Marcellus Shale - Gas Wells

lehman township

February 28

Residents question road repairs

CAMILLE FIOTI Times Leader Correspondent

LEHMAN TWP. -- Questions arose at Monday’s Board of Supervisors meeting regarding the wear and tear of the township roads caused by Encana Gas & Oil’s huge rigs now that the company has ceased operations at two Marcellus Shale gas drill sites in the region.

Board Chairman Dave Sutton told the residents the township engineer will tour the roads with Encana’s engineers to assess damage.

“They are reimbursing the township for repairs,” said Sutton. Patching will be done first, he said, followed by permanent repairs performed by the company’s contractor.

In other business, the board:

• Approved the final reading of the 2011 budget. There will be no tax increases in the $2,122,379 spending plan. The current millage is 1.25. A mill is a $1 tax on every $1,000 of assessed property value.

• Voted to enter into an agreement with four other municipalities in the Back Mountain Community Partnership to split the cost and use of a speed trailer. The device, which will cost around $5,000 to $6,000, flashes a digital readout of motorists’ speed.

• Voted to implore state legislators to allow the township to increase the fee it charges to provide accident reports. The current fee is capped at $15. • Voted to apply for a grant to conduct an aquifer study.

• Voted to give authority to the township’s emergency management coordinator to work in conjunction with the EMS coordinators of Dallas Borough and Jackson Township in the event of an emergency.

• Announced that renovation work on the municipal building will begin soon. A $120,000 federal grant through the state Department of Environmental Protection will be used to make the building more energy efficient. Also, Supervisor Doug Ide announced the Back Mountain Community Partnership will be participating in a county storm water conservation program that will provide rain barrels to residents to collect runoff to water gardens and lawns.

Ide added the township may be the host municipality for the program, which will instruct residents how to set up their own rain-water collection system. More information about the program will be announced in February or March.

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