PA Environment Digest Blog: Cecil Township Supervisors In Washington County Adopt 2,500 Foot Setback From Shale Gas Well Pads From Homes, Businesses, 5,000 Foot Setback From Hospitals, Schools

On November 4, the Cecil Township Board of Supervisors in Washington County adopted an ordinance establishing setbacks from shale gas well pads of 2,500 feet from homes and businesses as “protected structures” and 5,000 feet from schools and hospitals.

The proposed 25-page ordinance also gives property owners the ability to waive the setback, however, all property owners within the 2,500 foot setback must agree to a waiver.

The setbacks for schools and hospitals cannot be waived under the ordinance.

Well pads must also be located not less than 1,000 feet from any residential lot line.

The ordinance also includes provisions requiring an environmental impact analysis to “describe, identify and analyze all environmental aspects of the site and of neighboring properties that may be affected by the proposed operations or the ultimate use proposed to be conducted on the site.”

The ordinance also sets requirements for other oil and gas development facilities “which employ the use of compressors, motors or engines as part of the operations and/or produce air-contaminant emissions or offensive odors, subsurface facilities, including horizontal drilling facilities, gathering system facilities and production facilities.”

Click Here for a copy of the ordinance.

Click Here for a more detailed summary of the ordinance.

Many residents' pleas to the Board of Supervisors for increased setback distances have been based on their negative experiences of living near well pads and or the growing list of peer-reviewed research linking poor health outcomes to people living in close proximity to fracking. That public engagement has been crucial.

This is not a ban on drilling in Cecil Township.

There are five existing well pads that will be grandfathered in and that cover more than 60% of the township.

In addition, land owners who want to waive the 2,500 foot setback and have drilling on their property can do so, as long as everyone within that buffer zone agrees.

The ordinance was as a follow-up to a series of four public hearings held by the Township on the issue of regulating shale gas well pads. Read more here.

A fifth hearing was held right before the Supervisors voted on November 4.

Click Here for a video of the Supervisors meeting. Click Here for a video of the November 4 hearing on the ordinance.

Reactions

Janice Blanock, a Cecil resident who lost her son Luke to Ewing sarcoma, said-- “I would like to thank the Cecil Township Supervisors for doing what's right to protect the residents. For the ones who abstained, we will remember that! It's been a long, tough road. I have attended and spoke at all of the hearings and I feel very proud to say I live in Cecil. This victory gives me hope for the future and honors my son's memory.”

Sarah Martik, Executive Director of the Center for Coalfield Justice, a Cecil resident, said- “This is a victory 15 years in the making. It really shows what people who work together and persist can accomplish. Despite industry’s threats and intimidation, the board of supervisors made clear that the people, not the mega corporations, who call Cecil Township home are their first priority. We hope this sets an example for other communities to follow.”

(Photos: top- Range Resources Augustine Drill Pad in Cecil Township; Augustine Drill Pad showing scale of operation; bottom- Map of Shale gas wells (red dots), conventional oil and gas wells (blue/green dots) in Cecil Township (DEP Oil & Gas Program); 523 feet from nearest house; Well pad gas flare from bedroom window near Augustine well pad (WTAE). Other photos Courtesy of The Energy Age Blog.)

NewsClips:

-- Observer-Reporter: Cecil Township Supervisors Approve Ordinance Increasing Setbacks For New Shale Gas Well Pads [PDF of Article]

-- Marcellus Drilling News: Cecil Township Supervisors Pull The Trigger On Frack ‘Ban’ Via Setbacks [PDF of Article]

-- Marcellus Drilling News: Marcellus Shale Gas Coalition Pushes Back Against Cecil Township’s 2,500 Foot Setback From Well Pads [PDF of Article]

Resource Links:

-- Cecil Township, Washington County Posts Proposed Ordinance Increasing Setbacks From Shale Gas Well Pads Of 2,500 Feet From Homes, Businesses; 5,000 Feet From Schools, Hospitals; Nov. 4 Hearing, Meeting Set [PaEN]

-- Cecil Township Supervisors Direct Solicitor To Prepare Ordinance Increasing Setbacks From Shale Gas Well Pads By At Least 2,500 Feet; Another Hearing, Vote Expected Nov. 4 [PaEN]

NewsClips - Washington County:

-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: As Fracking Turns 20 In Pennsylvania, Towns Consider New Regulations For Distance Between Homes And Well Pads [Cecil Twp., Washington County] [PDF of Article]

-- Observer-Reporter Letter: There’s Another Side To The ‘Shale Gas Revolution’

-- DEP Invites Comments On New Air Pollution Permit For Revolution Natural Gas Cryogenic Processing Plant In Washington County; Plant Suffered Major Explosion, Fire In 2022 [PaEN]

-- DEP Issues Violations To 3 Shale Gas Drillers For Failing To Report Fracking Chemicals, Including At EQT’s Lumber Well Pad In Greene County, Range Resources In Washington County [PaEN]