Proposed gas plant ignites old conflict in township

Two previous bids for coal facilities failed

Where well pads and compressor stations are now as common a sight as cows and pigs, a new industrial feature is slated for Robinson Township in Washington County.

The Beech Hollow Project, a proposed natural gas-fired power plant, drew a crowd of about 100 people to the Fort Cherry High School on Wednesday for a state Department of Environmental Protection public hearing on its air permit.

The Robinson Power Co. has been trying since 2005 to build a power plant on the proposed 37acre site. Two attempts to build a waste coal power plant using leftover coal from an earlier plant failed to pass muster and Robinson Power tacked toward natural gas. Now Beech Hollow, if approved, will run on natural gas from the Marcellus Shale formation.

“We’re all landowners and we all have leases. Probably just about everybody in this room,” George Yonker of Mount Pleasant Township said. He sat with several other community members, all of whom wore pale yellow shirts that read, “Land Owners United.”

“We’re sitting on the Saudi Arabia of natural gas,” his wife, Kathy Yonker, said. “As long as the power plant does what it’s supposed to do and follows the rules ... We need electricity and we have natural gas right here in this region that can be used to

quality program manager small area. We’re going to for the southwest region of get to the point where someone Pennsylvania. pans out and sees the

Still, not all community bird’s-eye view and it’s like, interests align on the question ‘Oh my gosh, where did of air quality. Some are that come from?’” concerned that the power Cathy Lodge, who also plant will be built just over works with Environmental four miles from the Fort Integrity Project and lives Cherry School District, in Robinson Township, has which serves more than opposed the Beech Hollow 1,000 children. project for years.

Spokesman Justin “Over the past 10 years, Wasser of the Clean Air I’ve started seeing the silos Council read a prepared becoming condensate tanks statement calling for more and the barns becoming rigorous calculations, more compressor stations. Pipeline stringent modeling for particulate replaced fence lines,” matter, and a more she said with a sigh. “I just thorough discussion of air started seeing this change quality risks. No one to the farmland go from agriculture clapped after he finished to industry.” speaking. Public comment on the

“The DEP seems to be issuing air permit can be made in each of these permits writing or via email to in a vacuum,” said Lisa abinder@pa.gov until July Graves Marcucci, an outreach 22. coordinator with the Environmental Integrity Project, an advocacy group. “They’re not looking at the cumulative impacts to a