The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture has quarantined 28 head of Tioga county cattle following concerns that the animals may have drunk natural gas wastewater seeping from a holding pond.

The cattle were on pasture adjacent to the bond built to collect flow-back liquids from the hydraulic fracturing process in a well being drilled by East Resources, Inc.

Ag Secretary Russell Redding reported that the quarantine was ordered to protect consumers from consuming eating potentially contaminated products. "Cattle are drawn to the taste of salty water," explained Redding. "Drilling wastewater has high salinity levels. It also contains dangerous chemicals and metals."

Tests of the wastewater found that it contained chloride, iron, sulfate, barium, magnesium, manganese, potassium, sodium, strontium and calcium. The main concern is the heavy metal strontium, which can be toxic to humans, especially in growing children, explained Redding.

The metal takes a long time to pass through an animal's system because it is preferentially deposited in bone and released in the body at varying rates. Live animal testing was not possible because tissue sampling is required.

Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) also issued a notice of violation to East Resources Inc. and required further sampling and site remediation. DEP is evaluating the final cleanup report and is continuing its investigation of site operations and circumstances surrounding the leak.