Jun 24, 2015 3 min read

Chartiers Township supervisors Tuesday gave conditional use approval for two gas wells, despite concerns voiced by local residents at a May 26 public hearing.

The board approved the Clara Little and Edward Moritz wells planned by Range Resources, but would not allow workers to live on-site during the drilling process. The Little well will be off Meddings Road and the Moritz well will be off Arthur Road.

Range Resources attorney Blaine Lucas again asked the board to allow workers to live on-site, which he said proved more effective at a previous location than bringing crews in and out. Having workers close and available ultimately makes the process much easier on the employees, he said.

“A lot of work has gone into these wells,” said Lucas. “We would like to house people on-site.”

He also said the perception of the living quarters for the workers is misconstrued and their interactions with local residents would not endanger the welfare of any civilians.

But Lucas’ request to have workers living at the well pads had already been denied by the vote earlier in the meeting that approved the conditions on the wells, which did not include on-site living.

“They will have to live with the conditions,” said board Chairman Bill Kiehl. “That was not a part of the conditions that we approved.”

The two new wells, which are expected to be started later this summer, are part of an proposal that could eventually add 10 wells to the 68 already located in Chartiers Township.

“If you are leasing gas rights, there are financial benefits involved,” said Supervisor Richard Metzler, who also pointed out that the Little well was not a substantial improvement for the community and not in the best interest of the township.

Upcoming construction on Meddings Road was also discussed.

The road, which will be closed throughout the day and restricted to one lane in the evening, is to fix a problem that has existed for quite some time.

“There is water under the road and it has somewhat given out,” said Kiehl. “There will be stone placed under the road to make it more stable. It’s primarily been caused by heavy trucks and has been an ongoing problem.”

Equipment is continuing to be moved throughout the remainder of the week and construction is expected to begin on Monday.

Prior to the regular meeting, the board also held its quarterly town hall meeting, but drew only a small audience.

“We don’t get many people within the community to these meetings unless there is some sort of serious problem,” said Kiehl.