PAPCO Inc, a Warren-based oil company that owns the subsurface mineral rights to about 300 acres of land near, and on the Rimrock Overlook, has been meeting with U.S. Forest Service officials and discussing its plans to drill for natural gas in the area. The Rimrock Overlook is a scenic cliff side recreation trail and picnic area on the Allegheny National Forest, located off of Rt. 59, between Warren and Bradford.

The drilling plan, not yet made public, has drawn harsh criticism from an umbrella group of local organizations and individuals, including Allegheny Outdoor Adventures, Allegheny Defense Project, and Tionesta Valley Snowmobile Club. They argue that drilling throughout the area would ruin its scenic beauty, increase air pollution, and deter tourism and popular activities such as hiking, snowmobiling, and rappelling. Every Sunday for the past few months, the group has been holding informational actions at the site, alerting visitors that a company plans to drill there, gathering signatures on petitions, and handing out postcards to be sent to representatives.

PAPCO has not yet applied for drilling permits from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, according to USFS Bradford District Ranger Tony Scardina. But once it does, the forest service will have just 15 days to file an official objection on its operation plans to DEP.

 “We’re treating this just as any other oil and gas case,” Scardina said, “working with company officials, and planning to work with DEP to make sure that the operation will go in the best way possible, trying to mitigate some of the expected impacts.”  The FS has no choice but to provide access for the company to access its mineral rights, which the company owns, he said.

Darryl Pierce, Secretary Treasurer of PAPCO Inc, in Warren, said the company is still surveying the area, but he “really doesn’t know” how many well sites there will be. But the rumors of 100-160 new well sites are possible if there’s room for them, Pierce said. The company owns 1000 acres of subsurface rights in the area, and 300 in the immediate area of Rimrock Overlook, he said. PAPCO employs 42 workers, some local, many from out of state, and other people would be contracted to build roads, and do the fracking work, so local jobs definitely would be affected if they didn’t drill at Rimrock, Pierce said.

“It’s just business as usual,” Pierce said. “You drill where there’s oil. That’s what we do for a living. What’s the problem with that? What does an oil well hurt? If you don’t want to drill--don’t drive. You can’t drive if you don’t drill.”

John Stoneman, spokesperson for Friends of Rimrock, said his group believes that the provisions of NEPA, the National Environmental Policy Act should apply in the ANF as it does in many national forests in other states when allowing companies to put in well-sites or access roads. NEPA requires a greater degree of examination of a development or well site’s potential environmental impacts, and other conditions, such as cumulative air quality or visual impacts and tourism.

But Pierce said the Pennsylvania DEP is the only agency that can regulate oil drilling in the state. “People don’t understand. The forest service doesn’t regulate it. By law proposed drill sites are not a federal action that would trigger NEPA. This is state law.” As for considering the “visual impacts” of the proposed well sites—surveyors flags of all kinds are visible all along the Rimrock Overlook access road, and even near the overlook area—Pierce said there are standard cliff side formations every bit as scenic all across the Allegheny Plateau. The only difference between Rimrock and the others, he said, is that the forest service has built a road that lets the public see it.