In May of 2016 the Wayne Land and Mineral Group (WLMG) filed suit in federal court challenging the authority of the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) to regulate natural gas drilling in the Delaware River Basin (DRB). DCS responded with an Amicus brief, presenting to the Court the “devastating impacts that would follow in the Basin if this Court determines that the Commission does not have the authority to regulate – including the authority to ban — fracking in the Basin.”
On March 23, 2017, The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania dismissed the lawsuit brought by WLMG. The court determined that gas wells, and related facilities and activities, constitute “projects” and that proposed projects must be submitted to the DRBC to determine if they will have a “substantial effect on the water resources of the Basin”. The conclusion of the court is as follows:
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