DRBC Moratorium Puts Residents’ Property Rights in Limbo

Wayne County land owners in favor of natural gas drilling are fed up with the Delaware River Basin Commission’s baseless moratorium on fracking. The commission has suspended natural gas development in the northeast corner of Pennsylvania since May 2010, depriving residents of income from gas leases and squelching the economic boom seen in neighboring counties.

The DRBC has provided no scientific justification to hold hostage the economic advancement of an entire region. They appear to be bowing to the pressure of anti-fracking propaganda, citing vague “potential dangers and consequences” as their excuse and providing no timeline for a resolution to the issue.

Pennsylvania already has stringent regulations in place that have proven demonstrably effective in thousands of gas wells across the state. Area landowners have organized as the Northern Wayne Property Owners Alliance and are pursuing legal action to reinstate their constitutional property rights. The Delaware River Basin Commission should lift the fracking moratorium and uncap economic development.