Federal Court Denies Effort by Range to Dismiss EPA Suit Over Texas Drilling

DALLAS - A federal judge has denied a motion by Range Production Co. and an affiliate to dismiss an enforcement action by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency accusing the companies of contaminating domestic water wells while drilling for natural gas in the Barnett Shale Formation near Fort Worth, Texas. United States v. Range Production Co., et al., No. 3:11-cv-116-F (N.D. Texas).

Senior District Judge Royal Furgeson of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas did agree to stay the lawsuit pending a ruling by the 5th Circuit on Range's related challenge to the EPA's Emergency Order for …