Peters Township holds hearing on drilling ordinance
Ron Gulla said he worked on four drilling rigs and knows how the industry lies. The Hickory resident said his water turned black. “I’m tired of the word anecdotal when it comes to these health concerns. It happens everywhere.”
Bob Donnan presents a bottle of coke and pizza, a reference to how Chevron dealt with residents in Greene County after a fatal well explosion.
Gary Baumgardner, of Finleyville, points to a map showing his home less than 450 feet from a well pad. “Our home has become a place of anxiety ... we had to rent an apartment because we often can’t sleep because of the noise. We have ordinances in Union Township and the gas industry does what it wants.”
Peters Township Council took a step toward changing its zoning that will allow natural gas drilling within its borders.
At a public hearing Jan. 19, council members heard from numerous residents – both pro and con – about gas drilling and proposed changes to its ordinance that would permit drilling in industrial zoned areas, which comprise roughly 150 acres throughout the township.
Because of changes in state law, Peters must eliminate its Mineral Extraction Overlay District, which would have allowed drilling in 15 areas that are all zoned residential.
“The township has been studying this since 2010,” said Michael Silvestri, Peters Township manager.
The problem that the township faces is how it can allow drilling and still meet state law, especially when it comes to protecting the environment, Silvestri said. Key environmental protections that the township has added to its zoning include protection for fresh water, ground water, as well as adding fresh water and ground water impoundments. Also, an applicant must show the township which way a spill will flow if there is one.
“This puts the burden on the applicant to meet environmental requirements of the Pennsylvania constitution,” Silvestri said.
In addition, any drilling pad must be 750 feet from protected structures. The township reserves the right to increase any set back based on the physical characteristics of the site and evidence received at a hearing necessitating an increase in the minimum setback.
To date, there is no drilling in the township, but there is activity just outside the borders. Some of those wells do horizontal drilling, which goes beneath Peters’ borders. In addition, some township property owners have leased their land to gas companies, mostly Pittsburgh-based EQT.
“I have a lease and I don’t want you to take it away,” said resident Bob Simmons, who owns a farm. He said he would like to have his family receive revenue from the lease.
Bob Donnan, another township resident, said allowing gas extraction in the township, or fracking, as it is commonly known, is akin to putting a square peg in a round hole. Donnan got a laugh from the 100 or so people in attendance when he pulled an empty pizza box and large soda bottle from a garbage bag. Donnan was referencing an explosion and fire at Chevron Appalachia’s Lanco well pad in Dunkard Township Feb. 11, which killed one worker and injured another. To soften the blow, nearby residents got a two-topping pizza and soda from Chevron, he said.
Ron Gulla, a North Strabane Township resident, said he had two horizontal wells drilled on his property in Hickory. He said both his well and pond were contaminated by fracking activity.
“I have not had a life since 2005,” he said. “I have been digging up people throughout the state who have been affected by this. I hate to see this happen in Peters Township.”
Gary Baumgardner of Finleyville said he lives less than 500 feet from a well site.
“Our home is no longer a home of peace and quiet,” he said. “It has become a home of anxiety. We don’t know some nights if we can sleep. We have rented an apartment and some nights we sleep there.”
“This industry distorts the truth,” he said. “They tend to frack at night. When they do sound studies, they stop operations. They wear respirators. What is our recourse if there is an accident on the site?”
Township officials expect to hold more hearings on the proposed zoning changes. A final vote has not been scheduled.