Source: https://energytrendswatch.com/2017/06/14/robinson-rejected-zoning-ordinance-permitting-oil-and-gas-development-in-residential-agricultural-districts-is-constitutional/
Timestamp: 2019-04-21 10:05:51+00:00

Document:
The ring-fencing of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s 2013 plurality opinion in Robinson Township v. Commonwealth continues. In declining to rely on Robinson Township, the Court reaffirmed its position, previously set forth in Pennsylvania Environmental Defense Foundation v. Commonwealth and Funk v. Wolf,that the three-part test set forth in the 1973 Payne v. Kassab decision still applies to challenges brought pursuant to Article 1, Section 27 of the Pennsylvania Constitution, thus further calling into question the impact of the 2013 Robinson Township decision.
In the appeal, the CAC and Riverkeepers challenged: (1) the underlying zoning ordinance as an invalid exercise of police powers and as incompatible with the township’s comprehensive plan in violation of Article 1, Section 1 of the Pennsylvania Constitution, (2) the ordinance and board’s decision as not in compliance with the township’s obligations under Article 1, Section 27 of the Pennsylvania Constitution (which environmental advocacy groups refer to as the “Environmental Rights Amendment”), and (3) some of the board’s evidentiary and credibility determinations. None of the challenges had merit.
As to the first challenge, the Court easily turned it aside by noting that oil and gas usage was similar to the “public utilities, except buildings” zoning category, which was a permitted or conditional use in the relevant zoning districts. The Court found this case to fit within the framework of several recent Commonwealth Court decisions upholding zoning ordinances in similar factual situations. See Markwest Liberty Midstream & Resources, LLC v. Cecil Township Zoning Hearing Board, 102 A.3d 549 (Pa. Cmwlth. 2014) and Gorsline v. Board of Supervisors of Fairfield Township, 123 A.3d 1142 (Pa. Cmwlth. 2015). The Court also noted the opponents failed to sustain their challenge to the zoning ordinance, which is presumptively valid, by focusing on issues involving the construction and drilling of the wells (“the particulars of development and construction”) instead of the “use” of the land. In the end, the Court found the ordinance was “compatible with the other permitted agricultural and residential uses and [ ] will limit [residential] sprawl and protect agricultural land.” Addressing the challenge related to the comprehensive plan, the Court simply noted that such an objection is not a basis for a legal challenge to an ordinance.
As to the third challenge, the Court noted both that the board was the sole judge of credibility and that formal rules of evidence do not apply at the board’s hearing. In reviewing the board’s decision, the Court found that decision made the necessary specific factual findings and explained the rationale for the evidentiary and credibility determinations made. As such, there was no error.
In short, the decision will allow townships to preserve their agricultural nature and to keep residential development and can therefore be viewed as a victory for the orderly development of natural gas. Practitioners should be aware of this decision to combat continued attempts by NGOs and interest groups to invalidate local government ordinances and other decisions by relying on Robinson Township.
This article was originally published as a client alert on June 14, 2017.

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