On Feb. 9 Drexel University issued a report extolling the benefits of the proposed PennEast pipeline.

"We will give you the costs," said Linda Christman, who organized a program at the Lehigh Gap Nature Center to present the costs to people and the environment.Dan Kunkle, director of the center, said he has no quarrel with the benefits, but said Drexel only looked at the economic activity, not the costs.According to a 1976 federal policy, public need has to be shown before eminent domain can be used to condemn property.The organization looking for an easement must show the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission the benefit to communities and receive a certificate of public need and necessity.PennEast promises 2,500 jobs and 8,000 spin-off jobs, neither of which would be permanent, Kunkle said. Most will not go to residents of Carbon or Northampton counties, but PennEast will bring in outside employees."People will suffer the costs and not the benefits," said Kunkle.Three state parksHe said loss of forests is one impact. The corridor will be 100 feet wide which means clear cutting 13 acres per mile of pipeline. That fragments the forests and creates an impact 500 feet to either side of the pipeline.It is designed to run through three state parks: Lehigh Gorge, Beltzville and Hickory Run. The Kittatinny Ridge has a pipeline one-half mile from one already in place that could be used for co-location. It is the largest intact forest in this part of Pennsylvania and suffers from cumulative impacts. FERC is required by law to consider impacts which include erosion, ATV riders which cause further erosion, the results of which run into streams and rivers. Water crossings, there are 80 on the plan, were not considered.Invasive species quickly move into disturbed, fragmented land, Kunkle said. These plants do not support local wildlife. He said the mountain in the Lehigh Gap had 3,000 acres and the responsible party spent millions on the cleanup.Co-location will require clearing an additional 25 feet instead of the proposed 100 feet.Dr. Bill Mineo, who worked as trail manager for the Delaware and Lehigh Heritage Corridor, said he agreed with Kunkle's assessment based on experience and studies in the Northampton area where he lives.The Transcontinental Pipeline runs nearly parallel to PennEast and both the beginning and ending points are close. An east-west pipeline links everything together.Sites suitable for co-location include the Lehigh River buffer zones. There are two sites along the Delaware River and three buffers along landfills. In New Jersey, railway rights of way should be brought to FERC's attention, Mineo said.The economic cost is borne by public and private property owners. In the area where Mineo lives agricultural land is worth $5,000 an acre. He would get $10,000 for permanent disturbance of his best land. The best soil would be removed on protected farms.Lenape burial siteHe contrasted it to the Delaware and Lehigh Corridor where a trail increased the value of land by 30 percent because people want to live along the trails. It is a simple reuse of land without disturbance.The pipeline would have 1,300 pounds of pressure in a pipe buried 3 feet deep. A blast affects land a mile to either side.He said he lives near a Lenape shrine located on open space. The area was occupied for 1,000 years as a cremation and burial site and the pipeline will go through the middle of the site. Mineo said it is used for religious ceremonies and that all along the Blue Ridge there are many similar small unknown areas.The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission has refused to help.Paying for damages"Who will pay for damages? Who will manage it?" Mineo asked.Local volunteer fire companies do not have the resources. It said it would provide for 4.8 million homes in New Jersey. The trouble with that is that New Jersey has only 3.1 million homes. The majority of the gas will go for export.Christman said she expects the value of the farm she owns with her husband Ray to decrease in value by 24 percent. Their field would be crossed diagonally."It destroys my trust in government when land is taken for a for-profit enterprise," she said.Mineo said he and his wife Lorraine are only the fifth people to own the farm which was started as an ironworks in 1630, settled before William Penn receiving the land.Native Americans used the land as they traded jasper.He has been planting prairie grass and other native plants to improve the land.Steep forested areas and the Appalachian Trail will also be affected, Christman said.The karst (limestone) ground in this area is subject to sinkholes, Mineo said.He recommended that people contact their U.S. congressmen.Kunkle said it is easy to say "We can't do anything," but there are laws for establishing need and co-location.