Pittsburgh Residents Suing to Hault Anti-Drilling Referendum

An affluent Pittsburgh suburb is suing to stop an anti-drilling referendum that a citizens group has gotten on the Nov. 8 ballot.

The Peters Township Marcellus Shale Awareness group collected 2,500 signatures to get the question on the ballot that would amend the township's home rule charter to ban gas drilling and hydraulic fracturing.
The township has already passed an ordinance that limits drilling to 40-acre parcels and requires soil and water testing, but the citizens group doesn't believe those measures are strong enough.

Township solicitor William Johnson believes the referendum is illegal under a state act that regulates drilling and could expose the township to litigation from drillers or those who want to lease their land for that purpose.

A Washington County judge has set a Sept. 28 hearing on the issue.

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