Residents can give official testimony about the proposed PennEast pipeline at 6 p.m. Feb. 11 at Penn's Peak.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will hold five public listening sessions in late January and early February to gather testimony in an effort to formulate an environmental-impact statement on the pipeline.The proposed 108-mile natural gas pipeline would cut through Towamensing, Lower Towamensing, Penn Forest and Kidder townships on its way from Wilkes-Barre to New Jersey. The 36-inch pipeline has a projected in-service date of November 2017.The testimony will be recorded and entered into record, along with other input from landowners and public agencies about the project.PennEast is currently in the pre-filing stage.Patricia Kornick, project spokeswoman for PennEast pipeline, said the scoping meetings are the next step in the process."These scoping meetings are an opportunity for individuals to voice their concerns, their questions, and their support for the pipeline project directly to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission specific to the PennEast Pipeline project," Kornick said.PennEast is refining the route, based on public input, and expects to submit its final proposal for the project in the third quarter of this year, Kornick said.Residents in all affected Carbon townships have been questioning supervisors about the pipeline.Roy Christman of Lehighton has been one of the most vocal opponents.The Christmans said they will fight any effort to take land by eminent domain since their farm was hit twice already, first by Bethlehem Water Authority and second by the Corps of Engineers for Beltzville Lake."The Beltzville project reduced what was a 460-acre farm to a 29-acre farm," Roy Christman said previously."Nonetheless, both of those eminent domain actions were for the public good, in one case for water supply; in the second case for flood control and a park," Christman told Towamensing Township supervisors.The pipeline benefits only a private company, Christman said.Last week Eldred supervisors voted to allow the PennEast Pipeline Company to survey a section of the Chestnut Ridge Railway, now owned by the township.The pipeline is expected to be positioned near the township's right-of-way on the border of the township with Lower Towamensing.In November, PennEast held an open house at the Aquashicola Fire Company in which nearly 300 people, landowners included, sought answers to support their view on the proposed pipeline.Jesse Mendez, a Lower Towamensing Township supervisor, said he went to the open house to try to get more information for his residents."It is going to impact people's lives," he said. "I certainly understand their concern. This is our first real chance to gather information. I think there are pros and cons," Mendez said at the meeting.The upcoming scoping meetings are not question-and-answer sessions, but, rather, strictly to provide testimony to the commission, Kornick said.Residents will have a specified amount of time to provide verbal testimony, and a written copy of that testimony may also be submitted at the conclusion."Input will be gathered, along with any other input we have gathered, and be submitted as part of the formal application and used to help determine the next phases for the pipeline as part of the application," she said.Once the formal application is submitted, the commission will take several months to review if before they render a decision on the pipeline, Kornick said.The first meeting on the PennEast proposal will be held at 6 p.m. Jan. 27 at the College of New Jersey in Ewing, New Jersey.Meetings will also include 6 p.m. Feb. 10, at Northampton Community College, 3835 Green Pond Road in Bethlehem Township and 6 p.m. Feb. 12 at Best Western Hotel & Conference Center, Wilkes-Barre.Anyone with questions may contact PennEast's toll-free line at 844-347-7119 or visit

www.penneastpipeline.com.