These little communities go to state court

Riverkeeper, Damascus Citizens and PA townships take on the giant

By TOM KANE

HARRISBURG, PA - Three little fighting municipalities in Pennsylvania, who are taking on the giant gas drilling companies, have been joined in their court appeal by three other supporters of the environment.

The fighting municipalities are Oakmont Borough in Allegheny County, Salem Township in Westmoreland County and Nockamixon Township in Bucks County. The three “friends” are the Delaware Riverkeeper Network, the American Littoral Society and the Damascus Citizens for Sustainability.

The friends filed an amicus curiae or friend-of-the-court brief.

The case is over the three municipalities’ attempts to exercise some control over the rash of large gas drilling companies drilling whenever, wherever and however they wish in their towns.

Opposing the decrees of the Pennsylvania Oil and Gas Act, which forbid municipalities from interfering with the drilling operations even if it can cause some harm to the townships, the three municipalities enacted local laws limiting certain aspects of the drilling operations.

One of the townships, Oakmont Borough in Allegheny County, refused to give the drilling company, Huntley & Huntley, a conditional-use permit to drill in a residential neighborhood. When the company sued the borough and won its case, Oakmont appealed to the PA Supreme Court.

A similar thing occurred in Salem Township in Westmoreland County. “The company wants to drill 200 wells and use a million gallons or more a day,” said Salem Township Supervisor Robert Zundel. “We are concerned about the loss of water by our farmers. We feel that water is more important than any gas they might get.”

Salem, like Oakmont, went to its local court and was supported in its opposition. However, on appeal by the company, the Commonwealth Court overturned the lower court. Salem, then, appealed to the state Supreme Court.

The third municipality, Nockamixon Township in Bucks County, used its zoning authority to pass ordinances regulating drilling activities. The company, Michigan-based Arbor Resources, said it received permits from the state that supercede the town’s ordinances. Nockamixon officials decided to join in the Oakmont-Salem appeal to the Supreme Court.

“The proposed natural gas extraction threatens irreversible damage to the environment, culture and communities of the Upper Delaware Wild and Scenic River and the drinking water supply of over 17 million,” said Delaware Riverkeeper Maya van Rossum.

“We must be able to regulate land uses in the township based on local officials’ knowledge of the municipality’s character, its citizens’ needs and the special nature of its resources,” said Jordan Yeager, attorney for Nockamixon Township.

The Amicus brief was filed on July 8 in the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, Western Division.