WINFIELD TWP — The township approved its first ordinance governing natural gas drilling last week.

Adam Hartwig, township secretary and zoning officer, said that conventional and unconventional gas drilling has had a presence in the township for many years, but the municipality had no ordinance governing it.

“We really had nothing in place to protect our residents,” Hartwig said.

He said the ordinance is meant to protect township residents, but in a way that does not make it extremely difficult for gas drillers to operate.

Under the ordinance, development would only be permitted on property that is at least 5 acres for a vertical well and 10 acres for a horizontal well. Developers would have to follow all DEP regulations.

To create a development, gas companies need a zoning permit from the township, and the application needs to include a description of the development and timeline, names and addresses of property owners within 1,000 feet of the development as well as abutting property owners, plans for sediment control, access road plans and emergency contact information.

During drilling, noise has to be less than 75 decibels at the property line, and less than 60 decibels at the property line during production.

Access roads need to be arranged to minimize danger and nuisance to the surrounding properties. Additionally, the first 50 feet must be paved, so as to prevent debris from getting on public roads.

Lights on the well pad cannot shine directly on public roads or adjacent properties. Lights need to be directed internally on the site, and exterior lights need to be turned off except when personnel are working on-site or motion sensors are activated.

For natural gas compressor stations, they must not be located closer than 1,000 feet from any house, occupied structure, park or playground, unless a written waiver is submitted by the owner of the properties. The noise levels at the stations will be required to be less than 60 decibels.

Hartwig said that many of the things in the ordinance are similar to state Department of Environmental Protection regulations. However, he said that things like noise levels and access roads are not covered by state regulations.

The township has 12 active, unconventional well pads. Since 1990, it has issued 22 permits for unconventional wells.