Jun 9, 2011 By Amy Revak 3 min read

?The Fayette County Zoning Hearing Board voted unanimously Wednesday to grant a special exception that will allow an existing natural gas compressor station in Lower Tyrone Township to expand.

Laurel Mountain Midstream of Moon Township currently has a compressor station on property zoned A-1 (agricultural rural) owned by Keith P. and Betty Sue Pritts of Dawson.

Attorney Richard Bower explained that the expansion, which would include an additional 2,000-square-foot building at the site, would feature additional insulation and ventilation. He said there would be fans, and the compressor would sit on a concrete slab to minimize vibration.

Bower said the addition would be a fully enclosed steel building. He said the site would be monitored remotely and checked daily. It would be enclosed by a chain-link fence and there would be no water or sewer lines on the site.

Bower said the sound level would not exceed the 90 decibels permitted in the zoning ordinance.

Brian Easter, project manager of Williams, an operating partner with Laurel Mountain Midstream, said the need for an expansion is because more wells are being drilled and more natural gas is being moved.

Easter said there are not plans to expand beyond the current plans because the site isn’t big enough.

Donald Dye, whose house is about 900 feet from the site, said all the trucks and traffic that access the site drive past his house and everything is covered in dust.

Dye, who attended the hearing with his wife, said they have three children, and although the children are not supposed to be in the road, it only takes a second for an accident to happen. Dye said the trucks speed and do not obey the 25-mph speed limit sign.

Williams officials said the trucks are owned by subcontractors of the company.

“It’s just getting to the point where it’s ridiculous,” Dye said.” Something’s got to be done.”

Raj Basi, senior counsel for Williams, said he would address concerns with trucks about dust and speeding, adding that the company has fired subcontractors in the past.

Dye said he didn’t even have a telephone number of anyone to call in the past, and hadn’t been told anything.

Zoning board solicitor Peter U. Hook rejected a request by Mary Jean Rosenberg of Grindstone to ask questions, saying she didn’t live near the site and wasn’t permitted to participate in the hearing.

Approving the special exception were Jim Burns, Paul Bortz Sr. and Neil Brown.