Pipeline companies generally target the simplest, least expensive routes on which to build.

And why wouldn't they? They're seeking to maximize profits. And open spaces are much easier to negotiate than developed ones.So, in Lancaster County, that means there's a bull's-eye on farmland that's been preserved with taxpayer dollars and charitable donations.We're hopeful that this might change, now that the governor has created the Pipeline Infrastructure Task Force.The task force won't be developing a comprehensive pipeline infrastructure plan it would be "impossible to plan a full build-out of the infrastructure over the next seven decades" of expected fracking in Pennsylvania, says John Quigley, acting secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection.The aim, he says, is to convene a "collaborative conversation" with representatives from the natural gas industry, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, local and county government, environmental groups and other "stakeholders."He hopes that out of that collaboration will come best-practice recommendations for planning, locating and routing pipelines to avoid or minimize impacts on the environment and communities.The task force also will aim to develop best practices related to construction methods, and pipeline operation and maintenance and to public engagement on pipeline concerns.Which is not to say that individuals from every community affected by pipelines will have a seat at the task force's table.Quigley expects there to be about 33 or 34 members, and subcommittees, too. "It's a challenge to everybody involved to make sure we get it right."This challenge must be met if the task force is going to live up to its promise. We'll be keeping an eye on how representative the task force is as it comes together.Quigley says FERC officials have indicated they want to take part. We hope the task force gives the commonwealth added standing with that agency, which makes the ultimate call on natural gas pipeline proposals. And we hope the task force's report, which Quigley says Wolf expects around February, will factor into any future pipeline proposal affecting Pennsylvania that goes before FERC.At the very least, the establishment of this task force sends the message that Pennsylvania isn't the Wild West; it will have expectations and standards that pipeline developers will need to meet if they want to be seen as good corporate citizens. But what comes out of the task force will be recommendations, not regulations. If the natural gas industry spurns the recommendations, what then?Quigley says it will be not just a collaborative process, but a transparent one, in which the aim will be to ensure "all sides feel heard and paid attention to."Karen Martynick, executive director of Lancaster Farmland Trust, plans to seek a place at the table.Someone should be there to represent the concerns of those working for farmland preservation. Martynick says the task force "has the potential to be helpful."It will be good, she says, to have a plan for what the state's pipeline infrastructure "could and should look like."Here's hoping that could and should are enough.Lancaster Online