PennEast Pipeline Forum in Lower Saucon Set for Tuesday

A public forum about the proposed PennEast natural gas pipeline will be held Tuesday, Dec. 16 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Leithsville Fire Station Banquet Hall, 1995 Leithsville Road, Hellertown (Lower Saucon Township), and will feature an extensive lineup of speakers with ties to science, education and the environmental preservation movement.

The meeting will feature guest speakers including Delaware Riverkeeper Maya van Rossum, Berks Gas Truth founder Karen Feridun and Pipeline Safety Coalition Executive Director Lynda Farrell.

Other speakers will include Dr. Dru Germanoski, who will discuss the geological complications of sinkholes; Williams Township resident and H.S. Bunn Chair Professor of Chemistry at Lehigh University Dr. Ned Heindel, who will speak about the potential disruption to historic sites in Lower Saucon; Dr. Ervin R. Van Artsdalen, Professor of Geology and Department Head at Lafayette College; Clean Air Council Shale Gas Organizer Sam Koplinka-Loehr; and Sierra Club Executive Director Robert Gardner.

The meeting is being sponsored by the Concerned Citizens Against the Pipeline and the Food and Water Watch.

According to a Facebook event page created to promote the forum, other topics that will be discussed include:

• Human health and safety risks
• Cumulative environmental degradation
• Intrusion on property rights

A portion of the 108-mile pipeline as well as a sub-pipeline known as the “Hellertown lateral” are proposed to go through northeastern Lower Saucon Township. After hearing from concerned residents recently, township council voted to consider a motion to formally oppose the pipeline project as early as Dec. 17.

An additional flyer about Tuesday’s meeting can be viewed on the Saucon Source calendar page for the event.