108 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

Posted Sunday, November 8, 2026 11:35 am

David E. Hess (via PA Environmental Digest)

Here are 108 new stories in the PA Environment Digest about individuals, groups, local governments, farmers, businesses, watershed groups and many more working all across Pennsylvania to restore and protect the environment and show others the beauty that surrounds us.

Thank you for your leadership!

-- In Memoriam: Ronald D. Castille, Former Chief Justice PA Supreme Court, Author Of 2013 Landmark PA Environmental Rights Amendment Decision [PaEN]

-- Northeast PA Environmental Partners Recognize Environmental Award Winners; Thomas P. Shelburne Award Winner Ellen Ferretti [PaEN]

-- Green Philly Announces 2026 SustainPHL Award Recipients Celebrating Philadelphia's Environmental Changemakers [PaEN]

-- WHYY: Award-Winning Women In Natural Sciences Program Spins From Academy Of Natural Sciences At Drexel University

-- TribLive: Eagle Scout Malachi Bajuszik Builds Bridge On Rachel Carson Trail In Butler County

-- Warren Times: Eagle Scout Huntley LaVigne Creates Seed Library For County Gardeners

-- WVIA: Susquehanna University Announces Free Tuition For Eligible Students With Family Income Of Up To $100,000 In 10 PA Counties

-- PA Election Results: Democrats Now Control PA Senate, Retain PA House, Governor’s Office [PaEN]

-- WeConservePA: Voters Approved 3 Local Ballot Measures Resulting In $182 Million In New Open Space Investments [PaEN]

-- Rep. Fiedler, PA House Energy Committee Democratic Chair: Pennsylvania Must Act On Energy Affordability, Modernizing Energy Infrastructure, Data Centers Must Pay Their Way [PaEN]

-- Williamsport Sun: Republican Senate Environmental Chair Gene Yaw Expects To Work With Democrat Majority [His Priorities: Legalizing Recreational Marijuana; Not Destroying The Natural Gas Industry; Legalizing Skill Games] [Warning]

-- The Allegheny Front: With Control Of PA Senate, House, Governor’s Office, How Will Democrats Lead On Energy And The Environment?

-- Inquirer - Frank Kummer: Data Centers, Energy Costs, Fracking Issues Loom As Democrats Finally Get Full Control Of PA Legislature

-- AP: A.I. Data Centers Took A Beating In Midterm Elections, Played Key Role In Flipping Seats To Democrats In State Legislatures [PA Included]

-- Scranton Times Chris Kelly Opinion: ‘Blue Tsunami’ Surfs ‘Purple Undertow’ Of Data Center Resistance

-- TribLive Editorial: What Is The Message Of PA’s Trifecta? If There Aren’t Solutions To Data Centers, Skill Games, State Budget It’s All On Democrats Now

-- Pennsylvania Weekly Oil & Gas Compliance Snapshot - Oct. 31 to Nov. 6 [PaEN]

-- DEP: Routine Inspections Find 6 More Anderson Energy SVC LLC Conventional Oil & Gas Wells Abandoned, Not Plugged In Venango County [PaEN]

-- DEP - Day 72: INR OPR LLC Still Collecting Contaminated Water, Building Structures To Recover Water At Cooper Shale Gas Pad From August Spill Of 336,000 Gallons Of Fracking Water In Indiana County [PaEN]

-- DEP - Day 135: Contaminated Water Discharges Continue, Still Fails To Comply With Cleanup Order At Equitrans Water SVC [EQT] Richter Impoundment In Greene County [PaEN]

-- DEP - Day 609: Oil & Gas MGMT Inc. Failed To Take Actions Or Respond To Violations At 2 Conventional Oil & Gas Wells In Westmoreland County [PaEN]

-- DEP - Day 740: Seneca Resources Continues Shale Gas Well Development At Taft Pad While Problems With Contaminated Water Persist At The Tioga County Site [PaEN]

-- DEP: Spill Of Just 1 Barrel Of Conventional Crude Oil From Storage Tanks In The City Of Warren Impacts 7 Miles Of Allegheny River [PaEN]

-- PUC Approves $150,000 Penalty Settlement With UGI For Faulty Plastic Natural Gas Pipe Installation Practices [PaEN]

-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Reports Low-Flow Stream Conditions Trigger Stop To 51 Shale Gas Water Withdrawals, 13 More Put On Watch Status [PaEN]

-- Guest Essay: All Brine From Conventional Oil & Gas Wells Contains Hazardous Pollutants, Why Are We Still Dumping It On Our Roads? - By David E. Hess, Former Secretary, PA Department Of Environmental Protection [PaEN]

-- MonValley Independent: Pennsylvania Opens New Loophole For Conventional Oil And Gas Wastewater Disposal On Roads

-- Rolling Stone - Justin Nobel: Ohio Denies Evidence Of Fracking Waste In Drinking Water, Its Own Records Show Otherwise

-- TheDerrick.com Guest Essay: Fossil Fuel Industry Follows Big Tobacco’s Disinformation - By Kathy Mulvey, InsideSources.com

-- DEP To Hold Dec. 8 In-Person Community Update On Energy Transfer/Sunoco Jet Fuel Pipeline Rupture Cleanup In Upper Makefield Twp., Bucks County [PaEN]

-- WHYY: PECO Contractor Strikes 14-inch Energy Transfer/Sunoco Jet Fuel Pipeline Causing Spill In Upper Merion Twp., Montgomery County

-- Inquirer - Frank Kummer: PECO Contractor Strikes Energy Transfer Jet Fuel Pipeline Causing 60,000 Gallon Sill in Upper Merion Twp., Montgomery County

-- TribLive: Water Getting Into Peoples Natural Gas Pipelines Blocking Service To Hempfield Twp. Residents In Westmoreland County

-- DEP Citizens Advisory Council, Environmental Justice Advisory Board Meet Nov. 10 On Fossil Fuel Impacts On Communities, Mapping PA’s Energy Infrastructure [PaEN]

-- Lehigh University Joins PA Team To Turn Aging Shale Gas Well Into Geothermal Power Source In Indiana County; Studies Show Geothermal Could Meet 100% Of PA Electricity, Heating, Most Industrial Needs [PaEN]

-- PJM Interconnection Winter Outlook: Power Supplies Should Be Available To Meet Expected Cold Weather Conditions [PaEN]

-- Inquirer: A Hard Winter Is Coming For PA Homes That Heat With Oil

-- ABC27: PPL Electric To Increase Default Customer Power Price 10.3% Starting Dec. 1 To 14.428 Cents/kWh From 13.079 Cents/kWh [Utilities Make No Profit On Default Power]

-- Wilkes-Barre Times-Leader: Dept. Of Human Services Now Accepting Applications For Low-Income Home Energy Assistance

-- PUC Approves New Rules To Allow Certain Duquesne Light Customers To Automatically Enroll Certain Customers In Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Programs

-- WESA - Rachel McDevitt: How Will EQT’s Plan To Buy Range Resources Affect Natural Gas Market? [Data Centers, Price Shaped By Global Events]

-- PUC Updates Comment Schedule On New Tools To Manage Data Centers During Emergency Periods Of Strained Electricity Supplies And Curtailments To Maintain Grid Reliability; Nov. 17 Technical Conference On Data Center Costs [PaEN]

-- Shapiro Administration: PJM Interconnection Selects 3 PA Projects In Expedited Program To Add 1.7 GW Of Generation, Energy Storage To Grid; DEP Accepting New Proposals By Nov. 16 [PaEN]

-- WFMZ: PPL Joint Venture Invitium Energy Announces Agreement To Supply 2 GW Of Power To QTS Data Center Project In Salem Twp., Luzerne County

-- Utility Dive: PJM’s Revised Backstop Power Procurement Plan Could Be For As Little As 630 MW, Down From 6,800 MW Due To Revised Utility Load Forecasts

-- Reuters: PJM Grid Tackles A.I. Data Center Power Costs In Race To Avoid Shortfalls, Higher Prices

-- Utility Dive: President’s Order Banning Foreign Grid Components Sparks Industry Concern Over Cost, Practicality [Warning]

-- Financial Times: Why America Is Struggling To Power The A.I. Boom [PDF of Article]

-- WPSU: What To Know About PA’s Data Center Tax Exemption And The Shifting Attitudes Surrounding It [Taxpayers Will Lose $1.9 Billion In Revenue From 2024 to 2031]

-- TribLive: Can State Lawmakers Manage A.I. Data Center Boom In Southwest PA?

-- South Mountain Partnership Issues White Paper On Potential Impacts Of A.I. Data Centers, Finds Them Incompatible With Some Regional Economic, Natural Resource Goals [PaEN]

-- Landgate Report Counts 199 A.I. Data Centers Under Development In Pennsylvania

-- In Case You Missed It: A.I./Data Center Articles - NewClips From Last Week - November 9 [PaEN]

-- DEP Issues Air Quality Permit To Amazon Data Services For Installation Of 76 Diesel-Fired Backup Generators At New Data Center Project In Falls Twp., Bucks County [PaEN]

-- DEP published notice in the November 7 PA Bulletin announcing it has issued an Air Quality Plan Approval for construction of 15 natural gas-fired generators to power Iron City No. 2 Data Center operations located in Beccaria Twp., Clearfield County. (PA Bulletin, page 7400)

-- Lancaster-based Belmont Solar Celebrates 25 Years Of Installing Solar Energy Systems, Promoting A More Sustainable Future [PaEN]

-- PA Solar Center: Ambridge Borough Flips Switch On New Rooftop Solar Energy System Saving Taxpayers $509,000 In Beaver County [PaEN]

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: EOS Energy Storage Manufacturer Begins Shift To Larger Production Facility

-- WHYY - Sophia Schmidt: Philadelphia Release Toolkit To Help Neighbors Talk About Climate Change

-- Reminder: DEP To Hold Nov. 10 Meeting/Hearing On Proposed Rustic Ridge #1 Coal Mine In Westmoreland, Fayette Counties

-- PennLive: A Mountain Of Coal Waste Is Burning, For Mount Carmel Twp., The Scars Run Deeper In Northumberland County

-- TribLive: As Hempfield Twp. Coal Refuse Fire Burns On After Being Started In March By A Lightning Strike, Property Owner Left With Looming Questions About Site’s Future In Westmoreland County

-- WTAE: Underground Coal Refuse Fire Continues To Burn After Months In Hempfield Twp., Westmoreland County

-- WESA - Marie Cusick: In Rural PA Doctors Confront Hidden Health Impacts Of Environmental Pollution

-- LancasterOnline: 300 People Wanted For Purdue University Study Of Radiation Exposure From Three Mile Island Nuclear Power Plant Meltdown

-- DEP Briefing: Overview Of Draft Chapter 105 Changes Highlighting New Waivers, Replacement Of Impacted Resources, Stream Debris Maintenance [PaEN]

-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Now Accepting Applications For Consumptive Use Mitigation Grants; Applicant Webinar Nov. 17 [PaEN]