By David Singer
Point Park News Service

While many voting precincts across Pennsylvania are reporting low turnout this general election day, poll workers in Peters said a referendum that would ban Marcellus shale drilling in the township is attracting a surge of voter interest.

Residents are voting on a referendum that would essentially make all natural gas extraction activity illegal — and supersede all state and federal laws. A petition drive put the measure on the ballot in the Washington County community despite concerns of township officials that such a law would be illegal and result in expensive legal challenges.

Peters’s A1 and A2 districts are on track for about a 40 percent voter turnout than for the spring Primary Election, poll worker Ed Rich, 69, said.

“In the Spring primary, we had 138 all day — we’re already at 250,” poll worker John Anglian, 72, said by mid-afternoon.

Peters resident Jim Comer, 52, said he voted “no” to the ballot referendum, saying it’s not practical.

“I think they’re (the township board of supervisors) going to get sued over it,” he said. “It’s messy and complicated…but there are enough protections in place, too.”

Fifty-year resident Frank Longwill, 86, voted “yes,” saying it’s the board’s duty to protect clean water, the environment, and property values.

Residents in favor of a “yes” vote banning all drilling activity in Peters Township are appealing to the township’s “home rule” status, which means that the township can create its own laws that are not exclusively regulated by the state or federal government. As written on the ballot, the charter amendment would:

• Prohibit…(extraction) of natural gas in Peters Township, from installing pipelines and compressor stations…(and any gas development)

• Invalidate permits, licenses, privileges or charters issued by the state or federal agencies inconsistent with the amendment;

• Deny corporations engaged in extraction…rights guaranteed under state and federal constitutions.

The referendum is believed to be the first of its kind, and the legal complications that would ensue if it passes are likely to be lengthy.

“Our position is that it’s illegal,” Peters Township Councilmember Dave Ball, 70, said.

Either way, poll worker Laura Zuloaga, 44, said “the referendum is getting people out…the weather today is helping, too.”

This story is featured on the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review site.