Geokinetics: Judge challenges jurisdiction in Monroeville seismic testing case
A federal judge is requiring that Geokinetics show that her court has jurisdiction to hear the company’s request for a preliminary injunction to stop enforcement of a law governing seismic testing recently enacted in Monroeville.
The order by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Joy Flowers Conti in Pittsburgh came eight days after Monroeville solicitor Robert Wratcher submitted a 14-page rebuttal to Geokinetics’ challenge of the new law that requires companies to pay $1,000 to obtain a permit, notify nearby property owners in advance of testing and have a $2 million liability insurance policy.
The company is seeking a preliminary injunction that would allow it to perform seismic testing on municipal roads. Geokinetics in its Oct. 11 complaint said it sought permission from Monroeville in June to use municipal roads. The municipality denied the company’s request and then passed a law regulating the process.
In his rebuttal, Wratcher said Geokinetics skipped the appeals process before filing its case in federal court. If that is found to be true by Conti, she could dismiss the case.
Before that happens, Geokinetics must show Conti its case belongs in her court. Monroeville then has until Nov. 26 to counter Geokinetics’ response.
The Texas-based company has an office in Canonsburg and was hired by gas and oil exploration company Huntley & Huntley this year to perform seismic tests in a 200-mile radius that includes Monroeville.
Seismic testing often precedes fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, a technique to extract oil and gas from rock by injecting high-pressure water, sand or gravel and chemicals. Huntley & Huntley has said it does not have plans for fracking in Monroeville, but the testing would help the company determine if drilling operations are viable in areas bordering the municipality.