Measure heads to full House for consideration 

Continuing her efforts to protect the state’s valuable natural resources, Rep. Kate Harper (R-Montgomery) voted in favor of legislation to stop the leasing of any additional state forest lands for natural gas drilling for five years. The measure recently passed the House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee and now awaits consideration by the full House. 

“I was glad to support Rep. Greg Vitali’s moratorium on leasing any more of the state forests for gas and oil drilling,” Harper said. “This ‘wait and see’ period will allow us to fairly assess how the drilling and fracking process impacts our forests.” 

Natural gas drilling has been taking place in state forests for more than six decades under the watchful eye of the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR). However, the type of drilling necessary to reach the deep Marcellus Shale reserves requires a relatively new practice called hydraulic fracturing, which involves injecting millions of gallons of water together with a variety of chemicals into the ground to fracture the rock and allow for the release of natural gas.  

“These deep drilling leases raise concerns about fragmentation of the tree cover, encroachment of the access roads and drilling pad sites into the wilderness, the effect on the waters of exceptional value and the tourism, fishing and hunting activities they support, and lasting damage from short-term needs for revenue to balance the state budget,” Harper said. “It took generations to acquire and grow these state forests. We should pause and make sure the drilling will not leave lasting damage before we lease the entire state forests for hasty, carelessly planned deep drilling for natural gas.” 

Currently, about 692,000 acres of state forest lands are under lease for natural gas drilling. Under House Bill 2235, drilling would continue in those areas, and the DCNR would be required to issue an annual report about the impact of the drilling. 

The 2009-10 state budget called for leasing enough state forest lands to generate $60 million in revenues to help balance the budget. The governor’s 2010-11 proposal calls for leasing additional land to generate $180 million. This year’s lease of about 32,000 acres of forest brought in $128 million. 

Rep. Kate Harper
61st District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
(610) 277-3230
(717) 787-2801
Member Site:  KateHarper.net
Contact: Patricia A. Hippler
House Republican Public Relations
(717) 772-9846
Caucus Site:  PAHouseGOP.com