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Council approves no-surface-drilling oil and gas lease allowing horizontal wells beneath city park
Summary
The council voted 6–1 to approve a no-surface-drilling oil and gas lease with John D. Branch that permits horizontal drilling under Betts Park while prohibiting surface operations on city-owned park land; the agreement includes a royalty provision and requires state permits before operations.
Warren City Council approved a no-surface-drilling oil and gas lease on March 12 that permits horizontal drilling beneath a city-owned park while prohibiting any surface activity on the park itself.
The proposed lease covers mineral access related to parcel WN-499-861 (owned by John D. Branch) with drilling to occur from privately owned surface outside the park; the horizontal well would extend beneath Betts Park, identified in city records as WMN-811-11, city staff said. Under the lease terms presented in the council packet, no drilling equipment or operations are allowed on the park surface.
Nut graf: Councilors debated safety, permitting and timing before approving the agreement. Council asked how deep and how drilling would be regulated; staff and other speakers said that state environmental permits from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) are required before drilling may proceed and that the city would receive a royalty for marketable materials extracted under the lease.
Councilors asked about safety, depth, and the definition of “horizontal” drilling and whether that is equivalent to hydraulic fracturing. Speakers and staff clarified that “horizontal drilling” is a directional technique and that hydraulic fracturing (also called “fracking”) is a separate step that may be part of some wells; they also said permitting and DEP oversight would apply. A council member read lease language and referred to a one-eighth royalty provision in the lease language ("one-eighth of the value"), and the city solicitor and staff said royalties are typically paid based on production reports and metering.
Public comments during the agenda item raised questions about whether the lease required planning-commission review and whether environmental and safety assurances had been provided; staff said permits are issued by the state and that lease execution is separate from permitting. Several councilors asked for additional technical briefings; one councilor asked for invited presentations by industry operations staff to explain safety and monitoring practices.
Ending: On roll call the motion to approve the no-surface-drilling lease passed 6–1 (Missus McCain voted no). The city will retain the lease royalty rights and will not permit surface operations on park property; staff said any drilling will require applicable DEP permits before field operations begin.
