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Claysville resident seeks to protect artifacts from drilling
Mike Kotz, a historian and retired agricultural research scientist, was one of several panelists to address a Washington County League of Women Voters discussion Thursday on the economic and political impact of Marcellus Shale gas drilling on the area at the Washington Pony League headquarters in Washington Square.
Kotz said recent pipeline construction in Blaine Township was found to disturb several areas documented by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commissionas historic sites.
According to Kotz, his research found that the state Department of Environmental Protection had established a set of uniform policies consistent with the PHMC's Pennsylvania History Code, but were not being applied in the permitting process for oil and gas.
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Kotz said prior to Thursday's meeting that under Pennsylvania's Title 37, commonwealth agencies, political subdivision and municipal authorities shall cooperate fully with the commission in the preservation, protection and investigation of archeological resources.
He said that under the law, DEP should be informing the PHMC of any earth-disturbing activities that could cause potential damage to historical sites before a permit is issued.
He also noted that on DEP's Web site section on the "Oil and Gas Operators Manual," a section states that the department "shall, on making a determination on a well permit, consider the impact of the proposed well on public resources to include, but not be limited to the following: Historical and archeological sites on the federal or state list of historic places."
He said Friday that the coal industry has always been required to comply with rules regarding archaeological sites.
He told Thursday's audience of about 60 people that Pennsylvania has one of the highest numbers of areas documented as historically significant sites, adding that Washington County has more than 1,300.
"A D-9 bulldozer can wipe out 9,500 years of accumulated history in 15 minutes," Kotz said, adding that he later learned from a state attorney that there is no statutory exemption from compliance with the history code for oil and gas, but that it is a DEP policy, which does not carry the weight of the written law and cannot override them.
Kotz said a review this summer by PHMC's Bureau of Historic Preservation of the last two miles of a gas line construction project by Mark West Energy found that it was likely that the company's work "had compromised, damaged or destroyed nine identified and recorded Native American sites."
When Kotz and the PHMC met with Mark West representatives in August, Kotz said they stated their company would comply with all state regulations of the permitting process, but it was their position that there were no regulations in effect regarding cultural resources in the permitting process for oil and gas activities. Kotz said the company also stated that the PHMC site information maps were unusable for their planning purposes and that they had inadequate staff to handle the information.
Kotz said people have until Nov. 30 to send comments requesting a change to Pa. Code 25, which regulates erosion and sediment control for oil and gas drilling. He said people should ask that any exemptions for oil and gas companies be removed from the code.
During Thursday's discussion, panelist Dr. John Gregor, chairman of Washington & Jefferson College's economic department, said projections being done by his students show that the economic impact of Marcellus drilling will continue to grow, providing more local jobs, service companies and expanding revenues to the county.
"The center of the Marcellus Shale activity is here," Gregor said, adding that the county's intersecting interstate highway system and its proximity to Pittsburgh International Airport are the major reasons for drilling and service companies' decisions to locate operations here.
Thomas Vreeland, a Washington attorney who has worked on oil and gas issues for the past 30 years, acknowledged that while the expense, obligations and burdens fall on local municipalities or governments where the drilling occurs, the state - not the municipality - ultimately has oversight of drilling activities.
As a result, Vreeland said, "litigation has sprung up, and 2009 was a banner year."
State Rep. Tim Solobay, D-Canonsburg, said legislators are attempting to streamline some of the regulations in an effort to make drilling uniform across Pennsylvania.
When asked by several members of the audience about the possibility of a severance tax on gas extraction to help offset the costs of regulation, Solobay said he expects such a tax to pass within the next couple of years.
Comments, suggestions or objections to 25 PA Code CH. 102 (Erosion and Sediment Control) should be sent to: Environmental Quality Board P.O. Box 8477, Harrisburg PA, 17105-8477.
Realistically speaking : 11/21/2009
A lot of people had better wake up and smell the coffee - "the people" have been and are being big time ripped off and malfeasance, misfeasance and negligence is being practiced every day - every level of our so-called government.
Drill baby drill : 11/21/2009
These turkeys would drill in cemeteries if you let them. No shame!
Horse is outta the barn ... : 11/21/2009
Mr. Kotz concern with historical site preservation, and the overt lack of concern by the OG industry is only ONE MORE indicator that there's no stopping this devastation unless people organize, stand up, and stop being polite. This is not a single concern issue, and we have overwhelming evidence from around the country about what is coming our way. Let's GET SERIOUS and SAY NO to drilling.
Shale Drilling : 11/21/2009
Solobay professed not to know that the drillers were exempt from Safe Drinking and Clean Water Acts, thanks to the Energy Act of 2005. Also did not know what the Frac Act mandates .... think about that as he offers his leadership on this issue.
Why no severance tax, Mr. Solobay? : 11/21/2009
Gotta wonder why we have to wait a "couple of years" for a severance tax on drilling that is happening now? Smells bad, just like the methane coming soon to backyards everywhere.
Gas Drilling : 11/21/2009
Greed and stupidity win out over intelligence every time with land owners
sour grapes : 11/21/2009
I think this is sour grapes from few of the people from Blaine that tried to pass the Home Rule Charter, 80% of the people voted it down!
protect artifacts from drilling : 11/21/2009
Why not work WITH the energy companies looking to exploit the marcellus resources. The oil has increasing value as a result of growing demand. The cost to preserve an historically significant site is minor compared to the other costs related to recovering oil 3 miles in the ground. There's plenty of room for negotiation in this discussion and all parties should come to the table with the goal of preserving history and developing our local economy through cooperation. RCB
Protect Artifacts... : 11/22/2009
Mr M. Knotz, I give you a High Five on doing what is RIGHT for the entire area. Please keep up the good WORK. Everyone wins...Who wins the MOST? ?
informed : 11/22/2009
Why in the world would we want to depend on foreign oil when we have a cleaner fuel in or own country? Why would we not want to take advantage of it? If your truly concerned with the environment then natural gas is the way to go, not foreign oil!
History? : 11/23/2009
The land is owned by the people that own it now. What is under the land should be used for the people and by the people. I wonder sometimes why liberals want to push some sort of historic preservation nonsense on us and then refuse to allow us to use their "environmentally safe" alternative. Mr. Kotz seems to think that the power of a D-9 being able to destroy 9,500 years of history in 15 minutes is a bad thing -- not a way to help out his fellow man. Ever heard the expression that you have to break a few eggs to make an omelet? I'm only speculating here, but it's my guess that Mr. Kotz read one history book, watched some MSNBC, and now thinks he's a historian and an activist and probably hasn't even set foot on these "historic sites."
Unreal : 11/26/2009
As I read some of these posts, I'm amazed. Say no to drilling? Ok, then what? How do you think we get natural gas? Are you seriously advocating not producing domestic energy, putting people to work, helping to maintain a cleaner environment, and reducing imports? That's crazy. And what exactly are on these historic sites that need to be preserved? Gimme a break. If you're going to hold up a multi-million dollar operation, that also benefits the local community, shouldnt it be for something more significant than a few arrowheads or a broken dish or whatever they find? If they stumble across a battlefield or buried civilization, I can see doing some research on it and possibly halting operations. But it would be nice if Mr. Kotz or someone else would let us know what's out there. Who knows--it might generate some more support for him. And the drilling companies do a lot of great work in the community. I don't see the environmentalists helping to rais 100k to feed the hungry locally. I don't see all the drilling opponents out there donating thousands of dollars to libraries and civic groups, putting in new roads, generating untold dollars in royalites to hardworking landowners and employing thousands of people. There's aso that silly little notion of allowing a person who owns their land to actually choose what to do with it.
