Russ Collins has been spending his retirement trying to improve Snitz Creek in Lebanon County. When Sunoco began constructing the Mariner East pipeline, he saw the stream turn orange.
The agreement allows Sunoco to resume construction near Marsh Creek Lake State Park in Chester County. The August 2020 spill shutdown part of the lake.
Energy Transfer faces 48 criminal charges related to construction of its Mariner East pipeline project, including a felony count of failing to report pollution.
Spills from the Mariner East construction were in Blair, Cumberland, Juniata, and Lebanon counties. Sunoco already paid half a million dollars in fines for spills in Lebanon county last year.
The company's written materials must include the terms “property damage, personal injury, burns, asphyxiation, and death (fatality),” from a pipeline leak or explosion.
Experts say they require specialized planning, with blueprints for how all people — especially those with disabilities — can get to safety. But Pa.’s plan is one of passing the buck.
Despite being one of the most controversial projects in Pennsylvania history, many emergency managers and others along the route cannot confidently answer one pressing question: Are we prepared?
