There are voices opposed to a planned 36-inch natural gas pipeline, and they're speaking up.

The 114-mile conduit would run from Wilkes-Barre to Trenton, New Jersey.A section would travel through townships of Carbon County.The current route would affect 31 landowners in Kidder, 61 in Penn Forest, 44 in Towamensing and 16 in Lower Towamensing.All of those townships have passed resolutions opposing the pipeline, along with Mahoning.Property owners have specific concerns.Resident Linda Christman, for example, has been waving a flag about the project.She wants affected landowners to understand they'd be paid only a one-time fee, unlike cell tower companies that pay annual fees to landowner hosts."In future years, no matter how much profit the company makes, the property owner will receive nothing, although the pipeline will continue to negatively impact the value and use of the property," Christman said.She makes a solid argument.A pipeline carrying flammable or explosive material definitely could affect property values.Essentially, it turns a property into a "danger zone."There have been many recorded disasters over the years with pipelines carrying natural gas and refined petroleum.Luckily, our area has been spared so far.But we're not without risk.In Schuylkill County, an underground Sunoco petroleum pipeline cuts through Rush Township and Tamaqua borough.It's part of a network of petroleum infrastructure from Syracuse to Philadelphia.Care was taken, it seems, to bury the pipe in a manner which generally avoids private property.The pipeline runs beneath Cumberland Avenue in residential Rush Township. It crosses Route 54 and then crosses Route 309 near Ye Old Hauto Road on the Hometown Hill.In Tamaqua, it's buried beneath the Little Schuylkill River and follows the riverbed through town, running from north to south.Since the pipeline generally avoids contact with private property, there likely hasn't been a measurable impact on property values.Still, adjacent homeowners occasionally receive safety or advisory mailers from Sunoco, acknowledging a potential danger.Such pipelines pose special safety concerns on many levels. They're susceptible. They can develop leaks.Pipelines also can be targets of vandalism, sabotage and even terrorist attacks.Carbon County residents are well-advised to stay on top of the proposed project and to gain as much knowledge as possible.Pipelines are big business. And there's always a price to pay.So when somebody proposes creating a danger zone in a residential area, or in a waterway, or on farmland, there's plenty of reason to speak up.By DONALD R. SERFASSdserfass@tnonline.com