The proposed Consent Decree between the United States and Utica Resource Operating, LLC (URO), resolves Clean Air Act violations at URO's oil and gas production well pads in Ohio.
EPA conducted inspections at 11 of URO?s well pads on April 18 2019, and observed significant venting of VOC and methane emissions from the storage vessels through thief hatches, pressure relief devices, and combustors. These emissions are required to be captured and controlled per Subparts OOOO and OOOOa and the Ohio PTIOs. Additionally, URO submitted a Voluntary Audit Disclosure (VAD) letter on April 27, 2020 to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA), which disclosed numerous long-term violations of leak detection and repair requirements as well as recordkeeping and reporting violations. Citing Region 5?s ongoing investigation of URO, OEPA sent URO a letter stating that its disclosed violations did not qualify for consideration under Ohio?s Audit Policy.
EPA issued a Notice and Finding of Violation to URO on August 13, 2020. Region 5 referred the matter to DOJ on September 23, 2021.
Under the proposed Consent Decree, URO will be required to implement injunctive relief at all 15 of its well pads. In settlement of this case, URO agreed to conduct analyses to ensure that its vapor control systems are adequately designed and sized to control VOC emissions as required; modify any vapor control systems found to be inadequately designed or sized; implement a Directed Inspection and Mai