MIDDLESEX TWP — A small gully covered in brush and large trees is all that will separate six proposed Marcellus Shale gas wells from the backyards of several residents in the Weatherburn Heights housing plan.

The wells are planned for the Denny Road property of Bob and Kim Geyer, whose farm abuts the two-year-old housing plan.

Weatherburn Heights resident Dianne Connelly said that the stakes in the Geyers’ field that mark where the wells will go are closer to several homes on Eagle Ridge Drive in the plan than they are to the Geyers’ house.

The stakes appear to be about three football fields from the nearest back yard in Weatherburn Heights.

Connelly said four for sale signs in Weatherburn Heights have cropped up in the past three weeks, although she said the families will not say if they want to leave before drilling begins.

Connelly, who grew up in Mars and graduated from Mars High School in 1983, said emissions from the well site, its trucks, and any wastewater ponds would blow into Weatherburn Heights. The Geyer farm is west of Weatherburn Heights.

Connelly, who is a registered nurse, said unconventional drilling has no place being between a residential development and the Mars schools.

“Almost all of Middlesex is rural, but they are going to put the well in this one little area where there’s development,” Connelly said. “It doesn’t make sense.”

As a nurse, Connelly said she has seen research that suggests fumes and chemicals associated with shale gas drilling are unsafe, especially for children.

“But the research is being ignored,” Connelly said. “I’m afraid for our future and our children,” she said.

In an emailed statement, Mike Endler of Rex Energy said that a number of factors determine the location of a well pad.

He said the foremost factor is locating pads where landowners have signed a lease. About 1,400 acres in the area surrounding the Geyer farm have been leased by Rex, Endler said.

“Topography and proximity to roads and other infrastructure also play a key role in planning a well pad location,” Endler said in the statement.

Regarding the Geyer wells, Endler said the location will meet or exceed all state and federal safety and environmental regulations, including setback requirements.

Rex Energy has submitted applications to the state Department of Environmental Resources in Meadville, but officials there have not yet approved or rejected the permits.

Gary Clark, spokesman for the DEP’s Northwest Region, said last week that the Geyer well permits submitted by Rex Energy were found to have six completeness and 10 technical deficiencies.

He said Rex must respond to the deficiencies with in 60 days from April 24, when Rex was notified of the issues. Clark did not know the specific deficiencies.

Clark said almost all unconventional gas well applications have deficiencies.

Access road an issue

The road where trucks would access the Geyer wells also has become a controversial issue.

At a March Mars School Board meeting, Rex Energy representatives gave the board a presentation that proposed leasing 172 acres from the district for horizontal drilling. The board the next week turned down the lease for various reasons, including land title issues. The lease would have brought the district $1 million.

In that March presentation, Rex Energy was to place the well site access road off Denny Road, with trucks traveling from Denny Road to Route 8 in Valencia.

Now, Rex Energy has decided to place the access road off the southern side of Route 228, 400 feet east of the Mars Middle School entrance.

Endler said on Monday that the plans presented to the school board were only preliminary, and further study showed it would be better to place the access road off Route 228.

“I met with the Middlesex and Adams (administrative) staffs to hear their concerns, and they both pointed out their concerns due to traffic volume on Denny Road,” Endler said.

He said Denny Road is winding and narrow, and the Route 228 access road met state Department of Transportation and DEP regulations. Endler also said Route 228 is a designated truck route, and that about 800 of the 13,000 vehicles that use Route 228 daily are large trucks.

Amy Nassif, a member of the group of parents trying to have a two-mile overlay placed around the schools that would prohibit gas drilling, was angered that the access road was changed to be so close to the schools.

She said in addition to construction vehicles building the driveway, trucks carrying water and silica sand to the well and those carrying away used water will be too near to the Centennial School.

“I’m just outraged,” she said.

But Endler said Route 228 is the better option for everyone.

“With the amount of vehicle traffic on Denny Road, including a lot of bus traffic, it became apparent to us that Route 228 is a much safer option,” Endler said.

He also cleared up a misunderstanding that a driveway across from Mars Middle School is going to be the access road to the Geyer well.

Endler said the property across Route 228 from the proposed access is not owned by the school district.

Gary Peaco, Adams Township planning and codes official, said the site across from the middle school has been used as a stockpile area by contractors working on the Route 228 bridge project near the intersection with Mars-Valencia Road.

He said his drawings, which were submitted by Rex Energy officials, show the access road to the Geyer well being planned for the location described by Endler.

Continuing crusade

Nassif said her group of parents will continue its quest to prevent the wells from being drilled so close to the school district’s 3,200 students.

She said she has given information to state Sens. Randy Vulakovich, R-40th, Scott Hutchinson, R-21st, and Don White, R-41st regarding the issue, and has received mixed responses.

Hutchinson said on Thursday he is confident the Geyer wells will not pose a threat to the Mars schools. He also said he does not think chemicals and water impoundments will pose a risk to nearby students or residents, as the parents’ group fears.

“I believe safeguards are in place for water holding ponds,” Hutchinson said.

White said he recognizes that unconventional gas drilling is a complex issue that centers around the right balance between private property rights and public safety.

He said he appreciates the concerns of the Mars parents regarding the well location, but that private property rights are fundamental.

“I do think any effort to deny a private property owner the ability to develop a resource they own is a very high bar to overcome,” White said.

He added that while no industry is completely safe, gas production has been at the heart of his district for more than a century, with minimal safety issues.

“This is a resource we must use in a responsible manner, and I’m confident the state Department of Environmental Protection and local rules already in effect will ensure its responsible use,” White said.

Vulakovich said he forwarded all the information given to him by Nassif on air and water quality, emissions, and health and safety near Marcellus Shale gas wells to state Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Christopher Abruzzo. He said he spent 45 minutes talking with Abruzzo about the Geyer wells.

Vulakovich also told the firefighters who called him with concerns about their lack of training regarding shale gas wells to write him individual letters listing their issues.

He said he will forward those letters to Abruzzo and the state fire commissioner. The latter’s office has funding available for training, Vulakovich said.

Residents who have concerns should contact their township supervisors, Vulakovich said.

“They have some say in all this,” he said.

Vulakovich did say that the two-mile radius to prohibit gas drilling around the schools that the parent group advocates is excessive.

But he will remain in contact with Abruzzo regarding the matter.

“He’s looking into it,” Vulakovich said.

Nassif also said that she has talked with Mars Superintendent Jim Budzilek to ask why administrators are not telling Rex Energy the wells are too close to the schools.

“I told Dr. Budzilek that we are tired of fighting this by ourselves,” Nassif said.

Asked about the access road being placed 400 feet east of the middle school entrance, Budzilek said the district was never made aware of the change from Denny Road.

“However, to date, our school operations, including our bus travel, has not been impacted,” Budzilek said.

The parent group planned a meeting for Friday night to discuss the petition against the plan to give to Abruzzo in the near future.

A notice about the meeting said the group had acquired more than 700 signatures in two days.

The group also planned to discuss recent events regarding the Geyer wells, and share information from Jordan Yeager, a Philadelphia attorney who successfully argued before the State Supreme Court regarding the removal of the zoning portion of the state’s gas act. Yeager contends that Middlesex Township supervisors have the right to deny the well because it is not in an industrial zone.

“We are committed to protecting the schools from unconventional gas drilling operations and providing a safe zone for the children here and across the state,” the notice reads.