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To the Editor,
As you may known, SWN Production Company applied to the Weirton Board of Zoning Appeals to place an oil and gas well pad on the Brownlee land behind the Rue21 distribution center located on Three Springs Drive near Wal-Mart. SWN's application was denied by the Zoning Board and SWN has filed an appeal along with a separate lawsuit claiming that the City of Weirton is wrongfully depriving SWN of its property rights. In its lawsuit, SWN states that local zoning and other laws or regulations of the City of Weirton are "unlawful" since they are "completely preempted by the West Virginia Oil and Gas Act." In short, SWN is alleging that the West Virginia Office of Oil and Gas is the only governmental body that has any say over the location of oil and gas well pads in any city in the state of West Virginia.
To that end, SWN has filed an application with the West Virginia Office of Oil and Gas for a permit to construct the well pad at issue. SWN has run a legal advertisement in the Brooke County Review notifying the public of their right to comment on the proposed well site. According to SWN's legal advertisement, all comments must be received by November 24, 2021.
I would encourage the citizens of Weirton to let the West Virginia Office of Oil and Gas know what you think of the placement of an oil and gas well pad on the Brownlee property, and the thousands of large water and sand trucks it would bring to Three Springs Drive. You can do so by sending a letter to W.Va. Office of Oil and Gas, ATTN: Permit Review, 601 57th Street, SE, Charleston, WV 25304 or they can be submitted online to Taylor Brewer at Charles.T.Brewer@wv.gov. Please reference the following in any public comments: County – Brooke, Well Number – Brownlee Land Ventures BRK 6H, Operator – SWN Production Co., LLC.
JJ Bernabei
Weirton