Vol.122 No.6
THE BACK MOUNTAIN'S NEWSPAPER SINCE 1889
March 27 - April 2, 2011
50¢
Serving the communities of the Dallas and Lake-Lehman School Districts |
www.mydallaspost.com
Gas pipeline worries still haunt some local residents
By SARAH HITE
shite@mydallaspost.com
A marked-off area along a Dal-
las Township road has spurred
concerns among residents as
some wonder where a proposed
natural gas compressor station
will be relocated in the township.
While residents have been con-
cerned about stakes along Sedlar
Lane, Williams Field Services Co.
LLC officials confirmed Tuesday
there is only a pipeline being laid
along the road and not a com-
pressor station.
Luzerne County Court docu-
ments filed on March 17 show the
land along Sedler Road is owned
by John Metz, and the 75-foot
right of way pipeline easement
agreement was made in August
2010.
Helen Humphreys, a commu-
nications specialist for Williams,
said there are only as many
stakes as the company needs for
surveying and construction pur-
poses.
“One of the first series of stakes
marks where the pipeline will ac-
tually be installed,” said Mike
Dickinson, manager aof oper-
ations and technical services in
the Appalachian basin. “Then as
Chief Gathering LLC. has not yet announced the location of a Dallas
Township compressor station. The company will participate in a zoning
hearing at 7 p.m. April 4 in the Dallas Middle School auditorium in its
application to build a metering station near the Dallas schools.
you move to right or left, there
are typically at least two other
lines that mark construction of
the right-of-way area.
“Along this project, there is a
75-foot wide right-of-way for con-
struction purposes,” he contin-
ued. “The pipeline may be turn-
ing or crossing, going under our
road or coming up on stream or
wetland and the workspace be-
comes wider to ensure we have
enough room to properly address
that construction issue.
Residents along the road ex-
pressed concerns last week about
the possibility of a compressor
station near their homes, and
some planned to take action
whether the rumor was true or
not.
“Some of us on Sedlar are mus-
tering a bit to see if we can estab-
lish some sort of coalition to fight
against it,” said resident Jim
Skrypek. “We're prepared to take
some sort of action.”
Williams also filed an applica-
tion for special exceptions in the
township office Monday to build
a metering facility about 500 feet
from the proposed Chief Gather-
ing LLC metering station site.
The site will be located off
Lower Demunds Road on about 2
of 4 acres of property owned by
William and Priscilla Perry of
Franklin Township, about a half-
mile from the Dallas schools.
Eduardo Nunez, facilities pro-
ject manager at Williams, said
the facility will contain a meter-
ing building; a 100-foot commu-
nications tower; two 3,000-gallon
tanks of mercaptan, an odorant
used to give natural gas its char-
acteristic smell; various piping,
tanks and valves, such as a con-
densate tank, to collect water de-
posits from the gas, and a pig re-
ceiver to clean materials from the
gas.
While some of the equipment
may be similar to that of a com-
See GAS, Page 11
By SARAH HITE
shite@mydallaspost.com
The Hope Center of the Back
Mountain Harvest Assembly
Church in Trucksville has be-
come - literally - a sight for sore
eyes within the last month.
The free clinic, which offers
medical, legal and pastoral care
for those without insurance or
who can’t afford it, recently ex-
tended its hours to Thursday
evenings from 6 to 8 p.m. for a
vision clinic.
Local optometrist Dr. Robert
Blase, of Dallas, is able to pro-
vide eye exams free of charge,
and the clinic has received oph-
thalmic equipment, eyeglass
frames and lens services from lo-
cal businesses.
Ron Hillard and his wife Su-
zanne, directors of the Hope
Center, said the program began
in February and services about
six patients a week. Patrons re-
ceive an eye exam and get mea-
sured for specs all in one visit
and return for a pair of eyeglass-
es about two weeks later.
Jason Hall, 36, of Trucksville,
® up his very first pair of -
Pglasses on a recent Thursday
;
evening. The missionary said
putting on glasses for the first
time was like “flicking on a
switch.”
“It’s awesome,” he said of the
Hope Center.
Joe Holthlander, 23, of Wilkes-
Barre said he’s had the same pair
of specs for the past eight years
because he lost his medical cov-
erage. He said being able to re-
ceive eyewear for free helps off-
set costs for other household ex-
Llinic expands to include eye exams, eyeglasses
CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK/ FOR THE DALLAS POST
Optometrist Rob Blase, of Dallas, examines the eyes of Matthew Kubicki who will receive free reading glasses from a free vision
clinic at the Back Mountain Harvest Assembly Church on Carverton Road in Trucksville.
penses.
“People can come here and get
what they need,” he said.
The Hillards are using the
newly-acquired equipment as
part of a three-year program they
devised in order to provide vi-
sion, dental and hearing care to
children all over the Wyoming
Valley.
The “See the Light” Vision
Ministry program will provide
free eye exams and eyeglasses to
children between the ages of 5
and 18 who either do not have vi-
sion insurance or have state-
funded medical coverage but
cannot afford uninsured expens-
es.
After spending time as medi-
cal missionaries in countries
such as Nicaragua and Haiti over
the years, the couple realized
there is a need for similar servic-
es at home.
“We saw a lot of families really
struggling who don’t have a lot,”
said Ron.
The Hope Center is located near the Back Mountain Harvest Assembly
Church on Carverton Road and is open from 6 to 8 p.m. on Mondays
for medical, legal and pastoral care and Thursdays for vision and
chiropractic care. To make an appointment or for more information,
call 696-1128.
The Hope Center plans to
have a dental office by June this
year, and hearing facilities some-
time next year.
“We can’t help everyone, but
we can help some,” said Ron.
“The more kids we help in the
Valley, the better chance at life
they will have, and the better the
Valley will be.”
What
others
are doing
Recent developments in Dallas
Township and other areas have
caused municipal leaders to
think more about how the natural
gas industry affects communi-
ties.
Here's a glance at what Back
Mountain municipalities are do-
ing in regards to the natural gas
industry.
Dallas Borough
Solicitor Jeffrey Malak said the
borough already has provisions
for gas and oil industry activities
in an updated zoning ordinance
passed in December 2009. Malak
said the ordinance addresses is-
sues such as truck traffic, road
maintenance, light and water pol-
lution, buffer zones for neighbor-
ing structures and subdivision
and land development require-
ments, among others. He added
the borough is monitoring state
court cases to see if the ordinance
needs updating, but maintains
the current document could hold
up in court against the state Gas
and Oil Act.
Dallas Township
At the most recent supervisors
meeting, Solicitor Thomas Bren-
nan said he hopes to present a
model ordinance prepared by the
Pennsylvania State Association
of Township Supervisors
(PSATYS) to the supervisors with-
See OTHERS, Page 11
Gate of Heaven students who submitted an experiment to NASA are, from left, first row, Kurtis
Carichner, Molly Hampsey, Anthony Huntington. Second row, Maria Khoudary, Michael Gatusky,
Jamie Cart and Mrs. Janice Szczechowicz, advisor.
5-8 to use everyd.
Gate of Heaven experiment
Is on Its way to outer space
The Gate of Heaven students also had to videotape and submit a
written proposal to be considered, and, as finalists, astronauts
will send them a video recording of the experiment performed in
By SARAH HITE
shite@mydallaspost.com
Six students from Gate of
Heaven Middle School in Dallas
are reaching outside the class-
room - and into outer space - to
learn more about science princi-
ples.
Eighth-graders annually par-
ticipate in various . National
Aeronautics and Space Adminis-
tration-sponsored educational
programs and this year’s team
was chosen as a finalist in three
different competitions, one of
which could send the young sci-
entists to Kennedy Space Cen-
ter in Florida.
The first, called “Kids in Mi-
cro-g,” asked students in grades
ffi
gS
space.
plies in creating an experiment
to be proven in a zero gravity
environment. Students had one
week to create a hypothesis and
an experiment for astronauts to
perform at the International
Space Station to be proven cor-
rect or incorrect.
The Gate of Heaven students
also had to videotape and sub-
mit a written proposal to be
considered, and, as finalists, as-
tronauts will send them a video
recording of the experiment
performed in space.
The six-student team — Kurtis
Jamie Carty, 13, of Harveys
Lake; Michael Gatusky, 14, of
Harveys Lake; Molly Hampsey,
14, of Tunkhannock; Anthony
Huntington, 13, of Dallas; and
Maria Khoudary, 14, of Dallas —
See SPACE, Page 11
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