A view from elsewhere, not to far away: Easton Compressor Station Neighbors To Tell Their Stories And Protest Compressor Expansion “We have had enough problems already. We live here, Columbia does not,” said Elaine Mamrak, who lives next door to Columbia Gas’ Easton Compressor Station on Klein Road in Forks Township, PA. Next Wednesday, January 21st, at 5 PM, residents who live next to Columbia’s existing gas compressor station are inviting members of the public and the media to come and hear about the daily impacts of the facility on their lives, as well as their reasons for opposing the expansion. The press conference will be held at 1277 Briarwood Lane, Easton, PA. “Since weve lived here, Columbia has upgraded 2 pipelines through our property,” Mamrak said, “When the plant runs, especially during the night, it sounds like a tractor trailer truck stop or a railroad freight yard running constantly. It will actually wake me up numerous times. The plant also releases raw gas during blowdowns which smells horrible. You cant stay outside but have to go inside and close the windows. What impact is this having on our health?” Columbia Gas is currently seeking an air permit from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PA DEP) for the Easton Compressor Station expansion. If approved, Columbia Gas would remove the existing compressors with a current capacity of 4,500 horsepower, and then build a new station with a capacity of 22,250 horsepower, or 5 times the power. Already, community members have been organizing to stop the expansion because of the proposed dramatic increase in local air pollution. In 2013, the Department of Environmental Protection stated that the emissions from the Easton Compressor Station that year were 0.79 tons of nitrogen oxides, 0.66 tons of carbon monoxide, 0.11 tons of volatile organic compounds, and 0.04 tons of particulate matter. If the new compressor station is permitted, Columbia Gas would be allowed to emit up to 48.8 tons of nitrogen oxides, 65.11 tons of carbon monoxide, 12.9 tons of volatile organic compounds, 12.16 tons of particulate matter, 0.69 tons of formaldehyde, and 1.02 tons of other hazardous air pollutants a year. Residents who live near the station are particularly concerned about this potential 100-fold increase in local air pollution, and have now chosen to speak publicly about opposing the compressor expansion. Joe Guest lives one mile from the Easton Compressor Station and is concerned about the impacts to local farms that are near the facility. “We dont want increased pollution immediately adjacent to the farm where we buy milk and eggs,” Guest said, referring to Klein Dairy which is next to the compressor station. “There is no local support for this expansion. Large groups of concerned local citizens showed up at the DEP meeting in Easton and the Forks Township Supervisors Meeting to oppose Columbia’s application for expansion. Everyone who spoke at the meeting was opposed to the project. We are all extremely concerned that the State Department of Environmental Protection as well as our elected officials at the state and federal levels are putting corporate profits ahead of environmental protection and the interests of citizens.” Opponents of the compressor expansion are also concerned about the impacts to upstream communities where the gas is coming from. “The practice of hydraulic-fracturing is leaving a growing legacy of polluted water and air in the shalefields of Pennsylvania,” said Sheila Gallagher, a community organizer with Easton Concerned Citizens. “This is not about ‘not in my backyard,’ but instead about demanding a stop to an industrial expansion of fracked gas wells, pipelines, and compressor stations throughout our region that harms us all.” Next Wednesday, January 21st, residents on Klein Road will share their stories with members of the public and the media at 5 PM at 1277 Briarwood Lane, Easton, PA. They will be joined by Easton Concerned Citizens, Energy Justice Network, and Clean Air Council. Columbia Gas has recently seen an outpouring of opposition throughout Pennsylvania along the proposed route of the East Side Expansion pipeline project. In August of last year, PA DEP held a public hearing in Milford, PA regarding a compressor station that is also part of the East Side Expansion project. The hearing was attended by 200 people and not one person spoke in favor of the compressor station. “It was an unprecedented display of opposition to Columbia’s plan,” said Alex Lotorto, a resident of Milford who has been working to stop the compressor station expansion. “Local pollution from the compressor station would increase 90 times if the plan is approved. It is clear that the company is unpopular here and that people are prepared to stop the compressor at any cost.” “This gas is not needed in Pennsylvania,” said Joseph Otis Minott, Esq., Executive Director of the Clean Air Council, a non-profit dedicated to protecting everyone’s right to breathe clean air. “While these companies are attempting to build new infrastructure to sell Pennsylvania gas at a premium to national and international markets, communities in Pennsylvania are bearing the costs of increased air and water pollution. There needs to be a broader conversation around whether we need new shale gas infrastructure or whether we should be investing in renewable energy sources that do not have such tremendous negative impacts on public health.” Compressor stations in Pennsylvania are increasingly notorious for accidents, fires, and even explosions. In 2012, the Lathrop compressor station in Susquehanna County exploded, shaking homes a half mile away. During Hurricane Sandy, the Bernville Compressor Station in Berks County released 174 million cubic feet of gas, including 61 tons of volatile organic compounds due to a “human error.” In March of last year, a fire at a Bradford County compressor station injured one person. Compressor stations are bad neighbors under any circumstances,” said Karen Feridun, Founder of Berks Gas Truth, another group that has been supporting residents in Forks Township on this issue. “People in Berks County remember the Bernville compressor station incident in 2012. The Department of Environmental Protection had no plans to investigate that incident until asked. When the agency found that compressors operator had wildly under-reported the emissions that resulted, it slapped the company on the wrist with a $15,000 fine. The DEP is not up to the task of regulating the compressor at the Easton station today, much less the proposed compressor that is over five times more powerful. Sam Koplinka-Loehr Shale Gas Organizer, Clean Air Council cleanair.org/pipelines
Posted on: Thu, 15 Jan 2015 22:12:00 +0000