Jake Brakes Prohibited in Wyalusing, PA

Noise pollution is a significant problem, especially in gasland areas wherever that may be.  This week Wyalusing Borough voted to prohibit the use of jake brakes which make a loud machine gun type of sound when applied. With all the gas drilling vehicles everywhere in Bradford County, this will perhaps make carrying on a conversation on a street corner or sleeping at night a little easier.  However, the slow and persistent destruction of the environment and the dangers to public health will continue despite tiny measures such as this.

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Gas Pipeline Going In Near Wyalusing, PA

Pipeline going in near the village of Merryall, Wyalusing Township, PA
Photo credit:  David Keeler
The Rocket-Courier

A feeder pipeline is being installed in the Camptown area (PA) and will eventually connect to the Spring Hill compressor station. The 30-inch pipeline, known as the Chaffee Line, will pass by the Lime Hill area where a number of gas wells are in the works.  It will continue on and end near Totem Lake.
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DEMAND ACCOUNTABILITY!

Wyalusing Council Struggles With Pipeline Issues

Wyalusing Hotel, Wyalusing, PA

The Wyalusing (PA) Borough Council monthly meeting last month opened with a presentation by Anson Belcort of Mason Dixon Energy. His company is busy securing agreements with local landowners to install a gas pipeline for Chesapeake Appalachia. It will run right through Wyalusing Township. However, there was a problem, Belcort said. They need about 12 miles of pipeline, and one landowner was dragging his feet. Pipelines need 50-60 feet width. (The pipe is buried 3-5 feet, or beneath the frostline.)

We've got a deadline, said Belcourt. If we had you guys signed up, we could go ahead and go around Chadwick.

When asked if there was big problem with negotiations, Belcourt assured the Council that there was no big issue or concern with the private landowner. It was just a matter of timing. Mason Dixon needed the right of way right away! Several members of the Council, including President George Anderson, were prepared to vote yes, but toward the end of the meeting before a vote could be taken, Mayor Joan Cashin cautioned the group:

Doing this without consultation with an attorney is, I think, irresponsible.

It was agreed that an attorney should be consulted.

Hats off to the Wyalusing Borough Council for exercising caution rather than giving the gas industry the green light. There are things that local governing bodies can do to at least slow down the process. This is not just an effort to make trouble. It is the smart, responsible thing to do when so much is at stake for local citizens. It is their environment, health, and well-being that may hang in the balance. The gas companies don't live in Wyalusing.

Read the Rocket-Courier article here.

ASK QUESTIONS! TAKE ALL THE TIME YOU NEED!
DEMAND ACCOUNTABILITY!