Oct 13, 2015 3 min read

Peters Township Council agreed Monday to hire a consultant to help it establish risk-based setbacks for natural gas drilling.

Specifically, council agreed to hire – subject to review by its solicitor – Cardno Engineering, which has an office in Wexford, at a cost of $29,000 to determine appropriate setbacks for gas drilling based on scientific standards for various air pollutants.

To date, there is no natural gas drilling in Peters, though earlier in the year the township identified potential locations, mostly undeveloped, where wells could be placed. Determining the environmental impact on the community is the next logical step in the process, officials have said.

Michael Silvestri, the township manager, said the money would be well spent because it would let officials better understand what would happen if drilling did take place within its borders.

“It would give us the worst case scenario as far as setbacks are concerned,” Silvestri said.

Cardno’s agreement with the township is split into four tasks. The first would involve identifying all publicly available gas well emission data and setting up the parameters for the next three jobs.

The second part of the contract would be performing dispersion modeling, which replicates atmospheric conditions. When this is completed, Cardno would determine setback distances that would correspond with acceptable noncancer indices, potential noncancer hazards and potential risks at various points from the emissions source. The final step in the process is a report that would address potential health risks.

Silvestri said the results of the Cardno study would enable Peters to develop legally defensible setbacks and help determine where drilling can take place.

“We did consult with a toxicologist and asked him to look at the proposal,” Silvestri said.

David Ball, council president, said, “If you have a regulation, then it needs to be defensible.”

In other business, council waived $1,172 in taxes on three lots not paid by the developer of the Hidden Brook housing development, off of Hidden Valley Road. The plan was developed by Heartland Homes, which was subsequently sold to NVR Inc., the parent company of Ryan Homes.

In information given to the township, Anna Baird, president of the Hidden Brook Homeowners Association, said the three lots were intended to be common property of the association under site plans approved by the township before development. According to Baird, who was not present at the council meeting, the lots were transferred to the association in September. But, the tax obligations from 2013 to 2015 were still outstanding.

“To place the responsibility for payment on homeowners, some new to our community, appears unjust as it was always intended for these parcels to be common property,” Baird wrote. “It was due to Heartland Homes’ oversight that they were not previously transferred.”