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by Thyra Sperry, President, KTA Board of Directors
Many thanks for the feedback concerning the natural gas development on the Old Loggers Path. This is just one of the trails that KTA is striving to protect.
The Loyalsock Trail, a designated KTA hiking trail in Lycoming and Sullivan counties, is also in the natural gas development area. Natural gas development will take place at the west end (State Lease #726). We need to hike the trail and report what we see. Conditions change, whether from gas development activities or just green-brier and nettles, and you're helping us all when you spread the word. Click here for photos of the Loyalsock Trail area and northern tier: http://www.paforestcoalition.org/pa_dcnr.html
Our rights are protected under Pennsylvania's Constitution. Article I, Section 27 of Pennsylvania's Constitution states: "The people have a right to clean air, pure water, and to the preservation of the natural scenic, historic and aesthetic values of the environment. Pennsylvania's public natural resources are the common property of all the people, including generations yet to come. As trustee of these resources, the Commonwealth shall conserve and maintain them for the benefit of all the people."
When you are hiking in areas affected by natural gas development, please check for impacts to the existing trail, scenic or historic area; sediment from construction sites or roads, unusual water discoloration; loud noise, offensive fumes or strong odors, injured or dead wildlife or fauna, or light pollution in pristine areas. Take photographs, keep notes of what is observed and report your findings to FrackTracker.org, and/or Keystone Trails Association (ktahike@verizon.net), who will share them with the Department of Environmental Protection, the Department of Conservation of Natural Resources, and other interest groups.
The temperatures may have dropped, but our trails are still at risk; gas well development continues year-round. If we wait until the weather warms up in the spring to go hiking, we may find that our beloved trails were quietly sacrificed in the interim. Hikers are the eyes and the ears of Pennsylvania's hiking trails. For us to know at the ground-level how this development is impacting our trails, we need your help, with observing, recording, and reporting the changes you see, hear, and smell. This winter, please get out and protect your favorite trail!
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