Jun 10, 2015 3 min read

Discord among Robinson Township supervisors continues as residents question the approval of a MarkWest compressor station.

Bulger resident Cathy Lodge requested an amendment to the May 11 board meeting minutes because of confusion over a reported renaming and change in the number of facilities MarkWest intends to build. Supervisors Rodger Kendall and Stephen Duran voted to approve the minutes without amendment Monday, while Mark Brositz voted against.

“The solicitor said the minutes are fine. As long as I have the solicitor’s backing, I can live with that,” Kendall said. “The minutes merely record what takes place, not the details.”

Brositz, however, said he believes residents are still confused about what exactly was approved. He was the only supervisor to vote against MarkWest’s subdivision and land-development application to build an electric compressor station between Route 980 and Quicksilver Road.

MarkWest since filed a second electric compressor station application, to be built west of the original facility. Most of that land is zoned commercial, requiring a conditional-use variation permit from the township.

“I don’t understand why they wouldn’t want specific clarification,” said Lisa Graves-Marcucci, a representative of the Environmental Integrity Project, a Washington, D.C., group.

At some point, MarkWest changed the name of the proposed site from the Imperial Station to the Cibus Ranch Station, although Graves-Marcucci, who reviewed the DEP paperwork filed by MarkWest, said there is no mention of a name change. She also said there are conflicting coordinates and identification numbers on that paperwork.

“Moving forward, we can’t have that confusion,” she said.

The official name of the first compressor station is Cibus Ranch. The second is referred to as Imperial.

Graves-Marcucci told supervisors she also is concerned the proposed compressor stations will not benefit Washington County residents.

In an email to MarkWest, DEP engineering specialist Charley Yang asked, “Why do you guys need two compressor station(s) side by side? Also, this compressor station is the biggest compressor pad I’ve ever seen.”

MarkWest’s Richard Lowry responded, “It is necessary to have two compressor stations because they service two different producers (Range and CNX). This compressor station will provide gathering for the entirety of CNX’s airport acreage. This facility is critically important to not only CNX but the Pittsburgh International Airport and Allegheny County as well.”

Drilling began in August for CNX’s natural gas development at Pittsburgh International Airport, which is located on more than 9,000 acres of Allegheny County property near the airport. CNX is a natural gas division of Consol Energy.

“Will Washington County bear the environmental risks while Allegheny County bears the benefits?” Graves-Marcucci asked.

Robert E. McHale, MarkWest manager of special projects, did not want to comment because he was not at the supervisors’ meeting Monday.

MarkWest representatives will present Imperial plans to the planning commission at its 7 p.m. Monday meeting in the township building.