Township, residents want answers about blasting
LUZERNE TWP. — Supervisors voted Tuesday to write a letter to the state Department of Environmental Protection seeking answers after LaBelle residents said they were unpleasantly surprised to learn that a company had been detonating charges on a mine reclamation site despite a notice of violation in April.
The controversy is resurfacing just before a hearing on the permit renewal for Matt Canestrale Contracting, owner of the Labelle Mine reclamation site. The hearing on the renewal will be held at 6 p.m. today at the LaBelle fire hall. Approval of the permit would extend operations at the site for another five years.
Parts of the old mine are being reclaimed using coal ash, a byproduct from coal-burning power plants.
The supervisors encouraged residents to attend the hearing.
CCG Veritas Land. Inc. of Lemont Furnace is a seismic blasting company that has been working on the Canestrale property as part of Marcellus shale natural gas exploration efforts.
All seismic blasting at the site ceased in May after the DEP issued the notice of violation in April. The mine is under a federal permit, which makes the detonation laws very strict.
CGG filed an appeal for an extension by both the DEP and federal Mine Safety Health Administration (MSHA). The company was given permission to detonate 10 charges on May 31 and requires all charges to be detonated by July 8.
There are 120 more charges in and around the permitted area. Those charges are mapped out by the DEP.
The only notice given by the DEP was to environmental groups after the first 10 detonations were made. No notification was given to residents who lived near the detonation site before the detonations took place.
Lisa Graves-Marcucci, Pennsylvania community outreach coordinator of the Environmental Integrity Project and four township residents, attended Tuesday’s supervisors out of public safety concerns.
Graves-Marcucci said she was told by the DEP that there are no notification requirements for the detonation of charges for the LaBelle site. However, at other mining sites, it is required that emergency personnel be on alert in case of emergency, and horns must sound before a detonation is released.
“Why is there a double-standard?” said Graves-Marcucci. “We’re presuming, we’re reading the files, and it’s a shame that the community was not in the dialogue for these decisions.”
“The people who live here and the people who are in charge of public safety are not involved; not because they don’t want to be, but because they are not being told,” said Graves-Marcucci. “In a post-9/11 world, being able to put charges wherever without any notification whatsoever is just sickening.”
“No one in this township received letters. No one on this board was even notified,” said Gary Kuklish, who has spoken on behalf of residents. “We are asking the DEP to explain what they’ve done, what they did, and what they plan to do.”
“I honestly didn’t know, I thought the DEP put (out) a cease to operate (notice),” said Supervisor Greg Downer.
Downer, along with the other supervisors, said they were unaware of any changes or operations.
“They don’t tell us anything,” said Supervisors Chairman Ted Kollar.
Graves-Marcucci said she was notified about suspicious activity a few weeks ago. Residents were citing stakes in the ground with orange and pink markers posted throughout LaBelle. They believe that the markers are being used to mark where charges are being placed.
George Markish, who lives on First Street in LaBelle, said he found the stakes within 200 yards of his property.
“We believe that people within 200 yards of the site should be notified, if they would like to evacuate,” said Graves-Marcucci.
After the meeting, Graves-Marcucci said that right now all she wants are concrete answers for the safety and well-being of the residents.