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Pa.: Drilling not to blame in tainted-well case

Pennsylvania environmental regulators on Monday concluded that Marcellus Shale drilling was not responsible for a high-profile case of methane contamination of private water wells in northeastern Pennsylvania.

In this file photo of Jan. 17, 2013, Yoko Ono, left, and her son Sean Lennon visit a fracking site in Franklin Forks, Pa., during a bus tour of natural-gas drilling sites in northeastern Pennsylvania. Ono and Lennon have formed a group called ìArtists Against Fracking,î which has become the main celebrity driven anti-fracking organization. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)
In this file photo of Jan. 17, 2013, Yoko Ono, left, and her son Sean Lennon visit a fracking site in Franklin Forks, Pa., during a bus tour of natural-gas drilling sites in northeastern Pennsylvania. Ono and Lennon have formed a group called ìArtists Against Fracking,î which has become the main celebrity driven anti-fracking organization. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)Read moreAP
    by By Andrew Maykuth, Inquirer Staff Writer
    Published 

Pennsylvania environmental regulators on Monday concluded that Marcellus Shale drilling was not responsible for a high-profile case of methane contamination of private water wells in northeastern Pennsylvania.

The state Department of Environmental Protection said it has closed the books on an investigation of the methane migration in Franklin Forks, Pa., which anti-drilling celebrities Yoko Ono and Susan Sarandon visited in January.

Citing a 125-page consultant's report, DEP says the methane in some residents' wells is naturally occurring shallow gas, not production gas from well drilling.

Matthew and Tammy Manning last year sued WPX Energy, the company that drilled gas wells about 4,000 feet from their Susquehanna County home.