Pennsylvania Court Ruling from Sept. 2014: Local government has a constitutional charge to protect the environment and quality of life for its citizens On Friday, August 29, Judge Marc F. Lovecchio of the Court of Common Pleas of Lycoming County decided in favor of local residents in vacating and setting aside a conditional use permit that would have allowed Inflection Energy, LLC to build and operate a natural gas pad in the middle of a residential neighborhood in Fairfield Township. The case was an early test of the Robinson Township decision, where the Supreme Court used Pennsylvanias Environmental Rights Amendment to strike down parts of Act 13 that sought to compel local government to allow gas operations across all zoned districts, including residential districts. Judge Lovecchio ruled that Fairfield Townships zoning ordinance only permitted gas drilling as a conditional use in its Residential-Agriculture district if the proposed land use was similar to and compatible with the residential and other low-impact uses authorized as a right in the district. In holding that the Townships findings were not supported by substantial evidence, the Court stated that the constitutional right of citizens to a healthy environment cannot be ignored and must be protected. The Court found that the company had failed to provide the township with any evidence to support the conclusion that the proposed use was similar and compatible, while the citizens had presented substantial evidence that there is a high degree of probability that the use will adversely affect the health, welfare and safety of the neighborhood. READ MORE AT: bizjournals/philadelphia/prnewswire/press_releases/Pennsylvania/2014/09/03/DC03055
Posted on: Thu, 02 Oct 2014 20:27:25 +0000
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