Allegheny County Council passes park fracking ban, Fitzgerald vows to veto

Allegheny County Council passed a bill that would ban fracking at nine Allegheny County parks, but the bill still has to clear the desk of Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald, who has vowed to veto it.

The fracking-ban proposal would prohibit new leases on county-owned park land for industrial use.

Deer Lakes Park has already agreed to a lease to allow fracking near its borders, and this bill would not change that agreement, just stop new leases.

The bill passed 11-4 Tuesday, with two Republicans and two Democrats in opposition. The 11 votes in approval came from Democrats.

Council President Pat Catena, D-Carnegie, voted for the bill and said that residents who use the parks should not have to worry about fracking or its potential side effects at county parks. He said one Brookline resident who spoke at a recent public hearing spoke about living in a home without a yard, and that he uses parks as his yard.

“I really don’t believe in fracking in the parks,” Catena said. “The parks are for people to enjoy.”

The bill has been praised by environmental advocates. The group Clean Water Action PA tweeted on Tuesday that the bill would protect the county’s treasured parks from fracking.

Fracking has been linked to water contamination and other health effects for nearby residents.

But Fitzgerald has vowed to veto the measure, which means the bill would need to receive 10 votes for a new vote after his veto.

Fitzgerald said he supports moving away from fossil fuels to sustainable energy, noting the county has purchased electric vehicles for parks and reached an agreement to create hydroelectric power at the Emsworth Dam.

But he added that he believes natural gas is part of the transition to renewable energy.

County Councilor At-Large Bethany Hallam, D-North Side, has said in the past there have been reports of possible natural-gas leases in North Park and Round Hill Park.

Fitzgerald has denied this and said he doesn’t have current plans to lease county parkland to fracking companies. But he said a future administration shouldn’t be tied down by this proposed ban.

“Any future legislation can simply repeal this one. It’s just propaganda to benefit their own political interests,” Fitzgerald said. “For all of these reasons, I will veto the bill when it reaches my desk.”

Pro-natural gas groups have also come to Fitzgerald’s defense. Marcellus Shale Coalition President Dave Callahan praised Fitzgerald for vowing to veto the measure, and said the Deer Lakes lease has led to $3 million in improvements to the park, without costing taxpayers.

Jeff Nobers is president of Pittsburgh Works Together, a coalition of corporations, building trades unions, and economic leaders that support the region’s natural gas industry.

Nobers said he opposes a park fracking ban generally, but said it also shouldn’t come as the country is facing energy shortages and rising energy costs.

“At a time when people in this country and around the world are facing energy shortages, it makes no sense to create legal hurdles that would make it more difficult to access Allegheny County’s natural gas resources if they are ever needed,” Nobers said.

Catena acknowledged the opposition to the park ban, and the groups backing Fitzgerald’s veto. But he asked why these groups didn’t attend the public meeting to provide in-person comments to council members. The groups did send letters to council, but didn’t speak at the public meeting.

He said that more than 70 people provided comments about the fracking ban, and that nearly all were in support of the measure.

Catena said he is “cautiously optimistic” that council will have enough votes to override a veto.

“I am sure just like in other cases, the county executive will start browbeating people like he has done in the past to move votes,” said Catena. “But I believe we have a strong coalition that is going to do the right thing at the end of the day.”

Past attempts to clear Fitzgerald’s veto have not always been successful. In 2021 after passing a paid sick leave bill by a count of 10-4, county council failed to override Fitzgerald’s veto with a 9-5-1 vote. That bill was later amended to go through the county health department, and received the full backing of council to provide all workers in the county paid sick days.

Hallam said she believes they have the votes to override a veto this time around. With 11 votes in favor, supporters of a park ban can afford one defection, as 10 votes is enough to override a veto.

She said passing the park ban is important to ensure the parks remain healthy into the future.

“We are able to hike in Harrison Hills Park or swim in North Park because yesterday’s leaders had the foresight to conserve these treasured spaces,” said Hallam. “We have a duty to protect these open spaces for generations to come.”