The Conservation Association for the Penn Township Area should be proud of its accomplishments. Allegheny Energy recently confirmed the sale of the 150 acres slated for a gas-turbine generating station in Penn Township to a developer (” Homes for land once slated for plant ,” Feb. 7). CAPA fought to stop the building of this generating station and won. Now, instead of a relatively small, low-pollution facility hidden behind rows of trees as noise barriers, we will have approximately 300 new homes to look at. Along with these new homes will come 600 more cars, 300 lawnmowers and the noise and pollution they bring. Traffic will increase tremendously around the soccer fields; there won’t be just a few trucks hauling supplies. Sewer lines will need to be upgraded, the road crew and police force will need to expand, and our schools again will need to be added on to, all at the taxpayers’ expense. There is also the issue of storm-water runoff making its way (by way of a currently nonexistent tributary) to Bushy Run Creek. This runoff will contain fertilizers and pesticides used on these new lawns and road debris dropped off cars, not the processed cooling water that would have come from the generators. The way I see it, CAPA has done a great disservice to our community. Because of a few people with poor foresight, all residents of the township will be paying well into the future. Rich Niemiec Penn Township
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