A second well pad will be coming to West Deer, near the Pittsburgh National Golf Club.

Supervisors approved the plan for the Tyche deep well last week.

The approval makes way for the development and operation of an unconventional natural gas well pad and associated pipeline on property owned by Donald J. Podczerwinski at 201 Bairdford Road.

The property is zoned rural residential.

Tyche is proposed by Olympus Energy of Cecil Township. Olympus has approval for another well pad in the township, Leto, off Oak Road behind a Dollar General store. Residents have filed a court appeal against that approval.

Olympus also proposed a well pad named Dionysus, but that plan was rejected by supervisors in 2021, and the company has since dropped its court appeal.

“After following both the state and municipal regulatory process, Olympus is excited for the opportunity to pursue the permitted development in West Deer Township,” Olympus spokesman Marc Maestra said.

The proposed gravel well pad would be about 690 by 260 feet with an access road, and post-construction stormwater management facilities also would be on-site.

A 12-inch-diameter natural gas pipeline would be built with a 50-foot right of way connecting the proposed Tyche and Leto well pads. The steel pipeline would be built and operated by Hyperion, a subsidiary of Olympus.

Marcia Bassett, a member of the Concerned Residents of West Deer, said Wednesday the group is exploring its options as they relate to a possible court appeal. West Deer has two decisions under appeal: one against the Leto well pad and the other for the Deer Creek interconnect pipeline.

“It’s unfortunate that the people who represent the community in the position of governance do not have the community’s well-being first and foremost in their minds,” Bassett said.

But supervisors wrote in their findings that objectors to the well pad project didn’t meet the burden to allow rejection of the proposal, as it wasn’t enough “to express vague ‘concerns’ about alleged impacts of (Olympus’) proposed development, nor was it enough for them to present evidence of alleged adverse impacts from oil and gas development generally.”

The health and safety issues raised by objectors were not specific to the Tyche Well Pad Project, the findings said.

“While the board acknowledges that environmental issues are certainly important, they are not within the jurisdiction of the township and the board,” the findings said. “While the board is sympathetic to the understandable concerns residents have about oil and gas development, CROWD and the individual objectors failed to meet their burden.”

Olympus intends to start construction on Tyche in June 2025.

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