In April, West Penn residents attended a supervisors meeting to express their concerns about a water extraction venture at 1 Fort Franklin Road, Andreas.

During a meeting Monday night, the supervisors were able to provide more information to the residents.First, they learned that although landowner David Knoedler was granted a zoning permit by West Penn Township for water harvesting on Jan. 13, that doesn't mean he can start extracting water and transporting it out of the area. The zoning permit was granted to Knoedler and Ringgold Acquisition Group II, LLC Ringgold Acquisition, filed as an LLC July 18, 2002, with an address of 10447 Drummond Road, Philadelphia, the same address as the Wissahickon Mountain Spring Water.Chairman Jim Akins said that the supervisors had contacted the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to learn what was required in the permitting process.Akins said the applicant must go through a review process with Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, as well as the Delaware River Basin Commission. The application must include hydrology reports, a study by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, wetland studies and adherence to pipe size and tanker truck specifications. Also, any facility that will receive the water must take steps to be able to do so."From what we've learned, it's a two or two and a half year process," Akins said. "To date, no permit has been filed with DEP for a new facility."Residents weren't happy that the company has already drilled six test wells on the property. But West Penn zoning officer Bill Enders said no permit is needed to drill a well. The company is drilling wells as a preliminary step to determine the potential for water harvesting. That's something that anyone can do on a property without first obtaining a permit, Enders said.Ringgold Acquisition Group II, LLC, has been operating a water extraction business on Kepner Road, just a short distance from the proposed operation.Jay Land, Philadelphia area, representing Ringgold Acquisition Group, attended the meeting and said that on Kepner Road, there have been no instances of problems for about 20 years.He said that the company on average extracts about 180,000 gallons of water per day."You can't fight with your neighbors forever," Land said. "This is a long road. I think the project (on Kepner Road) took several years."Residents said they've already had enough of the tanker trucks, which weigh in excess of 80,000 pounds. Some can weigh over 100,000 pounds, supported by an extra rear axle. Leaving the Kepner Road plant, the trucks travel the road to Route 895, and from there head to either Route 61 or Route 309.If the new location is permitted, the trucks would have to travel the winding Blue Mountain Road to Kepner Road, or to Route 309.Before the meeting, resident Ted Luhowy said that he didn't think a tractor-trailer could safely enter Route 309 from Blue Mountain Road.If the truck is headed north, due to the sharpness of the turn, it would most likely have to swing through the southbound lane before heading north. If the truck was headed south, the truck body could be hit by northbound drivers who are just entering a passing zone.Resident Todd Deem suggested that the supervisors put weight limits on road and charge "astronomical fees" for trucks to travel the roads. The township could exempt safety vehicles such as firetrucks, he said.Resident Gary Steigerwalt said that he'd had to get separate permits to install solar panels and wind power, and said there should be a permit required to drill test wells.Enders said according to Pennsylvania law, water is considered as a "crop," which can be harvested."Well, I don't want to see the day that my well goes dry," Steigerwalt said. "You can't lose more than 200,000 gallons every 24 hours."Rich Richards, who lives on Fort Franklin Road, said that the volume of tankers is steady.He said that the applicant has already done destruction to the forest in the area, and that such a business will reduce property values in the area."The more water you take off that hill, the more water just stagnates below," Richard said. "There's a lot more at stake; these are quality-of-life issues."Akins said the supervisors are ready to "stand and fight" with the residents."We're trying to be as active as we can be," Akins said. "We're doing our best to address it."Resident Bill Leiby said everyone should prepare for a long process."I would like to remind everybody to visit a drugstore," Leiby said. "And get a five-year supply of headache pills."