Lehigh Township Supervisors are concerned about a possible route change for a proposed pipeline through the municipality, but project officials claim such an adjustment is unlikely.

In a May 24 letter to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Lehigh Township manager Alice Rehrig said the board and residents had been informed of a change to the path of the proposed PennEast pipeline."We have been told PennEast is considering changing the path to a location further south on Blue Mountain," Rehrig said. "We object to the placement of the pipeline in Lehigh County, particularly if the line is moved further south on the mountain."The $1.2 billion pipeline would run from Luzerne County to Mercer County, New Jersey, including through Kidder, Penn Forest, Towamensing and Lower Towamensing townships in Carbon County.Blue Mountain Ski Resort officials have backed the pipeline project as a natural gas powered plant is critical to its plans for an outdoor water park.A previous PennEast route adjustment to connect with Blue Mountain resulted in 2.5 miles of pipe moved into Lehigh Township.PennEast spokeswoman Pat Kornick said the company continues to explore route modifications based on stakeholder feedback."It is unlikely though," she said, "that PennEast will be pursuing the route modification mentioned in the Lehigh Township letter."Rehrig's concern is how close the pipeline comes to homes at the base of the mountain."All of these homes are served by on-lot well and septic with the wells most commonly being located in the rear yard," she said.The township, Rehrig said, believes the environmental impacts of the project have not been thoroughly investigated by PennEast."We urge you to reconsider the need for this project as well as the current route and eliminate it from Lehigh Township," Rehrig said.Carbon County residents have also spoken out against the pipeline, holding numerous rallies and information sessions in their fight to stop it.On May 10, Towamensing Township resident Linda Christman sent a letter to the regional Department of Environmental Protection office, outlining her concerns with the size of the proposed compressor turbines, use of gas-fueled generators for the turbines and lack of "best practices" for the compressor station to be located in Kidder Township.Christman said PennEast initially listed the total horsepower for three turbines at 32,745, but the most recent air quality application has the turbines at 47,700 horsepower."I believe the larger the turbine, the greater the pollutant output," Christman said. "The Kidder Township environment should not be subjected to more emissions than is necessary for the project."Christman also advocated for electric motors to be used in place of gas-fired turbines, and for the implementation of the Environmental Protection Agency Natural Gas Star Program best practices for compressor station opposition."The public deserves an opportunity to hear and be heard concerning the compressor station," she said.FERC is still working on an environmental-impact statement for the project and has announced it won't make a final decision on the pipeline until March 2017.