Yuengling, America’s oldest brewer, invades the West Coast
By DEE-ANN DURBIN AP Business Writer
West Coast beer lovers, it’s pronounced YING-ling. Yuengling and Son, America’s oldest operating brewer, is partnering with Molson Coors to send its beer to western states for the first time since it began brewing in 1829. The brewery, about two hours northwest of Philadelphia, is breaking out beyond its traditional 22-state distribution area in the East. The family-owned brewery known for its cheap German-style lager will remain independent. Yuengling expects its beer will be available out west in the second half of next year.

(Pittsburgh, Pa.) Three protesters are facing charges stemming from an incident with diners along Penn Avenue earlier this month. Monique Craft, Kenneth McDowell, and Shawn Green are facing various charges. The Charges stem from an incident on September 5, 2020 after the three harassed people who were eating peacefully at a restaurant on Penn Ave. in Downtown Pittsburgh during a protest known as Civil Saturday.

At one point in the video one of the accused grabbed a customers drink and drank it along with yelling at the people dining outside the establishment. The three face charges including harassment, conspiracy, and disorderly conduct.

Mailed ballots can’t be discarded over signature, state says
By MARC LEVY Associated Press
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — With concerns rising in Pennsylvania that thousands of mail-in ballots will be discarded in the presidential election over technicalities, state officials told counties that they cannot reject a ballot solely because an election official believes a signature doesn’t match the signature in the voter’s file. The new guidance from Pennsylvania’s Department of State also prompted the League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania and the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh to drop a lawsuit in federal court Monday. The groups had sought to ensure that voters have the chance to fix ballots that are either missing signatures or flagged for a perceived signature mismatch.

Hurricane Sally slows, gathering a deluge for the Gulf Coast
By STACEY PLAISANCE and JEFF MARTIN Associated Press
WAVELAND, Miss. (AP) — Hurricane Sally is crawling toward the northern Gulf Coast at just 2 mph, a pace that’s enabling the storm to gather huge amounts of water to eventually dump on land. Forecasters now expect landfall late Tuesday or early Wednesday near the Alabama-Mississippi state line. Rain from the storm’s outer bands is already pummeling parts of the Florida Panhandle, where Gov. Ron DeSantis declared an emergency. President Donald Trump has declared an emergency for parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Sally has sustained winds of 85 mph, which forecasters expect it to maintain until it hits land.

Story by Beaver County Radio News Correspondent Sandy Giordano

(Hopewell Twp. , Pa.) Last night Hopewell School Board met via ZOOM  and Superintendent t. Dr. Michelle Miller gave credit to all , and it has taken every pair of hands to reopen for the health and safety of all.. She announced that a free federal food program for all  students will be available through December 31, 2020.  Dr. Miller said due to the increase in    traffic with students being picked up and dropped off she credits the police department and its officers for their help

DEP releases 2019 Oil and Gas Annual Report 

Harrisburg, PA – Natural gas production in Pennsylvania increased while new well drilling decreased in 2019, according to the 2019 Oil and Gas Annual Report released today by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). The report also notes improved permit review efficiency. DEP is also exploring new partnerships to address orphan wells, identifying better restoration practices, and developing better ways to manage stormwater on well sites.

Production from natural gas wells continues to increase. More than 6 billion Mcf of natural gas was produced, continuing an upward trend from previous years.

Other details from the annual report:

• 1,705 drilling permits were issued; 1,475 unconventional and 230 conventional
• There were 787 wells drilled; 615 unconventional and 172 conventional
• DEP conducted 35,324 inspections and found 5,496 violations
• DEP collected $4.1 million in fines and penalties in 2019

“DEP will continue to improve environmental protections for oil and gas development while providing certainty for operators and the people that live, work, and play near Pennsylvania’s oil and gas communities,” said DEP Secretary Patrick McDonnell. “We are remaining vigilant in our oversight of the industry and bringing enforcement actions against companies that violate the laws and regulations of Pennsylvania.”

DEP continues to identify and plug orphan and abandoned wells in Pennsylvania, many of which predate regulatory oversight – a result of Pennsylvania’s 160-year history of oil and gas development. DEP estimates that there may be as many 200,000 abandoned oil and gas wells in the state, which can leak methane into the air and possibly contaminate groundwater or surface water. DEP and the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) have begun a field study in the Cornplanter State Forest to measure methane leakage from identified orphan wells. This research will help DEP better estimate methane emissions from the thousands of orphaned and abandoned wells in Pennsylvania.

“We know there are thousands of old, abandoned wells in Pennsylvania, but we don’t know how to quantify the threat these wells pose to our environment, especially from a climate change angle,” said McDonnell. “This research will help us put that into perspective and help guide how to prioritize well-plugging in the future.”

To see the full 2019 Annual Report please click here.

Judge: Pennsylvania’s pandemic restrictions unconstitutional
By MICHAEL RUBINKAM Associated Press
Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration says it will appeal a federal judge’s ruling that pandemic restrictions that required people to stay at home, placed limits on gatherings and ordered “non-life-sustaining” businesses to close are unconstitutional. U.S. District Judge William Stickman IV, an appointee of President Donald Trump, sided with plaintiffs that included hair salons, drive-in movie theaters, a farmer’s market vendor, a horse trainer and several Republican officeholders. Courts had consistently rejected challenges to Wolf’s power to order businesses to close during the pandemic. Wolf’s spokesperson said Monday the administration will seek delayed enforcement of the ruling while it appeals.

AAA: Pennsylvania Gas Prices Lower; Fall Trends May Lower Prices Further
The average price of gasoline across Western Pennsylvania is a penny lower this week at $2.555 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.

This week’s average prices: Western Pennsylvania Average                  $2.555
Average price during the week of September 7, 2020                               $2.569
Average price during the week of September 16, 2019                             $2.758

The average price of unleaded self-serve gasoline in various areas:      

$2.551      Altoona
$2.553      Beaver
$2.598      Bradford
$2.574      Brookville
$2.585      Butler
$2.488      Clarion
$2.561      DuBois
$2.589      Erie
$2.501      Greensburg
$2.563      Indiana
$2.478      Jeannette
$2.576      Kittanning
$2.554      Latrobe
$2.594      Meadville
$2.575      Mercer
$2.505      New Castle
$2.566      New Kensington
$2.599      Oil City
$2.532      Pittsburgh
$2.597      Sharon
$2.521      Uniontown
$2.599      Warren
$2.508      Washington

Trend Analysis:
Today’s national gas price average is $2.19, which is three cents less than last week, two cents more than a month ago, and 37 cents cheaper than mid-September last year. On the week, every state saw gas prices decrease or stabilize. States with the largest declines are paying a nickel to a dime less, but most averages pushed cheaper by a few pennies since last Monday.

The latest Energy Information Administration (EIA) report measures gasoline demand at 8.3 million barrels-per-day, which is the lowest level since mid-June. As demand dropped for a second week, so did gasoline supply levels – down nearly 3 million barrels to 231 million. While lower supply would typically translate into higher prices, continued low levels of demand are pushing the national average to one of the lowest prices all year.

As the Nation moves into Mid-September, seasonal gasoline trends are starting to take hold. This is the time of the year that ushers in cheaper gas prices due to the switchover at gas stations from summer-blend to winter-blend, which is cheaper to produce. Motorists will likely see some cost savings at the pump with the switchover, but the price difference will be less than other years given how cheap prices are.

One outlying factor that could disrupt these typical market dynamics are continued disruptions to production by tropical storms, depressions, and hurricanes. The National Hurricane Center is currently tracking a number of storms, and Tropical Storm Sally is expected to produce a storm surge and hurricane-force winds for the northern Gulf Coast starting later today. Sally has already forced at least one refinery shutdown in Louisiana and could affect others. However, any pump price impacts will likely be contained to the region and not have a national impact.

At the close of Friday’s formal trading session, West Texas Intermediate increased by three cents to settle at $37.33. Although crude prices made a small gain at the end of the week, the price of crude saw a weekly loss of $2.44.

Motorists can find current gas prices nationwide, statewide, and countywide at GasPrices.AAA.com.

AAA East Central is a not-for-profit association with 76 local offices in Kentucky, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia serving 2.7 million members.  News releases are available at news.eastcentral.aaa.com.  Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.