Trial begins for driller sued over fouled Pennsylvania wells

SCRANTON, Pa. (AP) — Two families who accuse one of the largest natural gas drillers in Pennsylvania of polluting their well water are getting their day in court.

Opening statements were delivered Tuesday in a bitter and long-running federal lawsuit that pits homeowners in the village of Dimock against Houston-based Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. Dozens of other plaintiffs settled with Cabot in 2012.

Dimock was the scene of the most highly publicized case of methane contamination to emerge from the early days of Pennsylvania’s natural-gas drilling boom. State regulators blamed faulty gas wells drilled by Cabot for leaking combustible methane into Dimock’s groundwater. The company denies responsibility.

Dimock’s plight was featured in the 2010 documentary “Gasland.”