Cranberry Officials Keep Original Marcellus Shale Drilling Plan

In a unanimous vote, the Cranberry Board of Supervisors rejected the proposed amendment to the township’s current zoning laws for oil and gas companies.

The point of the was to fit the mold the Gov. Tom Corbett-sponsored . The Commonwealth Court recently ruled portions of the bill as unconstitutional.

Act 13 would have made mandatory statewide regulations regarding zoning for drilling in the Marcellus Shale. All townships and municipalities would have to follow the new rules or be subject to loss of impact fee revenues.   

“When Act 13 passed it basically banned local zoning control,” said Supervisor Dick Hadley.

According to Hadley, the current ordinance the township has had since 2010 would keep companies looking to drill for Marcellus Shale out of residential areas. The drill would be required to stay in commercial business areas such as along Route 19.

Although Hadley wants the township to be able to make its own zoning decisions, he doesn’t want to discourage drilling for natural gas entirely.

 “It can work out. We can work with the industry. I think the industry has a bad perception of what local government is,” Hadley said.