Lawmakers Seek To Halt Drilling After More Sunoco Spills In Chester County

WEST CHESTER, PA — Sunoco has spilled drilling fluid multiple times over the last several days in Chester County, and local lawmakers are calling for statewide action.

Sunoco said in a statement that drilling was stopped after the most recent Mariner East 2 pipeline spill on Monday on Paoli Pike and Boot Road in East Goshen. They said that no drinking water was impacted.

According to East Goshen Safety and Environmental Advocates (EGSEA), a "large amount" of drilling fluid spilled and seeped through to the surface, which is located on private property. The area was still being cleaned up on Tuesday.

"Sunoco continues to remind us on a regular basis that their practices are fallible, dangerous to our community, and, simply put, too much of a risk to impose on us for corporate profit," the organization said in a statement.

State Sen. Andy Dinniman (D-Chester) announced Wednesday that he will hold a press conference and rally in Harrisburg on Oct. 17 to announce bipartisan legislation to improve pipeline safety.

“Residents, homeowners, and families have real and valid concerns regarding pipeline construction activities and the potential threats to their health, safety, and well-being,” Dinniman said. “In Chester County, we have serious concerns regarding Mariner East, but this is a statewide issue with myriad individuals and families across the Commonwealth impacted by the seemingly endless number of pipeline projects that are either already underway or on the horizon.”

It's the latest controversy surrounding the oft-beleaguered Mariner East 2 pipeline. In July, after public drinking water was contaminated and residents were forced to drink bottled water, a judge ordered the company to immediately halt all drilling. Drilling did not resume until after an Aug. 9 hearing laid new ground rules regarding where and how they could drill.

Dinniman said Wednesday that he would call for a halt on all pipeline drilling and construction activities in the state until "adequate safety measures were implemented."

Mariner East 2, if completed, would run a pipeline carrying natural gas liquids from the massive Marcellus Shale deposit in western Pennsylvania to Marcus Hook, on the Delaware River. It crosses through significant portions of Chester and Delaware counties on its way. The oil will then be shipped overseas, largely for use in creating plastics.

Drilling had been underway at 55 locations across Pennsylvania, according to an environmental nonprofit, the Clean Air Council. It has not begun at another 168 locations.

Patch file photo