CHARLESTON, W.Va. — New state Department of Environmental Protection Agency Secretary Austin Caperton says he’s heard a lot in the short time he’s been on the job from those in the natural gas industry.
“I suddenly found that I had a lot of friends in the industry,” Caperton told members of the House of Delegates Finance Committee during a recent budget hearing. “Both IOGA (Independent Oil & Gas Association of West Virginia) and WVONGA (West Virginia Oil and Natural Gas Association) have visited me and they talk about the number of days to issue a permit. Also, I’ve had Antero in my office.”
It currently takes between 70-80 days to get a permit approved but that’s changing, Caperton said.
“I’m always amazed that they (natural gas companies) are getting ready to put in a $20 million facility to drill gas wells and they’re just so concerned about whether the permit time is 70 days or 72 days or 45 days or 46 days,” he said. “That time goes up and down depending on the economy and depending on the drilling activity. Right now, we’re probably trending down on that.”
The DEP has approximately 811 workers. The agency is approved for 936 positions. Caperton, who has just been on the job for just more than 40 days after being appointed by Gov. Jim Justice, wants to continue to look at the staffing numbers.
“It looks fairly lean on paper but I’m not far enough into the job to say we are as lean as we could be,” Caperton told committee members. “I do know it is very important for us to do our job and do it efficiently and effectively.”