Community meets to learn more about Level Green Pipeline

Residents in Level Green met Thursday, May 26 at Protect PT’s Community Environmental Education Center to learn about the proposed Level Green Pipeline.

Protect PT Staff and Tim Fitchett, staff attorney at Fair Shake Environmental Legal Services, presented information on the operator, Apex WML Midstream LLC based on records from the PA Department of Environmental Protection and other public records and understanding and negotiating right of way contracts. The proposed Level Green Pipeline starts at the proposed Drakulic Well Pad and runs through Level Green to another pipeline portion, the Lyons Run Pipeline, which runs through Murrysville. The 8” diameter pipeline would carry unprocessed, fracked methane gas. The pipeline will use Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD), a method for installing underground pipelines that uses a drill on the surface (entry point drilling pit) to bore a hole into the subsurface using thousands of gallons of water and bentonite clay for lubricant.

“No one seems to know who will check the pipeline for safety,” said Ann LeCuyer, part time contractor with Protect PT. “I’ve talked to PA DEP, to the Public Utility Commission (PUC) and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), a part of the Department of Transportation, and no one seems to be communicating with each other.”

Apex has a history of violations with the PA Department of Environmental Protection (which can be accessed through a shortened link