AP: Pennsylvania is approving gas drilling permits with scant review

By Mel Evans, AP

Ann Dixon of Philadelphia holds a sign against drilling for natural gas near the Delaware River, and Al Kaufmann, of Damascus, Pa., holds a sign in favor of drilling.

EnlargeCloseBy Mel Evans, AP

Ann Dixon of Philadelphia holds a sign against drilling for natural gas near the Delaware River, and Al Kaufmann, of Damascus, Pa., holds a sign in favor of drilling.

And the regulators say they do not give any additional scrutiny to requests to drill near streams and rivers, even though the waterways are protected by state and federal law.

Staffers in the state Department of Environmental Protection testified behind closed doors last month as part of a lawsuit filed by residents and environmental groups over a permit that DEP issued for an exploratory gas well in northeastern Pennsylvania, less than a half-mile from the Delaware River and about 300 feet from a pristine stream.

MORE: About gas 'fracking'STORY: New York's drilling moratoriumSTORY: Fracking the Haynesville Shale in LouisianaTheir statements, obtained by The Associated Press, call into question whether regulators are overburdened and merely rubber-stamping permit applications during the unprecedented drilling boom that has turned Pennsylvania into a major player in the natural gas market, while also raising fears about polluted water and air.

The agency has denied few requests to drill in the Marcellus Shale formation, the world

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