Range Resources Letter 'Cause for Concern' In Cecil

A letter sent from Range Resources to Mt. Pleasant residents indicates the company is considering pulling drilling resources from the township to other more "cooperative" communities because of difficulties with supervisors there.

The message in two copies of the letter to residents living within the McDonald Zip code — including residents of Mt. Pleasant and townships — are “cause for concern,” officials said Monday.

Cecil Township Supervisor Andy Schrader said he received a letter in the mail on Monday from the Southpointe-based Marcellus Shale drilling company that spoke about its efforts to be a community partner in nearby Mt. Pleasant, and about ongoing issues regarding regulations there.

More concerning, Schrader said, was news of a second letter — this one apparently addressed specifically to Mt. Pleasant residents — that informed them that major changes in the way the company operates would be announced at a public hearing at the Hickory Fire Hall from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday.

“We have made every effort to establish a positive and robust working relationship with your elected officials, our attempts continue to be rejected. As a result, we are sending this communication to inform you we have revised our long-term plans for he township due to continued difficulties with your township supervisors and their unwillingness to work with us. As a result, those revisions could be detrimental to leaseholders,” the letter to Mt. Pleasant residents stated.

It continues: “Ultimately, we will be forced to shift activity to other, more cooperative communities…In addition, we will be evaluating legal action including federal and state courses of action. We regret any hardship this may cause you, but we are left with no other choice.”

Schrader said that wording makes him want to attend the meeting Wednesday to see exactly what Range Resources’ plans are — and said the message was off putting.

“It sounds like they are trying to divide the community — pitting one group against the other,” he said.

Cecil Township Manager Don Gennuso said Monday that news of Range Resources sending out a mailing made its way to him earlier in the day, when township resident and Solicitor John Smith emailed him about the subject.

While he said he has not had enough time to “properly digest the letter, or its potential impact on Cecil Township,” he did confirm that “it is concerning on several levels.”

Reached late Monday, Smith, who also serves as special counsel at Mt. Pleasant, said he was not privy to what possible legal action might be pending in the community.

As for Cecil, he said it might be too early to comment.

"It's tough for us to react until we hear what this is all about," Smith said.

Range Resources spokesman Mike Mackin responded to a voicemail via email, confirming that the letter was sent to Mt. Pleasant residents, and that the issue is "completely separate from anything within Cecil Township."