Take Action!
Check out our updated list of actions that people like you can take to better your community!
If you value environmental protection and are concerned with how it can affect you and your community, please take the time to complete any of the forms we have listed. Each form is unique so take the time to review each description.
Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County
Olympus Energy has applied to withdraw millions of gallons of water from Beaver Run Reservoir, potentially impacting our community's vital water supply. Simultaneously, the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County (MAWC) has issued a Voluntary Conservation Order, calling on residents to conserve water resources. This contradiction raises concerns, especially considering the significant withdrawals by Olympus Energy during drought conditions and the community-wide efforts towards water conservation.
At Protect PT, we are actively engaged in understanding and addressing this issue. Our commitment to transparency and community involvement has led us to question the balance between industrial water usage and the imperative for public water conservation. Join us in navigating these challenges, advocating for responsible water management, and ensuring the preservation of our precious water resources for the well-being of our community.
Demand Protective Buffers For
Fracking Sites
Help us let the PA Government know that PFAS chemicals have no place in our state.
Fill out this form to send a message to selected members of the PA Government urging them to prohibit PFAS chemicals in our state. We have inserted a prewritten letter, but it is customizable, and we encourage you to add any personalizations you see fit. Upon submitting the form, the elected officials will receive your message in their email. Read PSR's October 2023 report on PFAS
The elected officials include:
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Josh Shapiro, Governor
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Joe Pittman, Majority Leader, PA Senate
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Joanna E. McClinton, Speaker, PA House of Representatives
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Richard Negrin, Secretary, PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)*
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Jessica Shirley, Acting Secretary, PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)
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Dr. Debra L. Bogen, Acting Secretary, PA Department of Health
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Sen. Gene Yaw, Chair, Environmental Resources & Energy Committee
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Sen. Carolyn T. Comitta, Minority Chair, Environmental Resources & Energy Committee
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Rep. Greg Vitali, Majority Chair, Environmental Resources & Energy Committee
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Rep Martin T. Causer, Minority Chair, Environmental Resources & Energy Committee
*Richard Negrin resigned from his position on October 26, 2023. Jessica Shirley is the current Acting Secretary.
Penn Township
Ordinance Petition
Here, in Penn Township, every resident has the right to a healthy place to live.
The Commissioners of Penn Township took an oath to serve the public by protecting our health, safety, and constitutional right to clean air and water (according to Article 1, Section 27 of the PA Constitution). We call on our commissioners to uphold that oath now.
We call on the commissioners to:
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Increase the distance from 600 to 2,500 feet between fracking and our homes, schools, and workplaces to allow families to breathe unpolluted air and prevent industrial noise and truck traffic from disrupting work and rest.
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Require fracking companies to have liability insurance in case of accidents, fires, and/or explosions. Require bonding to repair local roads and other infrastructure so that taxpayers don't carry the financial burden.
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Impose fines on companies for current damage and withhold future approvals that would permit future violations of local laws that are in place to protect our health and quality of life.
These provisions from Protect PT's model ordinance will ensure clean air and water for all Penn Township residents, protecting us and our children from exposure to environmental hazards that can lead to increased risk of cancer, asthma, and unfavorable birth outcomes.
Murrysville Duff
Park Fracking
In March 2023, without much notice, Murrysville opened Kovalczik Park to a subsurface fracking lease. Murrysville Council voted to sell the subsurface gas rights to Apex Energy, a fracking corporation that violated laws or regulations more than 700 times between 2016 and 2023.
Murrysville is now considering allowing Olympus Energy (which has 807 violations) to frack under Duff Park and Murrysville Community Park.
Please attend the 7:00 PM December 6, 2023 meeting at the Murrysville Municipal Building to tell Council that our parks are not for sale, to frackers or to any industry.
The address of the meeting is: Murrysville Municipal Center, 4100 Sardis Rd, Murrysville, PA 15668
When you enter the Council Chambers, there is a clipboard on the podium for you to sign up to speak. It’s okay if you do not feel like an expert. You can just talk about how you and your family use the parks. It’s actually especially important to hear from people who normally shy away from speaking before Council.
Some important points you could make are below:
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By rushing into a lease at Kovalczik Park, where Murrysville does not appear to have actually owned the gas rights, the Municipality may have exposed itself to legal liability. Murrysville is rushing again with Duff Park to meet a timeline set by Olympus, when they should be slowing down and holding a hearing so the public can weigh in.
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Murrysville cannot deposit the revenue from these proposed leases in its general fund. A legal case known as PEDF v. Commonwealth (2022) established that PA municipalities cannot deposit revenue from parkland gas leases into their general funds. They can only use this revenue to steward the parks.
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Fracking in parks violates Article 1, Section 27 of the PA Constitution, which states: “The people have a right to clean air, pure water, and to the preservation of the natural, scenic, historic and esthetic values of the environment.” Murrysville Councilmembers swore to uphold these rights upon assuming office.
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Our parks are not spaces for industrial facilities, whether those facilities are underground or above ground. They are places that exist for the public’s recreation. We take our families and pets there.
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Subsurface activity can damage the surface of the park. Deer Lakes Park in Allegheny County experienced substantial damage to its water quality after the County voted to allow a subsurface lease there, as documented by a peer-reviewed scientific study and many local citizens who took pictures of slicks on the water there.
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Olympus Energy has 807 violations on record with the PA Department of Environmental Protection from 2016 - 2023. 22 of these alone are for Titan Well Pad, the pad from which they propose to frack under Murrysville Community Park. Murrysville's charter says it can only do business with "responsible bidders", and Olympus is not a responsible bidder.
Demand Protective
Buffers For
Fracking Sites
Throughout the past decade, fracking and related infrastructure have moved dangerously close to our homes, schools and communities. As these highly industrialized operations move ever closer, they continue to pollute our air, contaminate our water, and harm our health. (Please note this petition is in partnership with Clean Air Council and other organizations. If you would like to learn more about the Protective Buffers Campaign, visit the website).
