5MR. THOMPSON: At this time I would like 6 to invite Reverend Sandy Strauss and Laura Burns. 7 Please come forward. 8 Good morning, ladies. 9REVEREND STRAUSS: Good morning. 10 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for being here. 11 I'd like to begin with Reverend Strauss. 12 REVEREND STRAUSS: Yes. My name is 13 Reverend Sandra Strauss, S-T-R-A-U-S-S. And I want to 14 thank you for giving me the opportunity to be here 15 today. 16In 2010, the Pennsylvania Council of 17 Churches adopted a resolution calling for our 18 Commonwealth to protect public health and the 19 environment in all aspects of Marcellus Shale natural 20 gas production, site restoration, and delivery to 21 customers. The industry was still rather new to 22 Pennsylvania, and we thought that natural gas was a 23more environmentally friendly alternative to coal and 24 other fossil fuels. Our concern was that the industry 25 was growing too quickly without sufficient attention to

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 96 1 regulation that would protect Pennsylvania's citizens 2 and environment. 3We were driven by our understanding as 4 Christians that all creation is a gift from God, given 5 to us to hold in sacred trust. And that it's our 6 responsibility as humans to protect and preserve the 7 environment for now and for future generations. 8 Well, we began to learn quickly that this 9 rapidly growing industry was not benign, including 10 families losing precious drinking water, health issues 11 in fracking communities, environmental degradation, and 12 wear and tear on roads. 13Then we began to hear about a more 14 insidious problem, the escape of massive amounts of 15methane into the air. This so called "cleaner 16 alternative" turned out to be a sheep in wolves' 17 clothing. 18 Methane, while less common than carbon 19 dioxide, is a far more potent greenhouse gas. And the 20 Environmental Defense Fund explains it briefly, while 21 methane doesn't linger as long in the atmosphere as 22 carbon dioxide, it is initially far more devastating to 23 the climate because of how effectively it absorbs heat. 24 In the first two decades after its 25 release, methane is 84 times more potent than carbon

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 97 1 dioxide. All of these concerns led us to call for a 2 moratorium on fracking in Pennsylvania in 2012. 3The oil and gas industry has tended to 4 downgrade or disregard the problem of methane emissions 5 from its production processes. A recent industry 6 fueled study, paid for by Chesapeake Energy, claims 7 that methane in drinking water isn't coming from 8 fracking processes, in opposition to two earlier 9 studies in the proceedings of the National Academy of 10 Sciences. The industry claims properly drilled and 11 maintained wells don't leak. But Cornell University 12 civil engineer Anthony Ingraffea has found that 13 nine percent of unconventional wells drilled in 14 Northeast, Pennsylvania, since 2009, has structural 15 integrity issues. And that the problem will grow as 16 well as age as thousands of new wells are bored. 17 Oil and gas companies are unlikely to deal 18 with methane and other emissions that result out of the 19 goodness of their hearts. Methane emissions, are often 20 much higher than reported, and without action, the 21 problem is expected to get worse. 22 However, for us, as people of faith, this 23 is more than arguing about levels of emissions than 24 effects on the environment. If methane is leaking into 25 the environment, so are other dangerous toxic

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 98 1 materials, many of which affect the health of some of 2 our most vulnerable populations, particularly children, 3 seniors, those with existing health issues and workers 4 at drilling and production sites. But, really, anyone 5 living close to a drilling site. 6Exposure to toxic pollution released into 7 the air and into our water supplies can cause serious 8 health problems, including cancers and respiratory 9 illnesses. For those who already have asthma and other 10 serious health problems, these toxic releases can 11 exacerbate what may already be life-threatening 12 conditions. 13And I would be remiss if I neglected to 14 remind all concerned that the problem of methane and 15 other toxic emissions is a concern of the environmental 16 justice as well. 17 As many of the persons in communities that 18 are affected are poor and low income populations and 19 community of color, because more well-to-do populations 20 are able to sometimes prevent production and processing 21 from happening in their back yards. 22 As Christians striving to live out the 23 genesis call to till and keep creation, we urge the EPA 24 to act quickly and decisively to implement the new 25methane pollution standard that will protect our

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 99 1 environment and those without the power to protect 2 themselves. 3Thank you. 4 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Thank you, 5 Reverend Strauss. 6Are there any follow-up questions, panel? 7 Okay. 8 MS. BURNS: Good morning. My name is 9 Laura Burns and I am from Mansfield, Ohio. I 10 appreciate the opportunity to offer a comment this 11 morning. 12 I am one of the Ohio field organizers for 13 Moms Clean Air Force. And today, I am here to speak in 14 support of the EPA's recently proposed methane 15 pollution standards for the oil and gas industry. 16The Obama Administration has proposed 17 standards for methane emissions for both new and 18 modified oil and gas facilities. This landmark has the 19potential to blunt the growth of methane and 20 smog-forming pollution and meet the goal of pollution 21 reduction by up to 45 percent in the next ten years. 22 This pollution puts public health at great 23 risk as industrial methane pollution is bad for people, 24 bad for health, and bad for our environment. 25The toxins can cause serious health

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 100 1 problems, including respiratory disease and cancer, 2 which pose a distinct threat to not only the workers, 3 but the families who live nearby. Our most vulnerable 4 populations of children and elderly and poverty 5 stricken are often in a position where leaving the 6 immediate area is just not possible for them. These 7 people can no longer hope that the oil and gas industry 8 will do the right thing on their own. Instead, we need 9 our legislators to stand up and defend them by ensuring 10 these standards. 11 Methane emissions contribute to pollution, 12 health issues, and climate change. As our air fills 13 with more pollution, it traps heat against the earth's 14 surface and wind up with a greater risk of extreme 15 weather. Storms and well temperatures are all side 16 effects of extreme weather. A good local and concrete 17 example could be the heavy rains that Ohio experienced 18 this spring. Twenty-three straight days of rain 19 contributed to an already algae-plagued water skin of 20 Lake Erie, intensifying the toxic plume for this 2015 21 season. 22 The U.S. cannot meet its international 23 greenhouse gas reduction commitments unless it cuts 24 methane from oil and gas forces by 40 to 45 percent 25 from the 2012 levels by 2025. The only way we will

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 101 1 ever be successful is if we step up now calling for 2 responsible action from the oil and gas industry. 3 We've waited long enough for them to voluntarily reduce 4 emissions and we cannot hold out any longer. The 5 public and environment should not be expected to bear 6 the burden of harm that has been put forth by these 7 toxic emissions. 8 Again, thank you for your (sic) 9 opportunity to speak. And I do hope that the EPA will 10 soon finalize these rules. 11 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 12 testimony. 13Follow up from the panel? 14 MR. MOORE: No. 15MR. THOMPSON: Thank you both for being 16 here today. We really appreciate it. 17 At this time I would invite Sister Donna 18 Zwigart and Richard Brown to please come forward. 19Good morning. 20 MR. BROWN: Good morning. 21 SISTER ZWIGART: Good morning. I'm doing 22 all the stuff that we do. 23My name is Sister Donna Zwigart, a member 24 of the Sisters of St. Francis of the Newmann 25 Communities whose Pennsylvania -- whose motherhouse is

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 102 1 in Millvale, Pennsylvania. 2 MR. THOMPSON: Could you spell your last 3 name for the court reporter. 4 SISTER DONNA ZWIGART: Yes. My last name 5 is Z, the last letter in the alphabet, W like in 6William, I, G like in George, A-R-T. 7 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 8 SISTER DONNA ZWIGART: You're welcome. 9I wish to thank you for this opportunity 10 to speak on the proposed legislation on methane 11 emissions and their effect on the citizens of 12 Pennsylvania, especially the most vulnerable who suffer 13 from this pollutant in our atmosphere. 14 A few days ago, you may have been in the 15 area, we heard from Pope Francis, and previously in his 16 encyclical, Laudato Si, this wise man's concern for our 17 planet. "The earth itself burdened, laid in waste is 18 among the most abandoned and maltreated of our poor," 19 quote. As a Franciscan, a follower of St. Francis of 20 Assisi, and not only the bird bath, he's the patron 21 saint of the environment. 22 The poor hold a special place for me. I 23 am vowed to care for them, to speak for them in matters 24 of justice and peace. Our climate is a common good 25 belonging to all and meant for all of creation. Every

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 103 1 person living on our planet is in relationship. We are 2 kin. God's kingdom. We need one another and care for 3 each other as kin. 4 Methane is a highly potent greenhouse gas 5 86 times as powerful as C02, which makes it a powerful 6 contributor to climate change. It's the greatest 7 threat ever to our common home, in residence of the 8 earth, all our brothers and sisters. When methane is 9 released into our atmosphere, along with the other 10 co-pollutants, a number of air toxins are formed. 11 These pollutants cause serious health problems. Smog 12 and soot are associated with numerous problems for 13 health. Some of these are asthma, an increase in 14 respiratory problems, COPD, emphysema and the 15 cardiovascular problems. Maybe this is why this 16 Pittsburgh area has one of the dirtiest atmospheres in 17 the United States. This is of great concern to the 18 residents of this area, especially those persons who 19 can't afford to move from their environmental justice 20 communities. 21 When we see what we -- that what we, who 22 produce the gas, are doing to others, doesn't our inner 23 self, our conscience bother us? The air we breathe is 24 for all people. It's a gift from our Creator. So if 25 we pollute the atmosphere, we are responsible for all

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 104 1 of the respiratory health problems of others. We have 2 the same air. 3This is something to observe. The Bible 4 states that we are our brothers and sisters keepers. 5And from a faith perspective, clearly, the Bible has no 6place for a tyrannical anthroprogentism unconcerned for 7 other creatures. This is a moral issue. It is wrong 8 to pollute our air. 9Thankfully, in August, the EPA took some 10 common steps by proposing standards to reduce and clean 11 up methane pollution from our oil and gas industry. 12 These proposed standards would generate significant 13 health benefits for all who breathe air. Attention to 14 all the existing methane-emitting sources needs to be 15 added to the proposed standards as regulation, 16 inspection -- regulation inspections for leaks on a 17 fixed basis, use of zero-emitting equipment, and so 18 forth. 19Pope Francis writes, quote, "Each 20 community can take from the bounty of the earth 21 whatever it needs for sustenance, but also has the duty 22 to protect the earth and ensure its fruitfulness for 23 the coming generations." Intergenerational solidarity 24 is not optional, but rather a basic question of 25 justice, since the world we have received also belongs

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 105 1 to those who follow us. 2 Thank you for this opportunity to be here 3 today. And I end with a prayer from numbers. May the 4 Lord bless and keep you. May the Lord turn toward you 5 and have compassion on you. And may the Lord smile on 6 you and give you his peace. 7 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Sister Zwigart, 8 very much. 9Any questions? 10 SISTER ZWIGART: It all arises from with 11 the gospel. 12 MR. THOMPSON: Mr. Brown, thank you for 13 being here. 14 MR. BROWN: Good morning, ladies and 15 gentlemen. 16MR. THOMPSON: Good morning. 17 Sir, can you get the mic for us, please. 18 MR. BROWN: Slide it over. 19SISTER ZWIGART: I'm sorry. 20 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, sir. 21 MR. BROWN: Good morning, ladies and 22 gentlemen. My name is Richard Brown. And I'm from Ann 23Arbor, Michigan. Thank you very much for the 24 opportunity to provide comments. 25Though I'm speaking as a private citizen,

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 106 1 in order to provide context to my comments, I'd like to 2 mention that I am a member of St. Francis of Assisi 3 Parish as well as the Interfaith Council of Peace and 4 Justice and I'm a member of the Sierra Club. 5I wish to state, I support the proposal by 6 the Environmental Protection Agency to set standards on 7 both methane and volatile organic compounds on new and 8 modified oil and gas processing equipment, as defined 9 in the EPA new proposal, because of the impact that 10 methane, in particular has on climate change and VOCs 11 have on human health. I support routine monitoring 12 proposed, although I believe that more frequent 13monitoring as well as realtime monitoring, when 14 feasible, and preferably by independent entities, would 15 be very appropriate to assure the adherence to the 16 limits for methane and VOC emissions. 17 I would stress that our country needs to 18 meaningfully address these emissions at an earliest 19possible time. Emissions standards for methane and 20 VOCs on current facilities in this category should be 21 implemented. 22 In a significant note, the EPA 23 documentation, as well as the IPC reports, stress that 24 anthropogenic climate change is creating conditions 25 that will alter our biosphere from that which human

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 107 1 society has developed over much of its history. These 2 changing conditions may result in more severe droughts, 3 coastal storm surges, impact of biodiversity, and 4 forced migrations. 5Release of Pope Francis's Encyclical 6 Laudato Si on the care of our common home this past 7 June caused me to reflect on climate change as a moral 8 issue in that it intends to impact most severely the 9poor, the marginalized, and the forgotten of our 10 society. 11 And this timeline relates from personal 12 experience and have influenced my thinking regarding 13 climate change. I thought of the visits I've made in 14 recent years to the northern and southern polar 15 regions. The comments by Canadian Inuit of commonly 16 seen animals such as grizzly bears have never been in 17 the area previously. Rain in December is an event they 18 have not ever recall occurring before. Comments by a 19 school teacher in Greenland telling them of reduced ice 20 conditions that inhibited the building of local Inuit 21 to be able to hunt seals as a part of their diet, the 22 absence of sea ice, as we travel to the Northwest 23 Passage area, which some sea ice is common, even during 24 the summer. Discussions with and talks by various 25 University of Michigan, Penn State, and a Cornell

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 108 1 geologist and climate scientist, they would stress that 2 warming is real and largely influenced by human 3 activity. And this warming can result in rising sea 4 levels, increased acidity, and other weather events as 5 significant. 6There's a conference I attended in Erie, 7 Pennsylvania years ago -- it was sponsored by the 8 Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments -- stressed 9 the impact of oil and gas drilling and processing 10 plants have had on air and water quality and other 11 public health issues. 12 I sent them a (inaudible) on climate 13 change and the common good. The discussion dealt with 14 the human tragedy resulting from the climate change in 15 the form of refugees that must leave their homes 16because of the rising sea levels, flooding, droughts, 17 and depleted water sources. 18 And this week, I'll be attending a seminar 19 at Duquesne University on the integrity of creation 20 climate changes. This is why I believe the standards 21 proposed by the EPA to address methane and VOC 22 emissions are only on the first that are absolutely 23 essential if leaders of America are to care for our 24 country. 25In conclusion, a comment by Pope Francis

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 109 1 on the Encyclical, leaving an inhabitable planet for 2 future generations is first and foremost up to us. The 3 issue is one which dramatically affects us or has to do 4 with the ultimate earth sojourn. 5I thank you for your time and attention. 6MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Brown. 7 Panel? 8 Thank you both for being here today and 9 for testifying. Thank you very much. 10 At this time I would like to invite Ray 11 Roberts and Lucyna De Babaro to come forward, please, 12 with testimony. 13I'd like to begin with you, Mr. Roberts. 14 Good morning. 15MR. ROBERTS: Good morning. Thank you. I 16 appreciate you taking this time to listen to us. 17 This past -- I'm sorry. What you're 18 considering today are rules to try to make oil and gas 19 fracking less dangerous. However, the biggest threat 20 to our nation and the world's civilization is global 21 climate change. Your work is one part. And it's a 22 critical part of the President's more comprehensive 23 Clean Power Plan to reduce our nation's greenhouse gas 24 pollution. The dangers from climate change appear to 25 be gradual and growing only slowly.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 110 1 I live here in Pittsburgh. And this city 2 is famous for having been a home for Rachel Carson, 3 whose work eventually led to the creation of the 4 Environmental Protection Agency. 5The air quality in our region killed 6 during the Donora fog. And while it's much better than 7 the days when the soot was a daily fact of life, we 8 still have some of the worst air quality in the nation. 9 The fact is our climate crisis is not able to be 10 quickly cleaned up. 11 In addition, we're rolling the dice, 12 gambling that the melting of the Arctic Sea ice is not 13 already past the point of no return. A global tipping 14 point that could lead to a series of other tipping 15 points, falling like dominoes, from which we cannot 16 simply clean up our mess. 17 This is personal for me. I was outside 18 last year at the park near my house when I suffered my 19 first ever asthma attack. The air pollution from 20 fracking has been found to cross state lines. So even 21 though there isn't fracking here within the City of 22 Pittsburgh, it surrounds us here. 23This is personal for me also because I 24 have two daughters, ages 12 and 9. And they're growing 25 up in a world that is getting warmer each year, and

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 111 1 because of that, they will face greater risks and 2 dangers to their health and safety. 3This past weekend, I visited an area just 4 north of here where the first oil well was drilled. 5 There's a legacy of drillers leaving thousands of wells 6 in our area uncapped or inadequately sealed. Your 7 rules need to have the companies pay now for their 8 future cracks in the concrete at the well heads. 9There's a long legacy of oil and gas 10 companies who see the costs of maintaining their 11 pipelines as more expensive than letting them age, 12 leak, spill, and then if they're still around, then 13 they pay fines that are simply a slap on the wrist. 14 I and my loved ones call on you to make 15 the fines so large, the pipeline and wellhead 16maintenance is actually cheaper. Please account for 17 the true costs of methane leaks as a greenhouse gas 18 that is 80 to 100 times more potent at trapping heat 19 than carbon dioxide. 20 These companies have been free to treat 21 our air as if it's an open sewer. They've been getting 22 away with it, in large part, because we can't see or 23 smell the pollution, but its impacts are making our 24 world warmer, and those risks are huge and growing. 25Another famous Pennsylvanian once said

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 112 1 that "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." 2 Please make the rules for greenhouse gas pollution for 3 oil and gas reflect the true risks and costs of our 4 warming world. An ounce of prevention would have been 5 a great idea 15 or 30 years ago. We're now at the 6point where it will take increasingly heavy fines and 7 the strictest of regulations to bring us back from the 8 brave man. The majority of U.S. citizens wants you to 9 do your job and act as our agency to protect our 10 environment. 11 Thank you. 12 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Roberts. 13Any follow up from the panel? 14 MS. DE BABARO: Thank you, first of all, 15 for this opportunity to testify in front of you. We 16 very much appreciate the EPA creating the rule on 17 methane emissions. We -- you know, I represent sort of 18 environmental activists, myself, or Sierra Club group, 19 I'm a member of Union of Concerned Scientists, but I do 20 speak as a citizen at this hearing. 21 So I have been an environmental activist 22 for, like, close to 20 years and observed slow 23 progression of already visible signs of global warming. 24 I am very concerned like you -- many 25 people you hear from today. I am concerned with the

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 113 1 same aspects of this global warming crisis getting sort 2 of out of hand and out of ability for all of us, as a 3 humanity, to actually impact it and control it. So the 4 more we do sooner, the less, you know, drama and 5 tragedy will impact human population later, as well as 6 our eco system. 7 So you've heard those arguments. You 8 probably more than we do. So I just -- I'm here to 9 give you my support. Please rule strongly and please 10 rule -- implement rules that are, you know, meaningful 11 and strong as you possibly can at this time. 12 And specifically concerning your current 13 proposal for the rule, I would like to urge you to also 14 include existing wells and existing sources of methane 15 pollution in your ruling because your current rule only 16pertains to the new sources, per my understanding. I 17 guess, you know, that summarizes it. 18 There -- there are a few more specific 19 items that Sierra Club has brought to my attention that 20 there is this cost-benefit analysis for monetary 21 savings that you perform to -- to informing industry 22 and so forth. And then there's this question of 23 whether the gas that is, for example, leaked from 24 oil-producing fields can be captured. It seems like it 25 would be such a good thing to do, right? This is,

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 114 1 after all, fuel that could be used. So there's just a 2 question, you know, how could EPA motivate industry to 3 do that? 4 There is that -- that effect that the 5 owner of the gas basically does not -- well, there are 6 two aspects. So when the -- when the gas is, you know, 7 in the pipes, the owner of the pipe is not, you know, 8 improving the pipes, and leakage in the pipes is not 9 giving any financial benefit of saving the gas; right? 10 So there's that one sort of, like, lack of economic 11 motivation. I don't know if this can be addressed 12 except by ruling. 13And then, of course, people spoke about 14 how the people who -- who burn methane or who just 15 simply release methane into the atmosphere, in fact, do 16 not carry the burden, the cost of societal, you know, 17 burdens of this pollution. 18 So, again, I would like to thank you and 19 urge you to put in as strong a rule as possible. 20 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 21 testimony. If you would, for the record, state and 22 spell your name for the court reporter. 23MS. DE BABARO: Sure. Lucyna De Babaro, 24 L-U-C-Y-N-A, space, D-E space B-A-B-A-R-O 25MR. THOMPSON: Any follow-up questions

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 115 1 from the panel? 2 Thank you both for being here for your 3 testimony. Thank you very much. 4 Okay. At this time I would like to invite 5 Maren Cooke and Nick Kennedy to please come forward. 6MR. KENNEDY: Good morning. 7 MR. THOMPSON: I'd like to begin with 8 Maren Cooke. 9MS. COOKE: Greetings. My name is -- oh, 10 sorry -- Maren Cooke. and I live here in Pittsburgh. 11 I very much appreciate your holding this 12 event and others like it to hear from citizens about 13 your efforts to control methane pollution from oil and 14 gas operations. I'm a planetary scientist, a science 15 and an environmental educator. I spent a great deal of 16 time over the years communicating science behind 17 climate change and what must be done both to mitigate 18 the problem from this point forward and adapt to 19 changes that are happening. How severe these problems 20 will be 20, 50, 100 or 200 years into the future 21 depends starkly on how quickly we can stop digging and 22 pumping fossil carbon out of the ground and putting it 23 into the air. I also work on air quality, as a board 24 member of the Group Against Smog & Pollution and in 25 concert with other organizations.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 116 1 The EPA's proposed restrictions on methane 2 and VOCs would improve the situation in our regions 3 somewhat, but are not nearly strong enough. Because 4 this new source rule would allow existing drilling 5 operations to emit at prior levels, a huge amount of 6pollution and wasted energy will continue. And while 7 less pollution is always better than more pollution, 8 the notion that we should stand for health hazards at 9 any level, now and in the future in the name of profit 10 for the few and cheap energy for the many is ethically 11 indefensible. 12 As you know, the pollutants under 13 consideration cause current public health risks and 14 also contribute to the burden of greenhouse gases in 15 the atmosphere. And while methane is cleaner-burning 16 than coal, and when burned produces half the carbon 17 dioxide, methane itself is a far stronger greenhouse 18 gas than carbon dioxide. The EPA's August press 19 release compares the two with a ratio of 25 times the 20 greenhouse potential, but that number is based on a 21 100-year time horizon. Because methane is much 22 shorter-lived in the atmosphere, less ten years versus 23 200 to 10,000 years for carbon dioxide, and because 24 natural gas is being touted as a bridge fuel over a 25much shorter timescale, if it needs to be, if at all,

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 117 1 the relevant ratio for global warming a 85 to 100 times 2 that of carbon dioxide. If this quantitative 3 realization energizes the EPA to redouble its efforts 4 to quell these emissions, from existing sources as well 5 as new ones, that would be fantastic. 6In the grand scheme of things, however, 7 the reduction of accidental emissions from oil and gas 8 operations is a bit of a red herring. They constitute 9 a small fraction of the climate impact of the industry 10 as a whole, whose very existence depends on the 11 extraction of fossil carbon. Even if we could 12 eliminate all well-head leakage and purposeful venting 13 and flaring, as well as transmission losses, the amount 14 of methane and carbon dioxide inherent in the 15 persistence of the cheap fossil fuel economy is more 16 than we can afford. The amount of known reserves that 17 world can afford to extract while retaining a liveable 18 planet for future generations is rapidly dwindling to 19 nothing. We should be drilling no new wells, no new 20 sources, blowing up no new mountains, building no new 21 fossil power plants, and we need to be pulling out all 22 of the stops on developing battery-power technologies 23 and more-efficient solar panels, so that renewable 24 electricity can take the place of fossil fuels in most, 25 if not all, applications. And for things like

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 118 1 long-distance aviation, the answer is probably 2 biofuels. But they need to be sustainably produced by 3 advancing the technology to utilize cellulosic ethanol 4 from perennial switchgrass and coppiced tree crops, 5 rather than ethanol from energy-inefficient and 6 land-degrading corn. Conservation, both through energy 7 efficiency and through changing our expectations, also 8 needs to be a part of the picture; if this developing 9 world all starts to live like Americans do now, we'll 10 be in quite a pickle. 11 Pennsylvania is one of the nation's 12 emitters of greenhouse gases. There's a common 13 perception that without fossil fuel extraction, 14 Pennsylvania's economy would go down the mine-shafts. 15And as we saw at the Clean Power Plan hearing last 16 year, there are plenty of coal workers from 17 Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky and other states 18 who are up in arms at the prospect of job losses. But 19 there's some factors that the protests by those coal 20 workers, their families, and retirees didn't make 21 clear. First, there aren't that many active jobs in 22 coal production. I've spent time down in an operating 23 coal mine. And there was just a handful of people down 24 there. 25Second, coal is already losing out to

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 119 1 natural gas, which especially while climate change, 2 water and air pollution, and their attendant health 3 costs are left out of the equation, is being produced 4 more cheaply than coal. Both will lose out to clean 5 renewable energy as we move forward with a national 6 Carbon Fee and Dividend program advocated by so many to 7 allow the free market to incorporate the 8 currently-externalized costs of dirty fossil energy, 9 incentivizing renewables, efficiency, and conservation 10 with cleaner air as a side effect and air and water, 11 while providing a net financial benefit to the vast 12 majority of citizens. 13And third, as has been demonstrated by a 14 detailed study by Regional Economic Models, 15 Incorporated, an independent, non-partisan research 16 organization commissioned by Citizen Climate Lobby, 17 there are far more jobs to be had in renewable energy. 18 Well-paying, safer jobs that could be routed, many of 19 them, to those coal communities and gas communities out 20 in the industry because instead of a boom-and-bust 21 economy, you could have ongoing production of solar 22 panels and insulation and green-building products and 23 wind turbine parts. So we, and in large part, the -- 24 the government just need to play our cards right, 25 applying suitable tax incentives and such so the green

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 120 1 businesses emerge to replace a whole host of fossil 2 based ones. Will they come at a cost to the 3 shareholders and management of those once fossil-based 4 companies? Yes, but those parties have already taken 5 far too many profits at the expense of future 6 generations. They made their choices, and it is 7 ethically appropriate, or one might say, only karma 8 (sic) for them to get out or lose out. 9We are at a critical juncture with respect 10 to climate change -- we simply cannot afford to keep 11 adding carbon to the atmosphere. The EPA has the 12 power, and the responsibility, to do a great deal in 13mitigating the risk to our common future. 14 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 15Any questions from the panel? 16Thank you. 17 Mr. Kennedy. 18 MR. KENNEDY: Good morning. My name is 19Nicholas Kennedy. I'm a community advocate and 20 attorney for the Mountain Watershed Association, home 21 of the Youghiogheny River. We are a 501 (3)(c) 22 organization. 23I'm here today on behalf of my 24 organization to express our support in favor of the 25 proposed methane regulations. And offer suggestions to

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 121 1 improvement. However, I would like to preface my 2 comments by providing insight on how we came to this 3 position. Our employees and members live and work in 4 areas where significant unconventional natural gas 5 development has been occurring. In particular, our 6 office is located in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, a 7 hot bed of shale activity. As a result of our close 8 proximity to natural gas development, we have 9personally experienced negative impacts that come with 10 it. In my role as community advocate, I have witnessed 11 families' drinking water that has run foul and the 12 drinking water wells run foul with contaminated water. 13 I sat in living rooms as community members described 14 the health effects that they attribute to compressor 15 stations and well sites, burning throats and eyes, 16memory loss, and nerve damage, and difficulty breathing 17 are among the symptoms detailed. 18 In addition to dealing with these impacts, 19 our community members had to contend with the 20 inadequacies of the Pennsylvania Department of 21 Environmental Protection. Slower -- slow response 22 times, vague explanations, and inconsistent 23 endorsements are among the issues encountered. 24 These firsthand experiences have led us to 25 support the EPA's efforts, in addition to the growing

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 122 1 body of research detailing the negative effects caused 2 by air pollution from unconventional natural gas 3 development and the severe threats posed by global 4 warming. 5While we support the regulations, we join 6 with other commenters who call for the following 7 changes to be made: Allowing oil and gas operators up 8 to six months to repair leaking equipment if the 9 companies say that it would be unsafe to make the 10 repairs in 15 days is too long. Operators should be 11 required to find a safe way to fix leaks in a 12 reasonable period of time. Operators should be 13 required to use or bring to market captured gas. 14 Flaring should only be allowed in the most extreme 15 circumstances when it is genuinely infeasible to 16 capture the gas for sale or on-site use or to use 17 zero-emitting equipment. We request that work begin 18 immediately while an existing source rule. 19There are many existing sources currently 20 linked to health issues in our area that need to be 21 addressed. The regulations should be expanded to cover 22 several key pieces of equipment and practices that the 23 agency emitted from coverage, including liquid 24 unloading operations, pneumatic controllers that 25 operate on an intermittent or snap-acting basis,

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 123 1 compressor at well sites and storage vessels. Also, 2 leak inspections should be mandatory on a fixed monthly 3 or quarterly basis. Making these changes will create a 4 much more robust regulatory framework for limiting the 5 discharge of VOCs and methane. 6Mountain Watershed Association would like 7 to thank the Department for its time in considering our 8 comments. 9And lastly added, while we support these 10 regulatory changes with current methane and VOC 11 disruptions, our country must shift its focus away from 12 finite resources. NWA believes our future lies in 13 renewable energy. 14 Thank you. 15MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Kennedy. 16Any questions for Mr. Kennedy? 17 Thank you both for being here today. 18 Thank you for your testimony. 19At this time, I would like to invite 20 Amanda Lupina and Justin Wasser to please come forward. 21 MS. LUPINA: Good morning. 22 MR. THOMPSON: Good morning. 23MS. LUPINA: Thank you for this 24 opportunity. My name is Amanda Lupina. I'm a mom from 25 Mars, Pennsylvania, which is the site where they're

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 124 1 trying to put six wells just 1,500 feet from my home 2 where my children and hundreds of other children play. 3And it's only a half a mile from where thousands of 4 children go to school every day. 5Many of us just came together across the 6 street at a rally to support the four methane rules. 7 We're calling on the EPA to continue working beyond 8 these rules to address methane pollution from existing 9 sources. 10 Now, I would like to take the next few 11 minutes of my testimony to present you with our 12 postcards in support of cutting methane. 13Thank you. 14 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 15UNIDENTIFIED MAN: This process needs to 16 end. 17 MR. WASSER: Thank you. 18 MR. THOMPSON: And thank you. Any 19 follow-up questions for Ms. Lupina. 20 Thank you. 21 If you could remain seated. 22 MR. WASSER: My name is Justin Wasser. I 23 live at 112 Stratford Avenue here in Pittsburgh. 24 I sincerely appreciate you allowing us to 25 present the postcards. I too was at the rally. And I

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 125 1 speak as a young person and someone who grew up not too 2 far from here 70 miles to the east in an area that I'm 3 proud of on the Appalachian Mountains, but the effects 4 of air pollution, the effects of water quality, I've 5 seen them growing up. I didn't know them until I was 6 older, a little more educated, gained a little more 7 perspective. 8 My family has a history in industry of 9 extraction in coal, in oil and gas. And I do 10 understand their plight. As I'm sure all of you do. 11 But the conversation here isn't about the economy in 12 terms of immediate jobs. There are other agencies that 13 I'm sure we could discuss those Issues with. 14 As the Environmental Protection Agency, 15 you're not just protecting the environment. You're 16protecting the health and well being of people in my 17 family, of me, the folks in my community. I support 18 all four of these rules. And I commend the EPA for 19putting these forth. 20 I do want to stress that the EPA should 21 not stop here. That existing sources of methane, in 22 particular in Pennsylvania, must be a priority. In 23 particular, you know, in our public parks, and the 24 Allegheny National Forest, there's some wonderful 25 hiking trails that I enjoy, grew up in, hunt around,

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 126 1 fish around that smell of methane. There hasn't been 2 gas production there for decades. So this is an 3 ongoing problem that I look forward to the EPA 4 addressing. 5Again, I thank you for our opportunity to 6 speak, not just as two voices here, but the 7 hundred-plus people that showed up at a rally next door 8 to thank you, support all four of these rules, and 9 strongly encourage the EPA and this Administration to 10 continue to address existing sources of methane. 11 Thank you. 12 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 13Any follow-up questions for Mr. Wasser? 14 Thank you both very much for being here 15 today and for your testimony. 16At this time I would like to invite 17 Michelle Boyle to please come forward. 18 MS. BOYLE: Good morning. 19MR. THOMPSON: Good morning. Thank you 20 for coming. 21 MS. BOYLE: You're welcome. I brought my 22 nurse's stethoscope today. 23My name is Michelle Boyle. I am a floor 24 nurse in a large city hospital here in Pittsburgh. And 25 I'm with SEIU Healthcare PA.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 127 1 When our daughters were newborns, my 2 husband and I knew that there was absolutely nothing 3more important in the world than them. We went from 4 baby proofing our homes, to currently putting bike 5 helmets and wrist guards for rollerblading on them. 6 However, unlike placing safety latches or teaching our 7 kids to wear helmets, we can't teach them to breathe 8 differently. As individuals, we can't -- we can't do 9 anything about the air they breathe, but if we all are 10 in this together -- I greatly appreciate you being 11 here today -- then we can do something about the air 12 they breathe. 13My family's freedom has been limited by 14 orange alert days, as our world gets warmer, these bad 15 air days have become more frequent. My husband is a 16 runner, but last year he had his first asthma attack. 17 Bad air days look sunny and gorgeous, and my children 18 want to run out and play with it, as do I, but we can't 19 let them because we're afraid of them developing 20 asthma. 21 I teach my children to clean up after 22 themselves. How do I explain that they can't go 23 outside -- it's very difficult for me -- because adults 24 refuse to clean up their mess. 25In our common home, how can we say to our

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 128 1 grandchildren, we didn't do enough because it was too 2 hard. That's not the America I was brought up to 3 believe in and it's not the one I'm teaching my 4 children. Again, thankful that you're here today. 5As a nurse, I'm all too aware of chronic 6 lung disease. I spent five years on a thoracic surgery 7 floor. I've cared for patients as liters of fluid 8 drained from garden-hose-sized chest tubes. Patients 9 who simply state the activities take on a whole new 10 meaning. Have you ever had to rest after getting 11 dressed? Have to calculate the steps between here and 12 the bathroom, and whether you need your oxygen for it? 13And I've also witnessed patients gasping for air just 14 trying to tell their spouse that they love them. 15We here today are blessed. We are blessed 16 to have good health. We didn't need to rest after 17 getting dressed this morning. I didn't have to stop 18 and take a rest after walking to my seat. As we take 19 that deep sigh of relief and count our blessings, 20 remember, we all have just inhaled VOCs, toxic 21 chemicals, methane into our lungs. How soon before our 22 own freedoms are limited because of climate change 23 pollutants? 24 We have a historic opportunity in front of 25 us to protect the health of our families, our

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 129 1 communities, our country suffering from -- and since 2 I'm a nurse, you could listen to the list -- chronic 3 bronchitis, decreased function and lung cancer, heart 4 attacks, cardiovascular disease, neurological disorders 5 and strokes. Or continue to expose our children to 6American adults -- they call themselves corporations -- 7 who refuse to clean up the toxic mess that they 8 created, poisoning the very air we are graced with to 9breathe and live. 10 Harriet Tubman took her first breath of 11 freedom here in Pennsylvania. Every great -- and she 12 said, "Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always 13 remember you have within you the strength, the 14 patience, and the passion reach for the stars to change 15 the world." 16This is our opportunity to follow in her 17 footsteps and allow our children and grandchildren to 18 breathe freely by protecting our common home. I know 19 which American example I'm teaching my children. 20 And I thank you for being here today. 21 And also, today's my birthday. So it 22 would be really cool, if this went (indicating) and 23 just to give you a hint of how old I am. 24 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mrs. Boyle, for 25 your testimony.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 130 1 Any questions? I'm sorry. Happy 2 Birthday. 3MS. BOYLE: Thank you. 4 MR. THOMPSON: At this time we're going to 5 take our break for lunch we'll reconvene here at 1:00 6p.m. Thanks, folks. 7 (Recess in proceedings.) 8 MR. THOMPSON: So folks we're going to get 9 started again. So if everyone wants to take their 10 seats. 11 Good afternoon. My name is Fred Thompson 12 and I am the chair for today's public hearing. Thank 13 you for coming today. 14 Joining me on the panel today to my left 15 is Susan Waltzer, with the EPA Office of Atmospheric 16 Programs. Bruce Moore with the EPA Office of Air 17 Quality and Planning Standards, and Diane Esher who is 18 with the EPA Region 3. 19We're here today to hear your comments on 20 EPA's proposed rules related to the oil and natural gas 21 sector. The specific rules are, 1) oil and natural gas 22 sector, Emissions Standards for New and Modified 23 Sources, 2) Source Determination for Certain Emission 24 Units in the Oil and Natural Gas Sector, and 3), Review 25Any New Sources and Modifications in Indian Country,

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 131 1 Federal Implementation plan for Managing Air Emissions 2 from True Minor Sources Engaged in Oil and Gas 3 Production in Indian Country. 4 EPA's Administrator signed the proposed 5 rules on August 18, 2015. The proposed New Source 6 Performance Standards would establish methane and VOC 7 standards for hydraulically fractured wells and require 8 owners and operators to find and repair leaks. 9The proposed rule also would extend 10 emission reduction requirements further downstream 11 covering equipment and the natural gas transmissions 12 and storage segments of the industry that was not 13 regulated in the Agency's 2012 rules. 14 The proposed Source Determination Rule 15 clarifies the EPA's air permitting rules as they apply 16 to the oil and the natural gas industry. 17 We're also taking comment on the proposed 18 federal implementation plan to implement the Federal 19Minor New Source Review Program in Indian country for 20 oil and natural gas production. That plan, known as an 21 FIP, would be used instead of site-specific Minor New 22 Source Review Preconstruction Permits in Indian 23 country. It would incorporate emissions, limits, and 24 other requirements from six EPA emissions standards, 25 including the 2015 proposed updates to the New Source

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 132 1 Performance Standards on which we're taking comment 2 today. 3If you would like more details on the 4 proposed rules, there are fact sheets available at the 5 registration desk. Before we get started, I'd like to 6 go through a few housekeeping items and ground rules 7 that will help make today's hearing run smoothly. 8 First, please be sure you have checked in 9 at the registration desk, even if you are not planning 10 to speak today. And if you signed up to speak online 11 or by phone, but haven't told us that you're here, 12 please step out to the registration desk and let the 13 EPA staff know that you've arrived. 14 I will call speakers up in pairs. When 15 your name is called, please come to the speaker's table 16 at the front of the room. When I call on you to speak, 17 please state your name and spell it for the court 18 reporter. Your comments will be transcribed and 19 included in the record of comments on the Proposed 20 Rule. It is important that you tell us which rule or 21 rules you're speaking about. Each speaker will have 22 five minutes to give comments. We have a timer light, 23 which is located here on the table, that turns from 24 green to yellow. That means -- I'm sorry. We have a 25 timer light, again, on the table that will help me to

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 133 1 know how much time you have left to speak. When the 2 light turns from green to yellow, that means you have 3 one minute remaining. When it turns red, that's a 4 signal that you are at five minutes and it's time to 5 stop. When you're finished speaking, please remain at 6 the table until the person next to you has completed 7 his or her testimony. 8 We are here to listen to you today. 9 However, a panel member may ask questions to clarify 10 your comments. I will then call up the next pair of 11 speakers and so on. 12 If you have brought a written copy of your 13 testimony, please give that to the staff at the 14 registration desk before you leave today. We will put 15 any written comments submitted today in the official 16 docket for the Proposed Rule. 17 We also have comment cards available at 18 the registration desk, if you would like to submit 19 additional written comments today. 20 If you wanted to comment in writing later, 21 stop by the materials table near the registration desk 22 and pick up a copy of instructions for submitting 23 written comments. Comments must be received by 24 November 17, 2015. I'll repeat that. Comments must be 25 received by November 17, 2015. Let me assure you that

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 134 1 EPA gives just as much consideration to comments 2 received in writing as we do to comments received at 3 public hearings like this one. So, if you have more 4 comments that you would like to provide the EPA, please 5 submit them by the comment period deadline. Your 6 comments will be reviewed. 7 If you have any questions during the day, 8 please see the staff at the registration desk and 9 someone will assist you. Thank you again for taking 10 the time today to share your comments on EPA's 11 proposal. And with that, let's get started. 12 At this time I would like to invite Joanne 13 Wagner and Melanie Houston to please come forward for 14 testimony. 15Good afternoon, ladies. 16MS. WAGNER: Good afternoon. 17 MR. THOMPSON: Thank for coming. 18 MS. HOUSTON: Thank you. 19MR. THOMPSON: I would like to start with 20 Joanne Wagner. State and spell your name for the court 21 reporter and you can begin with your testimony. 22 MS. WAGNER: Yes. Joanne, J-O-A-N-N-E, 23 Wagner, W-A-G-N-E-R. 24 Okay. I'm here today to basically give a 25 replay of my testimony from September 27th of 2011. It

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 135 1 was an EPA hearing. You may have been some of the same 2 folks that I spoke to. But our story is still the same 3 and continues on the same track. 4 I'm a mother of two. My children are now 5 ages 13 and 6. I moved to Mount Pleasant Township in 6 2005, the same year that Range Resources drilled the 7 first experimental Marcellus Shale ground. We are 8 ground zero from Marcellus Shale drilling. And if I 9 knew now -- or knew then what I know now, I would have 10 never moved to Mount Pleasant. In fact, I would 11 seriously consider moving out of the state. 12 But at this point in time, my husband and 13 I have come to the conclusion the only way to protect 14 our family is to move out. Unfortunately, we cannot 15 leave this region because of his job. But we're going 16 somewhere where we believe we will be better protected. 17 I'm not crazy. I'm educated. I have a 18 degree in computer science with an emphasis in science. 19 I've taken physics and chemistry and all of the 20 mathematical- and science-related classes and have a 21 Bachelor's Degree. I make rational decisions. I don't 22 get emotional. I base my decisions on facts. I 23 volunteered to help the Township when this activity 24 started in our town. And I researched and I educated 25myself and I built relationships.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 136 1 One of those relationships that I built, 2 because I had a particular interest in air quality, was 3 with someone that had equipment to monitor -- very 4 sophisticated equipment to monitor air. I embarked on 5 a citizen air monitoring adventure with a friend of 6mine a college professor. We monitored air throughout 7 the community and at various individual's homes. My 8 friend, Denzel Backus, a professor, we put the monitor 9 at his house. We recorded various episodes where the 10 lower explosive level percentages in the air had 11 considerable spikes. On March 23rd of 2011, we 12 recorded 7.1 percent LEL rating at 1:15 a.m.; at 5:45 13 a.m. a 5.3 spike; and on March 26th at 8:03 -- or at 14 5:03 a.m., a spike of nine. These readings, if 15 indoors, would be at a level where there would be call 16 for an evacuation. This was during a fracking 17 operation at the Drummond well site in Mount Pleasant 18 Township, monitored outdoor on his back patio. There 19 is no reason why the citizens of this municipality or 20 this state or this country should have to experience 21 this. 22 Similarly, we monitored in April of 2011. 23 There were spikes on the 14th of 8.3 at 2:00 p.m.; 24 another 6.0 on April 15th at 2:00 p.m. The monitoring 25 location was at the home of Denzel Backus at 221 Walnut

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 137 1 Road, McDonald, Pennsylvania. The home of the Backuses 2 sits approximately 1,600 feet from the well pad. 3We also monitored at various locations in 4 the community using other types of monitors. This 5monitor was a five-gas monitor. It recorded VOCs as 6 well. 7 In the driveway of a friend's house, the 8 ratings of the volatile organic compounds were 64,113 9parts per billion. We read a well site where we were 10 observing a wellhead, Stuart No. 8, also in Mount 11 Pleasant Township, right after a rain. You could see 12 bubbling come out of the well fittings. There was a 13VOC rating of 45,403 parts per billion. On my friend's 14 deck, 53,442 parts per billion; and elsewhere in the 15 community driving on Caldwell Road, which I'm going to 16 guess is maybe two miles from that property, 23,114; 17 driving on Washington Road, which is probably 18 two-and-a-half miles, or maybe three, 14,947, and 19 likewise, at another residence that we looked at. 20 So what does this mean? Through the 21 connections that I made with a head of consulting for 22 clean air engineering, he told me, "Joanne, the EPA and 23 the DEP do not really concern themselves with these 24 local events. The EPA and DEP are more concerned about 25 regional air pollution. This is not a regional

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 138 1 problem. Your problem is an air toxics problem. These 2 are the types of problems where children and people get 3 sick." 4 MR. THOMPSON: Mrs. Wagner, sorry for the 5 interruption. Your time has long expired. I'll give 6 you ten seconds to wrap-up your testimony, please. 7 MS. WAGNER: Okay. My conclusion is that 8 if you -- if you control methane at various points in 9 the process, not just during fracking, but after 10 fracking, it's going to help us control local air 11 toxics. There's tanks. There's pipelines. There's 12 leaks. There's smells. There's blowdowns. My 13 children are in danger at school, at home, and in the 14 community. And I believe that we strongly need to 15monitor methane at all levels, including these 16pipelines where there's pigging operations and have 17 blowdowns on a regular basis. And the data I have for 18 you is on a disk, if you would like to evaluate it. 19MR. THOMPSON: Yes, please. Submit it at 20 the registration table. 21 MS. WAGNER: Okay. 22 MR. THOMPSON: And thank you for your 23 testimony. Let me turn to the panel? Are there any 24 follow-up questions for Ms. Wagner? Again, thank you 25 for your testimony.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 139 1 MS. HOUSTON: Is that close enough to 2 hear? 3MR. THOMPSON: Perfect. Thank you. 4 MS. HOUSTON: So, again, say my name. 5MR. THOMPSON: Please. 6MS. HOUSTON: Melanie Houston. Do you 7 need it spelled. 8 REPORTER: No. 9MS. HOUSTON: Houston, spelled like the 10 city. 11 Well, good afternoon. Thank you. I 12 really appreciate this opportunity to be here today 13 talking with you and to testify in support of this 14 Proposed Rule to reduce methane and VOC pollution from 15 the oil and gas industry. 16I am presenting today on behalf of the 17 Ohio Environmental Council, a statewide advocacy policy 18 organization with several thousand individual members. 19I do also plan to share with you, though, 20 today about a handful of stories of citizens from Ohio 21 who are experiencing currently or previously, direct 22 impacts of shale gas development. And just to -- a 23 broad-brush, in Ohio, we have about 1,600 drilled and 24 about 2,000 permitted shale gas wells, mainly Utica 25 Shale wells. We have approximately 75 compressor

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 140 1 stations proposed or currently operating or under 2 construction. And our pipeline development is 3 projected to go rapidly -- to grow rapidly in the next 4 two years. So all of this means that the number of 5 Ohioans who will be affected by methane and VOC 6 emissions is going to grow rapidly as well. 7 And I'd like to share a brief personal 8 story to put the remainder of my testimony in context 9 of these folks' stories. 10 So this past Saturday morning at about 11 7:00 a.m. sharp, a diesel truck parked and began idling 12 about ten feet from my front door. It woke up everyone 13 in my family and created a cloud of diesel fumes 14 outside of our windows. Major construction had begun 15 on the storm drain surrounding my home. Yet I received 16 no notice that that was coming. The noise was 17 overwhelming at times. Loud, rumbling trucks. Jack 18 hammering. Heavy equipment thundering and beeping. 19And frankly, I was very angry. I was so angry I 20 marched outside in pajamas and I asked the only person 21 I could find that -- the truck driver of this diesel 22 truck, to please turn off his engine. And he did. And 23 so I thought a lot about the challenges of my fellow 24 Ohioans living next to this new way of oil and gas 25 development. But until this personal experience, I

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 141 1 hadn't really felt what they were going through. Folks 2 living near this development are much less likely to 3 get a "yes" response when I asked the operator of a 4 well pad or a diesel truck or compression station to 5 stop. And to me, this represents a loss of control for 6 these folks over the quality of the air around their 7 home and the immediate environments surrounding their 8 home, many families, by the way, who chose a rural 9 setting to raise their families because of the peace 10 and quiet, and because of clean air and clean water. 11 So I just wonder if you can take a moment to imagine, 12 you know, how frustrating that would be. And I also 13 know, for me, that that construction outside of my 14 front door is only temporary. But for these folks in 15 Eastern Ohio, they're faced with infrastructure that 16 will be in place for years, if not decades. 17 And so at the OEC, we've begun talking 18 with citizens who have been affected, and many times 19 negatively affected, by the fracking industry. 20 I've spoken multiple times with a woman, 21 for example, who lives about 600 feet from the site of 22 a major fracking chemical fire. She, her fiance, and 23 her son stayed in their home the night of that fire, 24 despite the chemicals in the air and the explosion risk 25 right next to their home, because the nearby hotels

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 142 1 were full of oil and gas workers. 2 I talked with a father who lives within a 3mile of a fracking well blowout, which the methane and 4 other harmful air emissions for over ten days. He and 5 his -- his family and 20 other households were 6 evacuated. This is right before the Christmas holiday. 7 And they were, you know, uncertain as to whether they 8 would be able to get home in time for Christmas. He 9 was unnerved, I know, and he was frustrated at the lack 10 of information that he could obtain about what he and 11 his family were exposed to. 12 I've spoken also with a former aluminum 13 worker who lives directly downwind from a compressor 14 station and near several fracking well pads. He had, I 15 know, had his home test positive for the presence of 16methane. And also, passive air sampling work done by 17 University of Cincinnati showed elevated levels of 18 PAHs, the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons right 19 outside of his home. His wife is currently battling 20 breast cancer and now she continues to be exposed to 21 air contaminants outside of her control. 22 This gentleman also told me some days his 23 dogs will not go outside. And that the smell outside 24 of his home was so bad on one particular day that upon 25 opening his windows, it brought him down to his knees.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 143 1 And, finally, I read over a civil case, 2 which is now settled, of a family in Ohio who suffered 3many documented health problems from a compressor 4 station just 350 feet from their front door. So 5 nausea, vomiting, and ongoing burning sensation of the 6 nose and throat, most likely due to methane and VOC 7 emissions. 8 These folks deserve protection. They need 9 this rule. And they need it as soon as possible. And 10 they need a rule to address existing sources, as many 11 of my colleagues have talked about here today. Not 12 just new and modified sources. So, you know, we ask 13 that the oil and gas industry be made to take 14 responsibility for their pollution, rather than asking 15 the public and asking the environment to bear the 16burden. And I hope that EPA will strengthen and 17 finalize these rules and move swiftly toward covering 18 existing sources. 19Thank you. 20 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 21 testimony. Thank you very much. 22 Any follow-up questions? 23Okay. Thank you both for being here today 24 and for your testimony. Thank you very much. 25MS. HOUSTON: Thank you.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 144 1 MR. THOMPSON: At this time I would like 2 to invite Peggy Ann Berry and Mark Dixon to please come 3 forward for your testimony. 4 MR. DIXON: I've got a visual. 5MR. THOMPSON: He's given us a visual for 6 the record. Not a copy of his testimony. 7 MR. DIXON: Right. I'll give this 8 downstairs. 9MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. I'd like to 10 begin with Ms. Berry, please. 11 MS. BERRY: Hi. My name is Peggy Berry. 12 Besides having a Ph.D. in nursing research, I'm a 13 certified occupational health nurse specialist and have 14 worked in heavy industry as far as truck and airfreight 15 is concerned, as well as I was a graduate nurse intern 16 for OSHA, while I was doing my Master's. 17 I have seen the effects of total disregard 18 when OSHA and other regulations are ignored by 19 industry. I've also seen the effects or, I guess -- 20 I've also seen the effects of applying OSHA in health 21 prevention in industry and how injuries and illnesses 22 decrease because of that. 23What I do want to say is I appreciate the 24 ability to speak with you guys here today about the 25methane rules. These rules will impact total

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 145 1 population health by decreasing child and adult 2 exposure to methane and other volatile organic 3 compounds released through the oil and gas exploration 4 and production. 5As a health care professional, I see these 6 Rules as a step towards primary prevention of many 7 health issues U.S. children and adults suffer, 8 especially asthma and chronic obstructive lung disease. 9Most organizations and industries are responsible 10 corporate citizens of their community. However, the 11 oil and gas industries are not held accountable to the 12 same laws and regulations that govern all 13 organizations, especially the Clean Air Act. 14 In addition, what constitutes compliance 15 from one organization in the oil and gas company may 16 not be considered compliance for another oil and gas 17 company, the methane rule standardized best practice in 18 containing new oil and gas exploration and production 19 with containment of the methane and other VOCs. 20 In Ohio, the health and safety concerns of 21 employees and communities have largely been ignored 22 regarding the contamination of community water sources 23 nearby or air contamination. We don't even know what's 24 in the fracking solutions. Likewise, the air we 25 breathe is affected when methane and other gases are

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 146 1 allowed to be vented off and not captured for use. 2 Methane is a potent greenhouse gas. 3 You've probably heard this time and time again today. 4 It's 84 times more powerful than CO2 during the time it 5 remains in the atmosphere, which means it is a powerful 6 contributor to climate change and the greatest threat 7 to our planet we've ever faced. And these emissions 8 from the oil and gas industry specifically contribute 9 to a quarter of the total manmade global warming we are 10 experiencing today. 11 Methane is the second most prevalent 12 greenhouse gas emitted in the United States by human 13 activities. And only 30 percent of these emissions 14 come from oil production and the production, 15 transmission, and distribution of natural gas. These 16 emissions are projected to significantly increase over 17 the next decade without action to lower them. 18 Although the industry is going to talk to 19 you guys about the monetary hit with the compliance 20 with methane rules, the cost of the overwhelming health 21 impact can't be measured. The EPA's proposal is a 22 significant step -- a significant step towards curbing 23 climate disruption and protecting the health and well 24 being of communities across America. 25Thank you.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 147 1 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 2 testimony. 3MS. BERRY: I'm not done. 4 MR. THOMPSON: I'm sorry. 5MS. BERRY: However -- 6MR. THOMPSON: You're welcome. Please 7 continue. You're welcome. 8 MS. BERRY: However, the EPA can go 9 further to set the strongest possible standards to 10 reduce methane emissions. 11 While I support your rules, your proposed 12 rules of methane, and I see them as an important first 13 step, the rules don't go far enough, and they only 14 cover new and modified sources of emissions. And they 15 do not address existing sources of methane emissions 16 from the oil and gas industry. 17 Our future generations will be impacted by 18 our decisions today and in the future. Every day in 19America approximately 78,000 people miss school or work 20 due to asthma; 35,000 people have an asthma attack; 21 4,600 people visit the emergency room due to asthma; 22 1,200 people are admitted to the hospital due to 23 asthma; and ten people die. We need these methane 24 rules. 25And I want to thank you so much for

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 148 1 putting them together. Thank you. 2 MR. THOMPSON: You're welcome and thank 3 you. Any follow-up questions for Ms. Berry from the 4 panel? I sincerely thank you for your testimony. 5Mr. Dixon. 6MR. DIXON: Great. My name is Mark Dixon, 7 Pittsburgh resident, filmmaker, and a board member of 8 the Thomas Burke Center, though I do not speak today on 9 its behalf. 10 I am here to wholeheartedly support the 11 proposed reductions. But more importantly, I'm here to 12 state that these reductions do not go far enough. 13 Today climate change facts do not allow us to 14 simultaneously use any oil or natural gases fuels, and 15 expect anything but catastrophic climate consequences. 16I encourage the EPA to work as quickly as 17 possible to ramp down and eliminate the extraction and 18 use of all greenhouse gas emitting fuels so that market 19 forces can move us into a renewable energy era, thereby 20 protecting our climate, our economic well being and the 21 lives and livelihoods of global citizens today and for 22 all of time. 23The intergovernmental panel on climate 24 changes, FIP assessments, indicates that we have just 25 over 20 years of current CO2 emissions remaining if we

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 149 1 want to have a 66 percent chance of keeping the global 2 temperature from rising two degrees C above 3 pre-industrial levels. 4 May I present to you this drawing of a 5 fictional 66 percent airline. It successfully flies 6 about 66 percent of the time. By allowing any 7 greenhouse gas emissions today, you are forcing us to 8 fly on this airline, and you are insisting that all of 9 our children, virtually for all time, will need to fly 10 on it as well. 11 I would like to point out that the odds of 12 an American being struck by lightning during a single 13 year are about 1 in 12,000. And according to 14 planecrashinfo.com, the odds of being killed in a 15 single airline flight are 1 in 4.7 million. 16I would also like to point out that one of 17 our best climate experts, ex-NASA climate scientist, 18 James Hanson, said that the target that has been talked 19 about in international negotiations for two degrees of 20 warming is actually a prescription for long-term 21 disaster. He, instead, advocates for a limit of one 22 degree centigrade. 23A simple extrapolation of the IPOC data 24 from 66 to a 90 probability of staying below two 25 degrees, let alone one, means that we have zero CO2 or

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 150 1 equivalent emissions remaining. Zero. Yet here we are 2 discussing marginal emission deductions from oil and 3 gas as if we have all the time in the world to phase 4 them out. We don't. 5Physics doesn't negotiate and the EPA is 6 chartered with the protection of our environment, yet 7 you would have all of us here and our children fly -- 8 fly on this 66 percent airline. 9And here in Pittsburgh, we breathe some of 10 the lowest quality air in the country, largely due to 11 greenhouse gas emitting sources, while we are forced to 12 ride into the future on this woefully and unreliable 13 climate airline. 14 I find these circumstances to be untenable 15 and hold the EPA accountable. Anything less than 16 wholesale and rapid phase-out of oil and natural gas as 17 fuels is a willful dereliction of your duty to protect 18 the environment and the well being of all citizens. 19Please, please listen to the body of 20 evidence that your fellow government scientists have 21 generated, and strengthen your emission standards to 22 meet the urgent needs of our time on earth. It is not 23 your duty to allow the slow degradation of our planet 24 by those who wish to profit from its destruction. 25It is our moral obligation to leave this

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 151 1 planet better than we found it, and that work must 2 start here and now by facing the facts and doing what 3 is right. 4 Will you be able to look at your 5 grandchildren in the eye and tell them that you met the 6 challenge of our time? Or will you say, "bon voyage" 7 as they depart on the 66 percent airline. 8 Thank you for your time and attention. 9And if anybody else would like to see the 66 percent 10 airline, I have copies of the picture. 11 Thank you. 12 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Dixon. To 13 the panel? 14 Well, thank you both for your testimony 15 today and thank you for being here. 16MR. DIXON: Thank you. 17 MR. THOMPSON: At this time I would like 18 to invite to Joanne Kilgour and Hannah Tyler to come 19 forward please with testimony. 20 Joanne Kilgour. 21 MS. KILGOUR: Good afternoon. 22 MR. THOMPSON: Good afternoon. We'll 23 start with Ms. Kilgour. 24 MS. KILGOUR: Thank you. Is this -- can 25 you hear me okay?

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 152 1 MR. THOMPSON: Pull it toward you just a 2 little closer. 3MS. KILGOUR: Thank you for the 4 opportunity to speak with you this afternoon on the 5 important topic of controlling methane emissions from 6 the oil and gas sector. 7 My name is Joanne Kilgour and I serve as 8 the state director for the Sierra Club here in 9 Pennsylvania representing more than 25,000 members and 10 80,000 supporters across the Commonwealth. Our members 11 have, for decades, been leading climate advocates and 12 clean air champions in their communities. And I know 13 that if each of them could be here today speaking with 14 you, they would. 15By holding this hearing in Pittsburgh, 16 you're recognizing the significant impact air pollution 17 for methane emissions has in this region and throughout 18 Pennsylvania, largely as a result of the dirty oil and 19 gas industry. While we support and appreciate EPA 20 taking this necessary first step to control methane 21 emissions from oil and gas sources, as you've heard 22 from many other individuals here today, we also 23 recognize the need for action that will address 24 pollution from existing sources. 25I live in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, which

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 153 1 has some of the dirtiest air quality in the nation. In 2 fact, more than half of the counties in Pennsylvania 3 are at risk because of air quality concerns, which are 4 only made worse by harmful methane emissions from the 5 oil and gas sector. Just like me, more than four 6million residents of Pennsylvania live in areas that 7 exceed national ozone standards, meaning that our 8 health and our communities cannot afford to bear 9pollution from the thousands of existing sources in our 10 state, let alone from new and modified sources. 11 Our children, our elderly, and those 12 individuals at greater risk from respiratory 13 complications simply cannot take even one more ozone 14 action day. Since this is the first-ever proposal to 15 control methane pollution from the oil and gas 16 industry, we thank you, we support this initial step, 17 and we call for these proposals to be adopted quickly 18 so we can get to work tackling the threat from methane 19 emissions from the oil and gas sources now in 20 existence, sources that by 2018 are projected to 21 account for nearly 90 percent of all methane emissions 22 in this sector. 23In addition to threatening our climate, 24 the public health threat posed by these emissions is 25 staggering. For this reason, we also call on EPA to

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 154 1 revise its cost-benefit analysis and include, in this 2 revision, metrics that will monetize the public health 3 benefit the standard will generate by reducing all of 4 the volatile organic compounds, and thus smog and soot 5 as well as hazardous air pollutants. Without this 6 adjustment, the benefits of implementing the rule will 7 remain understated and the cost-benefit analysis will 8 be an inadequate assessment. 9Public health benefits are not simply 10 qualitative or experiential but have a quantifiable 11 financial benefit that must be documented. 12 I applaud the EPA and the Obama 13Administration for beginning to address this problem 14 for new and modified sources of methane and I now look 15 to our state's Department of Environmental Protection 16 and the Wolf Administration to follow this lead and 17 address fugitive emissions from existing sources, 18 moving as far as necessary to put the health and 19prosperity of Pennsylvania families first. 20 Thank you. 21 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Kilgour. 22 Any follow-up questions? 23MR. MOORE: No. 24 MS. WALTZER: No. 25MS. TYLER: Good afternoon. My name is

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 155 1 Hannah Tyler, and I will be speaking today on behalf of 2 Dr. Randy Kuplognik (sic) who is a resident of Harrison 3 County, Ohio. 4 My family chose to move into rural Ohio to 5 experience the beauty and serenity of living close to 6 nature and the wooded rolling hills. We built our own 7 log home, paying special attention to eliciting 8 sustainable building practices and using 9 environmentally-friendly materials. Unfortunately, we 10 did not realize that our home would come to be 11 surrounded by infrastructure and accompany -- 12 accompanying industry that supports horizontal fracking 13 for natural gas and oil. 14 We now have an injunction well two miles 15 away from our home. A pipeline is being built at the 16 end of our street, less than a quarter of a mile away. 17 And fracking pads desecrate our landscape of our 18 county. We must navigate country roads, traffic by 19 large brine trucks and tankers carrying sand, water and 20 petroleum fuel. The muzzling and watershed conservancy 21 lakes in the region have become a major source of water 22 for the fracking process. Even the night sky has been 23 affected, as flares from methane burn-off and lights 24 from fracking pads obscure the once visible Milky Way. 25As a mother and grandmother, I worry about

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 156 1 the future we are creating for our children and our 2 grandchildren. As a scientist, I know what is being 3 emitted into the air, land, and water from fracking 4 facilities and supporting industries. I know it is not 5 safe or conducive to a healthy environment. This 6 industry will not effectively self-regulate. They have 7 proven this time and time again. Therefore, I 8 encourage the U.S. EPA to promulgate a comprehensive 9 and stringent set of rules and regulations to ensure 10 that fugitive emissions from this process are 11 addressed. 12 I also encourage the U.S. EPA to conduct a 13 regular monitoring program to ensure these regulations 14 are followed. It is disconcerting that the gas 15 industry recklessly allows release of methane and other 16 volatile carcinogen -- carcinogenic and endocrine 17 destructive organic compounds to be released 18 indiscriminately into the surrounding environment. Our 19 health and the health of our children should not be 20 sacrificed in order for the oil and gas industry to 21 maintain profits. 22 I respectfully thank you for your 23 consideration of this issue, and thank you for hearing 24 Randy's comments today. 25MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for sharing those

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 157 1 comments. 2 To the panel? Thank you both very much 3 for your testimony you gave here today. 4 At this time I would like to invite Mary 5Ann Mulroy and Barb Grover to please come forward. 6Good afternoon, ladies. 7 MS. GROVER: Good afternoon. 8 MR. THOMPSON: Starting with Mrs. Mulroy. 9MS. GROVER: Good afternoon. My name is 10 Mary Ann Mulroy, M-U-L-R-O-Y. And I serve as assistant 11 counsel for -- in the office of chief counsel with the 12 Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. 13I'm pleased to have the opportunity to 14 testify this afternoon to provide some initial 15 reactions to the EPA's proposal regarding source 16 determination for certain emission units in the oil and 17 natural gas sector. 18 The EPA is proposing for public comment 19 two options to clarify the term "adjacent". One 20 definition would define "adjacent" in terms of 21 proximity; the other would consider activities of 22 adjacent if they are either close together or are 23 related by function. 24 As you know, there are significant gas 25 exploration and extraction and activities occurring in

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 158 1 the Commonwealth within the Marcellus Shale formation 2 and other formations. As a result, the Department on 3August -- I'm sorry, on October 6, 2012 released a 4 Technical Guidance Document entitled "Guidance for 5 Performing Single Stationary Source Determinations For 6 Oil And Gas Industries" to address how the air 7 emissions from exploration, extraction, or production 8 activities should be aggregated to determine whether 9 the sources from these emissions qualify as a major 10 stationary source or a major facility for purposes of 11 the PSD non-attainment NSR and Title V permitting 12 programs. Prior to its release, the Technical Guidance 13 Document was subject to the 60-day public comment 14 period and 366 persons submitted comments on the 15 proposal. 16Under Pennsylvania's Technical Guidance 17 Document, properties located a quarter a mile or less 18 apart are considered adjacent. Sources within this 19 quarter-mile distance should be aggregated as long as 20 they meet the other two regulatory criteria; the same 21 with industrial improvement and common control. The 22 emission units on two or more separate, but nearby 23 properties, and separated by an intervening railroad or 24 some other obstacle, may be considered adjacent. 25Properties beyond a quarter-mile range may

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 159 1 only be considered adjacent on a case-by-case basis. 2 Under Pennsylvania's Technical Guidance Document, while 3 functionality or interdependence may be considered when 4 conducting a single source determination, the plain 5meaning of the term "adjacent" should be the 6 dispositive factor when determining whether stationary 7 sources are located on adjacent properties. 8 Today, Pennsylvania has many thousands of 9 single-source determinations using methodology under 10 the Technical Guidance Document. It believes it is a 11 sound approach that approximates the common sense 12 notion of the planet and avoids aggregating 13 pollutant-emitting activities that, as a group, would 14 not fit within the ordinary meaning of building, 15 structure, facility or installation. 16In fact, the Department's Technical 17 Guidance Document was met with the approval of the 18 Federal Courts. In PennFuture versus Ultra Resources, 19 the United States District for the Middle District of 20 Pennsylvania upheld a department determination not to 21 aggregate any compressor stations and associated 22 natural gas wells. 23The specific question that the Court 24 examined was whether the air contamination sources are 25 adjacent. Ultra Resources urged the Court to look

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 160 1 exclusively at the plain meaning of that term, while 2 PennFuture asked the Court to look at the functional 3 interdependency of those facilities when making its 4 determination as to when they are adjacent. 5After examining the Sixth Circuit's 6 opinion in Summit Petroleum versus EPA, and the 7 Department's Technical Guidance Document on 8 single-source determinations, the Court found that the 9plain meaning of the term "adjacent" should control as 10 to whether two or more facilities should be aggregated 11 for single source purposes. 12 Despite the Court's finding that the plain 13meaning of "adjacent" should control, the Court 14 declined to hold that functional interrelatedness can 15 never lead to or contribute to a finding of adjacency. 16As a result, the Court departed from the 17 Sixth Circuit's interpretation of "adjacent" to the 18 extent that it prohibits any consideration of 19 interrelatedness or interdependence, and emphasized the 20 importance of the Department's Guidance recommending 21 that a case-by-case determination is needed to 22 determine if sources are considered "contiguous" or 23 "adjacent". 24 Based on the Department's Technical 25 Guidance Document, our experience in applying that

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 161 1 guidance and the rationale of the Ultra Resources 2 Court, the Department believes that EPA's second option 3 is the more appropriate choice for making single-source 4 determinations for the oil and gas industries. 5The EPA has a body of determinations 6 stretching back to 1981 that can assist states in 7 making a fact-specific, case-by-case decision as to 8 whether two or more sources should be considered a 9 single source for NSR and Title V purposes. 10 As we move further into the comment 11 period, the Pennsylvania DEP will continue to examine 12 the proposed rule and suggests additional changes to 13 it. We look forward to developing more detailed 14 comments and to a continued conversation with the EPA. 15And, once again, thank you for the 16 opportunity to testify today. 17 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 18 Any follow up from the panel? 19MR. MOORE: No. 20 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Put the mic in 21 front of you. 22 MS. GROVER: My name is Barbara Grover. 23 I'm -- as chair of the Allegheny Group of the Sierra 24 Club, I am speaking this afternoon on behalf of the 25 over 5,000 members here in Southwestern Pennsylvania.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 162 1 As you all well know, currently, there are 2 no federal limits on the amount of methane pollution 3 that the oil and gas operations can emit, and no 4 federal air regulations of existing oil or natural gas 5 infrastructure. We are extremely pleased and applaud 6 this first initiative by the EPA to control methane 7 emissions from oil and gas sources. Controlling 8 methane emissions will also reduce smog-, soot-forming 9pollutants and hazard emissions. 10 An independent analysis conducted by ICF 11 International has determined that the U.S. oil and gas 12 industry sector can significantly reduce emissions of 13methane using currently-available technologies and at a 14 low cost. By adopting proven emissions control 15 technologies, industry could cut methane emissions by 16 40 percent below projected 2018 levels at a cost of 17 less than one cent per thousand cubic feet of produced 18 natural gas. Some of these measures pay for themselves 19 over time through the sale of captured natural gas. 20 The health benefits from a reduction in 21 methane emissions are quite astonishing. According to 22 a study reported at the 2011 proceedings of the 23 National Academy of Sciences reducing emission by 24 20 percent, starting in 2010, would prevent 30,000 25 premature mortalities globally in 2030 and 370,000

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 163 1 between 2010 and 2030. It's already 2015. So we've 2 lost the opportunity to prevent some of those deaths. 3The study continues that the 4 cost-effectiveness of this 20 percent reduction in 5methane emissions is estimated to be 420,000 per 6 avoided mortality. Think about that for a minute. If 7 we started to reduce methane emissions in 2010, that's 8 a cost-effectiveness of $12,600,000,000 worldwide. 9Your proposal provides a unique 10 opportunity to improve air quality and can be a 11 cost-effective part of ozone management and result in 12 the benefits of better air quality, improve public 13 health, and mitigate climate change. 14 However, we suggest that your final 15 proposal should include some items not currently in 16 this initial version. Number one, as you've heard 17 before, the new rules must include oil and gas sources 18 now in existence. Not just the new and modified 19 infrastructure. 20 By 2018, nearly 90 percent of all methane 21 emissions in the oil and gas sector will come from 22 sources now in existence. Equipment such as storage 23 vessels and compressors must be subject to these 24 regulations also. 25Inspections should occur monthly for all

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 164 1 well sites and compressor stations for leak detection 2 and repair requirements. The current wording of 3 "flexibility of inspections depending on the percentage 4 of leaks in the previous 12-month period" is completely 5 unacceptable. 6And finally, a six-month period to allow 7 source operators to repair leaking equipment is much 8 too long a period of time. The danger to health, air 9 quality, and climate change is far too important to 10 allow leaks to continue for six months. 11 There seems to be an additional problem 12 with respect to actually measuring methane leaks. 13According to an article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 14 just yesterday morning, more than a dozen studies 15measuring emissions from shale gas sites have come up 16 with varying conclusions about leak rates. 17 The article continues, "Accurate 18 regionally comprehensive and continuous monitoring of 19 the actual rate of leakage from shale gas production is 20 required both to document the greenhouse gas impact of 21 gas production and evaluate efforts to reduce 22 emissions." Consequently, strong regulations to reduce 23 emissions are essential, but a clear, accurate system 24 of measuring is imperative. 25In closing, I reiterate that the Sierra

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 165 1 Club is supportive of your proposal. The boom in the 2 natural gas industry has resulted in increased methane 3 emissions that must be halted. We strongly urge you to 4 consider these suggested revisions. And I thank you 5 for your time. 6MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 7 testimony. 8 Any follow-up from the panel? 9MR. MOORE: No. 10 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you both very much 11 for being here. 12 At this time I would like to invite Paul 13 Fiesel and Lois Bjornson, B-J-O-R-N-S-O-N. 14 MR. FIESEL: Thank you. 15MR. THOMPSON: And if you could be so kind 16 as to repeat that for the court reporter during your 17 testimony, of course. Good afternoon to you both. 18 Thanks for being here. 19Mr. Fiesel, I hope I'm pronouncing that 20 correctly. 21 MR. FIESEL: Thank you. That is correct. 22 My name is Paul Fiesel. My wife and I 23 live in Carroll County, Ohio, and we thank you for this 24 opportunity to provide comments in support of the 25 proposed changes to cut methane and VOC emissions from

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 166 1 the oil and gas industry. 2 My undergraduate degree is in applied 3mathematics. As you might guess, numbers are pretty 4 important to me. But today, I would like to focus on a 5 particular number, one or being first. Because since 6 the beginning of Ohio shale gas movement in 2010, 7 Carroll County has been first on many fronts. Carroll 8 County was first in Ohio to have test wells drilled in 9 Utica Shale. The Miller test well, just one mile from 10 my driveway. 11 We were first to have the hoards of 12 landmen come to town, all too often with their less 13 than honest sales pitches about how once they're done, 14 there will just be a little valve at the surface. 15 Landowners know better than that now. 16Carroll County was first to have a shale 17 gas mega well drilled, fracked, and put into 18 production, with reports of being a gusher, based on 19 only 11 days' data. Soon reporters flocked to towns 20 from the big cities of Akron and Cleveland, then 21 Columbus. And NBC Nightly News came from New York, 22 then BBC from London, then Poland, Sweden and Ukraine, 23 all to report on how Carrolltonians were surely to all 24 become the first millionaires from Ohio's shale gas 25 boom. But each reporter also asked, "Aren't landowners

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 167 1 concerned about potential health risks?" 2 Carroll County did become, and still holds 3 title, to being number one in gas, oil, and liquid 4 hydrocarbons production, with over 370 producing wells, 5more than twice as many as any other county in Ohio. 6In addition to our day jobs, my wife and I 7 have invested heavily in Carroll County by purchasing 8 an 80-acre farm, building an ecofriendly home, and 9 starting small-scale organic blueberry, egg and honey 10 productions. In trying to educate ourselves about 11 shale gas activities happening around us, we found that 12 there were many others who had similar questions and 13 similar concerns about what else it meant to be No. 1 14 in Carroll County -- excuse me, in Ohio's shale gas 15 boom. 16So in 2011, we formed a nonprofit called 17 Carroll Concerned Citizens. Our motto is working to 18 protect why we live here for our families and for their 19 futures. Our group has about 300 people on its mailing 20 list. It holds regular public meetings with speakers 21 from government, the industry, academia, and other 22 nonprofits, Often with over 100 people in attendance. 23We have spoken about what it means to live 24 in a boom town before hundreds of people at shale gas 25 forums, landowners groups, schools, universities, local

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 168 1 governments, and nonprofit meetings. 2 As is the case with all extracted booms, 3most landowners were elated at first with the signing 4 bonuses or royalty checks. They were all too willing 5 to overlook the traffic, noise, land use changes that 6 came with more well pads, more pipelines, more 7 compressor stations, and our wet gas liquid separation 8 and fractionation plants. 9Recently, though, the reality of declining 10 production occurs, and oil and gas prices have started 11 industry to turn landowner elation into arbitration. 12 Even for our county-owned lands. Academic and 13 nonprofit researchers interested in the boom's effect 14 on -- on shale gas started contacting Carroll Concerned 15 Citizens as a channel to reach landowners willing to 16participate in some of Ohio's first air quality 17 studies. Researchers leveraged portable VOC monitoring 18 devices, optical gas imaging, graph sample canisters, 19 and leading edge, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon, or 20 PAH stationary and wearable human sampling devices. 21 Researchers, however, observed examples of 22 fugitive emissions, such as hydrogen sulfite gas being 23 released during well drilling; VOCs coming from a 24 compressor station that would eventually be fined for 25 exceeding EPA limits; VOC leaks at a transfer station

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 169 1 for our liquid separation plant and high PAH levels at 2 a home -- at homes nearly one mile from a large 3 compressor facility. 4 Oregon State University and the University 5 of Cincinnati recently published their results in a 6peer-reviewed journal showing how PAHs that were 7 emitted from existing well pads had exposure levels of 8 concern for long-term human and animal health. The 9 results were consistent with a similar proximity study 10 from the University of Colorado. And I will enclose a 11 copy of that results for you. 12 So in closing, Carroll County is expected 13 to have over 1,000 wells drilled, each with on-pad and 14 mid-streaming VOC emitting infrastructure. Does being 15 first in Ohio shale gas boom really mean that we'll be 16 the first ones to show the symptoms from long-term 17 exposure of these fugitive methane emissions? Methane 18 emissions that also carry with them toxic PAHs and VOCs 19 that will negatively impact our health far sooner than 20 global warming. 21 Please institute the changes so that EPA 22 can help reduce the risk for current and future 23 generations of death by a thousand leaks. 24 Respectfully, Paul Fiesel 25MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Fiesel.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 170 1 Any follow-up from the panel? Thank you. 2 Ms. Bjornson. 3MS. BJORNSON: Hi. My name is Lois 4 Bower-Bjornson, and I live in Scenery Hill, 5 Pennsylvania. I sat here before you four years ago and 6 told you about a lot of the things I've been seeing. 7 And so I'm here to tell you a little bit more. 8 Four years ago we were surrounded by 9probably, I'll say, eight to ten gas wells. We're now 10 surrounded by 27. That's in a two-mile radius of my 11 house. There's a giant compressor station that I can 12 see light up at night, along with another new gas well 13 to the right of my home. 14 The traffic has increased tremendously. 15 We moved south. We have four children, three boys and 16 a girl, who are growing up in this. They call their 17 mom the environmentalist, which is great. So they 18 learn about this a lot. However, they learned about 19 also to close the windows when the compressor is on and 20 when the new well is going both to the right, and to 21 the left, to the front, and to the back of us. 22 They've also learned about a lot and what 23 is being done with the water and how we are watching 24 people that we know working in the industry dump into 25 creeks, to take remaining fracking water and dump it

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 171 1 back into the shaft, after they've done that. I hope 2 to get out to David's (sic) as most people, at one 3 point. 4 Things have gotten a bit better. We don't 5 see the holding off -- the burning off, excuse me, of 6 the holding ponds, but we do still see all the flaring 7 going on. We just saw it about three weeks ago, 8 actually. And our neighbors said, "Oh, yeah. I saw 9 that too." It sits on their property. So I do -- 10 like, I can't stress to you enough to please, please, 11 please do this. 12 As you mentioned, this will kill us way 13 before global warming does. I think it's your duty as 14 citizens and then by all of you to come to my home and 15 take a look. I'll give you a tour. 16Thank you. 17 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Any follow-up 18 from the panel? 19MR. MOORE: No. 20 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you both very much 21 for your testimony today. Thank you for being here 22 today. 23At this time I would like to invite Anna 24 Hanson and Dana Donnelly -- Dolney, Dolney, 25 D-O-L-N-E-Y. Dolney. Dana Dolney, please come

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 172 1 forward. 2 Good afternoon, ladies. 3MS. HANSON: Good afternoon. 4 MR. MOORE: Again, we'll start with 5 Ms. Hanson, please. 6MS. HANSON: Hello. My name is Anna 7 Hanson, and I'm from Beaver, Pennsylvania. Thank you 8 so much for the opportunity to offer comment today. 9I'm a student at Duquesne University and 10 member of Friends of the Harmed, a local grassroots 11 organization, and in the last year has delivered 12 $18,000 in direct aid to those impacted by shale gas 13 infrastructure through our publication, Shale Field 14 Stories. 15I grew up in the suburbs of PA in a small 16 town called Beaver. I'm one of nine children. And in 17 growing up, we all enjoyed playing outdoors, I'm sure 18 as most of us did. However, children today are not so 19 lucky. 20 I'm asking you today, why is it that 21 parents have to fear for their children as they head to 22 school, concerned about air pollution from a nearby 23 well? I'm asking you why parents have to choose 24 between school supplies and an inhaler? And I'm asking 25 you why these parents, and future parents like myself,

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 173 1 have to fear for our children's future in terms of 2 clean air? 3I'm speaking today in solidarity with 4 these parents, children, and families impacted by the 5 oil and gas industry. Methane is a highly potent 6 greenhouse gas, over 80 times as powerful as CO2 over a 7 20-year timeframe. Methane says -- methane -- methane 8 stays in the environment for approximately 9 to 15 9 years. 10 The oil and gas industry, in 2003, emitted 11 over 7.3 million metric tons of methane, and are the 12 largest human-made source of methane emissions. 13Methane can cause headaches, dizziness, 14 weakness, nausea, vomiting, and loss of coordination. 15Air pollution leaks from the oil and gas industry also 16 include volatile organic compounds, which can cause 17 ground level smog and is extremely harmful to young 18 children, those whose lungs are still developing. 19I commend you for filing proposal 20 standards that end at curbing methane and other smog21 and soot-forming emissions and hazardous air 22 pollutions. With that being said, I firmly believe 23 that if we are going to significantly reduce the harm 24 of this industry on our public health and environment, 25 we need to go farther.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 174 1 The proposed rules would only regulate new 2 and modified wells. I'm asking you to go further than 3 this and regulate existing sources of methane 4 emissions. According to a 2014 study, about 90 percent 5 of oil and gas methane emissions in 2018 will cover 6 existing sources built before 2012. With that being 7 said, I believe we should regulate all oil and gas 8 infrastructure, new and existing. 9If we are going to cut methane emissions 10 40 to 45 percent by 2025, these rules and regulations 11 need to be mandatory. The current voluntary program, 12 Natural Gas STAR Program, is only utilized by 13 two percent of Pennsylvania operators on existing 14 sources. This is simply not enough. 15I've seen what this industry has done to 16 citizens in Washington and Butler County. I have seen 17 people's health and wellness impacted by 18 under-regulated and, therefore, a reckless industry. 19 I'm angry that it has gone this far. I'm calling for 20 the oil and gas industry to be held accountable for 21 their air pollution, instead of having our public, our 22 environment, our children, and our future bear the 23 burden. I'm frankly scared for my future. And I hope 24 that the EPA will -- will strengthen and finalize these 25 rules and move swiftly to issue standards covering

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 175 1 existing sources. We deserve a world with clean air. 2 It is our right. 3Thank you. 4 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Thank you for 5 your testimony. 6MS. DOLNEY: May I ask that I be able to 7 hand something to you as a visual? 8 MR. THOMPSON: Yes. And while she can 9 share that with us, are there any follow-up questions? 10 MR. MOORE: No. 11 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Hanson. 12 MS. DOLNEY: Hello. My name is Dana 13 Dolney. I'm the director of a small nonprofit called 14 Friends of the Harmed. I'd like to thank you all for 15 coming here today. 16Normally, I have a whole bunch of things 17 prepared to say, but I know you already know the 18 science behind all of this. So I'm not going to bore 19 you all with the science today. I'm going to, instead, 20 speak from the heart and explain to you why we actually 21 have to exist here in Southwest, PA. 22 About 2008, around about then, I battled 23 with very aggressive breast cancer. I come from a long 24 line of steelworkers. Steel is naturally in my blood 25 it seems. I also happen to think that that's probably

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 176 1 where my cancer came from too. 2 I've lived in Pittsburgh all of my life. 3 I have genetic mutation. I'm the kind of person that, 4 prior, did not know the ramifications of the 5 environment on my health and my safety. 6I was very fortunate, I got a second 7 chance at life. I beat a cancer that most weren't able 8 to. I felt compelled to go out and act to do something 9 to prevent people from getting sick in the first place. 10 Not just skip or run or jump for a cure. Not that I'm 11 saying that people that fight for a cure, it's not 12 worth it. But I was watching my friends and my 13 neighbors, people in their 30s, when you lose both of 14 your breasts by 35, when you have children taken away 15 from your future, when you see your friends and family 16 all suffering the same fate from an area that was told 17 so many times over that we had to do all of this for 18 jobs. Jobs. Jobs. Jobs. Forget your health. Forget 19 your safety. Forget your family line. We're mutants 20 now in my family. This is the gift that keeps on 21 giving. So when I came through, and I heard that they 22 were starting this activity in my backyard, in 23 Pittsburgh, around the area, I joined with people and I 24 fought for a ban. I was naive. I admit it. I thought 25 that that was going to be enough to protect people

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 177 1 around here, a ban. Keeping it out. If people were 2 educated, that they would know. But people weren't 3 educated. We were lied to here. We were told that it 4 was safe, that it was perfectly safe, again and again 5 and again. And that's what our media propagated. It 6 was perfectly safe. 7 So I ask you how can you protect people if 8 you don't at least admit where the risks are? That's 9 the problem we have now. No one is admitting that the 10 risks are there. We know the risks are there. We 11 fight them daily. 12 Because of those risks, I went from being 13 an activist that always had a megaphone in front of her 14 face screaming in the streets and challenging my 15 governor, to somebody who had to create a small 16 nonprofit that provides replacement water, 17 medical-grade air scrubbers, independent air and water 18 testing. That's what we have to do. 19We're just average, ordinary volunteers. 20 We're not trained scientists. We don't have the 21 ability to know what we actually even should be doing. 22 This is all trial and error for us. But what we knew 23 was that the people who were complaining were not being 24 helped by the DEP; were not being helped by their local 25 and state officials. We would not exist if they were.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 178 1 Trust me. I have many better things to do than to show 2 up to every hearing, or go to this place or that place 3 outside of this facility, that facility. 4 This is all volunteer for us. So what we 5 had to do, because we had no money to help these 6people, was we had to create a publication, which I put 7 before you. We distributed over 5,000 copies of this 8 in the last year and a half, and that's how we were 9 able to put out over $18,000 in direct aid in 10 independent air and water testing and scrubbers and 11 replacement water. It should not fall to the citizens 12 of this state to have to advocate and protect the 13 public's health and safety. There are people whose 14 job, many of you, you're charged to do this. It is 15 your responsibility. We're here to plead with you. 16 Please look. This is our testimony. 17 Most people can't even share their stories 18 because they're trapped in lawsuits for years. They 19 look like refugees now in this state. Do you know 20 that? We have refugee families that have to flee, that 21 have to walk away from everything because they have no 22 hope. It's either save your child or stand in the 23 house or -- stay in a house that you know is being 24 surrounded by a compressor station or a processing 25 facility.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 179 1 If you open up in the book, the individual 2 I would like you to see, the first page that's marked 3 by the -- we have families who -- whose homes have been 4 completely surrounded by facilities. If you look at 5 the bottom Google Map there, you'll see what their 6 house once looked like. Now you see what it looks like 7 in Phase IV of development. The people here aren't 8 told the truth. They were told there was just going to 9be a facility -- a small facility on the top of the 10 hill. They piecemeal everything here in this state 11 permit to permit. Small source to small source. 12 We are begging for aggregation here. We 13 are begging for you to address things. We have to 14 address the existing emissions. So you should have to 15 address the existing emissions as well. Because we 16 don't have the millions of dollars that it takes to 17 provide every family by these centers and these 18 processing facilities and these well pads and these pig 19 launchers, the medical-grade air scrubbers or the 20 asthma inhalers, or the money to help them get to the 21 doctors now. You have to act. 22 I -- I -- I want to share one thing with 23 you to make you understand, too, the importance of 24 this, because over the last three years, what we've 25 noticed is that the public has taken it upon themselves

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 180 1 to go out. I was one of those people. I was dropping 2 SUMMA canisters. I was in the fields. I was doing 3 anything to protect these people, for what? The 4 information we don't even know what to do with most of 5 time. Sure, it's good for research now. But what we 6 found out is that we're just guinea pigs, because no 7 matter how many SUMMA canisters I drop, that's not 8 changing what's going on right now, is it? Yet, those 9people are still exposed to those contaminates every 10 single day. 11 Now what's happening, our do-gooders, like 12 me, are also having themselves exposed to those 13 contaminants. These pig launchers are being open 14 vented in people's back yards. These blowdowns are 15 happening in valley -- we have valleys here, where 16people are being suffocated by these blowdowns. So 17 people like me go out and drop a canister thinking I'm 18 doing good. I'm trying to help, and inadvertently, I 19 get exposed. I get sick. I get taken out. That's why 20 I had stop doing this, because it became real to me 21 when I saw things like methane, ethanol, acetone, 22 propynyl, methylene chloride, which I think we all know 23 a thing or twos about methylene chloride these days in 24 the EPA, don't we? 25MR. THOMPSON: Ms. Dolney, your time has

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 181 1 expired. I'll give you 30 seconds to wrap it up. 2 MS. DOLNEY: Thank you. 3So in addition to xylene, styrene, snomene 4 (sic) propylbenzene, trimethyl benzene, limonene, which 5 I don't even know what limonene is, phutinone (sic) 6 ethyl acetate, hexane, PHC, cyclohexane. 7 I took this test to try to figure out what 8 kind of respirator I needed so I could better protect 9myself. I ended up being laid up for a week on a couch 10 and unable to move. That's what our citizens are doing 11 to try to get protection for the people in their 12 community and their back yards. I just ask you all to 13 step up and try to do just a little bit more than the 14 rest of us. 15Thank you. 16MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 17 testimony. I do have a question for you. 18 MS. DOLNEY: Yes. 19MR. THOMPSON: Is there something you want 20 to say about the second exhibit you have marked here? 21 MS. DOLNEY: If you look at that, 22 that's -- that's -- the second exhibit marked is 23 exactly why we need aggregation. That's 24 seven-and-a-half miles in Washington County. 25If you'd like to the count the number

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 182 1 frack pits, compressor stations, wells, and, you know, 2 (not audible) track and the cryogenic plant, if that 3 doesn't tell you why we need aggregation, then nothing 4 really will. 5So thank you. 6MR. THOMPSON: No, thank you. Thank you 7 for your testimony. Before you go, panel, any 8 follow-ups? I thank you both very much. 9MS. DOLNEY: Thank you very much. 10 MR. THOMPSON: At this time I would like 11 to invite Rachel Filippini and Lois Hornbostel to 12 please come forward. Good afternoon, ladies, and 13 thanks for coming. 14 MS. FILIPPINI: Good afternoon. My name 15 is Rachel Filippini. And I'm the director of the Group 16Against Smog and Pollution. We're a Pittsburgh-based 17 organization that has been working to improve air 18 quality in southwestern Pennsylvania for more than 46 19 years. 20 Air pollution continues to plague the 21 Pittsburgh region. Allegheny County is currently a 22 non-attainment for ozone and the daily and annual PM 23 2.5 standards. Oil and gas operations are one of the 24 sources of pollution that is dirtying our air, making 25 people sick, and impairing people's quality of life.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 183 1 So we are appreciative, of course, that the EPA is 2 taking the important first step to control methane 3 emissions from oil and gas sources, and we're pleased 4 you're holding a hearing in Pittsburgh today. 5We know that the oil and gas industry is 6 the largest industrial source of methane, highly potent 7 greenhouse gas. In 2013, natural gas producers in 8 Pennsylvania alone emitted over 120,000 metric tons of 9methane or the equivalent of the amount of gas used to 10 heat half the homes in Pittsburgh. 11 Under the proposed standards, oil and gas 12 operators will install controls that will reduce not 13 only methane, but also ozone and particle-formed 14 pollutants and hazardous air pollutants as well. This 15 will generate significant public health benefits in 16 addition to climate benefits. 17 The EPA has said that nationally, the 18 climate and health benefits of the emission cuts is 19 estimated at $460 to $500 million. And we look forward 20 to a portion of those benefits coming to our region. 21 So while we're glad to see the EPA address 22 methane directly, the rules deal largely with new and 23modified sources and not so much from existing sources. 24 By 2018, nearly 90 percent of all methane emissions in 25 the oil and gas sector will come from new sources now

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 184 1 in existence, which are largely uncovered under the 2 proposal. 3According to the Environmental Defense 4 Fund, the proposed standards do include a way for 5 addressing existing sources in non-attainment areas 6 through control technique guidelines -- to get a 7 volatile organic compounds, an ozone precursor. For 8 many of the existing sources covered by the CTGs, EPA 9 leverage is the same technologies and practices that 10 the agency proposed to apply to new sources and the 11 rest of its rules demonstrating that we have the 12 technologies to cost-effectively deal with new and 13 existing emission sources. 14 States like Colorado and Wyoming have 15 effectively applied standards to reduce oil and gas 16 emissions from existing and new operations based on 17 these technologies, and EPA should follow. 18 Additional recommendations would be to 19 cover compressor engines located at well sites. 20 Compressor engines are frequently located at well 21 sites. In fact, in Pennsylvania, air regulations 22 provide an incentive for operators to locate them 23 there, as such engines are generally exempt from state 24 air-permitting requirements. 25We also suggest the EPA prioritize the

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 185 1 gathering additional data on accurately quantifying 2 methane emissions from liquids unloading of 3 hydraulically fractured wells and developing 4 regulations to control those emissions if they should 5 prove necessary. 6Additionally, the rules should be modified 7 to require the use of no lead pneumatic devices at all 8 sites where electricity is available. CSSD performance 9 standards already include that as a requirement. 10 Storage tanks should also be covered in the standard. 11 In many instances, the proposed standard 12 would allow source operators either to capture gas for 13 sale or for beneficial use on-site or to direct the 14 captured gas to a completion combustion device such as 15 a flare. From both an environmental and a 16 waste-of-wind standpoint the form option is always 17 preferable to the latter. EPA must specify the use of 18 completion control devices shall be permitted only 19 where it's technically infeasible to capture the gas 20 for sale, or on-site use, or to use zero-emitting 21 equipment. Such devices must also have a 95 percent 22 combustion efficiency or greater. 23While ultimately we must transition away 24 from fossil fuels to renewable energy and energy 25 efficiency in order to reap the most health and climate

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 186 1 benefits, we do commend the EPA for taking this first 2 important step in regulating methane. And we urge you 3 to do all you can to minimize methane from existing 4 sources as well. 5Thank you for your time. 6MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Filippini. 7 Any there questions from the panel? 8 Thank you. 9MS. HORNBOSTEL: Hi. I'm really 10 passionate about this. I'm thankful for this chance to 11 read my prepared testimony. 12 My name is Lois Hornbostel. And I've 13 learned so much listening to everybody else here today. 14 This country is a member of Arctic Council. We're 15 losing all the glaciers on earth. There's these bodies 16 of science. We need to cut back on the two main 17 greenhouse gases. Last year I was testifying on CO2, 18 and I didn't realize how awful methane was and how 19 awful fracking is affecting people's lives, taking 20 their lives away. 21 I -- I am 76, and somebody told me when I 22 was 75, I could say anything that I want. So I want 23 you to do the deal. Okay. I spent two-thirds of my 24 life in Cleveland, Ohio and the last third as a 25 resident of Columbus. Last year, I said, can you hear

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 187 1 me? You agreed that you can hear me. 2 I worked over four decades in the Clinical 3 Laboratory of Scientists in chemistry, immunology and 4 nuclear medicine. My chronic bronchitis is 5 attributable from harmful pollution from smog, 6 chemicals, and particulates in our environment. 7 When OSHA made directives for laboratory 8 chemicals way back in the '70s, or maybe the '60s, 9benzene, toluene and xylene had to be documented. And 10 then along came Dick Cheney and altered the Clean Air 11 Act and Clean Water Act, and he altered -- I read 12 Robert Kennedy, Crimes Against Nature. And these 13 co-pollutants, released with methane in the fracking 14 process, are the dangerous polluters in the gas and oil 15 drilling emissions that damage air quality, threaten 16 the health and well being of the public, and contribute 17 to climate change. The co-polluters are the volatile 18 organic compounds, called VOCs, that cause permanent 19 lung damage and early deaths. And from respiratory -- 20 from respiratory and cardiovascular causes. This has 21 been mentioned by RNs today. 22 The air toxics from the oil and gas 23 industry drilling caused cancer. The chemicals also 24 enter water tables and streams and make water unusable. 25 These are intangible memories -- measures of our past

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 188 1 failure to regulate methane and the whole fracking 2 process. These are escaping from hydraulic fracturing 3 drilling. This methane, the primary component of 4 fracking as the -- is invisible and odorless. And it's 5 the worst greenhouse gas, and 84 times more potent 6 than carbon dioxide. Which climate scientists say is 7 the most critical -- this is the most -- the 20-year 8 period is most critical time to keep emissions at bay. 9 Pound for pound, the comparative impact of methane on 10 climate change is 25 times greater than carbon dioxide 11 over a 200-year period. The industry has proven that 12 despite its protest to the contrary, voluntary efforts 13 will simply not work. Of the thousands of oil and 14 natural gas companies that is currently in operation, 15 less than one percent participate as partners in the 16Agency's long-standing Natural Gas STAR Program. 17 I support the proposed standards, and 18 would be concerned about any attempts by the industry 19 to weaken them. Thank you for being a part of the 20 multifaceted reform to solve a multifaceted problem. 21 But we must do more. We must turn back global warming 22 or we're going to lose the planet. Listen to the body 23 of science. 24 I've heard two glacial geologists speak. 25 They talk about it's cheaper to go green. And I'm from

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 189 1 Ohio, and the Republicans there busted our green energy 2 bill. That's why I'm so angry. 3What is the standards for controlling 4 methane must be effective standards for existing 5 sources also, not just new sources. Under the Clean 6Air Act, the EPA is now required to issue regulations 7 for states to submit plans for reducing methane from 8 existing sources. This will be critical. By 2018, 9 nearly 90 percent of the oil and gas sector's methane 10 emissions will come from sources that were already in 11 operation by 2011. But I question whether, in the 12 absence of the U.S. EPA mandates, states will have the 13 political will to even develop an effective plan. 14 For example, in an Ohio county recently, 15 emergency responders were called to a fire at a well 16 drilling. They were not being told what the chemicals 17 were involved in the fire. This strange result is the 18 fruit of an Ohio law designated to protect the 19 industry's so called "trade secrets" at the cost of the 20 health of its citizens. 21 The economic arguments to support 22 regulation of methane are quite compelling. Methane is 23 the primary component of natural gas. So the recovery 24 of methane, that wouldn't otherwise be emitted, can be 25 used for power generation, heating or manufacturing.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 190 1 In addition, projects to reduce methane emissions can 2 cut -- can put people to work and spur investment in 3 local economies. Though I believe it is equally 4 important to support clean, green, renewable energy to 5move us toward a liveable, sustainable planet. 6In summary, the fracking industry must not 7 be allowed to continue bad practices that harm our 8 communities and mar our landscapes. Please stand firm 9 on the regulation of methane. 10 Thank you for listening to my concerns. 11 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Ms. Hornbostel, 12 for your testimony. Any follow up from the panel? And 13 thank you both for being here today and testifying. 14 MS. HORNBOSTEL: Thank you. 15MR. THOMPSON: 16At this time I would like to invite Bill 17 Baker and Matt -- it looks like Wallace -- Walker -- 18 Matt Walker, please come forward. Bill Baker and Matt 19Walker. 20 Good afternoon, gentlemen. 21 MR. BAKER: Good afternoon. 22 MR. THOMPSON: Beginning with Mr. Baker. 23MR. BAKER: Hi. My name is Bill Baker, 24 B-I-L-L, B-A-K-E-R. I'm from Mansfield, Ohio, and I 25 want to thank the panel for allowing us to speak today.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 191 1 I do not have a technical written testimony. I guess 2 peer pressure worked in this occasion. The group I 3 came over with from Ohio was testifying, and I thought 4 it would be a good idea that I speak up as well. 5I really just want to tell you a story 6 about my hometown of Mansfield, Ohio. In 2011, we were 7 threatened by two Class II injection wells permitted by 8 ODNR in the State of Ohio, and wanted to be built by a 9 Texas millionaire, and -- and Pennsylvania's fracking 10 waste, along with West Virginia, would be brought in by 11 rail and injected into the ground on the north end of 12 our community. And, typically, what I learned is that 13many under-represented communities are the ones 14 targeted for a lot of this waste. That was true in 15 Mansfield as well. 16Our law director, our city council and the 17 residents worked together to draft an environmental 18 Bill of Rights, based on Ohio constitution, we are a 19 charter home rule community. And this was drafted in 20 the sense of actually targeting injection wells 21 specifically, which we were told not to do. But that 22 was the threat that was posed to our community. We 23 didn't take a stand on fracking, on the whole process 24 of shale extraction. We focused on what threatened us. 25A long story short, this was drafted in April of 2012.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 192 1 It was put up for a charter amendment, a vote to the 2 people in the fall. Our grassroots group, Frack Free 3 Ohio, raised and spent about $2,000 for the Yes Vote 4 Campaign. The industry spent over $200,000 to defeat 5 it. Across party lines, 66 percent of our community 6 voted in this environmental Bill of Rights. What that 7 said to us is that the burden is being placed on 8 residents and small grassroots groups to stand up for 9 the health of their communities, clean air, clean 10 water, fertile soil. 11 Now, I was -- I came here today in 12 cooperation with Sierra Club, Moms Clean Air Force, and 13 the Ohio Environmental Council. So I know that many 14 great organizations are working on getting you the 15 technical information and doing this. 16My point is that the industry has lots of 17 money to put into advertising to defeat communities. 18 They surely have money available to implement these new 19 rules and to clean the air up and to make it safer for 20 all residents. That's really all I have today. 21 Thank you for the time and thank you for 22 allowing us to speak. 23MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 24 testimony, Mr. Baker. 25Mr. Walker.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 193 1 MR. WALKER: Good afternoon. 2 MR. MOORE: Good afternoon. 3MR. WALKER: My name is Matt Walker and 4 I'm the community outreach director for the Clean Air 5 Council, an environmental health organization with over 6 8,000 members throughout Pennsylvania. The Council 7 fought to improve air quality across the region for 8 more than 45 years. 9Clean Air Council welcomes the 10 Environmental Protection Agency's first-ever proposed 11 methane pollution standards for new and modified oil 12 and gas facilities. The rules are a good -- a good 13 backstop to safeguard public health and cleaner air. 14 However, the rules will not adequately tackle the 15 thousands of tons of methane pollution currently 16 leaking from Pennsylvania's expansive gas industry 17 because they will largely only apply to new or modified 18 gas facilities, while expecting voluntary cooperation 19 from operators of existing sources. 20 Fracked gas is devastating to the climate, 21 especially over the next two most critical decades for 22 curbing climate change. Methane is over 86 times more 23 potent than the greenhouse gassing carbon dioxide over 24 a 20-year time period. 25In 2013, the oil and gas industry of

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 194 1 Pennsylvania leaked over 120,000 metric tons of methane 2 into the air, the equivalency of the two emissions is 3 burning 3.2 billion pounds of coal. 4 A recent study found, at least from 5 existing (not audible) facilities, used to process and 6 transport natural gas, could be as -- could be eight 7 times higher than EPA estimates. EPA's rules do not 8 adequately address cutting methane from existing 9pollution sources. 10 According to a 2014 study, about 90 11 percent of oil and gas methane emissions in 2018 12 nationwide will come from existing sources built before 13 2012. The Council urges EPA to develop rules that 14 reduce methane and VOCs from all new and existing oil 15 and gas sources as much as possible and as quickly as 16possible. 17 The Clean Air Council has also urged the 18 Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to 19 develop best-in-the-nation standards to address air 20 pollution leaks from the oil and gas industry and will 21 continue to do so. 22 There's a growing body of peer-reviewed 23 science that provides significant evidence of the 24 public health risks of shale gas operations. Unhealthy 25 levels of benzene and formaldehyde found down near

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 195 1 compressor stations. 2 Research from the Colorado School of 3 Public Health showed in some women in high-density 4 drilling areas had an elevated risk of birth defects 5 such as congenital heart disease and neural tube 6 defects. 7 Researchers -- researchers from Oregon 8 State University and the University of Cincinnati found 9 that in areas closed-tapped wells, the level of 10 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which are linked with 11 lung and skin cancer as well as respiratory effects, 12 exceeded the EPA's acceptable risk level. The risk 13 level only decreased by 30 percent three miles away 14 from an active well. 15A new study showed that people living in 16 heavily-fracked areas are hospitalized for heart 17 conditions, neurological illnesses and other health 18 concerns at higher rates than people that live in areas 19 with no fracking. 20 The scientific community is playing 21 catch-up with the rapid growth of this industry, and is 22 now just beginning to understand the full environmental 23 health implications of the industry. The strongest 24 safeguards are surely warranted. 25A number of the Council's members live in

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 196 1 Pennsylvania shale fields and have told us their 2 stories and concerns. Some people who have been 3 impacted by oil and gas operations, who are -- who are 4 working to protect their communities from impending 5 fugitive facilities are here today to tell you their 6 stories. You've heard a lot of them already. 7 I encourage the EPA officials to listen 8 carefully to what each of them has to say and act on 9 this information, to do as much as possible to protect 10 public health under the methane rules. 11 Many others impacted by oil and gas 12 infrastructure could not make it to the hearing or 13 can't speak because they're involved in lawsuits right 14 now. I talked to a few of our members who wanted me to 15 share a little bit of their story with you today. 16Jenny Lideseck couldn't be here. She's an 17 organic farmer in Clearfield County that has firsthand 18 experience with emissions from natural gas 19 infrastructure. She described one instance in which 20 she witnessed a venting plume of pollutants and then 21 immediately experienced a painful headache along with 22 her friends that were with her at the time. 23Multiple families in Susquehanna County in 24 Northeast, PA, who live near compressor stations, 25 started experiencing nosebleeds as soon as nearby

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 197 1 compressor stations started operating. 2 Kim Staub, of Washington County, couldn't 3 be here, she wanted me to relay this to you. She has 4 endured constant venting episodes from a pig launcher 5 close to her house, and has documented it with lots of 6 videos and photos. 7 Pam Judy, from Greene County, lives 708 8 feet from a compressor station. She's experienced 9 dizziness, vomiting, and vertigo to the point that she 10 was taken to the emergency room. Both of her children 11 experience nosebleeds. Judy and her family also 12 experience extreme headaches, sore throats, muscle 13 aches and the constant feeling of fatigue. 14 These are only a few of the many stories 15 about how people have been impacted by the gas 16 industry. Due to all of the health and environmental 17 impacts of the oil and gas operations in the industry, 18 it is imperative that EPA act quickly to address both 19 new and existing sources of methane pollution from 20 natural gas infrastructure. 21 Thank you for your time. 22 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 23 testimony, Mr. Walker. 24 Any questions for Mr. Walker? 25MR. MOORE: No.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 198 1 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you both for being 2 here today and giving testimony. 3At this time I would like to invite Ron 4 Altenburg and Jenny Demjanick to please come forward. 5MR. ALTENBURG: Good afternoon. 6MR. THOMPSON: Good afternoon. 7 MR. ALTENBURG: Good afternoon. My name 8 is Ron Altenburg, and I'm a director of the Energy 9 Center at Citizens for Pennsylvania Future or 10 PennFuture. We are a statewide membership-based 11 environmental advocacy organization that seeks to 12 improve the health and welfare of all Pennsylvanians as 13 we grow our economy. 14 We thank you for the opportunity to speak 15 here today in support of effective and comprehensive 16 regulation of VOC and methane emissions from the 17 natural gas industry. Pennsylvania is an 18 energy-producing state. We were home to the first oil 19boom and an early leader in coal mining. Currently, we 20 lead the nation in electricity exports, the least of 21 which come from our fleet of coal and natural gas 22 plants. We're No. 2 in the nation in nuclear 23 generation, and now, with the recent boom in shale gas 24 production, we could become No. 2 in natural gas 25 production as well.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 199 1 All across the state, we see the scars of 2 past energy production and live with the risks of 3 continuing operations. It's critical that, with this 4 latest energy boom, we recognize the lessons of the 5 past and get these regulations right. The stakes are 6 higher than ever. The leakage of methane isn't just a 7 local issue. And with a global warming potential of 84 8 times that of carbon dioxide, methane leakage is a 9potential climate killer. As the third largest 10 carbon-emitting state, controlling leakage in 11 Pennsylvania is essential to the success of our 12 national climate goals. 13We applaud the EPA for taking steps to 14 direct -- to directly regulate methane. And we 15 support -- we support the proposed regulations and ask 16 that they be finalized expeditiously. But we must face 17 the facts that these rules do not go far enough. 18 Pennsylvania has over 7,000 active wells 19 that are not addressed under the proposed rules. 20 Achieving these reductions -- achieving reductions at 21 these sites are left to voluntary measures. And 22 unfortunately, the data shows clearly that voluntary 23measures do not work. 24 Our Department of Environmental Protection 25 recently released inventory data, reported by the

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 200 1 industry, that shows lower methane emissions than in 2 prior years, but this is only part of the picture. 3 That data also shows that the reductions we achieved 4 come almost entirely from green completions mandated 5 after the EPA's 2012 rule. When we look at those 6 sectors not currently covered by regulation, the 7 emissions are on the rise. Pennsylvania currently 8 relies on a patchwork of policies to regulate methane 9 that rarely exceeds minimum federal requirements. 10 There's a blanket exemption from operating permit 11 requirements at oil and gas industry wells. There's a 12 lenient preconstruction plan approval exemption for 13 those sites. And there's an expedited permitting 14 process for sources that don't qualify for an 15 exemption. 16When we consider the scale of industrial 17 operations in Pennsylvania, it's vital that we ensure 18 our citizens are adequately protected. 19Permanent exemptions and voluntary 20 programs are not enough. We need direct regulation of 21 these sources. We are here today to call on the EPA, 22 on Governor Wolf, and our state's DEP to work together 23 and take the next step in providing effective emissions 24 controls at all of our wells. This starts with the 25 rules that are under consideration today, but it must

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 201 1 not end there. 2 The citizens of Pennsylvania deserve the 3 best protection available, and that means launching a 4 rule making that addresses existing sources as well. 5Thank you. 6MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Thank you for 7 your testimony. Follow up from the panel? 8 Thank you, sir. 9MS. DEMJANICK: Good afternoon. My name 10 is Jenny Demjanick, D-E-M-J-A-N-I-C-K. And I have been 11 a lifelong resident of Pennsylvania. I'm glad that the 12 EPA decided to hold one of their three methane hearings 13 here in Pennsylvania because Pennsylvanians are 14 significantly impacted by methane emissions. 15As you know, over the past few years, 16 Pennsylvania has greatly increased its production of 17 natural gas, the primary ingredient of which is 18 methane. Although it is true from a carbon dioxide 19 emission standpoint, natural gas is cleaner than coal, 20 Pennsylvania's other large energy source. 21 Unfortunately, as we know, there's a catch. Natural 22 gas may not increase our state's CO2 emissions, but it 23 does increase our methane emissions. 24 Both C02 and methane are greenhouse gases. 25 Thus, they both impact human-induced climate change.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 202 1 As it turns out, in the moment, methane doesn't stay in 2 the atmosphere nearly as long as CO2. It is a far more 3 potent greenhouse gas than CO2. In fact, methane is 84 4 times as powerful as CO2 during the time it remains in 5 the atmosphere. That means that even if you fully 6 implement policies, such as the recently finalized 7 Clean Power Plan, that intends to reduce our CO2 8 emissions, if you continue business as usual with 9methane emissions, we have gotten no where. 10 Methane emissions from the oil and gas 11 industry contribute about quarter of the total manmade 12 global warming we are experiencing today. 13Methane is the second most prevalent 14 greenhouse gas emitted in the United States from human 15 activities, and nearly 30 percent of those emissions 16 come from oil production and the production of -- 17 transmission and distribution of natural gas. 18 In 2013, oil and gas sources emitted over 19 7.3 million metric tons of methane, equivalent to CO2 20 emissions from over 160 coal-burning partlets. And 21 these emissions are projected to significantly increase 22 over the next decade without actions to lower Them. 23Thankfully in August, the EPA took common 24 sense steps forward by proposing the first ever 25 standards to reduce harmful methane pollution of the

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 203 1 oil and gas industry. However, the proposed Federal 2 Rules only cover new and modified sources of methane 3 emissions. 4 If Pennsylvania is going to continue its 5 investment in natural gas production, we desperately 6 need regulations to cover our existing methane 7 emissions. The EPA's methane rule is a good first 8 step, but does not go nearly far enough. There's 9 nothing to prevent the current sources of methane 10 emissions from continuing to release the harmful 11 greenhouse gas. It does not cover the thousands of oil 12 and gas wells in Pennsylvania currently spewing this 13 harmful pollution. Pennsylvania is our grids largest 14 electricity exploiter. Therefore, we share our 15 dependence on gas with over 51 million people across 13 16 states and, D.C., but we keep the cost of pollution 17 here in Pennsylvania. Thus, we need Pennsylvania to 18 step up and regulate the industry before it is too 19 late. The livelihoods of our children and their 20 children depend on it. 21 You would think that the industry would be 22 decreasing their own methane reductions because to them 23methane is their profit. They should be capturing the 24 methane and selling it. But that is not the case. It 25 is concerning that the EPA has emphasized having

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 204 1 voluntary measures that the industry can implement. 2 Even though there are some good companies out there 3 that have made some steps to reduce their emissions, 4 the number is still few and far between. 5In this country, it has been proven time 6 and time again that regulations are necessary to change 7 the behavior of an industry. The industry side always 8 says the same thing. It's too difficult and it's going 9 to cost too much. But thanks to regulations, countless 10 lives have been saved. 11 For instance, all cars are required now to 12 have seat belts. The ocean is no longer a dumping 13 ground for hazardous waste, and children's toys do not 14 contain lead. And it wasn't too difficult or too 15 costly to make any of those changes. 16Methane pollution poses a significant 17 threat to public health and is a potent contributor to 18 climate change. Until now, the oil and gas industry 19 has been allowed to dump methane pollution and other 20 harmful emissions into the air without limit. It is 21 time for the oil and gas industry to clean up its act 22 and stop jeopardizing the health and the welfare of our 23 communities. 24 Reducing methane emissions will also 25 reduce emissions are harmful pollutants that come

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 205 1 packaged with the methane and drain our public health. 2 Those pollutants include volatile organic compounds, or 3VOCs, which are a key ingredient in ground level ozone 4 or smog, as well as a number of air toxics. Smog is 5 associated with numerous serious health effects, 6 including asthma attacks, increased respiratory 7 problems, permanent lung damage, and early death from 8 respiratory and cardiovascular causes. Asthma is also 9 a serious issue, particularly in the Pittsburgh area, 10 where the air quality is quite poor. It's always 11 ranked very low. And air toxics are known or suspected 12 to cause cancer and other serious health problems. Our 13most vulnerable population is like young people with 14 asthma or seniors with respiratory disorders can no 15 longer afford for there to be no national limits on 16methane emissions from the oil and gas industry. 17 Setting methane standards will force the dirty 18 polluters, rather than our communities, to pay for the 19 cost of their emissions. 20 Thank you. 21 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Thank you for 22 your testimony. Any follow up from the panel? 23MR. MOORE: No. 24 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you both very much 25 for being here today.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 206 1 At this time I would like to invite Joy 2 Bergey and Melinda Hughes-Wert to please come forward. 3Good afternoon, ladies. 4 MS. SIMON-JOYCE: Hello. 5MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for being here. 6MS. SIMON-JOYCE: I'm not Joy Bergey. My 7 name is Mollie Simon-Joyce. I'm filling in for her. 8 And I am reading testimony on behalf of the Reverend 9Amy Reumann. That's R-E-U-M-A-N-N. 10 My name is Amy Reumann, and I am the 11 director Lutheran Advocacy Ministry in Pennsylvania. 12 Lutheran Advocacy Ministry serves the 1,300 evangelical 13 Lutheran churches in America congregations in the 14 Commonwealth through shaping faith-rooted advocacy on 15 issues that impact the health and well being of our 16 neighbors. 17 Thank you for the opportunity to speak 18 today in support of the proposed methane emissions 19 reduction and to underscore the urgency of their 20 implementation on behalf of God's creation and for the 21 common good. As Lutheran Christians, we understand 22 that we are called to protect the earth and to care for 23 our most vulnerable brothers and sisters. We have a 24 moral obligation to our neighbors who suffer now from 25 the effects of climate change which are exacerbated by

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 207 1 methane pollution. We are accountable also to future 2 generations by implementing the strongest possible 3 standards to plug the leaks and stop the pollution as 4 swiftly as possible. 5We speak out of concern for the 6populations most adversely affected by toxic air 7 pollutants that is emitted from the scene (sic) 8 equipment that leaks methane. The proposed standards 9 would simultaneously reduce methane and toxic air 10 pollutants that can cause serious health problems, 11 including cancer, asthma, and other respiratory 12 illnesses in neighboring communities. These impacts 13 fall heavily on vulnerable groups like children, the 14 elderly, of communities of color, as well as among 15 workers in the gas industry. Our communities across 16 the country are impacted by this toxic pollution and 17 are suffering and cannot afford the delay. 18 Methane pollution controls would help 19protect the health of our communities located near oil 20 and gas development by simultaneously cutting 21 smog-forming and cancer-causing pollutants from the oil 22 and gas sector. Low-cost technologies are already 23 commercially available to cut methane emissions from 24 leaking and venting equipment at oil and gas 25 facilities, and these methane-pollution controls also

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 208 1 help companies cut energy waste. Stopping the leaks is 2 common -- is just common sense and good stewardship of 3 resources. 4 These rules only limit methane from new 5 and modified facilities. We support regulations on 6 existing sources of methane pollution as well, which 7 account for 100 percent of current emissions. We are 8 faced with an important choice. We can act now and 9 help to protect future generations and God's creation 10 from the worst impacts of climate change or we can fail 11 to act and let our children and the earth suffer the 12 consequences. This rule is a critical step in the 13 right direction. 14 Thank you. 15MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Thank you for 16being here on behalf of Amy Reumann -- 17 MS. HUGHES-WERT: If I could move this 18 thing over. 19MR. THOMPSON: -- the Reverend Amy Reumann 20 respectfully. 21 Follow-up questions? 22 MR. MOORE: Just a brief one. I missed 23 the total name of the organization. 24 MS. HUGHES-WERT: Sure. It's the Lutheran 25Advocacy Ministry in Pennsylvania, LAMPA.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 209 1 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 2 MS. HUGHES-WERT: Hopefully, my paper 3 doesn't make too much noise. It kind of got rained on 4 on the way in. Got to love rain. 5Anyway, I want to thank everybody for 6 coming out and sharing their comments and also for you 7 all for the opportunity to share our thoughts on the 8 proposed methane emissions regulations. 9My name is Melinda Hughes-Wert and I live 10 in DuBois, Pennsylvania, Clearfield County. In 11 addition to be a citizen concerned about the health of 12 our environment, I'm also the President and co-founder 13 of a national nonprofit called Nature Abounds, which 14 has supporters and volunteers across all 50 states. 15Among our focus is natural resources extraction, which 16 we experience in our back yard with coal mining, 17 conventional gas and oil drilling, as well as fracking. 18 We have a significant focus on the effects of climate 19 change as well that I've been working on since 2006, 20 from which the world has already experienced and our 21 children and grandchildren will be far into the future. 22 We can't work on fracking or climate change without 23 also looking at the effects of methane emissions. 24 On top of that, I also have a Master's in 25 Environmental Law and Policy from Vermont Law School.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 210 1 So I'm actually very familiar with the INFRA XX 2 regulations, and I can't wait to close some of those 3 loopholes. 4 I strongly support EPA's recently proposed 5methane pollution standards for the oil and gas 6 industry, although I only see this as a first step. We 7 really need stronger protections to ensure a healthy 8 future for all living creatures, and many flora and 9 fauna species are already having to adapt to the warmer 10 world. Continuing to allow greenhouse gases continue 11 with industry going about business-as-usual only 12 worsens this problem. 13It is already known that methane is highly 14 potent greenhouse gas and in fact, you've heard this 15many times a day, 86 times as powerful as carbon 16 dioxide over the 20-year timeframe. Methane is a 17 powerful contributor to climate change. In 2013 alone, 18 oil and gas sources emitted over 7.3 million metric 19 tons of methane. This is one year. This is equivalent 20 to the carbon dioxide emissions from over 160 21 coal-burning power plants. And this one year of 2013, 22 methane also accounted for about ten percent of all 23 U.S. greenhouse gas emissions from human activities, 24 according to the EPA web site. 25With less methane in the atmosphere, we

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 211 1 also reduce risks. According to the U.S. Department of 2 Energy, the most significant health hazard, which I 3 haven't really heard this talked about too much today, 4 is actually the highly combustibility in mixtures of 5 just 5 to 15 percent of methane in air which can be 6 quite explosive. Large concentrations of methane in 7 close areas lead to suffocation with those large 8 amounts of methane decreasing the amount of available 9 oxygen in the air. 10 The effects of oxygen deficiency are 11 nausea, headaches, dizziness, and unconsciousness. 12 These are the effects on normal people. But the risks 13 are even greater for those with health problems, 14 especially respiratory. 15Which leads me to my next point. Many 16 fracking sites around the country are located in 17 mountainous areas, such as here in Pennsylvania or in 18 Colorado. Here, the air is known to get trapped 19between the valleys. And in fact, our area is known 20 for having some of the worst air pollution in the 21 country already due to that air becoming trapped. 22 We're also known for some of the highest rates of 23 respiratory issues, like lung cancer and COPD. Adding 24 more pollution only exasperates the problem, while 25 reducing methane emissions will help.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 212 1 So I'm actually going to flip a little bit 2 here. The air pollution that does escape those valleys 3 can travel far. A recent study by research at the 4 University of Maryland looking at hourly measurements 5 of ethane and methane, both gases found in natural gas, 6 they looked at in Baltimore and DC areas, between 2010 7 and 2013. While there wasn't much information on the 8 methane sources at the time, they found that methane 9measurements increased by 30 percent in that time 10 period. And, ironically, fracking operations aren't 11 found in Maryland or DC, but they are in the 12 neighboring upwind states of West Virginia, Ohio and 13 Pennsylvania where fracking was booming during this 14 period. Note that the researchers also ruled out other 15 potential sources of pollution. They also compared 16 their findings with cities that aren't downwind from 17 fracking operations such as Atlanta, and these areas 18 did not show changes in their ethane and methane 19 emissions. 20 In closing, the oil and gas industry must 21 take responsibility for their pollution rather than 22 asking the public and our environment to continue to 23 bear that burden. Too often is the profit privatized 24 while the effects and the clean-up are socialized. The 25 proposed standards will not only help with the methane,

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 213 1 but will also help to curb other hazardous air 2 pollutants, such as volatile organic compounds, which 3 are released from oil and gas sources alongside the 4 methane. And as I mentioned earlier, these proposed 5 rules are an important first step towards reducing the 6 harm of the industry. I hope that the EPA will 7 strengthen and finalize these rules, move swiftly to 8 issue the standards covering existing sources, within 9 the oil and gas industry as well as other contributing 10 sources from other industries. 11 I want to thank you again for allowing me 12 to share my thoughts. 13MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Thank you very 14 much. Any follow-up from the panel? 15Thank you both for being here today. 16MS. SIMON-JOYCE: If you want a copy of 17 this, I'll give it to you to make it easier. It's just 18 wrinkled. By the way, rain is awesome. There you go. 19 Thank you. 20 REPORTER: Thank you. 21 MR. THOMPSON: At this time I would like 22 to invite Michelle Chapkis and Ron Golla, please come 23 forward. 24 Good afternoon to both of you. Thank you 25 for being here.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 214 1 MR. GOLLA: Thank you. 2 MS. SANFILIPPO: Hello. My name is Sarah 3 Sanfilippo. I'm an intern and I will be speaking on 4 behalf of Michelle Chapkis -- 5MR. THOMPSON: Okay. 6MS. SANFILIPPO: -- on behalf of Women for 7 a Healthy Environment located in Pittsburgh, 8 Pennsylvania. Our mission is to educate and empower 9 women and those who love them to act as ambassadors 10 about environment risks. We carry out this mission by 11 educating the public about environmental exposures that 12 impact public health. 13Further, we advocate for policy solutions 14 that improve the quality of life for ourselves and our 15 region such as the one we are discussing here today. 16And lastly, we are a member coalition in 17 southwestern Pennsylvania that is working together to 18 clean up our air for the health of our families and 19 economy. 20 Women for a Healthy Environment strongly 21 support the oil and gas emission standards for new and 22 modified sources. The oil and gas industry is the 23 largest industrial source of methane pollution, a 24 highly potent greenhouse gas. 25One of our main program areas is Healthy

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 215 1 Schools, which focuses on creating a green and healthy 2 learning environment for all of those in the school 3 setting. Our organization recently created an online 4 mapping tool. We map all conventional and 5 unconventional active gas wells within a one-mile 6 radius of a school setting. Our analysis concluded the 7 following: There are over 380 unconventional wells in 8 southwestern Pennsylvania region situated within 9 one-mile radius of a public school building. There are 10 75 schools that have one or more wells within a 11 one-mile radius of the school building. And there are 12 30 school districts that have one or more wells 13 situated within a one-mile radius of one or more of 14 their school buildings. 15Children are especially vulnerable 16populations that need our protection. Pound for pound 17 children breathe more air, drink more water, and 18 consume more food than adults. Scientific studies 19 continue to assess and report on the health impact from 20 drilling operations, including the impacts of emissions 21 from this activity. When methane pollution is released 22 from leaky equipment to intentional venting, so too are 23 harmful pollutants and chemicals such as benzene, which 24 is linked to cancer and other smog-forming pollutants. 25 Not only do these oil and gas operations emit methane,

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 216 1 they also emit volatile organic compounds, VOCs. VOCs 2 form ozone, which is lung -- which is a lung irritant 3 and aggravates those with asthma. High hazardous air 4 pollutants, HAP, and VOC emissions, especially near 5 drill-completion sites can impact health, including 6 links to heart and lung disease. Particle pollution 7 from the drilling operation also leads to increased 8 rates in heart attacks, strokes, various cancers, 9 respiratory disease, such as COPD, and asthma. 10 As stated in the 2012, Pennsylvania Asthma 11 Burden Report, asthma rates in school children have 12 increased over the last decade by 60 percent. For the 13 approximately 15 percent of Pennsylvania children that 14 have suffered from asthma, this new standard will 15 reduce industrial pollution and help reduce missed 16 school days, severe asthma attacks and hospital visits. 17 Pennsylvania's air quality has been 18 diminished for decades, especially southwestern 19 Pennsylvania. In fact, the seven county Pittsburgh 20 area has not been redesignated to attainment status for 21 ozone exposure by the Environmental Protection Agency, 22 (EPA). Over the last several years, there have been 23many reports, statistics, and additional research 24 released documenting the poor air quality in our 25 region. According to the American Lung Association's

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 217 1 State of the Air report, the region has landed at the 2 9th worst in the country for year-round measures on 3 fine particle pollution, or soot, and the 10th worst 4 for short-term particle pollution, the number of days 5 with unhealthy particle levels when air quality is 6 especially dangerous. Pittsburgh metro also ranked 7 21st worst in the nation for smog in ground level 8 ozone. 9It's time to demand cleaner air for our 10 families so that our children can rest comfortably and 11 attend schools without coughing or wheezing from asthma 12 triggers such as emissions from these gas sources. The 13 proposed control methods are sensible, cost-effective, 14 and already in use across the oil and gas industry. 15It is vital that the EPA take a leadership 16 role on this issue and to also begin work on an 17 existing source rule. We are counting on you to 18 protect our children and their future by placing strong 19 federal controls on methane and VOCs from oil and gas 20 drilling operations. With the adoption of this rule 21 making, EPA has the chance to make a positive impact 22 and improve the health of those living in our region. 23 Thank you for your time and the opportunity to present. 24 We will also submit more comprehensive technical 25 remarks online.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 218 1 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. And, Michelle, 2 I didn't get your last name. Could you -- 3MS. SANFILIPPO: It's Michelle 4 Naccarati-Chapkis. Do you need the spelling? 5MR. THOMPSON: Please. 6MS. SANFILIPPO: N-A-C-C-A-R-A-T-I, dash, 7 Chapkis, C-H-A-P-K-I-S. 8 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 9MS. SANFILIPPO: You're welcome. 10 MR. THOMPSON: Any questions from the 11 panel? 12 MR. MOORE: No. 13MR. THOMPSON: Thank you very much. 14 MR. GOLLA: My name is Ron Golla. 15MR. THOMPSON: Take the mic, please, sir. 16MR. GOLLA: My name is Ron Golla. I live 17 in Washington County, Pennsylvania. I have spent 18 thousands upon thousands of hours investigating what 19 goes on in the oil and gas industry. And I was the 20 second horizontal well drilled in Pennsylvania. I was 21 the second test well. And Range Resources destroyed my 22 property. 23A long story short, I have gone out and I 24 have talked to hundreds of people who have been 25 affected by this water-well contamination, health

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 219 1 issues, loss of livestock. I've documented it. A lot 2 of this information has been documented. 3I want to read a story here today by -- 4 it's from one of the families I met in Clearville, 5 Bedford County. And I do want to make -- I want this 6 definitely to be on the record. I'm so tired of 7 hearing the word "anecdotal" from industry that no one 8 is getting sick and we don't have the water 9 contamination, because it's a pack of lies. We have 10 serious problems. I wish you could all spend two days 11 with me, and I will open your eyes. 12 Anyway, this story -- again, this is in 13 Clearville, Bedford County, Pennsylvania. We have 14 pipelines, gas wells, a 17 billion cubic feet 15 underground natural gas storage reservoir on 43 acres 16 with a 5,000 horsepower compressor station, 13 17 injection and withdrawal wells and transmission 18 pipelines that went into service in 2009. 19From 2009 to -- from 2009 to 2014, there 20 have been 61 blowoffs and blowdowns. These are the 21 ones that we know about. In 2013, there was a major 22 release of 431.5000 cubic feet of gas and chemicals, 23VOCs, released over a two-day period, according to PA 24 DEP records. 25No one in the community living near the

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 220 1 compressor station was ever notified. From the time 2 the compressor station went into service, we have had 3 health, animal, and environmental issues. We are not 4 being protected by our government or the industry that 5 has come into our community portraying to be a good 6 neighbor. 7 We need testing for the safety and welfare 8 of the community. The people of Clearville have the 9 right, under the PA Constitution, Article I, Section 10 27, to clean air. 11 There have been industry releases at well 12 sites that have caused headaches, bloody noses, 13 shortness of breath, just to name a few. We keep our 14 windows closed and are prisoners in our own home. 15EPA, do the job that you were created to 16 do, protect the people and the environment. We should 17 not rely upon any industry to be self-reporting. No 18 industry has the right to be exempt from clean air, 19 clean water, safe drinking water, the right-to-know, 20 the Super Fund Act, and the Toxic Release Inventory. 21 Wayne and Angel Smith. 22 Thank you. 23MR. THOMPSON: Thank you for your 24 testimony. Any follow-up from the panel? Again, thank 25 you both very much for being here today. Thank you.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 221 1 MS. SANFILIPPO: Here is a copy of my 2 testimony. 3REPORTER: Thank you. 4 MR. THOMPSON: At this time I would like 5 to invite Bob Donnan and Nick Goodfellow to please come 6 forward. 7 Good afternoon, gentlemen. 8 MR. DONNAN: Good afternoon. You want me 9 to go first? 10 MR. THOMPSON: If you're Mr. Donnan, 11 D-O-N-N-A-N, Donnan. 12 MR. DONNAN: I am Bob Donnan, D-O-N-N-A-N. 13MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. 14 MR. DONNAN: I'm from Washington County, 15 Pennsylvania. That's the next county south of here. 16In my 35 years of landscaping, it seemed 17 like we always had some fresh air. That seems to be 18 missing from Washington County now. A lot of mornings 19 I go out to the mailbox or to get the newspaper, and 20 the air smells industrial. A couple of days ago -- a 21 yard sample, okay, what's industrial? A couple of 22 days, it smelled oily. 23So the thing that actually got me started 24 six years ago, when this industry started to bestow 25 their blessings upon us, was this water test we had

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 222 1 done on our tap water in the South Hills of Pittsburgh. 2 And I think the most alarming part of it was 3 acrylonitrile was .9594, which is 11 times the level 4 permitted in streams. But it's not something our water 5 company tests for or is responsible for. 6So I've included on this some of the 7 flyers we got about total dissolved solids because 8 industry was dumping their frack waste into the 9Monongahela River. And I thank the EPA for whatever 10 they did to push the DEP along to get most of that 11 stopped. 12 So we've basically had 11 years of 13 unbridled development in Washington County. The first 14 well was fracked in 2004, the Marcellus Shale well was 15 in Washington County. And over that period, at least 16 according to the current -- the current web site from 17 Clean Air Council, we now have 34 compressor stations, 18 two gas processing facilities, and one Di dehydration 19 facility. This is just our county. This is just 20 Washington County. 21 So here's some postcard scenes from 22 Washington County. In 2011, this is a huge gas 23 processing plant, about seven miles upwind from us, 24 blowing off black smoke. Repeated in 2012, 2013, a 25 couple of times. These are just the ones people caught

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 223 1 on film. 2 Company personnel tried to minimize the 3 severity of these events by calling them "upsets". 4 2012, the Pittsburgh Tri-State area is 5 unique because of our hills and valleys. And what 6 we're starting to see more of, when we fly, are these 7 thin layer cake inversion layers over the Ohio River 8 valley. And this is down near where Joe Montana grew 9 up in -- near Monongahela. 10 One of the environmental specialists 11 commented about the December 2012 layer where we can 12 see air quality action days in winter in the future on 13mild days of a thick, yellow-cake haze of nasty 14 particulates continues. 152013, are things really getting better? 16 Here's a picture of a thin layer cake north of 17 Pittsburgh on April 27th. And here's another one on 18 October 12, 2013. "And what the frack? An ozone 19 action day in early December 2013?" And here you see 20 the graphic from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette where that 21 air contamination or pollution covered most of 22 Pennsylvania. 23Okay. I heard her mention Kim Staub, who 24 I know, about the pig launcher venting. This -- this 25 is a different pig launcher, but it's not very far from

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 224 1 the one in Hickory. So this -- this was occurring on 2 October 12, 2013 near Midway, PA, a couple of trucks 3 down there and company personnel. And according to 4 Kim, they've been at her pig launcher every day. Every 5morning you can almost set your clock by it. So what's 6 that putting into the atmosphere? 7 Okay. A tank battery out at the well and 8 compression station in Buffalo Township, Washington 9 County. I've helped out some of the people doing FLIR 10 work from Shell Test and Earthworks. And we were past 11 this tank battery a few years ago. And there was a 12 leak I'm going to show you next. We were past there 13 again about a year ago. And it was still leaking. 14 This is a -- the graphic of the FLIR footage. You can 15 see the -- you can see the pollutants coming out. So 16 that's never been fixed. I don't know who needs to be 17 checking up on that stuff. 18 Okay. So we have 34 compressor stations. 19Now, this is what the latest model look like. They've 20 built two of these south of the airport -- south of 21 Greater Pittsburgh Airport in Washington County; ten -- 22 close to 20,000 compressor horsepower. This is the 23 three brothers. Here's another out there called the 24 Smith Compressor Station. 25So I mean, how many of these can we

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 225 1 aggregate into one area? And hopefully, we have put an 2 end to flaring. This is the flare at the 3 December 5, 2014 -- at the Clintonville Sportsmen Club 4 for a Utica Shale well. So I would mandate green 5 completions. 6And finally, black carbon pollution 7 readings. You know, if each well takes 1,000 diesel 8 truck trips, what's that adding to this map of the 9 research being done by a CMU professor to the black 10 carbon? 11 Thank you. 12 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Let me ask, the 13 population of Washington County, would you happen to 14 know? 15Any questions from the panel? 16MR. DONNAN: We're probably one of the -- 17 the fourth or fifth most fracked counties in 18 Pennsylvania, Washington and Greene. There's a lot 19 that are panhandled to our west and a lot in eastern 20 Ohio. 21 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, sir. 22 MR. GOODFELLOW: Hi there. Good 23 afternoon. Welcome to Pittsburgh. Thanks for having 24 this hearing here. I appreciate the opportunity to 25 give comments on such an important step in shifting

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 226 1 from a fossil economy to a greenable economy. 2 So I am 24. I'm a student at the 3 University of Pittsburgh. I'm going to graduate in 4 December. Knock on wood. I'm skipping class to come 5 here. So we'll see how that goes. 6I am no scientist. And I've studied urban 7 studies and communication. And I'm just here because I 8 am a young person. And a lot of these big decisions 9 will affect me a lot in the future. I am a member of a 10 few environmental groups on campus, because I am 11 terrified for my future. And I'm motivated to try and 12 take some control over the climate change, and actually 13 the effects that it's having now are terrifying, and 14 having the potential to destabilize the world. 15I don't know if you're following the 16 events that are happening in Europe with the refugee 17 crisis. And as I'm sure you may know, there is a 18 linkage between climate change and that crisis. 19So in Syria between 2007 and 2011, there 20 were a series of droughts that led to crop failure and 21 people moving into rural areas. Subsequently, 1.5 22 million Syrians moved from rural areas to urban areas 23 which exacerbated an already unstable kind of political 24 situation in those urban areas, which then led -- then 25 led to the civil war that's been going on for four

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 227 1 years now -- four or five years. It's killed a quarter 2 of a million people and led to the displacement of nine 3million. You know, I'm not going to say the climate 4 change caused this, but it did play a significant role 5 in this. And we think that this is a bad problem right 6 now. This is a cup of tea compared to what could 7 happen when other nations are submerged, when people 8 living in low-lying coastal regions are forced to move 9 inland and to other areas because there is literally no 10 more land. 11 And we're not at the -- I wouldn't -- I 12 don't want to say we're taking a gamble by, you know, 13 continuing to use fossil fuels because the game is 14 already over with. We've played -- we've played our 15 hand. And we didn't make the right decision. We still 16 have a chance to try and fix the problems that we've 17 created. And I hope that the EPA, as well as the 18 citizens of the United States, and corporations, will 19 come together and make the right decisions to stop 20 using fossil fuels -- to stop relying on fossil fuels 21 for our economic and energy development and to 22 transition to a greenable energy future. 23Thank you. 24 MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, Mr. Goodfellow. 25Are there any questions for Mr. Goodfellow? Gentlemen,

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 228 1 thank you both for your testimony today. 2 MR. DONNAN: Do you want these over here? 3MR. THOMPSON: At the table -- the 4 registration table, sir. 5MR. DONNAN: Downstairs? 6MR. THOMPSON: Yes, sir. I'd like to take 7 a look at those later. At this time I would like to 8 invite Etta Albright and Dr. Yousef Zarbalian to please 9 come forward. 10 MS. ALBRIGHT: Hi. I don't know how to do 11 this? Would you like me to bring these up and maybe 12 you could just go through them as I talk? Or do you 13 want me to talk about them from here? 14 MR. THOMPSON: You can talk about them 15 from there. Or whatever is most convenient for you. 16MS. ALBRIGHT: Okay. I don't know how 17 much you could actually see. 18 MR. THOMPSON: Okay. 19MS. ALBRIGHT: I guess I better sit down 20 and introduce myself first. 21 My name is Etta Albright, A-L-B-R-I-G-H-T, 22 and I'm from Crescent, Pennsylvania. And I am a 23 citizen, but mostly importantly, I'm a grandmother. 24 This gets rather complicating. I'll move this over. 25This gets kind of complicated because

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 229 1 we're here to talk about methane, I know. But you 2 can't talk about methane without looking at the real 3 big picture. And next to move well above -- above Pope 4 Francis as far as being the steward -- a representative 5 of the stewardship of our planet is the EPA. I hope 6 you take that very seriously because in this climate 7 that we're living in, where we have citizens united, 8 where money is playing such a critical role in the 9 decision-making, threatening people who are in 10 responsible, professional positions to compromise their 11 integrity out of fear for a job and different things, 12 so that's how serious this is. So we know that methane 13 is very important as a -- as a greenhouse gas. But I 14 think they've downplayed the significance of it because 15 they're trying to present natural gas as a bridge for 16 this energy need. 17 And I was privileged to just attend a 18 presentation by Dr. Anthony Ingraffea at Cornell 19 University about the myths, really, that are being 20 perpetuated as far as gas being clean energy and that 21 this escaping gas -- the methane, escaping methanes 22 is -- is 25 times more serious as a greenhouse gas and 23 impact on this climate disruption than -- than coal 24 power plants. And the reason for that is because 25 there's so much of it, because methane is -- is not as

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 230 1 long-lasting. But the volume of it -- the volume of it 2 is -- is the most dangerous thing. So you can't wait. 3 You can't wait ten years. You can't wait to make this 4 decision. 5And we ask ourselves what kind of an 6 industry needs exemptions from clean air standards and 7 laws? Safe drinking waters laws? Public's 8 right-to-know laws? And any accountability or 9 responsibility for their actions. This is how this 10 industry came to Pennsylvania. This is sick. And it 11 wasn't -- it was a democratic governor at the time. 12 Governor Rendell. And Kathleen McGinty was the -- the 13 Secretary of Pennsylvania's Department of Environmental 14 Protection, when she invited the gas drillers to the 15 first ever cultural res (sic) in Pennsylvania. She 16 invited them to Harrisburg. In June of 2008, she 17 resigned as Secretary in July of 2008. And she's 18 running for public office now. So this goes along with 19 the moral fiber that's driving our country. 20 And the EPA -- I -- I read your -- your 21 proposal. It's here. Your news release that was just 22 published 8/18/2015. And it scared me because it says 23 the proposed standards that -- this is taken out of 24 context. The proposed standards will complement 25 voluntary efforts and were based on practices and

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 231 1 technology currently used by industry. 2 Now, we heard that when this fracking 3 industry came to Pennsylvania. The industry's own best 4 practice. They were in charge. And we now see what's 5 happened and what this continuing threat is by this -- 6 this human-induced climate disruption -- 7 human-activity-induced climate disruption. So 8 that's -- that's how serious this is. You can't toy by 9 letting this industry, who -- these people in industry 10 are no better than you and I with the same human 11 failings. And some of them are very aggressive and 12 domineering. 13We saw how Dick Cheney duped the Congress 14 and the United States to attack Iraq. We've got these 15 people at the head of industry who really aren't at the 16 foundation of us. Of us in common community. That's 17 been represented in our history over and over again. I 18 have some poignant pictures about what industry meant 19 to the people who worked in the mines. 20 MR. THOMPSON: Ms. Albright, your time has 21 expired. But I'm going to give you 30 seconds to start 22 showing us your -- 23MS. ALBRIGHT: Oh. Oh, dear, I'll hurry 24 because I'd like for you to see this. This is the copy 25 of the League of Women Voters gas shale extraction

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 232 1 study in public health. You need to be aware of. This 2 is about Dr. Ingraffea's presentation at -- at 3 Dickinson University. This -- this compositive picture 4 really tells it all. It shows how industry has come 5 into the world and taken over the resources and leaves 6 us in this very unhealthy dependency. And the caption 7 under here is "what's next?" So picture this 8 unhealthy, dependent role where we are many times, and 9 add compressors and pipelines, add all of this stuff 10 because this is what our communities are facing in 11 Cambria County. The gas industry is trying to sell 12 this to people to lay pipes and be dependent. 13Thank you -- thank you for your -- your 14 patience. 15MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Any follow-up 16 questions for Ms. Albright from the panel? 17 MR. DONNAN: That's 208,000; Washington 18 County. 19MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Population, for 20 the record, 208,000. Thank you. 21 DR. ZARBALIAN: Hi. My name is Yousef 22 Zarbalian. I commend the EPA for proposing actions to 23 limit EPA emissions, for like others here today, I 24 agree that -- to really limit emissions, we need to 25 look at older existing facilities. That's an important

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 233 1 next step. 2 Just to introduce myself a little bit 3 further. I am a young physician. I completed medical 4 school in 2010. I did a residency in internal medicine 5 at the University of Maryland, completed in 2013, I'm 6 currently at the University of Pittsburgh in training 7 in rheumatology. Rheumatology and fracking aren't 8 really related, but I've had a long interest in 9 environmental health, the intersection of where 10 environmental impacts -- environment impacts health. 11 And I've seen it growing up in Louisiana. And so -- 12 had oil spills there, as everyone is aware of. So it's 13 been kind of a long-standing interest. 14 Regarding -- I'm going to try to limit 15more the public health concerns regarding methane, 16 since that's what we're talking more specifically 17 today. 18 Regarding methane, approximately 19 40 percent more is released from hydraulic fracturing 20 as compared with conventional natural gas drilling, 21 according to data by Howard, other than it seems to be 22 there are various estimates. But I think it's 23 something that -- I think it is definitely good to 24 focus on. 25There are three main public health impacts

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 234 1 that I want to consider regarding methane. The first 2 being that methane is a surrogate for other volatile 3 organic compounds. Other people have touched on that 4 today. The second is that it's a powerful greenhouse 5 gas. The third is the flammability aspect. So I want 6 to focus on each of those. 7 Methane is -- basically, it's the most 8 simple hydrocarbon. It's carbon with four hydrogens. 9 There are five other volatile hydrocarbons in natural 10 gas that are going to be released with it. And those 11 are the ones that actually have known health risks. 12 Methane doesn't have directly -- other than 13 asphyxiation, which, I think, one of the speakers 14 mentioned. Other than asphyxiation, methane isn't 15 known to have a health risk. The other volatile 16 organic compounds which have been found in high levels 17 at sites of natural gas drilling have known both acute 18 and sub chronic and chronic health hazards. 19 Seventy-eight hydrocarbons were measured by Mackenzie, 20 et.al. in a 2012 study. And they estimated the risks 21 to neurologic, respiratory, hematologic, and 22 developmental risks. Those are all estimates based on 23 known prior toxicologic data. And those risks -- 24 follow up in toxicologic studies are limited because 25 this is a pretty new industry.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 235 1 The follow-up studies that I'm aware of 2 are the Gas Patrick (sic) Blood Study. It's an 3 informal study, but I think it's -- still think it's 4 important. This was released about three years ago. 5And it did find a correlation between distance from a 6 natural gas drilling site and prevalence of symptoms. 7 So the further you got away from the natural gas 8 drilling site, the less mucocutaneous symptoms in terms 9 of nosebleeds, headaches, and other neurologic 10 symptoms. They became less common as you increased 11 your distance from the natural gas site. But I think 12 it's important to take into consideration. 13Volatile organic compounds, as others have 14 mentioned, they're also an important predecessor for 15 ozone formation and ozone has been extensively 16 researched for its pulmonary and cardiovascular 17 toxicity. We know -- we know it really well. It's in 18 the literature. The greenhouse gas, I think everyone 19 has touched on already. Just to highlight that again. 20 Over a 20-year and 100-year timeframe, certain 21 engineers have estimated that unconventional natural 22 gas drilling would have a greener greenhouse gas 23 footprint than the other forms of natural gas -- other 24 forms of energy development, including coal and oil. 25And so I think those are estimates.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 236 1 But I still think we need to definitely -- 2 if we're going to continue natural gas drilling gas, 3 which, in my opinion, doesn't seem to be good idea. If 4 we're going to be continuing it, we should be 5 regulating it much more closely. 6The third part, flammability, which I 7 think others have touched on, Osborne et.al. looks at 8 60 private wells in close proximity to natural gas 9 development. They did find that methane concentrations 10 were 17 -- 17 times higher, on average, than the wells 11 that were near natural gas. So it actually met -- the 12 average methane concentration met the hazard medication 13 level recommended by the U.S. Department of the 14 Interior. So that, you know, it is clearly a 15 flammability hazard. 16I think the gentleman from Clearville, 17 Pennsylvania touched on a good point about anecdotal 18 evidence. I think that in public health, whenever you 19 have a new intervention, you have a new sort of thing 20 introduced to the environment, it's going to take time 21 to establish clear environmental health risks. So we 22 really need to take a look at anecdotal evidence 23 closely. We can't just, you know, shoo-shoo it and 24 say, "Oh, this is just -- you know, not" -- you know, 25 "it's not a randomized controlled trial." I think we

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 237 1 should look at that seriously. And I think the 2 precautionary principle is important to take into 3 account. 4 And I'll just read that from the World 5 Health Organization. "When an activity raises threats 6 of harm to human health or the environment, 7 precautionary measures should be taken even if some 8 cause and effect relationships are not fully 9 established scientifically." In this context, the 10 proponent to an activity, rather than the public, 11 should bear the burden of proof. 12 Thank you for having me. 13MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Thank you for 14 your testimony. Any follow up from the panel? Thank 15 you. Thank you both for being here. Thank you. 16At this time I would like to invite Jason 17 Gu and John Morgan to please come forward with 18 testimony. 19MR. GU: I guess I'll start. 20 MR. THOMPSON: Yes, please. 21 MR. GU: My name is Jason Gu. And I work 22 for SenSevere, a company that I started out of my 23 graduate career at Carnegie Mellon University. 24 Our mission is to actually develop and 25 deploy innovative new sensing technologies capable of

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 238 1 withstanding extreme environments and accurately report 2 chemical and process information. 3So over the past few years, it's been a 4 pleasure working with a wide range of customers, 5 including detecting hydrogen in wet chlorine gas 6 streams, hydrogen in nuclear power plants, bromides in 7 source water, and as well as remote sensing telemetry 8 with actually the U.S. EPA. 9The organizations that we've dealt with, 10 both industrial and federal, have come up with very 11 forward-thinking, very-welcoming to new and innovative 12 technologies that can help them do their jobs. 13My goal here today is not to directly talk 14 about the mechanism for regulation, but to discuss the 15 work that we've recently done with the Environmental 16 Defense Fund through the Methane Detector Challenge, 17 the significance of which may be able to reduce methane 18 leaks. 19The Methane Detector Challenge was aimed 20 at bridging the gap between the oil and gas providers 21 like Shell, Anadarko, and technology providers like us 22 to develop economically feasible and field ready units 23 capable of continuously monitoring methane emissions 24 from oil and gas installations. 25Continuous monitoring is currently too

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 239 1 expensive to deploy in the field, but recent science 2 indicates that leaks are probably higher than current 3 inventories and can occur at irregular times. 4 The Methane Detector Challenge aims at 5match -- at creating detection systems that will be 6 available at drastically lower costs with faster time 7 to market. 8 The end users -- the end users in this 9 case, the oil and gas industry, would have available 10 these resultant products which allows them to improve 11 processes from modern methane real time allowing for 12 organized responses to take place in hours, not months, 13 with modern infrastructure. It would also allow 14 operators to ensure the social rights to operate and 15 gain insights from the field that help prevent leaks. 16For technology providers like us, the 17 methane detector challenge provides relevant 18 specifications and detailed installation conditions 19 that allow us to tailor our technologies to specific 20 need. 21 We have developed such a system that has 22 performed well through two rounds of testing at 23 Southwest Research Institute. Our unit has been tested 24 in a laboratory. People detecting ppm levels of 25methane within a test chamber and also outdoors for

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 240 1 eight weeks in the San Antonio summer. It was 2 successfully detected in controlled releases of methane 3 with flow rates down to about one centimeter cubic feet 4 per minute located up to nearly 100 feet away. 5Our unit will likely be selected for 6 further tests with an industrial operator in 2016. 7 As this innovation and other innovations 8 become commercially available, we would like to 9 emphasize that regulation must allow and incent the 10 deployment of innovative technology capable of 11 streamlining the processes of detection to fix leaks 12 quickly, to prevent methane emissions and product 13 waste, and improve operational efficiency. 14 Any regulations need to have a clear 15 pathway for operators to be recognized for using 16 innovative technology, including continuous monitoring. 17 Without such a pathway, the proposed rule risks 18 freezing methane detection technology as it is today at 19 its current level. 20 I understand the EPA has asked for 21 comments on how to encourage technological advancement 22 in the methane rule. 23I'm not a policy expert. I'm an engineer. 24 So I will only reinforce that such a pathway for 25 innovation in the final rule is very important for

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 241 1 myself and other technology suppliers. 2 It is my hope that my voice in this forum 3 will better inform and enable additional contemplation 4 of how to best incentivize the rollout of innovations, 5 such as our continuous methane detection unit that has 6been developed, and put through its paces in our 7 participation at the EDF's Methane Detector Challenge. 8 Thank you. 9MR. THOMPSON: Thank you, sir. 10 Any follow-up questions? 11 MS. WALTZER: Sir, a second question. I 12 didn't get the name of your company? 13MR. GU: Oh. SenSevere. SenSevere. 14 SenSevere. So like we SenSevere. 15MS. WALTZER: SenSevere. 16MR. GU: Yeah. And everybody asks. It's 17 very clear. 18 MS. WALTZER: Thank you. 19MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Mr. Morgan. 20 MR. MORGAN: John Morgan from Delmont 21 County, Ohio. The climate science is clear that 22 developing and burning our inventory of shale gas is 23 incompatible with avoiding catastrophic climate change. 24 I support the proposed regulations as a 25 step in the direction of curbing the chronic problem of

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 242 1 methane emissions from leaking wells. But I believe it 2 is too little and too late. Not only is shale gas bad 3 for the regional environment and the global climate, 4 but it is also a terribly misguided energy investment 5 for our country. Most stories touting the game changer 6potential of shale gas and oil are based on the 7 industry hype for U.S. energy information 8 administration projections, EIA, which have been 9 notoriously unreliable. 10 There have been two independent in depth 11 studies released in 2014 analyzing the future potential 12 of the shale gas boom. One titled "Drilling Deeper" by 13 David Hughes and "Shale Resource and Reserve Study" by 14 the University of Texas, Bureau of Economic Geology. 15Geological consultant, Arthur Berman, said 16 of these studies, quote, "The UT study and the David 17 Hughes study looked scrupulously at every single well 18 and did reserve estimates for every single well. They 19 did all of the economics, all the geology, all the 20 engineering, all the geophysics. EIA doesn't do that 21 level of work. And they would be the first to admit it 22 to you." I don't think -- "I don't even think that the 23 EIA has a geologist on staff," end quote. 24 Both of these studies estimate that shale 25 gas production in the U.S. will peak and start to

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 243 1 decline in the next four to seven years. This is 2 related to the fact that failed wells 3 characteristically reached peak production and go into 4 terminal decline almost immediately after completion. 5 The only way production could be maintained is by 6 constantly drilling new wells and constantly increasing 7 the risk. And since the sweet spots are always drilled 8 first, it becomes steadily more difficult and expensive 9 to maintain production. Some analysts have described 10 shale gas investment as more than a bubble, a Ponzi 11 scheme. 12 A myopic obsession is keeping the U.S. 13 fossil fuel industry growing at all costs has blinded 14 us to the lunacy of making this massive material and 15 financial investment in such a short-term energy fix 16 with very long-term environmental consequences. Future 17 generations will not appreciate our having consumed the 18 short-term gain, while leaving behind a toxic and 19 finite damaged legacy. Would it be -- wouldn't it be 20 wise to do what we should have done at the beginning of 21 this process, make a careful and honest risk/benefit 22 assessment before we go all the way. 23MR. THOMPSON: Does that complete your 24 testimony? Thank you. 25Are there any follow-up questions for

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 244 1 Mr. Morgan? 2 MR. MOORE: No. 3MR. THOMPSON: Thank you. Gentlemen, 4 thank you both for your testimony today. 5Okay. At this time we're going to take a 6 short break. We'll reconvene at 3:45. Thank you, 7 folks. 8 (Recess in proceedings.) 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 245 1 MR. COZZIE: Good afternoon. At this time 2 I would like to reconvene the panel and restart the 3 hearing. Please indicate on the record that David 4 Cozzie has replaced Fred Thompson as the chair. 5And at this time, I would like to invite 6Michael Backus to come forward. 7 MR. CANNING: By myself, huh? 8 This is -- this is not my testimony. This 9 was actually sent here by Alana Tichin, an 11 year old 10 rising sixth grader from Middlesex Township, Butler 11 County, where I live. 12 My name is Michael Badges-Canning. I am 13 from Butler County, Pennsylvania. I am here as a 14 representative of Marcellus Outreach Butler. I'm also 15 the green party candidate for Butler County 16 Commissioner. 17 While I applaud the EPA for considering 18 ways to regulate methane, I don't think you've gone far 19 enough. At this critical time, releasing any methane 20 is problematic. 21 Further, when it comes to natural gas 22 extraction, methane emissions, to borrow a tag line 23 from the industry, "are just the beginning." 24 I live in Butler County, a frontline 25 community just a few miles north of here. We have

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 246 1 ample evidence that this industry can't control any of 2 its emissions, despite the stringent regulations in 3 place. The presumption by the EPA that new regulations 4 will somehow help them get their act together is akin 5 to the magical thinking my grandson expresses when he 6 leaves cookies for Santa, carrots for the Easter Bunny, 7 and puts his tooth under his pillow for the tooth 8 fairy. 9Further, we here in the shale fields have 10 little faith in the regulatory agencies that are in our 11 lives, the Department of Environmental Protection here 12 in Pennsylvania, which we call "Don't Expect 13 Protection," and the EPA, which has bungled a nickname 14 (sic) situation that it is a little more than an 15 enabler for the industry. 16What are the consequences of regulating a 17 dangerous greenhouse gas? Let's look at it this way. 18 If you have a fever, do you ingest more of the 19pathogens? I don't think so. 20 But the consequences go far beyond methane 21 emissions. In order to get the methane, it has to be 22 extracted. And this industry has demonstrated that it 23 can't do that safely. In Butler County, we have a 24 community of woodlands that has been without water for 25 almost five years. That tiny community, of around

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 247 1 400 acres, is surrounded by over 70 wells, and their 2 water has, among other things, benzene and toluene. 3 They've been relying on a water bank run by the White 4 Oak Springs Presbyterian Church. Unfortunately, that 5 water bank, which was serving over 50 families a week, 6 giving them 20 to 25 gallons of water, recently ran out 7 of money. These people are not rich and powerful. 8 They're people just getting by. Most of their savings 9 are in their houses, which are now worthless. 10 In September of 2013, I got a call from a 11 mother in Summit Township. She was distraught because 12 the Kozik brother's well was flaring. This well was 13 located 500 feet from the playground at Summit 14 Elementary, 700 feet from the school, 900 feet from the 15 furthest point in the school. When I arrived, I 16 observed a group of children playing soccer on the 17 playground. I was alarmed. So I contacted Southwest 18 Pennsylvania Environmental Health Project and asked, 19 "Am I crazy?" "No." They issued a health advisory. 20 Any company that would engage in that sort 21 of reckless behavior exhibited by this driller should 22 be sanctioned. But, apparently, this is a permitted 23 activity. 24 Many of us in the shale fields hope the 25 EPA's air rules for the oil and natural gas industry

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 248 1 would curtail dangerous frack practice of flaring. The 2 implementation of green completion was cheered by many. 3 However, the night before last, while attempting to 4 view the Super Blood Moon and its eclipse, my eyes were 5 yanked to the north where I observed an ominous, 6 oscillating red glow on the horizon. My wife, Karen, 7 and I jumped in our car hoping against hope, that it 8 wasn't the Cratty well flaring a few hundred yards from 9 where our granddaughter was sleeping. It was. 10 Closer reading of the air rules is 11 instructive. It states in part, "to ensure that smog 12 forming volatile organic compounds are controlled 13 without slowing natural gas production." Indeed, 14 poisoning people in the planet is permissible, if to 15 act to protect people in planet would hurt production. 16Regulation of methane -- when my grandson 17 tells me about unicorns, I nod and smile and marvel at 18 the innocence of a four year old. 19I would like to close with a quote from 20 Wendel Berry. "We're destroying our country. I mean, 21 our country itself. Our land. This is a terrible 22 thing to know. But it is not a reason for despair 23 unless we decide to continue the destruction. If we 24 decide to continue destruction, that will not be 25 because we have no other choice. This destruction is

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 249 1 not necessary. It's not inevitable except by our own 2 submissiveness, we make it so. We Americans are not 3 usually thought to be submissive people. But, of 4 course, we are. Why else would we allow our country to 5 be destroyed? Why else would we be rewarding its 6 destroyers?" Why else would we call -- "Why else would 7 we all, by proxies, we have given to greedy 8 corporations and corrupt politicians we participate in 9 its destruction?" 10 Most of us are still too sane to piss in 11 our own cistern, but we allow others to do so. We 12 reward them for it. So, in fact, the ones who piss in 13 our cistern are wealthier than the rest of us. How do 14 we submit? By being not radical enough. Or by not 15 being thorough enough, which is the same thing. Ban 16 fracking. Thank you. 17 MR. COZZIE: Thank you. Any questions 18 from the panel? Thank you for your testimony. 19At this time I would invite Randy Sargent 20 and Patricia Marida. 21 MS. DeMARCO: I'm Patricia DeMarco. Do 22 they have the name wrong? 23MR. COZZIE: No. I have DeMarco on the 24 next sheet. M-A-R-I-D-A. All right. Well, 25 Mr. Sargent.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 250 1 MR. SARGENT: Thank you. My name is Randy 2 Sargent. I'm a scientist at Carnegie Mellon 3 University's green lab here in Pittsburgh. I'm 4 grateful for the opportunity to speak to you today. 5And I'm grateful especially at EPA's proposed rules to 6 the methane emissions. I'm strongly in favor of 7 limiting methane emissions. 8 A very significant infraction of the 9 United States country is being shown to climate 10 changing and greenhouse gases in the earth's atmosphere 11 comes from the methane emissions due to human activity. 12 The largest source of that emission in the United 13 States is oil and gas extraction. Simply put, if we 14 extract nothing from the ground, we let some of it leak 15 into the atmosphere. 16Two years ago, Miller et.al surprised us 17 with news that direct measurements of methane indicated 18 that fossil fuel extraction was actually leaking around 19 five times as much methane as official estimates have 20 previously claimed. Five times. How could this be 21 happening and how could we take action to reduce these 22 leaks? That's precisely why the discussion today is so 23 important. So thank you for having them. 24 There's no economic benefit to leaking 25methane when extracting gas and oil. Instead it causes

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 251 1 lung problems. Let's start with climate change. It 2 increases extreme weather events such as droughts, 3 floods, heat waves, cold waves. There are large costs 4 across many sectors adversely affecting transportation, 5 infrastructure, water infrastructure, direct down Utica 6 flooding, mitigation to prevent flooding, additional 7 energy use due to temperature extremes, loss of trees 8 that attract disease, increased health care costs, to 9 name a few. 10 Higher over winter temperatures are 11 increasing the ranges of some harmful insects, for 12 instance, the prevalence of Lyme disease here in the 13 east. In the past decade, we've seen a seven-fold 14 increase in Lyme disease here in Allegheny County. And 15 killing lots of large spots of trees in the western 16 states due in part to these infestations. 17 More globally, we see similar costs at 18 larger scale. Leaking gas here in the United States 19 impacts climate across the globe. Living in the United 20 States, we see the difficulties that farmers today in 21 California or Texas have coping with droughts. The 22 United States is relatively robust to these problems. 23Let's contrast with the drought in Syria, 24 which started in 2007. When crops failed, we had 25 1.5 million people, that's about seven percent of the

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 252 1 country's population, moved from farmlands to the 2 cities, concluded by the recent research done by 3 Kelley, et.al. Quote, "There is evidence that the 4 2007-2010 drought contributed to conflict in Syria. It 5 was the worst drought in the instrumental record 6 causing widespread crop failure and mass migration of 7 farming families to urban centers. Century-long 8 observed trends of precipitation, temperature, and 9 sea-level pressure, supported by climate model results, 10 strongly suggest that anthropogenic forcing "in human 11 caused climate change" has increased the probability of 12 severe and persistent droughts in this region, and has 13made the occurrence of a three-year drought as severe 14 as that of 2007-2010, two to three times more likely 15 than by natural variability alone. We conclude that 16 human influences on the climate system are implicated 17 in the current Syrian conflict," end of quote. 18 The humanitarian cost of the civil war in 19 Syria has been very high. Over a quarter of a million 20 people dead, over three million refugees, now spilling 21 economic costs into the rest of the world. 22 We know with certainty that as we continue 23 to increase greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, extreme 24 events like the drought in Syria will continue to 25 increase in frequency and severity.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 253 1 Let me switch gears to the side benefit of 2 reducing methane emissions in the oil and gas 3 extraction, particularly with unconventional extraction 4 of shale, oil, and gas drag (sic) on fracking, methane 5 isn't the only substance leaking. For areas with oil 6 or wet gas extraction, heavier compounds leak in some 7 of the same paths as the lighter methane, the BTEX test 8 compounds, benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes are 9 found in high concentrations in fracked wet gas and oil 10 and are directly harmful to human health, as you know, 11 causing cancer and a number of other direct health 12 impacts. 13A number of studies have shown increased 14 number of problem in proximity to oil and gas fracking. 15 Reducing methane emissions from these sites should help 16 to somewhat reduce emissions of the heavier compounding 17 substances as well. 18 In summary, I strongly favor limited 19methane emissions and believe we have both an economic 20 and the moral imperative to further decrease the 21 emissions of climate change, greenhouse gases, and its 22 accompanying pollution. 23Thank you. 24 MR. COZZIE: Thank you for your testimony. 25Any questions or clarification from the panel? Thank

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 254 1 you. 2 At this time I would like to invite 3 Thaddeus Popovich and Patricia DeMarco. 4 MR. POPOVICH: I have some hand-outs. 5 You can follow along, make sure I don't make any 6mistakes. 7 MR. COZZIE: Thank you. 8 MR. POPOVICH: Thank you for having this 9 hearing. This is the second EPA hearing I've had the 10 pleasure of saying something, and I hope it's valid 11 information I'm sharing with you. 12 My name, again, is Thaddeus Popovich. And 13 I live at 6606 Virginia Avenue in Ben Avon, a small 14 borough six miles downriver from Pittsburgh from where 15 we are now. 16And I'm -- I'm going to talk about coke 17 plants, and you might say, well, what does that have to 18 do with anything? But coke plants are the emitter of 19methane, especially when coke in its raw state. And 20 I'm going to read what I -- testimony that I gave to 21 the Allegheny County Health Department at their Board 22 of Directors meeting, because the health Department in 23Allegheny County is the regulator for the EPA for air. 24 And we think they can be doing such a better job than 25 they're doing. How about that? So let me continue.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 255 1 We continue to be unsettled with the 2 haphazard way the DTE energy. They're the owner based 3 in Detroit. They're a Fortune 500 company who operate 4 this plant. The latest example is shown in the 5 embedded photo taken by a resident of Emsworth, an 6 adjourning borough, on June 11, 2015. The plant lost 7 power for nearly an hour, emitting raw coke gas and 8 toxic emissions. An hour. Amazing. And what's in 9 coke gas? How about this? Besides 55 percent 10 hydrogen, which is flammable -- very flammable; 11 methane, 25 percent. Twenty-five percent of methane 12 comes out of raw coke gas. 13Fortunately, our Allegheny County Clean 14 Air Now, that's the grassroots group that I helped 15 co-found, had a meeting scheduled the very next day 16 with the Allegheny County Health Department Air Quality 17 Program. We urgently requested Jamie Graham, who heads 18 up the Air Quality Division, and her colleagues to 19 investigate this episode and keep us informed of 20 violations and possible fines. We have to push for 21 information, even though we're the ones who are 22 affected. 23She shared with us, ultimately, a notice 24 of violation that identified four violations over a 25 four-week period, requiring emergency flaring over raw

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 256 1 coke oven gas. Four times in a month's period. We can 2 send people to the moon, why can't we figure out how to 3 keep a coke plant operating? 4 And God knows how many times it's happened 5 before this, and still is happening. Two of those 6 episodes were caused by an upset of electrical power. 7 They have such things as backup power generation 8 devices, I think. Okay. 9Thursday, August 13th at 9:18 a.m., 10 another power outage mapped because we wanted to stay 11 in contact with the plant manager. We try to be nice 12 to everybody. And Mike Zuwaki, acting manager, could 13 not be found, because as the guard said, they're 14 scrambling. The managers and others are scrambling 15 because of a power failure. A fifth one. A fifth one. 16This plant -- this plant scares the hell 17 out of me. Excuse my French. There have been multiple 18 power outages since DTE Energy purchased it in April of 19 2008. There have been multiple consent decrees. Our 20 health department negotiating these consent decrees. 21 It doesn't get any better. It is a rogue factory, and 22 it's owners are irresponsible. Simple. Simple to me. 23 I come out of industry, by the way. Not that industry. 24 Now, we have a third plant manager gone and an acting 25manager in place. So what do you think is going on?

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 257 1 Do they know what they're doing? I don't. I won't 2 answer that question. 3Okay. I'm very concerned for all of 4 the -- all of us and the people on-site, the employees 5 and those of us who live in the surrounding 6 communities. There are 70,000 of us who live within a 7 three-mile radius. Seventy thousand people. 8 And I was directing this to the board 9members. And we think they're supposed to be concerned 10 about our health and well being. And there are six 11 members of the board who are M.D.'s, doctors -- medical 12 doctors. And I asked them to re-examine their 13 Hippocratic Oath and support stronger efforts to 14 resolve this community health problem. And I said, 15 "Please help us shut it down." And I want the EPA to 16 help us shut it down. 17 We've invited Shawn Garvin from 18 EPA Region 3 headquarters to be with us. I know you 19 know him. He may or not come. But some people had 20 said they will come visit with us again. We had 21 visited their offices last -- earlier this year and 22 said, "We need help now to fix things like this." And 23 they have since visited us twice. And we're going to 24 keep at it. Maybe -- we wanted the Pope to come, but 25 he was busy.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 258 1 So thank you for your time. I appreciate 2 it. The red light, Mr. Popovich. 3Any questions? Anything? 4 DR. DEMARCO: Thank you. My name is 5 Patricia DeMarco. I live in Forest Hills, a suburb of 6 Pittsburgh. I am a biologist by training, with a 7 30-year career in energy and environmental policy. I'm 8 speaking to you today on behalf of my grandchildren and 9 all of the children of the 21st Century who will be 10 affected by the actions that we take today. 11 I support your efforts to regulate the oil 12 and gas development industry. As part of the 2009 13 Endangerment Finding, the EPA Administrator declared 14 that the current elevated concentrations of greenhouse 15 gases in the atmosphere may reasonably be anticipated 16 to endanger public health and welfare of current and 17 future generations in the United States. In the 18 background documents of this regulation, you state, "As 19 earth continues to warm, it may be approaching a 20 critical climate threshold beyond which rapid and 21 potentially permanent...changes not anticipated by 22 climate models tuned to modern day conditions may 23 occur." 24 In the face of such dramatic findings, the 25 regulations you propose here have the effect of putting

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 259 1 a Band-Aid on a hemorrhage. The regulations you're 2 considering come late in the process for an industry 3 that is shamefully protected by Section 322 of the 4 National Energy Act of 2005 with exemptions from the 5 Clean Air Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act, and the 6 Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. These 7 exemptions for high volume hydraulic fracturing and 8 other deep drilling operations assure weak regulatory 9provisions on your part. Nevertheless, as citizens, we 10 must reiterate the plea for regulations that take 11 consideration of the public health and safety for those 12 affected by fugitive methane and volatile organic 13 compounds produced at all stages of the gas and oil 14 production process. As you consider the reams of data 15 already received in this docket, I ask that you 16 recognize that the hydraulic fracturing process for 17 developing natural gas from deep shale formation 18 happens in neighborhoods, next to schools, in and under 19 the parks, and on farms where our food is grown. 20 For example, the neighborhood adjacent to 21 me has 5,000 people living in it. It's almost 22 exclusively residential. EQT Corporation has begun the 23 process of trying to lease for natural gas production 24 by fracking in a former golf course, right in the 25middle of a residential neighborhood.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 260 1 The industry has intruded with impunity 2 into the most intimate parts of communities and sets up 3 industrial operations adjacent to sensitive areas and 4 in watersheds. Fugitive emissions from such operations 5 affect people where we live, work and play. 6The EPA's mission is to protect human 7 health and the environment, but it has lost the 8 confidence of the people because the industry has 9 eviscerated its capacity to act strongly in the public 10 interest. 11 The EPA's purpose is to ensure that all 12 Americans are protected from significant risks to human 13 health and the environment where they live, learn, and 14 work. These restrictions, regulating the emission of 15methane and volatile organic compounds from oil and gas 16 industrial operations, must draw a clear line of safety 17 for the public. 18 Hydraulic fracturing now takes place in 39 19 states, with millions of people living within 20 five miles of a fracking facility. For people in the 21 zone of impact, the national average data used for 22 assessing "significant risk" are not relevant. If your 23 house is within 100 feet of a well, or your school is 24 200 feet from a compression station, or your business 25 is 300 feet from a processing facility, you are exposed

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 261 1 to numerous volatile organic compounds. 2 Dr. Theo Colborn and her colleagues 3 compiled a list of 632 chemicals, which is incomplete 4 due to the proprietary and secentry -- secrecy 5 exemptions. But they identified in drilling operations 6 throughout the United States, they found that 7 75 percent of those chemicals could affect the skin, 8 eyes, and sensory organs, and respiratory and 9 gastrointestinal systems; 40 to 50 percent could affect 10 the brain and nervous system, the immune and 11 cardiovascular systems and the kidneys; 37 percent 12 could affect the endocrine system, and 25 percent could 13 cause cancer and mutations. 14 Fugitive methane mobilized by the fracking 15 process has migrated into water supplies, even wells, 16posing significant health and safety hazards to persons 17 affected. Inquiries for documentation about the number 18 of people for whom gas companies are providing trucked 19 drinking water were not obtainable, being considered 20 proprietary information. Requests for documentation of 21 the composition of the emissions that people are 22 exposed to in their neighborhoods were not obtainable 23 because the industry has no requirement to disclose or 24 even measure what they are. 25This arrogant attitude of disregard for

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 262 1 the concerns of people about their health and safety 2 cannot stand. 3I have further technical recommendations 4 which I've submitted on record and which are available 5 to you in writing. 6Thank you. 7 MR. COZZIE: I appreciate that. Thank you 8 for your testimony. Any clarifying questions from the 9panel? 10 Thank you both very much for your 11 testimony this afternoon. 12 Patricia Marida. 13At this time I invite forward Ron Slabe 14 and Barbara Briggs. 15MR. SLABE: You can go first. 16MRS. BRIGGS: Hi. Good afternoon. My 17 name is Barbara Briggs. And I live in Pittsburgh. 18 Seven years ago my husband and I bought a camp in the 19middle of the Allegheny forest in a place called 20 Brookstone, right in the crosshairs of Forest, Elk, 21 Warren and McKean Counties. We've grown to love this 22 place for the wildlife and the natural beauty. But 23 that experience has been shattered for us with a real 24 deep sadness and concern around the drilling emissions, 25 the water methane infiltration that we see. But I'll

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 263 1 focus on -- on the air and the gas. 2 The valleys and the ridges around us are 3 laced with dirt roads that are carved through the 4 forest that lead to gas and oil drill sites. And if 5 you look on the second page of the handout I just 6printed out a big Google Earth satellite photo, and you 7 can just see how the roads have gone absolutely 8 throughout the national forest, leading all to drill 9 sites. This isn't a mostly -- most of this isn't 10 methane Marcellus Shale drilling. It's shallower 11 wells. The place was first drilled, it was site -- the 12 original oil drilling about 160 years ago. And those 13 exhausted wells have now been fracked again to make 14 them productive for both oil and gas extraction. Also, 15 hundreds of new wells have been drilled. And in 16 addition to the roads to the drill sites, the forest is 17 absolutely crisscrossed with pipelines to carry the gas 18 out of the forest. So this is just a bit of a story 19 of, you know, what it looks like and what it smells 20 like on the ground. 21 About 500 feet from our house, there's a 22 gas extraction pad with six wells and a couple of 23 collection tanks. The ridges above us are -- you know, 24 there are many, many more wells on the ridge, right 25 above our house. There's a loop of dirt road with

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 264 1 branches every hundred yards or so to individual well 2 sites. The smell of the gas hangs in the air. I mean, 3 especially when -- when it's foggy. There's certain 4 places along the seven miles of our road, Watson Farm 5 Road, where the gas smell is -- is completely 6pervasive. Every time we pass it. It's there and very 7 heavy. 8 There's at Old Woods Road, at the top of 9 the hill, that runs for miles through the forest, and 10 every hundred yards or so, there's a new dirt road 11 busted through the forest to go to more -- to more 12 drill pads. There are also a number of holding tanks 13 at various points along the road. And each of them has 14 little chimneys on the top and you can see the -- the 15 volatile gases just -- just releasing. You can see it 16 going up into the air. And you can smell it, in the 17 middle of the Allegheny National Forest, and, yet, the 18 air is always heavy with gas fumes, especially right 19 around the gas pads and some of the tanks. 20 I thought about looking for a way to test 21 the air. But so far haven't found any that was 22 affordable or that could be managed by someone without 23 special training. But anybody with a nose has to know 24 that fumes are escaping, and -- and a lot of it. And 25 again, this is right in the middle of our national

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 265 1 forest, this giant swath of green in Western 2 Pennsylvania, if you look on the map. 3I often get headaches on the weekends. My 4 sister-in-law, every time she comes, has it even worse. 5 I mean, she gets terrible migraines every time she 6 comes. And we love this place. We love it. And yet, 7 I find myself glad that we don't live there and are 8 really worried about our neighbors who do live there. 9And I find it heartbreaking that instead 10 of being -- you know, this forest being a carbon sink 11 that would help to mitigate global warming and CO2 12 emissions, that, you know, instead, it has to actually 13 be contributing to global warming because of the 14 methane emissions that are taking place. 15So I want to thank you and the EPA for 16 holding these hearings and for moving towards stricter 17 methane emission standards that would apply to new 18 facilities. It's such an important first time, first 19 step forward. 20 But I'd also like to make three requests. 21 I think the most urgent for me is that I would beg the 22 EPA to move quickly toward extending stricter emissions 23 and capture standards to already existing facilities. 24 In our area, there are hundreds, if not, thousands of 25 well pads and storage facilities in operation now. And

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 266 1 our national forest smells like a gas station. There 2 has to be major leakage. There's just no excuse for 3 this. And so please just -- just move to bring these 4 emissions under control as well. 5I'd also urge the proposed repair -- 6 repair period of six months for leaks that can't be 7 readily fixed within 15 days, be shortened. Six months 8 is too long to be allowing increased exposure and 9 environmental damage from the release of methane and 10 other volatile organic compounds. 11 And finally, I have a suggestion. Why not 12 move toward crowd sourcing monitoring of emissions from 13 drilling? In our area, there are hundreds, you know, 14 and maybe thousands of drill sites spread across many 15 square miles of forest. And that's true across forests 16 and parks and cities and neighborhoods all over 17 Pennsylvania. The local people know these sites and 18 they care. Why not make basic testing equipment 19 available for those on the ground? And then the EPA 20 could move more quickly to identify problems and focus 21 on -- you know, focus enforcement resources where they 22 are most needed. Thank you. 23MR. COZZIE: Thank you. Any questions 24 from the panel? 25All right. Mr. Slabe.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 267 1 MR. SLABE: I have one copy. I gave her a 2 copy. 3MR. COZZIE: Thank you. 4 MR. SLABE: Good afternoon. My name is 5 Ron Slabe and I'm here today to support your standards 6 to reduce methane pollution from oil and gas sources. 7 Let me apologize, first of all, because 8 I'm sure after sitting here for many hours, you've 9 already heard some of these statistics and so on, but 10 bear with me, please. Because there should be no 11 question that methane, a greenhouse gas, is 86 times 12 more powerful and contributing to global warming than 13 carbon dioxide from the burning of coal over a 20-year 14 period. Numerous studies show this. 15For example, in the oil and gas sector 16 alone, there were emissions in 2013 of over 7.3 million 17 metric tons of methane, which is the equivalent of 160 18 coal-burning power plants emitting carbon dioxide. 19In Pennsylvania, methane leakage is 20 equivalent to the greenhouse emissions of over 700,000 21 cars in Allegheny County alone and 120,000 tons 22 equivalent to the amount of gas used to heat half the 23 homes in Pittsburgh. 24 Another report finds methane leakage each 25 year able to meet the heating and cooking needs of both

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 268 1 the Pennsylvania cities of Scranton and Bethlehem. 2 This is on top of having over four million 3 Pennsylvanians living in areas where ozone levels 4 exceed national clean air standards. And cases of 5 asthma in Pittsburgh and Allegheny County are the 6 highest in the nation, with children being the most 7 affected. 8 A University of Pittsburgh study shows 9 cancer risks in Allegheny County twice that of 10 surrounding areas with certain hot spots running such 11 risk at 20 times higher. And among those listed as 12 sources of such health-affecting pollutants, says the 13 Pitt study, are the quote, "Pollutant mixtures from 14 unconventional gas drilling operations," end quote. 15 This kind of pollution, along with the smog- and 16 soot-forming emissions so associated must be controlled 17 and eliminated as it also adds to the alarming 18 increases in heart and respiratory disease. 19Though the EPA proposed standards are to 20 be applauded, they are also lacking in that they do not 21 cover existing sources of methane pollution, which are 22 responsible for some 90 percent -- 90 percent of where 23methane emissions come from. And the proposed 24 standards only deal with new and modified 25 infrastructures. Also omitted are key pieces of

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 269 1 equipment, such as storage vessels, liquids unloading 2 operation, pneumatic controllers, and natural gas 3 compressors at well sites. 4 Another serious concern is the potential 5 need to direct the captured methane to combustion 6methods such as flaring with its absolutely degrading 7 effects on air quality. These emissions are 8 unacceptable and must be corrected. 9Finally, the oil and gas industry must be 10 held responsible for its pollution and environmental 11 degradation. Such proposed regulations can only go so 12 far when dealing with an industry operating with dirty 13 fossil fuels and -- and operating and supporting the 14 dangerous and polluting method called fracking. We 15 want very much to believe the EPA in its current 16 efforts, but we are also very aware -- well aware of 17 how the EPA's recent draft assessment of potential 18 impacts on fracking, on drinking water resources was 19 often sabotaged by the oil and gas industry; how the 20 industry failed to cooperate with your studies; denied 21 you access to information; and how you succumb to such 22 pressures abandoning and retreating from studies in 23 Wyoming, Texas and Pennsylvania, and failed to enforce 24 the ban on using diesel fuel in fracking; and how 25 thwarted the hoax of those across the country who rely

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 270 1 on you for help against the fracking industry. 2 The oil and gas industry has shown its 3 ability to stimy -- truly stimy regulatory efforts, 4 today and in the past, through its powerful lobbying 5 efforts. We can only hope the proposed methane 6 regulations will not have the same fate. EPA's lack of 7 will and determination have been obvious problems in 8 the past. So you can understand my lack of perhaps 9 faith in the EPA in what it might be doing. But I 10 applaud your efforts nonetheless. I hope you carry 11 through faithfully. Thank you. 12 MR. COZZIE: Thank you, Mr. Slabe. 13Any questions from the panel? Thank you 14 for coming today. 15MR. SLABE: Do you want this extra copy? 16MR. COZZIE: Take it down to the 17 registration desk. 18 At this time I would like to invite 19 forward Miriam Lindauer and Eva Roben. 20 MS. LINDAUER: Thank you for the 21 opportunity to comment on these rules. 22 My name is Miriam Lindauer and I live here 23 in Allegheny County. I'm a retired computer 24 programmer. I strongly support the proposed EPA 25methane pollution standards for the oil and gas

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 271 1 industry. 2 Methane is a highly potent greenhouse gas 3 which is a major contributor to climate change. By one 4 estimate, natural gas producers in Pennsylvania alone 5 leaked over 120,000 metric tons of methane in 2013, 6 enough to heat half the homes in Pittsburgh. When 7 methane is released from oil and gas facilities, 8 particulate emissions and other hazardous air 9pollutants, which cause smog, are also released into 10 the air. 11 Recent studies have indicated a possible 12 link between this pollution and the onset of asthma. 13And studies have proven beyond a doubt that air 14 pollution aggravates previously diagnosed asthma and 15 triggers asthma attacks. Higher levels of air 16pollution in Western Pennsylvania correspond to a high 17 prevalence of lung diseases. 18 I have lived here in Allegheny County all 19 of my life, and like more than one million other 20 Pennsylvanians, I have asthma. I'm one of those who 21 needs to stay indoors during air quality alerts. This 22 happens all too frequently around here, especially in 23 the summer when I'd like to be outside. According to 24 the Pennsylvania Department of Health, about 25 ten percent of the state's population suffered from

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 272 1 asthma in 2012 and 15 percent of the population will 2 get it during their lifetimes. The prevalence of 3 asthma in Pennsylvania is about one-third higher than 4 the national average and Allegheny County is worse than 5 the rest of the state. 6We have the technology to reduce this 7 pollution by capturing methane that is released by oil 8 and industry drilling. Drilling companies can benefit 9by being able to use or sell the captured methane if 10 they comply with voluntary methane control standards. 11 But voluntary compliance is not working in 12 Pennsylvania. Of over 450 natural gas producers in the 13 state, only ten percent end up doing the EPA's 14 voluntary Natural Gas STAR Program. 15The EPA has done a cost-benefit analysis 16 of the effects of methane on public health and the 17 environment. I urge the EPA to include all benefits to 18 the drilling companies in this analysis, including the 19 sale and use of captured methane. 20 The gas industry has, for years, been 21 reaping the benefits of publicly-funded infrastructure 22 and enjoying tax incentives to produce gas, while the 23 public has been paying the costs of health issues 24 caused by methane pollution. 25Enactment of the proposed methane

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 273 1 standards, along with a robust inspection schedule to 2 enforce them, will not only improve the health of 3millions of Pennsylvanians, but also help future 4 generations by slowing the warming of the Earth that is 5 caused by extraction and burning of fossil fuels. 6I want to mention one other thing that 7 wasn't on my original document. I noticed that people 8 here were talking about the effects of fracking on 9 their lives. We had -- not too long ago, there was 10 apparently illegal dumping of fracking waste in a creek 11 that's upstream from the Monongahela River water intake 12 where we get our water. And so right now, we're afraid 13 to drink our water. We drink bottled water all the 14 time. And I live in the suburbs of Pittsburgh. This 15 is not -- I'm not in an industrial area. It's really 16maddening. And I really hope that the EPA will be able 17 to find the money to adequately regulate this industry. 18 Thank you. 19MR. COZZIE: Thank you. Any questions 20 from the panel? 21 MR. MOORE: No. 22 MR. COZZIE: Ms. Roben. 23MS. ROBEN: Hi. My name is Eva Roben, 24 R-O-B-E-N. I'm the climate change outreach coordinator 25 at Clean Air Council, a member-supported organization

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 274 1 committed to improving air quality in Pennsylvania and 2 protecting public health. Thank you for the 3 opportunity to comment. 4 I'm glad that the EPA has proposed this 5 rule to limit methane pollution from oil and gas 6 infrastructure. This rule is a critical first step in 7 addressing the dangerous pollution that has accompanied 8 the shale gas boom in Pennsylvania. As the second 9 largest producer of natural gas in the country, 10 Pennsylvanians are too familiar with the health and the 11 environmental hazards brought by fracking. The rules 12 proposed by the EPA represent an important step towards 13 building a healthier future, but they do not go nearly 14 far enough in addressing the severity of the problem. 15Methane is a potent greenhouse gas, 86 16 times more potent than carbon dioxide over 20 years. 17 Every day that we fail to stop methane leaks, we lock 18 ourselves into greater warming and closer to dangerous 19 tipping points that would make it harder and harder to 20 avoid climate catastrophe. 21 As a relatively young person, I hopefully 22 have the majority of my life still ahead of me. And 23 since I have already begun to witness the impacts of 24 climate change in my lifetime, I expect that my future 25 will he defined by a changing climate. I hope that the

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 275 1 EPA will not take my future and the futures of 2 generations to come lightly by writing anything less 3 than the most stringent rules to regulate this 4 dangerous greenhouse gas. 5In Pennsylvania, we have already seen the 6 destruction that a warmer world can bring, from super 7 storms, to unhealthy air quality, to abnormal weather 8 that destroys our farmers' crops. The latest 9 Pennsylvania Climate Impact Assessment showed that 10 Pennsylvania is on track for an alarming three-degrees 11 Celsius warming by mid century. We simply cannot 12 afford to let the fossil fuel industry continue to emit 13methane freely. 14 But, of course, it's not just about 15 climate change. Just this past year, we've seen 16 studies coming out that suggests that fracking is 17 increasing radon levels in our homes, lowering the 18 birth weights of our babies, and increasing hospital 19 admissions for cardiovascular diseases. 20 Just ask the people who live near the 21 infrastructure, who you've been hearing from all day I 22 know. They can tell you firsthand, even over the 23 short-term, our neighbors in the shale fields are 24 experiencing health impacts, such as sore throats, 25 nosebleeds, and eye irritation; all symptoms associated

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 276 1 with acute exposure to the carcinogenic air toxics that 2 are emitted from shale gas infrastructure, alongside 3methane. And in the long-term, we can expect to see 4 impacts ranging from lung damage to cancer. 5With four million Pennsylvanians already 6 living in areas where ozone levels exceed federal 7 health standards, we can hardly handle any more 8 pollution. Pennsylvanians are on the frontlines. And 9 while I'm glad that the EPA is taking this first step, 10 it is critical that these rules be strengthened and 11 accompanied by another suite of rules to regulate air 12 pollution leaks from existing shale gas infrastructure. 13Although, fracking will never be safe, and it is 14 critical that we transition away from all fossil fuel 15 infrastructure as quickly as possible, Pennsylvanians 16 are being impacted today by existing infrastructure and 17 cannot afford to wait any longer for regulations. 18 I urge the EPA and the Pennsylvania DEP to 19 act quickly to put in place the strongest possible 20 standards for air pollution from new and existing oil 21 and gas infrastructure. 22 Thank you for your time. 23MR. COZZIE: Thank you. Any questions 24 from the panel at this time? Thank you both for your 25 testimony. Thank you for joining us today.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 277 1 At this time I don't have any more 2 speakers on my list. I don't know if there's anyone in 3 the audience that would like to speak at this time. 4 MS. ROBEN: Can I give testimony on behalf 5 of Reverend Leah Schade? 6MR. COZZIE: You certainly may. 7 MS. ROBEN: All right. Thank you again. 8 I'm reading this testimony on behalf of 9 the Reverend Dr. Leah D. Schade, Ph.D., who is the 10 pastor of the United In Christ Lutheran Church in 11 Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. So her comments read as 12 follows: 13First, I want to thank the EPA and 14 Administrator McCarthy for paying serious attention to 15 this issue of methane emissions from shale gas drilling 16 and related processes and their deleterious effect on 17 our planet's atmosphere. I commend you for giving 18 citizens the opportunity to be heard on this important 19 issue. I send this testimony today on behalf of my 20 myself, my husband, and my two young children, my 21 congregation, United in Christ Lutheran Church in 22 Lewisburg and the Upper Susquehanna Synod of the 23 Evangelical Lutheran Church in America to express my 24 support for the EPA to impose regulations to 25 drastically reduce methane emissions. I'm a member of

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 278 1 my synod's task force on slick water hydraulic 2 fracturing. We spent two years of studying the ethical 3 and moral issues surrounding fracking, and as a member 4 of several environmental groups, that study can bear 5 witness to the harmful effects of the shale gas 6 industry in our state and across the country. 7 I have often raised concerns about the 8 dangers of shale gas drilling. Methane is a greenhouse 9 gas even more potent than carbon dioxide. The total 10 life cycle emissions from methane gas-fired power 11 plants, including leakage during production, 12 processing, and transmission, emissions flaring at gas 13 wells, and energy consumed in the production and 14 transport of liquified natural gas have the potential 15 to send greenhouse gases on our planet into 16 out-of-control levels. 17 Researchers found that methane leak rates 18 of a hundred to a thousand times greater than EPA 19 estimates at well pads in Pennsylvania. And the EPA's 20 Office of the Inspector General issued a report citing 21 the Agency's failures to manage methane leaks from 22 pipelines. 23I'm committed to helping people of faith 24 learn how to do their part to care for God's creation 25 and address ecological justice issues. I call for the

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 279 1 EPA to not only implement the strictest regulations 2 possible to reduce methane leakage at the wellhead and 3 every step along the process, but to move toward a ban 4 on fracking because of the other deleterious effects of 5 this industrial process -- this industrial process has 6 on water, land, and public health. Clean renewable 7 energy has the potential to create jobs, reduce 8 greenhouse gases and power our world in sustainable 9 ways. I urge the EPA to do everything within its power 10 to move our country away from fossil fuels and towards 11 solar, wind, geothermal, and other forms of energy. 12 Thank you. 13MR. COZZIE: Could I get the name of that 14 reverend? 15MS. ROBEN: Yes. It's Leah, L-E-A-H, D., 16 S-C-H-A-D-E. I can submit -- I think I have two 17 copies. 18 MR. COZZIE: I appreciate it. Thank you 19 very much. At this time, we'll take a short Recess. 20 We'll take a ten-minute recess at this time. 21 (Recess in proceedings.) 22 MR. COZZIE: Good evening. My name is 23 David Cozzie, EPA's Office of Air Quality Planning and 24 Standards. I am the chair of this evening's public 25 hearing. Thank you for coming this evening.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 280 1 Joining me on the panel this evening are 2 Bruce Moore from EPA's Office of Air Quality Planning 3 and Standards and Mary Cate Opilia from EPA's Region 3. 4 We're here today to hear your comments on 5 EPA's proposed rules with the oil and natural gas 6 sector. The specific rules are 1) Oil and Natural Gas 7 Sector, Emissions Standards for New and Modified 8 Sources, 2) Source Determination for Certain Emission 9 Units of the Oil and Natural Gas Sector, 3) and the 10 Review of New Sources and Modifications in Indian 11 Country, Federal Implementation Plan for Managing Air 12 Emissions from True Minor Sources Engaged in Oil and 13 Natural Gas Production in Indian Country. 14 EPA's Administrator assigned Proposed 15 Rules on August 18, 2015. The proposed New Source 16 Performance Standards would establish methane and VOCs 17 standards for hydraulically fractured wells and require 18 owners and operators to find and repair leaks. The 19proposed rule also would extend emission reduction 20 requirements further downstream covering equipment in 21 the natural gas transmission and storage segments of 22 the industry that was not regulated in the Agency's 23 2012 rules. 24 The proposed Source Determination rule 25 clarifies the EPA's air permitting rules as they apply

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 281 1 to the oil and the natural gas industry. 2 We're also taking comment on the proposed 3 federal implementation plan to implement the Federal 4 Minor New Source Review Program in Indian Country for 5 oil and natural gas production. That plan, known as a 6 FIP, would be used instead of site specific Minor New 7 Source Review preconstruction permits in Indian 8 Country. It would incorporate emissions, limits, and 9 other requirements from six EPA emissions standards, 10 including the 2015 proposed update to the New Source 11 Performance Standards on which we're taking comment 12 today. 13If you would like more details on the 14 proposed rules, there are fact sheets available at the 15 registration desk. 16Before we get started, I'd like to go 17 through a few housekeeping items and ground rules that 18 will help make this evening's hearing run smoothly. 19 First, please be sure you've checked in at the 20 registration desk. Even if you are not planning to 21 speak today. And if you signed up to speak on -- 22 signed up to speak online or by phone, but haven't told 23 us that you're here, please step out to the 24 registration desk and let the EPA staff know that 25 you've arrived.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 282 1 I will call speakers up in pairs. When 2 your name is called, please come to the speaker's table 3 in the front of the room. When I call you to speak, 4 please state your name and spell it for the court 5 reporter. Your comments will be transcribed and 6 included in the record of comment on the Proposed rule. 7 It is important that you tell us which 8 rules or rules you are speaking about. Each speaker 9 will have five minute to give comments. We have a 10 timer light to help you know how much time you have 11 left to speak. When the light turns from green to 12 yellow, that means you have one minute remaining. When 13 it turns red, that's a signal that you're at five 14 minutes, and it is time to stop. When you're finished 15 speaking, please remain at the table until the person 16 next to you has completed his or her testimony. 17 We are here to listen to you today. 18 However, a panel member may ask questions to clarify 19 your comments. I will then call the next pair of 20 speakers and so on. 21 If you have brought a written copy of your 22 testimony, please give that to the staff at the 23 registration desk before you leave today. 24 We will put any written comments submitted 25 today in the official docket for Proposed rule. We

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 283 1 also have comment cards available at the registration 2 desk, if you would like to submit additional written 3 comments today. If you want to comment in writing 4 later, stop by the materials table, near the 5 registration desk, and pick up a copy of the 6 instructions for submitting written comments. Comments 7 must be received by November 17, 2015. 8 Let me assure you that the EPA gives just 9 as much consideration to comments we receive in writing 10 as we do to comments we receive at public hearings like 11 this one. So if you have more comments that you would 12 like to provide the EPA, please submit them by the 13 comment period deadline. Your comments will be 14 reviewed. 15If you have any questions during the day, 16please see the staff at the registration desk and 17 someone with assist you. Thank you again for taking 18 the time of day to share your comments on the EPA's 19proposal. 20 At this time we'll get started. And I 21 will call forward and invite forward Mollie Simon and 22 Sage Lincoln. 23MS. SIMON: Hello. My name is Mollie 24 Simon, M-O-L-L-I-E. And I am an outreach coordinator 25 with Clean Air Council. Clean Air Council is a

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 284 1 nonprofit environmental health organization 2 headquartered in Philadelphia. I'm also a Master's 3 candidate studying environmental Policy at the 4 University of Pennsylvania. 5I thank the EPA for the opportunity to 6 comment today, and I would like to express my support 7 of the EPA's recently proposed methane pollution 8 standards for the oil and gas industry. I believe that 9 we have a firm obligation to take action on climate. 10 Methane is a highly potent greenhouse gas, 11 86 times more powerful as -- 86 times as powerful as 12 CO2 over a 20-year timeframe. This means that methane 13 emitted in oil and gas operations is significantly 14 damaging our climate and the future of our planet. 15In 2013, oil and gas sources nationally 16 emitted over 7.3. million metric tons of methane, 17 equivalent to CO2 emissions of over 160 coal-burning 18 power plants. If we do not act to curb methane 19 emissions, all the recent efforts through the Clean 20 Power Plan to clean up our coal-burning power plants 21 will be in vain. 22 As a millennial, we'll be challenged by 23 climate change for decades to come. I know that this 24 is not a problem that we can put off any longer. 25As a practicing Catholic, I believe that

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 285 1 we are all called to be stewards of creation. This 2 past weekend we received that message loud and clear as 3 His Holiness Pope Francis visited Philadelphia. When 4 addressing the U.N., Pope Francis said, quote, "Any 5 harm done to the environment therefore is harm done to 6 humanity." There is no better way to care for our 7 neighbor and humanity by taking firm actions to clean 8 up the air pollution and mitigate climate change. Two 9 issues that disproportionately impact the most 10 vulnerable in our communities, the poor, the sick, the 11 elderly. 12 Beyond mitigating climate change, the 13 proposed standards will also generate significant 14 public health benefits by curbing smog- and 15 soot-forming emissions and hazardous air pollutants 16 which are released from oil and gas sources. 17 Everyone has the right to breathe clean 18 air, but too often across I meet people across 19 Pennsylvania who are unable to take a clean deep 20 breathe due to smog pollution. Pollution blankets our 21 major urban areas causing high levels of asthma, 22 cancer, respiratory illness, and cardiac complications. 23 Both Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are in the top 25 most 24 polluted U.S. cities for ozone and smog; nine out of 25 ten of Pennsylvania's most populated counties are

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 286 1 designated non-attainment for National Ambient Air 2 Quality Standards for ozone. 3EPA's proposed standards represent an 4 important step in addressing climate pollution as well 5 as protecting the health and safety of our communities 6 and workers from these dangerous air pollutants. 7 We have tried voluntary standards and they 8 do not work. Only about two percent of Pennsylvania 9 operators of existing sources participate in EPA's 10 voluntary Natural Gas STAR Program, designed to prevent 11 methane leaks. The oil and gas industry must take 12 responsibility for their pollution and not pass the 13 burden of injury on to our communities. 14 These rules are an important first step 15 towards reducing the harm of this industry. However, 16 the EPA must be go even further to tackle existing 17 sources of methane emissions and ultimately keep all 18 dirty fossil fuels in the ground. 19According to a 2014 study, about 20 90 percent of oil and gas methane emissions in 2018, 21 will come from existing sources built before 2012. We 22 must act to limit methane pollution from existing and 23 new sources so we can begin to transition to the clean, 24 renewable energy sources that we know can provide 25 sustainable, good-paying jobs, and reduced pollution.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 287 1 I support the proposed EPA rules and I 2 hope that EPA will move swiftly to issues standards 3 covering existing sources as well as resources. 4 Thank you. 5MR. COZZIE: Thank you, Ms. Simon. Any 6 questions? 7 Miss Lincoln. 8 MS. LINCOLN: Hello. My name is Sage 9 Lincoln. And I am a student at the University of 10 Pittsburgh studying geology, ecology urban studies. 11 Climate change is the biggest threat to my 12 generation's future. And if greenhouse gas emissions 13 are not drastically reduced, the U.N.'s International 14 Panel On Climate Change predicts rising sea levels, 15 widespread droughts, extreme weather, severely 16 increased temperatures, increased political 17 instability, and many, many more devastating 18 consequences. 19Many of these effects of climate change 20 we're already beginning to experience now, from the 21 drought in the U.S. West, to the global instability in 22 the Middle East, due in part, to widespread drought 23 there as well. Because of these reasons, my generation 24 demands that governments impose strong regulations to 25 drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 288 1 For this reason, I support the EPA's 2 proposed rule regulating new sources of methane 3 emissions. However, because these new regulations only 4 cover new and modified sources of methane emissions, 5 they're insufficient to produce the greenhouse gas 6 emissions reductions that we need. For this reason, I 7 call upon the EPA and the Wolf Administration to enact 8 new policies that -- sorry -- to enact new policies 9 that cover existing sources of methane and other carbon 10 pollutants. The time for government action, both 11 nationally and at a local level, in order to prevent 12 the worst effects of climate change is now. 13Thank you. 14 MR. COZZIE: Thank you very much. Any 15 questions? Thank you both for your testimony. 16At this time, given there's no speakers in 17 the audience, we will recess until another speaker 18 comes to the floor. 19(Recess in proceedings.) 20 MR. COZZIE: At this time, we'll reconvene 21 the panel and invite Rachel Goldman and Silvy Goldman. 22 Thank you so much for the opportunity to 23 speak and for holding this hearing here in Pittsburgh. 24 My name is Rachel Martin Goldman. This is 25my seven-and-a-half-month-old daughter, Silvy. We live

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 289 1 here in Pittsburgh. And we're here today to speak in 2 part of the EPA's proposed methane and oil and gas 3 industry. 4 I've been deeply concerned about and 5 actively engaged in climate and air pollution for 6 years. I've been concerned about my own family's 7 health and for many of my friend's children. But my 8 concern has hit an entirely new level since Silvy was 9born. Or, really, since I became pregnant. I tried to 10 do all the right things to have a healthy experience 11 and to limit exposure to toxins. And since Silvy has 12 been born, I've made sure that her first foods are 13 healthy. We baby-proofed the house and try to keep 14 toxins down for her. But I can only control so much. 15 I can't control the air that she breathes. Every day 16 we are here in Pittsburgh with heavily-polluted air due 17 to cold fire pollution increasing from the oil and gas 18 drilling and wells in the region. I can't control the 19 impact that might have on small, still-developing 20 lungs. We're not dealing with a gas well next door, 21 but it is frightening what climate change will have 22 during Silvy's lifetime. 23And as you know, methane is an extremely 24 powerful and potent greenhouse gas which the oil and 25 gas industry releases millions of tons into the air

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 290 1 every year. 2 I'm aware the total impact of methane 3 compared to CO2 pollution is 25 times more potent than 4 CO2 over a hundred-year period or equivalent of 160,700 5 cars. 6I've already received information that 7 there has a 90-day increase in bad air days and that 8 brings us to looking at the dissemination of the 9 Bitternut Hickory Tree, which is my favorite tree, the 10 critical effect it has on wildlife habitat and on our 11 cold water fisheries. I am afraid that Silvy will not 12 be able to experience the Earth as it should be and is 13 very different from the one today, and not for the 14 better. 15We are likely to develop into an area that 16 is prone to hurricanes or sea level rising, and 17 flooding is a concern. And what instills fear in me 18 the most is the economic and social destabilization 19 that climate change has is exacerbating, and that is 20 likely to have the greatest impact in Silvy's lifetime. 21 So on behalf of my daughter, I applaud 22 the Department of Environmental Protection Agency for 23 their proposed regulations to cut methane emissions 24 from the oil and gas industry. This is a first step in 25 holding the oil and gas industry responsible for their

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 291 1 pollution. But I implore the EPA to go further. I 2 thank the EPA for the work that you're doing. Don't 3 stop today. This rule must apply to emissions from new 4 and existing drilling projections. There are thousands 5 of wells that are already in existence that will 6 continue to spew out climate disruption and air toxins, 7 if we don't take action. We must adjust to finalize 8 this current rule and swiftly move to protect Silvy 9 from pollution from the existing wells. 10 Thank you. 11 MR. COZZIE: Thank you very much. Thank 12 you for stopping by this evening. I know it's very 13 difficult with a young child and the weather. 14 MS. GOLDMAN: Yeah. Yeah. We were 15 interrupting nap time and with all of the traffic. 16MR. COZZIE: Do you have something to add, 17 Silvy? Thank you very much. 18 MS. GOLDMAN: Thank you. 19MR. COZZIE: We'll recess again until 20 somebody else gets here. 21 (Recess in proceedings.) 22 MR. COZZIE: It's now 6:58. We'll re-open 23 the panel. I'll call for Robert Nashikawa and Randi 24 Francois. 25MR. NASHIKAWA: My name is Robert

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 292 1 Nashikawa. I live in Pittsburgh. And I'd like to 2 thank you for the opportunity to speak on the EPA 3 bill -- or regulation. Pardon me. 4 I just want to make two points, to be 5 fair, on the local level. In Pittsburgh, there's a lot 6 of fracking going on. And there's a lot of efforts by 7 people at the local level to fight some of the 8 fracking, particularly near schools and parks. But 9 we're not getting any help from local government. So 10 local government is basically supporting the fracking 11 industry wherever they want to frack. In direct 12 opposition, many of the people who don't want them. 13At this time, it's not as bad as in 14 Colorado or Texas. They wanted to pass regulations on 15 the oil and gas industry, then the state ruled them 16 invalid. So we're looking to the federal government to 17 help us, because the state government here is not going 18 to help us. And I think that's important for the local 19people to be able to have a voice. We're asking the 20 EPA to be our voice. 21 The other issue I want to comment on is 22 global level. I hear many politicians, particularly in 23 the Republican party say it's not worth doing anything 24 to fight climate change, because, one, it's going to 25 cost a lot. And two, that is not going to make any

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 293 1 difference to the overall global warming. So I'm not 2 going do dispute those facts whatsoever. I don't think 3 they're true. 4 But I'd like to point out that the United 5 States has, whether we like it or not, a 6 responsibility, because we are the most powerful nation 7 in the world, we are an easy target for other 8 governments to say, "We won't do anything because the 9 United States is not doing anything." We have the 10 responsibility to be leaders. And so the government, 11 which is what you're a part of, needs to step up to 12 that responsibility and fight global warming and 13 climate change. 14 Thanks. 15MR. COZZIE: Any questions from the panel? 16No. Thank you. All right then. 17 MS. FRANCOIS: Hi. My name is Randi 18 Francois (sic). I live in Pittsburgh. I'm a concerned 19 and informed citizen. Thank you for letting me speak 20 tonight. 21 I support EPA's new regulations on 22 limiting the amount of toxins released in the 23 atmosphere from the oil and gas industry. But I have 24 one remark. If those regulations want to be meaningful 25 towards lowering the methane on global warming, they

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 294 1 have to go further and apply to not only 2 infrastructures, but also the existing oil and gas 3 infrastructures because they're the ones that are 4 really contributing the most due to the actual number 5 and their aging. So we can all live on the same 6planet, I think it is now a moral issue to do our best 7 to stop global warming from happening. 8 Thank you. 9MR. COZZIE: Thank you as well. 10 And at this time, I would like to invite 11 Diane Peterson. 12 MS. PETERSON: Hi. I'm Diane Peterson, 13 125 Wilshire. I'm chuckling while I speak because I 14 was in the car rehearsing what I wanted to say, and I 15 had been asking him all day to speak. "No. No." When 16 we get here, he said, "Why won't you please speak 17 because I'm going to steal all your points." And he 18 did. 19So anyway, I'm not scientist like my 20 husband. I'm not a doctor, like my friend. I'm not an 21 expert. And hopefully, you'll forgive me, but I did 22 not read the 591 pages of documents on oil and gas 23 emission standards for new and modified sources. I'm 24 not even really that political. But I am a concerned 25 citizen, and this issue is really important.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 295 1 Thank you for coming to Pittsburgh and 2 listening to what we have to say. And it's of no 3 surprise to me that you're going to Dallas and to 4 Colorado and to Pennsylvania, as those are heavily 5 fracked states. I'm concerned because I recently have 6become a resident of this state. And my eyes have been 7 opened because I've learned firsthand how it seems that 8 the industry and its desire seems to outweigh what is a 9 concern for our human health and upon that of our 10 planet. 11 Locally, this spring, our County Council 12 approved fracking for under our county park. After 13months and months of expert testimony and scientific 14 data sharing the risks, explaining the risks, and even 15 after the industry itself came and said, "This will 16provide no new jobs for you locally," the County 17 Council approved fracking under our park. And one of 18 the chief reasons stated was "it will provide jobs." I 19 guess my point is there, that I really wonder about 20 this decision and if these people are protecting us. I 21 really wonder about their rationale. 22 Even more recently, in the spring, in 23 nearby Mars County, the local governments there 24 approved fracking less than one-half mile from our 25 public schools. And, also, this occurred at Deer Park

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 296 1 schools -- sorry, Deer Lake schools. When I tell this 2 to people locally, my friends and my neighbors what's 3 happening, they're shocked. They can't believe this is 4 happening. And, you know, I have to understand that 5 people are busy. There's a lot of data out there. 6 There's at lot of the information -- just reading the 7 paper, people don't have the time. But then, when I 8 ask them or when they are shocked local government 9 isn't protecting them, they say, "Well, surely, the 10 federal government is protecting us. How about the 11 EPA?" Well, that's you. And we are counting on you to 12 protect us. We are counting on you. 13So I want to thank you from the bottom of 14 my heart for working to reduce the methane emission 15 standards -- reducing the emissions, and encourage you 16 to seek the highest standards possible. And not just 17 on the new and modified sources, but on all sources. 18 My family grins every time I do an analogy. But I'm 19 going on the record publicly to try to do it again. 20 But if you find a toxin in potato chips, well, how do 21 we stop that toxin going into the bag? What do we do? 22 Leave all of the bags on the shelf. Of course not. We 23 take all the bags off the shelves because we are 24 concerned about our health. 25Methane has a huge impact on climate

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 297 1 change. And pound for pound it is having a warming 2 effect of roughly 105 times greater than carbon dioxide 3 over a 20-year time period. Climate change has a 4 critical point. We all know that we don't have the 5 time to do it slowly. Over time to do it at anything 6 less than an optimal rate. We also via the natural 7 resource difference through better technology and 8 better practice, 80 percent reduction is possible by 9 industry. Eighty percent reduction in emissions. Not 10 just 40 to 50 percent. But 80 percent. And that's 11 capturing, we return $2 billion worth of natural gas. 12 Otherwise, it will be wasted in atmospheric pollution. 13 Note, this adjustment by industry is estimated to be 14 able to be paid back to then within three months to 15 three years. 16This information is also from the Natural 17 Resources Defense Council. I am just a mom and a small 18 business owner. And just in an afternoon, I could dig 19 up some sources. But you have so many more sources and 20 so many more experts to talk with. 21 You're asking for 40 to 50 percent 22 reduction by 2025. Industry can do better. And they 23 can do it faster, and we need to do that. 24 I'm personally urging and begging you, for 25 the sake of myself, my family, my children, the world,

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 298 1 please do all that's possible to reduce methane 2 emissions and other VOC emissions as much as possible, 3 as quickly as possible, and as many sources as 4 possible. 5I thank you. And I am personally counting 6 on you for this for my family, for our children, for 7 our life. Thank you for listening to me. 8 MR. COZZIE: Thank you for your providing 9 testimony. Any questions from the panel? 10 MR. MOORE: I don't. 11 MR. COZZIE: Thank you for coming out. 12 MS. PETERSON: I hope you have a safe 13 voyage home and quick one. 14 MR. COZZIE: There are no additional 15 speakers, we'll recess until another speaker arrives. 16(Recess in proceedings.) 17 MR. COZZIE: We're reconvening the panel. 18 At this time I invite Kyle Gracey to speak. 19MR. GRACEY: Thank you. These proposed 20 regulations are an excellent step forward in protecting 21 Americans from the dangers of climate change and dirty 22 air. However, they are not strong enough. There are 23 two key changes that would strengthen them in the final 24 rules. First of all, the old and existing facilities 25 should be covered in a similar manner as far as the oil

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 299 1 and gas infrastructure as it would apply to the new 2 facilities. 3Secondly, the oil and gas industry should 4 not be the primary parties responsible for inspection 5 and monitoring of their own infrastructure. They're 6 not to be trusted with the health and welfare of the 7 citizens, especially when it pertains to impacting 8 their own profits. Similarly, several state regulatory 9 agencies have also shown that they are also not capable 10 or able to independently conduct industry monitoring 11 and compliance. This is definitely an area instead for 12 the federal government. And these changes, I think, 13 would significantly enhance the federal rule. I thank 14 you for the opportunity to comment. 15MR. COZZIE: Thank you for taking the time 16 out to provide this testimony. 17 We will take a recess until we get another 18 speaker. 19(Recess in proceedings.) 20 MR. COZZIE: It is 7:42. I'd like to 21 reconvene the panel. At this time, I invite Mary Grace 22 Butella to come forward. Introduce yourself for the 23 court reporter and then the timer will show five 24 minutes. It will turn yellow when you get to one 25minute, and will turn red when you hit the five

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 300 1 minutes. 2 MS. BUTELLA: Hello. My name is Mary. 3 Grace Butella. And I'm a resident of Fayette County 4 also I am an elected tax collector for real estate for 5 Delmar Township. 6I'd like to take this opportunity to 7 comment on the recently proposed methane pollution 8 standards for oil and gas industry. However -- 9 however, the proposed measure needs to apply to all 10 existing sources as well. We have many families in 11 Fayette County that are suffering from the negative 12 effects from the oil and gas industry. 13In our county, we have over 24 natural gas 14 compressor stations, with dangerous and deadly 15 contaminants such as benzene, acetone, formaldehyde, 16 hydrocarbons, VOCs, and other hazardous air pollutants 17 that have caused so many families to become sick. 18 The Spring Hill compressor -- on Hope 19 Hollow in Spring Hill, this station was built without a 20 permit from our county zoning department, and continues 21 to emit dangerous toxic pollution that threatens our 22 environment and people that live close by. This 23 industry is polluting our land, soil, and atmosphere at 24 an alarming rate. I know this public comment is for 25 EPA's methane standards, but there is much more that

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 301 1 needs to be addressed. 2 Just last year, a former Pennsylvania 3 Department of Health employee, Tammy Stuck of 4 Uniontown, Fayette County, gave a news reporter an 5 interview concerning a coverup with the Pennsylvania 6 Department Health Department, it's the EPA, but what we 7 call the health department, and complained about 8 sicknesses such as headaches, chest pain, nausea, and 9 obnoxious odors from the gas development and were told 10 not to discuss the matter with them and would not to 11 return their phone calls. 12 Now we're still waiting for the health 13 registry, that Former Governor Corbett promised an 14 immediate investigation, needs to be conducted within 15 our Pennsylvania EPA and our health department. There 16 is mounting evidence now that the development of 17 Marcellus Shale will destroy not only our land, water, 18 and air, but also is harming and destroying the health 19 of every citizen where this takes place. Again, I 20 thank you for your efforts. However, the new 21 pollutions standards must apply to all existing sources 22 in order to protect the public's health. 23Thank you very much. 24 MR. COZZIE: Thank you for coming out to 25 give your testimony. I said thank you very much.

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 302 1 MS. BUTELLA: You guys are the only ones 2 we can trust. Keep up the good work. Thank you. 3MR. COZZIE: Thank you. 4 It's 7:46. We'll adjourn the panel until 5 we have another speaker. 6(Recess in proceedings.) 7 8 (Proceedings concluded at 8:00 p.m.) 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

### www.depo.com Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters 303 1 REPORTER'S CERTIFICATE 2 3I, Lois Sikoski, Notary Public, certify: 4 That the foregoing proceedings were taken before 5me at the time and place therein set forth; 6That the testimony made at the time were recorded 7 stenographically by me and were thereafter transcribed; 8 That the foregoing is a true and correct 9 transcript of my shorthand notes so taken. 10 I further certify that I am not a relative or 11 employee of any attorney of the parties, nor 12 financially interested in the action. 13I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws 14 of Pennsylvania that the foregoing is true and correct. 15Dated this 12th day of October, 2015. 16 17 18 19_______________________________ 20 Lois Sikoski, Court Reporter 21 22 23 24 25