Berks Gas Truth applauds Bethlehem City Council’s action to oppose loss of local control in Act 13; encourages Berks municipal and county officials to take similar action

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Kutztown, May 5, 2012:  Berks Gas Truth commends Bethlehem’s City Council for taking a stand against the zoning provisions in Act 13, a new law that strips power over drilling operations from municipal governments throughout Pennsylvania. A letter addressed to Governor Tom Corbett and state legislative leaders  and signed by all Council members states that  the “state Oil and Gas act gives municipalities the right to use our zoning code to restrict the location of gas wells – similar to how we sometimes restrict other types of economic activity through zoning.” It continues, “Further, the imposition of a ‘one size fits all’ ordinance undermines a central purpose of local ordinances: to address the particular needs and concerns of municipalities.”

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Berks Gas Truth is currently calling for Berks County’s municipalities and county commissioners to pass resolutions opposing Act 13’s zoning provisions and supporting a lawsuit filed by the Delaware Riverkeeper Network calling the law unconstitutional and seeking an injunction. On April 11^th, a Commonwealth Court judge granted a 120-day injunction on the section of the law dealing with zoning. “We are using that time to reach out to every municipality in Berks County to discuss the issues and provide copies of a sample resolution,” says Karen Feridun, Berks Gas Truth’s founder.

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“A lot of people don’t understand the far-reaching effects of Act 13,” says Feridun. Berks County and the Lehigh Valley are just grazed by the outcrop of the Utica Shale, a much deeper formation than the Marcellus Shale and one that the natural gas industry has plans to drill. “Shale formations are shaped a little like bowls,” says Feridun, “so being in the outcrop means that we’re on the rim of the bowl. The shale in this area is visible at the surface.” While drilling here is a possibility, it is not the imminent threat, however.

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The imminent threats to our counties are drilling operations. The zoning provisions in Act 13 pertain to all drilling operations, including those associated with pipelines, compressor stations, waste disposal, and seismic testing. Berks County is already slated for two pipeline projects. If Act 13 is allowed to stand, municipalities will have no voice in the planning of those projects. “Thanks to environmental regulations also in Act 13, a pipeline can now be placed 300 feet from an elementary school and, thanks to the section on zoning, there’s nothing your local officials can say about it,” says Feridun.

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Act 13 is best known for establishing impact fees for drilling, but fees are not collected for other drilling operations. Communities impacted by pipelines and other operations will go uncompensated.

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Berks Gas Truth is planning a county-wide public forum on Act 13 on May 30^th. Details are forthcoming.

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For more information on Act 13, contact Karen Feridun at berksgastruth@gmail.com or visit the organization’s website, www.gastruth.org.

Berks Gas Truth is proud to be endorsing the biggest anti-fracking event ever!

Visit http://www.stopthefrackattack.org/ for all the details and a link where you can sign up to participate!

Gasland fans will see a couple of familiar names on the list of organizers on the press release below.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Contact:

Calvin Tillman: 940-453-3640

Kari Matsko: 440-579-5314

John Fenton: 307 856-7098 or 307-709-2540

Don Morrison: 701-224-8587

Jason Pitt, Sierra Club: 202-675-6272

Lauren Pagel, Earthworks: 202-887-1872 x107

Concerned Citizens Announce Date for the Largest Fracking Rally in Washington, DC

National Day of Action will bring thousands to Washington, DC to put the public interest before drilling industry profits

Washington, D.C—Today citizens from affected communities, together with environmental organizations and community groups, announced a call to action to demand an end to putting oil and gas drilling profits ahead of public health, clean water and air and the safety of our communities.  This event will be the largest of its kind and will take place in on the West Lawn of the United States Capitol, Washington, DC from 10am to 2pm on July 28^th, 2012.

Labeled “Stop the Frack Attack,” the rally will bring thousands to the nation’s capital to demand greater government responsibility and corporate accountability for harm that existing oil and gas development causes.

Community groups and organizations from Pennsylvania, West Virginia, New York, Maryland, Texas, Wyoming, Ohio, Colorado, New Jersey, New Mexico, Idaho, Virginia and North Dakota have signed on in support of the event.  For more information and list of endorsing organizations and members of the citizen-based advisory council, please visit www.stopthefrackattack.org

“Delaware River Watershed communities and organizations are expected to turn out in a big way.  The future of the Delaware River Watershed, like all communities across the nation, hangs in the balance during the current moratorium on gas drilling here.  What is decided in Washington D.C. by Congress and the Obama Administration will directly influence the fate of the Wild and Scenic Delaware River and the water supply for over 15 million people,” said Maya van Rossum, the Delaware Riverkeeper.   People can sign up for the Rally by going to https://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/676/p/salsa/web/common/public/signup?signup_page_KEY=6688&tag= Transportation options, including buses, will be arranged.

In support of this National Day of Action, concerned citizens from across the country issued the below statements.

“The President and Congress need to hear the truth about the destruction of irresponsible fossil fuel extraction directly from drilling communities,” said Kari Matsko, an Ohio member of the National Day of Action advisory council. ““Gas isn’t clean and drillers always put their profits ahead of the health of American families. This has to stop, and we expect our elected officials to make sure it does.”

“We have found that we cannot rely on our local, tribal and state officials to prevent pollution of our air and water, and our health,” said Theodora Bird Bear, a member of the Dakota Resource Council from North Dakota’s Fort Berthold Reservation. “They tell us there will be no impacts, but we can see the impacts and we know they are real. We are asking policy makers in Washington, DC to help us protect and honor our connections to the earth.”

“Now is the time for all of us to unite and demand that the nation take action to move toward a clean energy future,” said Calvin Tillman, former Mayor of DISH, Texas and another advisory council member. “Drilling that harms our health, water, and air isn’t acceptable. Americans deserve better, and we expect to get it.”

“Dirty drilling isn’t a state or regional problem – it’s a national problem,” said John Fenton, a rancher from Wyoming who is also a member of the advisory council. “It’s time for the White House and Congress to stop buying the industry line and start paying attention to the real devastation this industry has caused our communities, air and water.”

# # #

Here are descriptions of the actions Berks Gas Truth is taking as part of its Act 13 campaign. If you’d like to get involved or to find out if there is a similar campaign in your area, please contact Karen Feridun at berksgastruth@gmail.com.

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Ask municipalities to pass a resolution opposing Act 13 – We are attending every council or township supervisors meeting in Berks County in May and June to explain the issues surrounding Act 13 and ask them to pass a version of the attached sample resolution prepared by Jordan Yeager. He prepared the lawsuit filed by the Delaware Riverkeeper Network that called Act 13 unconstitutional and sought an injunction. Seven municipalities joined in the suit over local control issues in the law and a physician joined over the gag order on physicians in Act 13. See links at the bottom of this post to the sample resolution and a great summary of the issues from the Delaware Riverkeeper Network. On April 11th, a Commonwealth Court judge issued a 120-day injunction on the section of Act 13 dealing with local control. Fracking opponents are using that time to solicit support from municipalities throughout the state. DRN is looking for resolutions and letters of support at this point to help strengthen their case.

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The points to be made at municipal meetings are the following:

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1) Our County Commissioners adopted the ordinance required to collect impact fee money for drilling in their counties. Currently, the ordinances passed have no legal weight because Act 13 states clearly that you need to have a well or a spud well in your county before you can adopt the ordinance. A spud well means a new well they’ve just started to drill. Once you have a spud well, you can adopt the ordinance and start collecting impact fee dollars in the following calendar year. The reason the commissioners adopted the ordinance is that the northwestern edge of Berks County is in the outcrop of the Utica Shale. The outcrop is the certainly the most accessible part of the Utica Shale, but it is not the richest shale, so it’s probably not the first place the drillers will want to drill.

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2) SHOULD they want to drill the Utica Shale, it’s important to understand that, thanks to PA old Oil and Gas laws, forced pooling is legal in the Utica Shale. If you were to look at a geologic cross-section of PA, you’d see that the Marcellus Shale sits on top of a limestone layer called the Onondaga layer. Far below that layer is the Utica Shale. Our old Oil and Gas laws pertain to everything below the Onondaga layer. Marcellus has been spared forced pooling because it’s above that layer. The industry has been clamoring for forced pooling and the Governor’s Marcellus Shale Advisory Commission recommended “modernizing” the old Oil and Gas laws to include Marcellus for that reason. Even Corbett opposes forced pooling because he believes in property rights. Forced pooling means that if in a unit (drillers refer to the parcels of land they want to drill as units — roughly square-mile parcels), 60% of the land is owned by people who have signed leases, the owners of the remaining 40% can’t say no to drilling. As you might suspect, forced pooling diminishes property values everywhere it’s done.

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3) The imminent threat, however, is not drilling. The imminent threats are other operations related to drilling. The local control section of Act 13 takes away local control over ALL gas drilling operations, including pipelines, compressor stations, waste disposal, seismic testing, and more. There are already two pipelines coming to Berks County; a third is possible. Act 13 is comprised of three main sections – the impact fee section, a section establishing woefully inadequate environmental regulations, and the local control section. Thanks to sections two and three, a pipeline can now be placed 300 feet from an elementary school and there’s not a thing our municipal officials can do about it. And, by the way, if you recall the “spud well” requirement in section one, it’s clear that the impact fee only goes to communities impacted by drilling, not drilling operations.

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We’re putting a lot of emphasis on the pipeline issue not only because it affects us directly, but because pipelines are so poorly managed in PA. Listed below is a document called PIPA. The federal Department of Transportation’s pipeline safety group wrote PIPA. It deals with pipelines and land use. It recognizes that pipeline projects are dangerous and emphasizes the importance of municipal participation in pipeline project planning. Act 13 flies in the face of PIPA.

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There are two roles we’re asking people to play in this part of the campaign. We’re asking people to represent Berks Gas Truth at the municipal meetings. They need to be conversant in the issues enough to make the brief presentation. They are also responsible for being the point people for those municipalities. They need to contact the municipality to try to get on the agenda or, failing that, register to make a public comment, if that is required. They need to follow up with the municipality and coax them to move on passing a resolution. They’ll also relay questions they can’t answer to me. We’re also asking people from the municipalities to attend the meetings with the Berks Gas Truth reps. It’s always helpful to have people from the community with you when you go to these things.

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They’ll have the Basics of Act 13 document, the sample resolution, and the PIPA summary to hand out to each official. They’ll also have a script/talking points sheet to read from. All of these documents are available below. There is also a letter of support municipal officials can sign, but we’d rather get resolutions passed by councils and boards of supervisors. Any letters collected should be copied to Tracy Carluccio at the Delaware Riverkeeper Network. They’ll help with the lawsuit.

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Because the 120-day injunction ends on August 9th, we’re going to as many meetings as we can in May and June. The groups I’ve already spoken to want a little time to think about it. If we wait until July to attend a meeting, they’ll decide after the injunction has ended. It’ll probably still be helpful, but we’d rather get them done before the injunction ends.

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Circulate a petition – We’re circulating a petition targeting our County Commissioners, asking them to reconsider their position on Act 13. We’d like them to pass a resolution. Sign and share the petition online!! http://signon.org/sign/commissioners-say-no Prefer to circulate a petition? Download and print copies! BGT Commissioners Petition Let me know when you have sheets to turn in by emailing me at berksgastruth@gmail.com.

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Hold a public forum – We’re holding a public forum on pipelines and Act 13 on May 30th. The last Wednesday in May is the only evening when there are no municipal meetings. We’re going to model it after the forum in Lake Nockamixon and invite elected officials, environmental groups, etc.

We’re holding our forum from 7 – 9 p.m. at EDI, Inc., 1300 Hilltop Road, Leesport, PA 19533. The event is open to the public free of charge.

Our speakers will  be Tracy Carluccio, Deputy Director of the Delaware Riverkeeper Network, Jordan Yeager, environmental attorney and Partner at Curtin and Heefner, Paul Rubin, Hydrologist/Hydrogeologist, Hudson Highlands Environmental Consulting, and Lynda Farrell, Executive Director of the Pipeline Safety Coalition. We’ve also extended invitations to speak to all of Berks County’s state legislators.

Here is a flyer for the event:

Forum Poster 1 – 5-30

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Resources:

Delaware Riverkeeper Network has a page dedicated to the Act 13 campaign.

http://www.delawareriverkeeper.org/act-now/urgent-details.aspx?Id=102

Sample Resolution prepared by Jordan Yeager

sample resolution support JY

Sample Letter of Support

Municipal support sample letter3.12

Delaware Riverkeeper Network’s Basics of Act 13 Handout (print pages 1 -3 only for municipal meetings)

Basics of Act 13 DRN

Summary of P.I.P.A.

http://www.naco.org/research/pubs/Documents/Infastructure%20and%20Sustainability/Pipelines-Report-June2011.pdf

A more print-friendly version of the report
http://www.nahb.org/fileUpload_details.aspx?contentTypeID=3&contentID=173700&subContentID=408679

A two-page summary that can be used to take to municipal meetings
http://phmsa.dot.gov/staticfiles/PHMSA/DownloadableFiles/Pipeline/Technical%20Advisory%20Committees/Tab%2012%20-Briefing%20-%20%20PIPA.pdf

Sample script/talking points

Sample Script and Talking Points for Municipal Meetings

Berks Gas Truth’s Michael Shaw has been traveling throughout Pennsylvania’s Marcellus region since last year’s blowout in Bradford County. He is a photojournalist who is currently writing a book on his travels. His amazing photographic work will be on exhibit in Kutztown in May and June at The Independent Space, a cooperative offering art, film screenings, music, childrens’ activities, food, classes and special events. Be sure to stop by the gallery located at 19 East Main Street in Kutztown. http://theindependentspace.com/

It’s no surprise that Dr. Eli Avila, PA’s Health Secretary, would obediently mislead the public about the physician gag order in Act 13. (see http://www.wthr.com/story/17586327/pa-health-official-clarifies-new-gas-drilling-law#.T5VpBcIqeDI.facebook) Corbett’s entire administration has made an art form of misleading the public.

Here’s the actual language from the law:

(10) A vendor, service company or operator shall identify the specific identity and amount of any chemicals claimed to be a trade secret or confidential proprietary information to any health professional who requests the information in writing if the health professional executes a confidentiality agreement and provides a written statement of need for the information indicating all of the following:(i) The information is needed for the purpose of diagnosis or treatment of an individual.(ii) The individual being diagnosed or treated may have been exposed to a hazardous chemical.(iii) Knowledge of information will assist in the diagnosis or treatment of an individual.(11) If a health professional determines that a medical emergency exists and the specific identity and amount of any chemicals claimed to be a trade secret or confidential proprietary information are necessary for emergency treatment, the vendor, service provider or operator shall immediately disclose the information to the health professional upon a verbal acknowledgment by the health professional that the information may not be used for purposes other than the health needs asserted and that the health professional shall maintain the information as confidential. The vendor, service provider or operator may request, and the health professional shall provide upon request, a written statement of need and a confidentiality agreement from the health professional as soon as circumstances permit, in conformance with regulations promulgated under this chapter.

Dr. Avila is in no position to interpret the law. He is not a lawyer. He did not write this law. Most important, he will not be the one to enforce the law when a physician shares information with another healthcare provider or with a community at risk.

Clean Air Council is issuing a letter to Department of Environmental Protection leadership copying Environmental Protection Agency leadership to request them to stop operations at the Lathrop compressor station until the incident has been properly evaluated by the Department. This is what we are asking:

We, the undersigned, write to demand a full investigation into the cause of the explosion and the amount of pollutants that were emitted into the ambient air as well as enforcement of the air permits associated with Lathrop and fines to the fullest extent. Further, we request that the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PA DEP) take this incident as the harbinger that it is and perform a full review of the safety of placing natural gas compressor stations, at such a rapid pace, within our communities.

We are looking for signatures to sign on to this letter today. Please reply back to me ASAP to let me know if you want to list your organization’s name and or your individual name. Please include your address and a number where I can reach you. We’re especially looking for local residents (near Springville and Dimock) and regional residents (Northeast PA Region – including Susquehanna, Wyoming and Bradford Counties).

Thanks!

Matt Walker

Clean Air Council

Community Outreach Coordinator

Marcellus Shale Program

215-567-4004 ext. 121

mwalker@cleanair.org

Website: www.cleanair.org
Facebook: Clean Air Council
Twitter: @cleanaircouncil

Commissioner Leinbach was the only Commissioner to respond to the letter. Read this post from the bottom up to follow the exchange between Leinbach and BGT’s Karen Feridun.
 
We’re taking our response to the next level. Here are three things you can do to help!

1) Please sign and share a petition addressed to all three Commissioners. Please note, however, that Commissioner Scott was a no vote! http://signon.org/sign/commissioners-say-no

2) Write letters to the editor to every newspaper in Berks County! If you need talking points, let me know!

3) Join us on April 9th at the Commissioner’s Workshop meeting at 10:30 a.m. at the County Courthouse building in Reading. Stay tuned for more details!

Commissioner Leinbach,
 
You are correct. This is not an either/or situation unless it is treated that way by any County or Municipal government. Additionally, according to my understanding of Act 13, the ordinance you passed has no legal standing since no wells have been drilled in Berks County. I’m sure that the lawsuit initiated by the Delaware Riverkeeper Network is just the first of many challenges to Act 13. Surely the question of putting ordinances in place prior to the beginning of drilling will be another. The larger issue, however, is the one I’ve made repeatedly based on my reading of Act 13. If the presence of wells is what is required in order for an ordinance to be passed that the state will recognize, that means that Berks County is not eligible to receive impact fees for other operations that may come here much sooner than unconventional drilling of the Utica shale. That is absolutely something we need to be concerned about and something that needs to be fought at every level of government, if a fight is required. I would rather join forces with my county and local officials to fight the state’s terrible new law. It was in that spirit that I contact Kevin, sent the letter, and included supporting materials. I am still more than happy to work with you and the other Commissioners.
 
As for detailed pipeline legislation, Harrisburg would call Act 13 detailed, yet it is a highly flawed bill. One of the most obvious examples is any discussion of setbacks when the contents of fracking fluid are still exempt from disclosure under the Safe Drinking Water Act and several other pieces of environmental legislation. It is impossible to regulate something when you don’t know what you’re regulating so any specific setbacks, buffer zones or other protections written into detailed pieces of legislation like Act 13 are meaningless, except to say the farther away you are, the better. I work closely with people who specialize in pipeline issues and am not optimistic that upcoming legislation will be any better conceived.
 
Sincerely,
Karen Feridun
Founder, Berks Gas Truth

From: Leinbach, Christian Y
Sent: Friday, March 30, 2012 3:57 PM
To: ‘feridun@ix.netcom.com’
Cc: Buerer, Mary
Subject: Re: Impact Fee

 
Karen

I just confirmed that not passing this ordinance has absolutely no impact on the “preemptive” portion of the law. That is in place no matter what we do at the county level. The bill also requires detailed pipeline legislation to follow.
 
Sincerely,
 

Christian Y. Leinbach
Chairman – Berks County Commissioners
633 Court St.
Reading, PA 19601-4310
Phone: 610-478-6136 Ext. 3 / Ext. 6127
Fax: 610-478-6139
Email: Cleinbach@CountyofBerks.com
www.CountyofBerks.com

From: Leinbach, Christian Y
Sent: Friday, March 30, 2012 03:49 PM
To: ‘feridun@ix.netcom.com’
Cc: Buerer, Mary
Subject: Re: Impact Fee
 

Karen
 
You are welcome.

 
Christian Y. Leinbach
Chairman – Berks County Commissioners
633 Court St.
Reading, PA 19601-4310
Phone: 610-478-6136 Ext. 3 / Ext. 6127
Fax: 610-478-6139
Email: Cleinbach@CountyofBerks.com
www.CountyofBerks.com

From: Karen Feridun [mailto:feridun@ix.netcom.com]
Sent: Friday, March 30, 2012 03:20 PM
To: Leinbach, Christian Y
Cc: Barnhardt, Kevin; Scott, Mark C; Commissioners; Buerer, Mary
Subject: Re: Impact Fee
 

Thank you, Commissioner Leinbach, for your quick response to our letter and supporting documents. I understand your concern for protecting the infrastructure, environment, and the overall health of our citizens. It was my understanding of your concern that caused me to appeal to you and the other Commissioners to take the only action that will truly protect all those things. As everyone knows, the puny impact fee will not come close to remediating the environment, treating all the people sickened by the contamination that accompanies drilling, or repairing the infrastructure. Actually, a huge impact fee wouldn’t do much better. We’re creating problems that no amount of money can solve. Better to avoid all those consequences and all the expenditures that will be on the backs of our taxpayers by saying no to drilling in Berks County.
 
When you say no to the impact fee, you’re also saying no to the stripping of local control in Act 13. I’m sure you support the rights of local government.
 
Actually, this is an issue that needs to be argued at every level of government and on many other fronts. We’ll keep fighting to keep Berks County safe.
 
Thank you!
Karen Feridun
Founder, Berks Gas Truth
 

From: Leinbach, Christian Y
Sent: Friday, March 30, 2012 1:00 PM
To: Karen Feridun
Cc: Barnhardt, Kevin ; Scott, Mark C ; Commissioners ; Buerer, Mary
Subject: RE: Impact Fee
 

Karen:

Thank you for your email. Without this ordinance in place there would be no dollars from drilling in Berks County going to impacted municipalities the county or DEP. This helps further protect our infrastructure, environment and the overall health of our citizens should drilling occur in Berks County at some future point in time.
 

From looking at you material it is clear to me that you oppose gas drilling. That is an issue that needs to be argued at the state level and not the county.
 

Sincerely,

Christian Y. Leinbach

Chairman – Berks County Commissioners

633 Court Street

Reading, PA 19601-4310

Phone: 610-478-6136 Ext. 3 / Ext. 6127

Fax: 610-478-6139

Email Cleinbach@CountyofBerks.com

www.CountyofBerks.com

From: Karen Feridun [mailto:feridun@ix.netcom.com]
Sent: Friday, March 30, 2012 10:11 AM
To: Barnhardt, Kevin; Leinbach, Christian Y; Scott, Mark C; Commissioners
Subject: Impact Fee

Dear Sirs,

I was very disappointed to see that you decided in your meeting yesterday to pursue the impact fee for unconventional natural gas drilling should it ever come to Berks County’s land in the Utica shale. I spoke with Kevin briefly on Wednesday and prepared a letter that day that you will find attached here. I put out a call to see if any Berks Gas Truth members or others would want to add their names to the letter. What happened then even surprised me. People quickly responded by adding their names and circulating the letter to their friends. A handful of people from outside of the area also wanted to sign, including John LaRose, a former resident of Berks who still has property here, but who now lives in the Marcellus region and considers himself a first-hand victim of drilling there. In a little over a day, 100 people signed on to the letter.

Berks Gas Truth has been fighting unconventional natural gas drilling for about a year and a half. In that time, we’ve grown from a very small group of only 3 members to a group of over 450 members. We are very involved in community outreach and organizing. Our website, www.gastruth.org
, has lots of great information about the issue and about our work. Our Resources page contains the best articles, reports, websites, videos, and other resources I’ve found. I’ve attached a couple of those resources here. The best overview of the situation I’ve seen in a long time is the attached article from Rolling Stone. The other two articles are studies done by Duke and Cornell that get at some of the issues related to methane migration into water supplies and into the atmosphere.

The same day that you made your decision on the Impact Fee, the first major legal challenge to Act 13 was initiated by the Delaware Riverkeeper Network, a group of municipalities, and a physician. I had mentioned to Kevin that such an action was coming, but could say no more about it at the time. The release is attached. The physician’s involvement is due to a section of Act 13 that forces physicians to sign non-disclosure agreements in cases where they are treating patients exposed to fracking chemicals. The Halliburton loophole protects manufacturers of fracking fluid from needing to disclose the names and quantities of the chemicals they use. Act 13 now allows physicians to get that information, but only if they take the time in what could be an emergent situation go through the bureaucratic hoop of signing the non-disclosure agreement, which will then prevent that physician from sharing with colleagues information that could save lives.

Our letter asks you to reconsider the Impact Fee and consider, instead, taking action to protect Berks County from drilling. Even though a lot has changed since Wednesday, our requests are still the same. I would be happy to meet with you to discuss the issues surrounding drilling and Act 13 in better detail. For instance, the greater and more immediate threat to Berks County is what Act 13 refers to as drilling operations, not drilling per se. Act 13 strips local government of control over all drilling operations, including the laying of pipeline and other operations that take place hundreds of miles from the nearest well pad. The provisions of Act 13 would allow a pipeline to be laid 300 feet from an elementary school, down Main Street, or down your street. It’s a bad law that we need to challenge, not concede to.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have questions or if you’d like me to meet with you.

Thank you!

Sincerely,

Karen Feridun

Founder, Berks Gas Truth

Karen Feridun

Founder, Berks Gas Truth

260 East Main Street

Kutztown, PA 19530

BGT MEETING, APRIL 4th, 7 p.m.

NOTE LOCATION CHANGE TO
361 E. Main in Kutztown (Corner of E. Main and Cedar across from town park)
 
As always, lots to discuss at our April meeting. Of course, Earth Day is in April and, with that, festival season gets underway. We’ve 3 consecutive days of Earth Day festivals this year, so we need all the volunteers we can get! Check the list of April events below!
 
Charlie Kratovil is Food & Water Watch’s organizer in their new PA office in Philadelphia. He’s got a national campaign to tell us about. He was hoping to get to our meeting this month, but can’t get up here. I’ll fill you in as best I can on the campaign. We’re sorry Charlie can’t be here, but it’ll give us extra time to talk about the Impact Fee ordinance our County Commissioners approved and our response to it!
 
Marcellus Shale Exposed is behind us. It was a HUGE success! I’ll share the details! Thanks to everyone from BGT who volunteered their time to help!
 
Act 13, the Earl Township landfill leachate issue, the sign-on letter to the County Commissioners, the SRBC, the state moratorium effort, Bill Bispels’ campaign, and son of Shale Gas Outrage this September – I’ll give you all the details.
 
NOTE: Our April meeting will be held at the Kutztown Area Democratic Club office at 361 East Main Street in Kutztown, at the corner of E. Main and Cedar, across the street from the town park. The building is a long two blocks from St. Barnabas. There’s plenty of parking available on the street or in the park.

UPDATE

The PA House voted for the Impact Fee bill around 4 p.m. Thank you to everyone who tried to save Pennsylvania from the drillers.

Now it’s time to vote these clowns out of office.

The House is currently debating the dreadful Impact Fee bill, HB1950. If you don’t know about the bill:

• The bill provides for a puny fee to be imposed on drillers
• The bill strips control over drilling operations from municipalities and gives it to the state
• The phrase “drilling operations” is important for people far from the nearest well pad to pay attention to because it means that things other than drilling are covered by this power-grabbing, industry-friendly bill. You don’t want your hands tied if the industry decides to lay a pipeline next to the elementary school, or down Main Street, or down Your street.

The Senate passed this bill already. The House debated until 10:45 last night and are at it again today. They would have voted if the had the votes to pass it. They didn’t. That means there’s still time to call your state representatives and tell them to vote NO! Berks Countians, be sure to call Tom Caltagirone whether he’s your rep or not. He’s a Democrat who is considering voting YES! 

Here’s the link to his information:
http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/member_information/house_bio.cfm?id=72

Here’s how to find your representative:
http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/findyourlegislator/#address

Call, email, repeat!!