Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Brian V. on March 24, 2011 at 2:32am

This time of year these types of situations are very common, more so this year because of the amount of snow melting and rain in recent weeks. I have a friend who monitors erosion and sediment run off for Bradford County. He said this has been a nightmare spring. Most issues concerning drilling have centered around Access roads and right of ways. The situations are why the environmental engineers get paid so much. This sound like someone tried to skip this step completely. After many conversations with my buddy I have learned that for the most part the more we try to contain mother nature the more mother nature humbles us. If you live along a dirt road take a walk sometime and see how much the sides of the roads have been ripped up by run off water.  

Permalink Reply by Ann Ticopa on March 24, 2011 at 5:16am

A landman did volunteer that they were unprepared for the TC Spring Thaws.  And at least around here, most of the wells are on rolling farmland, not the hilly terrain.  I've seen photos online of substantial damage done in the WV hills.  I wouldn't call it "unfair" because I do think the streams should be protected and damaged roads repaired, but the gascos are being held to a higher standard than logging operations have been.

Permalink Reply by Ann Ticopa on March 24, 2011 at 6:02am

Thanks, but credit should go to:

PA Environmenl Digest - Daily

http://paenvironmentdaily.blogspot.com/

 

I ran across it earlier this month and it's the best aggregator of PA shale gas news I've found.  I subscribe to the RSS feed.

 

Afaik, there is no "DEP newsletter".  There was a press release on the PA DEP website.  The weekly newsletter that Hanger did appears to have been discontinued.

 

Permalink Reply by george morris on March 25, 2011 at 2:22am

in Tioga county this is there 3 rd spring here. They care nothing about the roads the residents or whoever they impact! This is about money. Pure and simple the dirt roads are not made for truck traffic let alone when the thaw and melts start. They should stay off the roads for the 2 months that this occurs! Again about them not us or our roads.
If you think this is a benefit to the residents come and live on one of dirt roads they tear up! Sorry about the rant.G

Permalink Reply by Susan Yungwirth on March 25, 2011 at 10:16am

as a land owner on a dirt road, in the middle of a very "active" drilling area, we see the effects of the gas production every day.  Last spring, when the thaw hit, our dirt road was completely impassable.  This has happened every year that I can remember... when the thaw hits, the road gives out..... The gas company (seneca) contracted to have the road fixed... spent several weeks, and who knows how much money... and the road was rebuilt, drainage pipes put in, resurfaced, and widened... and low and behold, this spring when the thaw hit, ya there were a few spots that gave way, but they were quickly fixed, and guess what... our road is still passable!!! first time I can ever remember the road being this good during the thaw!!

you will not hear me complain about the road this year, thanks to the gas wells!!

Permalink Reply by Lynn Wigglesworth on March 25, 2011 at 12:01pm

East has done this in my area, too. I know of a couple of small dirt roads that used to be impassible in bad weather but are now, because there are wells on them, paved and kept in good shape by East.

Permalink Reply by Robin Jackson on March 28, 2011 at 8:15am

Good to hear good news too!

Permalink Reply by William Ladd on March 28, 2011 at 9:57am

We do not have any gas company trucks traveling our roads as yet. Any damage done to our road is caused by the township snowplows and workers not doing their jobs properly.  Before this last foot of snow fell the earlier snowmelt could not get to the ditches. the snow was piled up between the dirches and the road surface.  With no access to the ditches all the water was forced to cut deep trenches that often were a foot or more deep, and sometimes across the road too. Vehicles could not pass each other safely. Once a wheel dropped into one of those trenches there was little you could do to drive out. Even a four wheel drive vehicle mignt have a great deal of difficulty climbing out of the trench.  Supervisors claimed that sluice pipes were full of ice and that was causing the trouble.  I say BULL S##T to this. Years ago I worked on the township roads right along with the roadmaster. When a sluicepipe was frozen solid, we had a torch that we fired up and put into the lower ends of the drains.  A couple of hours of that torch burning against that ice cleared the problem.

 

During the snow melt a few weeks ago water, gravel, trash flowed across the roads. One such place is my brother's home, formerly the Lisle E. Ladd residence. There is probably a good truckload of gravel in his yard right now. And a few years ago a similar incident occured. But that time it was estimated that 100 ton of gravel had washed in the yard and almost up on to the porch. In fact the cellar wall had to be repaired by a new concrete section about 30 feet long and six feet high paid for by FEMA.

 

ALL BECAUSE OF the township supervisors were not keeping the sluicepipes free of ice and making sure that run off water could not get to the ditches!

 

 

Bill L.

aka Bummy