Borough of Franklin Park, PA Oil and Gas Recovery District Overlay

The applicant shall demonstrate compliance with the following performance standards and other requirements that are associated with the development site and its impacts upon the municipality and neighboring property owners:

Area, yard, height and setback requirements for oil and gas developments and oil and gas facilities. All area, yard, height and setback requirements of the underlying zoning district as well as setback requirements established by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or the United States Government shall apply to oil and gas developments and oil and gas facilities, except as otherwise set forth as follows:

(1)

The nearest portion of the outer boundary of any proposed oil and gas development, oil and gas development facility or permanent facility area, as depicted on the approved plat, shall be no closer than 1,100 feet from the nearest protected structure. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the outer boundary of any proposed oil and gas development, oil and gas development facility or permanent facility area shall be no closer than 2,000 feet from any adult care facility, day-care, hospital, retirement community for the elderly or school.

(2)

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this ordinance or in any other applicable rules, laws or regulations, no permanent facility area, oil and gas development, oil and gas development facility, or any portion of the foregoing shall be located less than 500 feet from the lot line of a public recreation area.

(3)

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this ordinance or in any other applicable rules, laws or regulations, no temporary structures, equipment, materials or activities related to the use, development, construction, maintenance or modification of an oil and gas development or an oil and gas development facility approved pursuant to these regulations, or any portion thereof, including but not limited to an access road, shall be located less than 350 feet from a protected structure.

(4)

The minimum lot size for oil and gas developments shall be 10 acres. The minimum lot size for oil and gas development facilities shall be 10 acres. Multiple adjoining, contiguous properties may be combined to achieve the minimum acreage required and, notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in § 212-107, a zoning lot in the Oil and Gas Recovery District Overlay may include a principal use consistent with the underlying zoning district as well as an additional principal use by condition in accordance with this Article 1400.

(5)

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in the Zoning Ordinance, the front, rear and side yard requirements for oil and gas developments shall be a minimum of 100 and the front, rear and side yard requirements for oil and gas development facilities shall be a minimum of 250 feet from the property line. Minimum setbacks shall be measured from the nearest portion of the outer boundary of any proposed well pad, as depicted on the approved plat, and from the nearest portion of the outer boundary of any proposed oil and gas development facility structure, as depicted on the approved plat, as applicable.

(6)

As part of the conditional use review process, the municipality reserves the right to modify any setback based on physical characteristics of the site and evidence received at a hearing necessitating any change in the minimum setback, including but not limited to topography, wind conditions, air modeling studies, the proximity of woodlands to the site, the proximity of wetlands to the site, the location of perennial streams or other watercourses, hydrogeological studies and noise concerns.

Traffic controls.

(1)

The applicant will show the proposed routes of all trucks to be utilized for hauling any and all material, liquids, equipment or other items to and from the development or facility. All proposed routes must be designed to minimize the impact on streets within the municipality. The municipality reserves the right to designate alternate routes in the event that the applicant's proposed routes are deemed inadequate, unsafe or overly disruptive to normal vehicular traffic by the municipal engineer.

(2)

Prior to the commencement of any activity at the development or facility, the operator shall enter into a municipal roadway maintenance and repair agreement with the municipality, in a form acceptable to the municipality, regarding maintenance, repair and bonding of municipal roads that are to be used by vehicles for development or facility activities. The municipal roadway maintenance and repair agreement will identify the responsibilities of the applicant to prepare, maintain, and repair municipal roads before, during and immediately after all operations associated with the development or facility. The operator shall take all necessary corrective action and measures as directed by the municipality pursuant to the agreement to ensure the roadways are repaired and maintained during and at the conclusion of all development or facility activities. The agreement may provide for bond to be posted in excess of otherwise applicable PennDOT limits when the municipal engineer has reasonably estimated the cost of repair will exceed PennDOT limits.

(3)

The operator shall maintain public roads free of dirt, mud and debris resulting from activities at the development or facility and shall undertake such activities as road sweeping and tire/wheel well/undercarriage washing as needed. The operator shall take all necessary precautions to ensure the safety of persons in areas established for road crossing and/or adjacent to roadways (for example, persons waiting for public or school transportation). Where necessary and allowed, during periods of anticipated heavy or frequent truck traffic associated with the development or facility, the operator will provide flagmen to ensure the public safety and include adequate signs and/or other warning measures for truck traffic and vehicular traffic.

(4)

There will be no staging of trucks or equipment on local roads. The normal flow of traffic on the local roads shall not be impeded by vehicles accessing or waiting to access the site.

(5)

The access driveway off the public road to the development or facility site shall be gated at the entrance to prevent illegal access into the site. The site assigned address shall be clearly marked.

(6)

Beginning with its intersection with a public street, the access driveway to the development or facility shall be paved with an impervious material for the first 50 feet, at a minimum. The remainder of the access driveway shall be paved with materials designed to minimize dust and particulate; minimize the runoff of water, sediment and other debris onto any public roadway and adjacent property; and allow the safe passage of emergency vehicles into the development or facility site.

(7)

No idling of diesel powered motors or motor vehicles shall be permitted at a development site outside of the well pad.

Impoundments. Best management practices shall be utilized in connection with all impoundments. Impoundments shall not use surface aerators. Impoundments must comply with all state and federal laws in all respects, including, but not limited to leak detection and monitoring and bird netting requirements and, additionally, must comply with EPA 9090 or any regulation that supersedes it. All impoundments shall be secured with a temporary chain link fence which shall have a minimum thickness of 11 gauge and shall be a minimum of six feet in height with a secured gate. The fencing shall be in place until the impoundment is removed. Other than fresh water, no impoundment may be used to store any substance or material generated from any property other than the property on which the impoundment is located. The Borough reserves the right to require impoundments to be completely enclosed within a structure with solid walls and a roof and, where such enclosure is required, may also require air filtration systems to be installed in and/or on the enclosure.

Hours of operation. Except for emergency and governmental compliance activity or during fracking or drilling, hours of operation of an oil and gas development, including but not limited to any well site, are limited to Monday through Saturday, 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., federal holidays excepted. Deliveries and pickups incidental to the operation of an oil and gas development, including but not limited to any well site, are limited to Monday through Saturday, 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., federal holidays excepted. It is understood that oil and gas development facilities operate on a continuous basis, but construction of such facilities, as well as all deliveries and pickups incidental to such facilities, may only take place Monday through Saturday, 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., federal holidays excepted.

Notification. The operator of any development or facility shall notify the municipality's Emergency Management Coordinator, Zoning Officer and Municipal Engineer in writing of the operator's intention to start up any development or facility no less than 90 days prior to the startup of the development or facility. The operator of any development or facility shall notify the municipality's Emergency Management Coordinator, Zoning Officer and Municipal Engineer in writing of the operator's intention to abandon or shut down any development or facility within a reasonable time prior to the abandonment or shutdown of the development or facility.

Visual. The oil and gas development or facility shall be located, designed and constructed to minimize the removal of trees and shrubs; protect all natural resources; and minimize the amount of surface disturbance. The operator shall not clear brush or trees by way of burning and shall chip, grind or remove all tree stumps from properties it clears for development purposes. The location and design of structures and site improvements shall be integrated with the natural color, form and topography of the surrounding area.

Emergency management and security.

(1)

Upon request of the municipality, the operator shall, prior to commencing oil and gas development or facility operations, make available with at least 30 days' notice, at the applicant's/operator's sole cost and expense, one appropriate group training program for emergency responders and municipal code enforcement personnel. Such training shall be made available at least annually during any year that drilling activities take place at the oil and gas development or during any year in which a facility is operational and shall, at a minimum, include an opportunity for municipal emergency service providers to visit the site for purposes of being oriented to the location, equipment, materials used and layout of the site. Training should cover each phase of the development from site work to well completion or completion of the facility, as applicable. If additional wells are drilled at a site, the municipality will determine in its discretion whether additional training is required.

(2)

The operator shall provide to the chief officers of the municipality's emergency service providers and to the borough manager, appropriate maps, material data safety sheets and emergency plan documents, including a copy of its current Preparedness, Prevention and Contingency Plan as defined by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. This information shall be kept up to date at all times while the oil and gas development or facility is active.

(3)

The operator shall provide 24/7 emergency contact information, including a supervisor's name and phone number, to the chief officer of all municipal emergency service providers and to the borough manager and shall also maintain signage at the site including such emergency contact information.

(4)

The operator shall provide at least one on-site security guard 24/7 when a drilling rig or hydraulic fracturing equipment is on the site.

(5)

The operator shall install warning signs at the site providing notice of the potential dangers of the site. The warning signs shall include contact information in case of an emergency.

Fencing. In addition to the fencing requirements set forth in § 212-1405C and notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in Article 2100, the operator shall securely install fencing at least six feet high around drilling, fracking and hydraulic equipment. Upon completion of drilling or redrilling or upon completion of construction of a facility, security fencing consisting of a permanent, galvanized chain-link fence shall be promptly installed at all well pads to secure wellheads, storage tanks, separation facilities, water or liquid impoundment areas, compressor stations and other mechanical and production equipment and structures, as applicable, on the site. Fencing shall have lockable gates at every access point which shall be kept locked except when being used for access. Provision shall be made to provide the municipality's emergency responders with access to all locked areas at all times.

Screening and buffering. Oil and gas developments and oil and gas development facilities are subject to Article 2000, Buffering and Landscaping, of the Zoning Ordinance. Buffer yard "Type E", as set forth in Table 20-4, Detailed Buffer Yard Requirements, shall apply to oil and gas developments and oil and gas development facilities. The municipality may require such other or additional buffering and screening as it deems necessary and appropriate.

Noise. Oil and gas developments and oil and gas development facilities are subject to § 212-2106, Noise. In addition to compliance with § 212-2106, as part of its conditional use application, the operator shall submit both a noise study and analysis and a noise management and mitigation plan acceptable to the municipality and conducted and prepared by an independent consultant with proven expertise in noise analysis, management and mitigation. Among other things, the noise study and analysis shall provide the existing ambient noise levels of "A" scale noise (high frequency noise) and "C" scale noise (low frequency noise) taken during summer and winter months, during daytime and overnight hours, during varying atmospheric and weather conditions and taken on weekdays and weekends and measured at points representing each cardinal direction on the property line of the development or facility. Documentation certifying the accuracy and reliability of the measured ambient noise levels shall also be included. Additionally, the noise management and mitigation plan shall, at a minimum, include the following:

(1)

Projected levels of "A" scale noise and "C" scale noise for each phase of the lifecycle of the development or facility (including, but not limited to construction, drilling, fracking, completion, operation and reclamation, as applicable) during summer and winter months, during daytime and overnight hours, during varying atmospheric and weather conditions and on weekdays and weekends, with such noise level projections being made for the same points along the property line of the development or facility used to establish the ambient noise levels;

(2)

A comprehensive analysis detailing mitigation measures to be taken to control both "A" scale noise and "C" scale noise at the property line of the development or facility;

(3)

Projected levels of "A" scale and "C" scale noise, as required in Subsection J(1) above, after mitigation measures are in place, including examples of situations in which such mitigation measures have been previously used and a detailed analysis of the effectiveness of such use;

(4)

A plan for ongoing and vigilant noise monitoring to take place on a regular, routine basis during each phase of the lifecycle of the development or facility with reports of such monitoring to be provided to the municipality;

(5)

A continuous improvement plan for lowering, controlling and mitigating "A" scale and "C" scale noise levels at the development or facility; and

(6)

A plan to timely and acceptably respond to and address individual noise complaints. The operator shall reimburse the municipality for the cost of consultants deemed reasonably necessary by the municipality to establish and/or review the parameters of the noise study and analysis and the noise management and mitigation plan for the oil and gas development and/or facility. The noise study and analysis and the noise management and mitigation plan are subject to the approval of the municipality and the municipality reserves the right to impose additional noise control requirements as it deems necessary and appropriate.

Odors. Oil and gas developments and oil and gas development facilities are subject to § 212-2101, Emission of offensive odors. In addition to compliance with § 212-2101, the operator agrees that, upon complaint by the occupants of a nearby property of odors generated at the development or facility, the operator will meet with the municipality and the complainant or his/her representative within three days of receipt of the complaint to establish a feasible and effective method of controlling any such odors. The operator will reimburse the municipality for the cost of consultants or other investigation needed to address odor complaints. For the purposes of this section, "nearby properties" shall be properties located within 2,000 feet of the development or facility.

Housing. No employees, subcontractors, agents or other persons shall be housed on the site of a development or facility.

Disposal. No on-site burial or other on-site disposal of drilling residuals, hydraulic fracturing chemicals or other residuals is permitted at a development or facility.

Emissions. Oil and gas developments and oil and gas development facilities are subject to § 212-2104, Air pollutive emissions. In addition, containment and control of air pollutive emissions, particulate and otherwise, shall be in compliance with all local, state and federal laws, rules, codes and regulations, including, but not limited to all Allegheny County Health Department regulations and the operator shall operate and maintain a vapor recovery unit or vapor destruction unit, or other available and feasible means to eliminate vapors emitted from any condensation tanks and/or enclosed impoundments located at an oil and gas development or facility.

Lighting. Oil and gas developments and oil and gas development facilities are subject to § 212-2105, Lighting projecting beyond lot lines. In addition, no lighting used at an oil and gas development or facility shall be positioned or directed in such a manner so that it shines directly upon public roads, adjacent property or other property within the vicinity of the development or facility. Site lighting shall be directed downward and shielded so as to avoid glare on public roads and adjacent properties. After hours of operation or when the site has been fully developed or reclaimed, lighting shall be reduced to the minimum required for safety and security purposes.

Vibrations. Oil and gas developments and oil and gas development facilities are subject to § 212-2109, Vibrations. In addition to compliance with § 212-2109, as part of its conditional use application, the operator shall submit a vibration study and analysis and a vibration management and mitigation plan acceptable to the municipality and prepared by an independent consultant with expertise in vibration analysis, management and mitigation. At a minimum, the vibration management and mitigation plan shall demonstrate that properties contiguous to the property on which the development or facility is located shall not be subject to disruptive vibrations during any phase of the development or facility lifecycle, including, but not limited to, construction, drilling, fracking, completion, operation and reclamation, as applicable. The operator shall reimburse the municipality for the cost of consultants deemed reasonably necessary by the municipality to advise the municipality with respect to the vibration study and analysis and the vibration management and mitigation plan. The vibration study and analysis and the vibration management and mitigation plan are subject to the approval of the municipality and the municipality reserves the right to impose additional vibration control requirements as it deems necessary and appropriate.

Compliance with other laws, rules, regulations and ordinances. The oil and gas development and/or facility shall comply with all applicable permits and requirements of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, the United States Environmental Protection Agency and any other governmental agency or authority having jurisdiction over its operations and with all federal, state and local laws, ordinances, rules and regulations promulgated to protect the environment or otherwise relating to environmental matters, including, but not limited to the Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. § 7401, et seq., the Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. § 1251, et seq., and the Allegheny County Health Department Air Pollution Control Rules and Regulations, Allegheny County Ordinance 16782, all as may be amended from time to time. A comprehensive list identifying any and all permits and approvals required by law with respect to the oil and gas development and/or facility shall be provided to the municipality with the conditional use application and shall be certified as true, correct and complete by a professional engineer. Additionally, a copy of all permit applications submitted by the applicant and/or owner and a copy of all permits and approvals issued to the applicant and/or owner with respect to the oil and gas development and/or facility shall be provided to the municipality with the conditional use application. To the extent that any required permits or approvals are not provided with the conditional use application, the applicant and/or owner shall provide the municipality with a written explanation for each missing permit and/or approval with its conditional use application. Any suspension or revocation of any permit or the application of any penalty against the applicant and/or owner of the development or facility shall be immediately reported to the municipality and shall constitute a violation of the zoning approval and may result in suspension of any zoning approval. The applicant shall provide certification that a bond is held by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to ensure proper plugging when the well is classified as inactive by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.

Environmental Rights Amendment. The applicant shall demonstrate that the proposed operations at the oil and gas development and/or facility will not violate the rights of the citizens of the Borough of Franklin Park to clean air and pure water as set forth in Article I, Section 27 of the Pennsylvania Constitution, known as the Environmental Rights Amendment. The applicant shall bear the initial burden of demonstrating that the proposed oil and gas development and/or facility operations will not adversely affect the health, safety or welfare of the citizens of the Borough of Franklin Park or any other citizen of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The applicant shall submit reports from a qualified environmental engineer attesting that the proposed location and operation will not negatively impact the environmental rights of the municipality's residents and will include, at a minimum, air modeling and hydrogeologic studies showing potential pathways that a spill or release of fluid or other release of chemicals or vapors from a development or facility may take and the potential impact on the residents of the municipality.

Costs. The applicant shall be responsible for any professional review fees or costs incurred by the municipality in connection with its review of the conditional use application or its component parts, which may be required to be escrowed at the municipality's sole election.

Notice of spills, etc. Notice of any spill, leak, malfunction and/or release creating an emergency situation at a development or facility that threatens to harm or causes actual harm to the health and safety of individuals and/or the environment shall be immediately reported by the operator to the chief officers of the municipality's emergency service providers and to the borough manager. Notice of any spill, leak, malfunction and/or release that does not create an emergency situation at a development facility and which does not threaten to harm or cause actual harm to the health and safety of individuals and/or the environment shall be reported within 12 hours to the chief officers of the municipality's emergency service providers and to the borough manager. The operator shall immediately remove or cause to be removed all waste materials from any public or private property affected by such spill, leak, malfunction and/or release.

Parking. Adequate off street parking shall be required in accordance with § 212-2202.

Maintenance. Oil and gas developments and oil and gas development facilities are subject to Chapter 159, Property Maintenance, of the Code of the Borough of Franklin Park. In addition, the municipality may place such other property maintenance conditions upon the applicant as it deems appropriate, including, but not limited to, maintenance and control of grass, weeds or other vegetation during active use of an oil and gas development or oil and gas development facility site and/or after abandonment thereof, even in the absence of any structure on such site.

Water testing. In addition to any requirements of state or federal law, any operator of an unconventional well shall be responsible for testing all private water supplies located within 3,000 feet of the surface location of the wellbore of any unconventional well as set forth more particularly below. All water testing required in accordance with this section shall be performed at the sole cost and expense of the operator and shall be performed by an independent state-certified water testing laboratory agreed upon by the Borough. The purpose of the water testing is to determine the baseline quality of private water supplies in the vicinity of an unconventional well site and to evaluate the resultant changes that may occur or have an impact on the private water supply. The operator shall adhere to the following in connection with the testing of private water supplies:

(1)

A map showing the location of all private water supplies located within 3,000 feet of the surface location of the wellbore of any proposed unconventional well shall be submitted to the Borough as part of the conditional use application.

(2)

A list of all landowners with private water supplies located within 3,000 feet of the surface location of the wellbore of any proposed unconventional well and mailing addresses for each such landowner shall be submitted to the Borough as part of the conditional use application.

(3)

Predrill water testing results for all private water supplies located within 3,000 feet of the surface location of the wellbore of any proposed unconventional well shall be submitted to the Borough as part of the conditional use application. If a landowner refuses to allow the operator access to the landowner's property to conduct testing of such landowner's private water supply, the operator shall provide the Borough with written evidence of such refusal in accordance with PA Code Title 25, Chapter 78a, § 78a.52(f). The independent water testing laboratory shall be directed by the operator to provide all landowners consenting to such water testing with the test results for their respective private water supply as those results become available. As part of the conditional use application, the operator shall submit written confirmation, certified by an officer of the operator, that each landowner consenting to the water testing was provided with the test results for their respective private water supply.

(4)

The operator of an unconventional well shall test all private water supplies located within 3,000 feet of the surface location of any wellbore of an unconventional well every six months, at a minimum, as follows: from the commencement of drilling of any unconventional well to the date that is 18 months following completion of the well; from the commencement of any alteration to an unconventional well which changes the physical characteristics of the wellbore, including stimulation, rework or removing, repairing or changing the casing, to the date that is 18 months following the completion of the well alteration or the completion of the well, whichever is later; and from the commencement of any redrill of an unconventional well, to the date that is 18 months following the completion of the redrill or the completion of the well, whichever is later. If a landowner refuses to allow the operator access to the landowner's property to conduct testing of such landowner's private water supply, the operator shall provide the Borough with written evidence of such refusal in accordance with PA Code Title 25, Chapter 78a, § 78a.52(f). The independent water testing laboratory shall be directed by the operator to provide all landowners consenting to such water testing with the test results for their respective private water supply within 10 days of the certification of the results by the independent water testing laboratory. Within 15 days of the certification of the water testing results, the operator shall submit written confirmation to the Borough, certified by an officer of the operator, that each landowner consenting to the water testing was provided with the test results for their respective private water supply.

(5)

Prior to drilling an unconventional well, the operator shall drill a test water well outside of the limits of the proposed well pad but no more than 750 feet from the proposed wellbore to a depth that intersects all known or viable aquifers for the purposes of obtaining a baseline assessment of water quality in the vicinity of the proposed well site. The test water well shall be located such that it is part of the hydrologic system of the drill site. Pre-drill water testing shall be conducted on this test water well and the results of this pre-drill testing shall be provided to the Borough as part of the conditional use application. The operator of an unconventional well shall test the test water well every six months, at a minimum, as follows: from the commencement of drilling of any unconventional well to the date that is 18 months following completion of the well; from the commencement of any alteration to an unconventional well which changes the physical characteristics of the wellbore, including stimulation, rework or removing, repairing or changing the casing, to the date that is 18 months following the completion of the well alteration or the completion of the well, whichever is later; and from the commencement of any redrill of an unconventional well, to the date that is 18 months following the completion of the redrill or the completion of the well, whichever is later. The operator shall provide the results of such water testing to the Borough within 10 days of the certification of the water testing results by the independent water testing laboratory.

(6)

The parameters to be tested for by the independent water testing laboratory include water temperature, pH, specific conductivity, total dissolved solids, turbidity, oil/grease/bromide, hardness, residue filterable, residue nonfilterable, volatile organic compounds, detergent (MBAs), total organic carbon, major ions (chloride, fluoride, sulfate, nitrate, silica, calcium, sodium, potassium, magnesium), trace elements (aluminum, arsenic, barium, boron, iron, manganese, selenium, uranium, iodine), radiochemical (gross alpha/gross beta radioactivity, radium, radon, in addition to uranium), organic constituents (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes (BTEX), methane, methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE), ethane, propane, total petroleum hydrocarbons), heavy metals (cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury, strontium, vanadium, zinc), compounds (formaldehyde, hydrofluoric acid, nitrogen oxides, ethylene glycol, acetone), and microbes (total coliform/E.Coli). The foregoing list of parameters is not exhaustive and the Borough reserves the right to add additional parameters.

No flares. Wells shall not be flared at any time.

Additional provisions specific to oil and gas development facilities. The following provisions shall apply specifically to oil and gas development facilities only:

(1)

All oil and gas development facilities shall be completely enclosed in a building which shall be constructed such that the architectural character complements the existing character of the area; shall employ architectural features such as sloped roofs, stone and brick accents, etc.; and shall employ soundproof type walls which enclose all equipment associated with the facility.

(2)

The operator will evaluate the use of electric motors rather than internal combustion engines. If electric motors are not deemed feasible and the use of internal combustion engines is approved by the municipality, any exhaust from any internal combustion engine or compressor used in connection with the facility shall not be discharged into the open air unless it is equipped with an exhaust muffler or an exhaust box which shall be constructed of noncombustible materials and shall be installed in a manner in which it suppresses noise and disruptive vibrations.

(3)

The operator shall provide an opportunity for the fire department to inspect all oil and gas development facilities prior to operation. During active operation of a facility, municipal staff and municipal consultants shall be given access to the facility at reasonable times to determine continuing compliance with a conditional use approval.

Additional conditions. The municipality reserves the right to impose such additional conditions as it deems necessary to protect the public health, safety and welfare of its residents and in order to address any unique characteristics of a particular site.