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| THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA |
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| HOUSE BILL |
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| INTRODUCED BY VITALI, GEORGE, B. BOYLE, BRADFORD, BRENNAN, BRIGGS, CARROLL, D. COSTA, CREIGHTON, DALEY, DePASQUALE, EVERETT, FABRIZIO, FARRY, SCHRODER, FRANKEL, FREEMAN, GIBBONS, GOODMAN, HARPER, HORNAMAN, JOSEPHS, KIRKLAND, KULA, MANN, MULLERY, MUNDY, MURPHY, MURT, M. O'BRIEN, PASHINSKI, READSHAW, SANTARSIERO, K. SMITH, STABACK, WAGNER, YOUNGBLOOD, COHEN, BISHOP, K. BOYLE, V. BROWN, BROWNLEE, BURNS, P. COSTA, CURRY, DeLUCA, DERMODY, DeWEESE, DONATUCCI, GERBER, GERGELY, HALUSKA, HANNA, KAVULICH, W. KELLER, KORTZ, KOTIK, LONGIETTI, MAHONEY, MATZIE, McGEEHAN, MIRABITO, PAYTON, ROEBUCK, SABATINA, SAINATO, SAMUELSON, SHAPIRO, STURLA, THOMAS, WATERS, WILLIAMS, BUXTON, JOHNSON, MYERS AND PRESTON, MARCH 9, 2011 |
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| REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES AND ENERGY, MARCH 9, 2011 |
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| AN ACT |
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1 | Providing for a moratorium on leasing State forest lands for the |
2 | purposes of natural gas exploration, drilling or production; |
3 | imposing duties on the Department of Conservation and Natural |
4 | Resources; and providing for report contents and for |
5 | Legislative Budget and Finance Committee study. |
6 | The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania |
7 | hereby enacts as follows: |
8 | Section 1. Short title. |
9 | This act shall be known and may be cited as the State Forest |
10 | Natural Gas Lease Moratorium Act. |
11 | Section 2. Moratorium. |
12 | (a) Establishment.--Notwithstanding any other provision of |
13 | law, a moratorium is established during which State forest lands |
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1 | may not be leased for the purposes of natural gas exploration, |
2 | drilling or production. |
3 | (b) Expiration.--The moratorium in subsection (a) shall |
4 | expire three years after this act takes effect. |
5 | Section 3. Duties of department. |
6 | (a) Monitor and assess.--The Department of Conservation and |
7 | Natural Resources shall have a duty to monitor and assess the |
8 | impact of the leases granted for the purposes of natural gas |
9 | exploration, drilling or production on State forest lands that |
10 | took effect prior to and during the moratorium imposed in |
11 | section 2(a). The Department of Conservation and Natural |
12 | Resources shall continue to monitor and assess after the |
13 | moratorium expires under section 2(b). |
14 | (b) Comprehensive Environmental Impact Review.-- |
15 | (1) The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources |
16 | shall prepare a Comprehensive Environmental Impact Review |
17 | (CEIR) within two years after the start date of the |
18 | moratorium. The scope of the CEIR shall include the |
19 | following: |
20 | (i) An assessment of the potential impacts related |
21 | to development of Marcellus gas utilizing alternative |
22 | development projections. One of these projections shall |
23 | address the maximum possible development on State forest |
24 | lands of all currently leased acreage and other State |
25 | forest lands where Marcellus gas is not owned by the |
26 | Commonwealth. The development projections shall include |
27 | the potential for shallow gas drilling. |
28 | (ii) An assessment of the potential impacts for each |
29 | development projection on the forest ecosystem, forest |
30 | uses and forest users. This shall include an |
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1 | identification of possible problems that are associated |
2 | with noncompliance of environmental regulations, |
3 | nonconformance with lease requirements, accidents and |
4 | related problems. |
5 | (iii) The CEIR will identify and evaluate the |
6 | impacts for each development scenario related to |
7 | exploration, pad development, drilling operations, road |
8 | and bridge development, collection and transmission |
9 | lines, compression facilities, treatment plants, waste |
10 | disposal, water withdrawals and other associated |
11 | development. The scope of this evaluation shall include |
12 | impacts on State forest lands and private landowners and |
13 | communities. |
14 | (iv) For those State forest lands where the |
15 | Marcellus gas is not owned by the Commonwealth, the CEIR |
16 | shall identify the specific controls in place to protect |
17 | these State forest lands and compare these with the |
18 | conservation provisions contained in the Department of |
19 | Conservation and Natural Resources' leases. |
20 | (v) The CEIR will identify those lands proximate to |
21 | State forest land where Marcellus development by other |
22 | entities has the potential to impact the State forest. |
23 | Potential impacts will be identified including vehicular |
24 | use and rights-of-way for roads, pipelines and related |
25 | development. |
26 | (vi) The CEIR shall identify the Department of |
27 | Conservation and Natural Resources' workload associated |
28 | with administration and development of Marcellus gas for |
29 | each development scenario. A workload baseline shall be |
30 | established for fiscal year 2006-2007 that identifies the |
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1 | workload allocation within the Bureau of Forestry and |
2 | shall include staffing assigned to existing |
3 | responsibilities such as forest fire protection, forest |
4 | health, timber management, recreation, water supply, deer |
5 | management and oil and gas development. Marcellus |
6 | staffing shall be addressed separately. |
7 | (2) The Marcellus workload assessment shall project the |
8 | Marcellus workload over the next ten years and identify how |
9 | this workload will be carried out and staffing options which |
10 | include flat or reduced staffing levels. Each of these |
11 | options will be compared to the staffing baseline in |
12 | paragraph (1)(vi) and describe the likely impacts of the |
13 | Marcellus development scenarios on staffing levels related to |
14 | other State forest responsibilities. |
15 | (3) The Department of Environmental Protection will |
16 | provide to the Department of Conservation and Natural |
17 | Resources a workload analysis with projections regarding |
18 | inspection and enforcement staff time that will be allotted |
19 | to assure environmental compliance on State forest lands |
20 | under each of the Marcellus development scenarios. New |
21 | staffing needs will be identified. |
22 | (4) The proposed scope and content of the CEIR will be |
23 | subject to review and comment by the public for 60 days prior |
24 | to initiation of the work to prepare the report. |
25 | (c) Report.--Beginning in year three the Department of |
26 | Conservation and Natural Resources shall submit an annual report |
27 | to the General Assembly and the Governor regarding the effect of |
28 | natural gas exploration, drilling or production on State forest |
29 | lands. The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources |
30 | shall continue to submit the annual report after the moratorium |
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1 | expires under section 2(b). |
2 | Section 4. Report contents. |
3 | The contents of the report required under section 3(c) shall |
4 | include, but not be limited to, the effect of natural gas |
5 | exploration, drilling or production on State forest lands on the |
6 | following: |
7 | (1) Water and soil quality. |
8 | (2) Forest fragmentation. |
9 | (3) Plants, wildlife, habitats and invasive species. |
10 | (4) Air quality. |
11 | (5) Social fabric, including, but not limited to: |
12 | (i) Tourism. |
13 | (ii) Recreation. |
14 | (iii) Hunting. |
15 | (iv) Fishing. |
16 | (v) Community aesthetics. |
17 | (vi) Quality of life. |
18 | (6) The staffing needs of the Department of Conservation |
19 | and Natural Resources regarding the monitoring, assessment |
20 | and regulation of natural gas exploration, drilling or |
21 | production on State forest lands. |
22 | Section 5. Legislative Budget and Finance Committee study |
23 | relating to Marcellus gas development. |
24 | (a) General rule.--Three years after the moratorium set |
25 | forth above and following the completion of the Department of |
26 | Conservation and Natural Resources' Comprehensive Environmental |
27 | Impact Review (CEIR), the Legislative Budget and Finance |
28 | Committee shall conduct a study regarding the environmental, |
29 | economic and societal impacts of the leasing of State lands for |
30 | Marcellus development in this Commonwealth. The Legislative |
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1 | Budget and Finance Committee shall use the CEIR as a basis for |
2 | its environmental study but may also conduct further |
3 | investigation and utilize other sources of data for its study. |
4 | (b) Contents of study.--The study shall, at a minimum, |
5 | analyze the following: |
6 | (1) The separate environmental, economic and societal |
7 | impacts to both the Commonwealth and its citizens resulting |
8 | from Marcellus development on State lands. |
9 | (2) The overall cumulative impact on this Commonwealth |
10 | and its citizens resulting from the Marcellus development |
11 | that has already taken place on State lands. |
12 | (3) Based on the impacts of Marcellus development that |
13 | has taken place, a projection of the environmental, economic |
14 | and societal impacts that will result from Marcellus |
15 | development of all the existing leases of State land for |
16 | Marcellus development. |
17 | (4) The specific impacts on communities and citizens |
18 | living in close proximity to State land which has been |
19 | developed. |
20 | (5) The impact of Marcellus development on various State |
21 | land user communities such as hunters, fishermen, hikers, |
22 | mountain bikers, campers, all-terrain vehicle users, |
23 | snowmobilers, boaters, horse riders and general visitors. |
24 | (6) Whether the terms of the leases for State land |
25 | should be modified to mitigate any identified environmental |
26 | or societal impacts or maximizes economic benefits to this |
27 | Commonwealth and its citizens. |
28 | (7) Whether the Department of Environmental Protection, |
29 | the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the |
30 | Game Commission, the Fish and Boat Commission and other State |
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1 | agencies have sufficient resources and personnel to |
2 | effectively oversee and regulate Marcellus development on |
3 | leased State land. |
4 | Section 6. Post-moratorium leasing. |
5 | The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources shall |
6 | not offer State forest land for lease for the purposes of |
7 | natural gas exploration, drilling or production once the |
8 | moratorium expires unless it, in its sole discretion, determines |
9 | the State forest can be sustained in a balanced state that |
10 | preserves water and air quality, plant and animal habitats and |
11 | the multiple ecosystems, recreational, social and aesthetic |
12 | values of the forest with the proposed lease. |
13 | Section 20. Effective date. |
14 | This act shall take effect immediately. |
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