Environmental groups argue that longwall mining, the technique Consol would use to mine beneath the stream, can cause ground beneath streams to fall in.
Gas poured from the well head at a rate estimated by the EPA of 100 million cubic feet per day for 20 days before crews were able to plug it it on March 7.
Reporters Reid Frazier and Amy Sisk will speak at the launch of a book edited by a University of Pittsburgh professor who studies the worldwide development of shale gas.
Pennsylvania’s Public Utility Commission ordered the temporary shutdown on Wednesday saying it could have a “catastrophic” effect on public safety if it leaks.
In addition to monitoring the air, regulators have set up floating booms in nearby Captina Creek to protect it from salty brine water that’s also pouring from the well.
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection said Sunoco has now demonstrated it can comply with the permit requirements, and regulators will be closely monitoring the work.
The request comes a few weeks after the state shut down another pipeline project due to repeated permit violations, including more than 60 spills along its route.
