After more than three hours of testimony by an overflow crowd at the Nature Center Monday night, the Ohio Township Supervisors unanimously approved a zoning amendment related to Marcellus Shale drilling sites that left many unsatisfied that all possible steps were taken to keep drills and fracking ponds out of their community.

Many of those who attended supported adoption of the zoning restrictions as a stopgap measure until more protections could be put in place with other legislation or a full zoning code overhaul the supervisors said would be done in two months.

Supervisors' chairman Tom Beatty told the crowd that the township's current zoning law allows drilling sites to be placed anywhere in the township. The amendment adopted by the supervisors Monday limits them to three zoning districts: C-2 (commercial), O.C. (office commercial), and L.I. (light industrial). The supervisors said that one of those districts -- the C-2 -- already has been eliminated in the proposed zoning code amendment.

Solicitor Mike Witherel said that, legally, a municipality cannot exclude drilling as a land use or it risks having the courts rule that the zoning code is invalid and wells can be drilled anywhere. Likewise, he said, the zoning code cannot be so restrictive as to be seen as excluding drilling.

The ordinance adopted by the supervisors would offer much more protection to the community than currently exists, he said. "As it stands now, it's open season in Ohio Township."

Witherel said that it remains an issue of legal debate if communities can regulate drilling at all, or if it falls completely within the venue of state and federal law. Zoning laws that limit areas in which drilling sites can be erected are the best shot municipalities have, he said.

The solicitor said that the ordinance adopted by Ohio Township actually is more restrictive than laws in other communities because, in addition to limiting drilling to specific commercial zones, it also further limits placement of drills within those areas by imposing a prohibition against building within 1,500 feet of any structure capable of being occupied, including parks and swimming pools. Witherel said that McCandless has adopted an ordinance that imposes a restriction of only 1,000 feet from an occupied structure.

That limitation could make several areas unuseable for Marcellus Shale drilling, which officials said requires several acres for the drill and related structures. One such area cited by concerned residents was the old Green Valley Golf Course, located along Camp Horne Road across from Mt. Nebo Pointe. Beatty said that much of the area lies within a flood plain, which should prohibit drilling, while the presence of the nearby businesses should further decrease the chance that a drill will be set up there.

Citizens who attended the meeting, however, said that the ordinance did not go far enough to protect the community against air and water pollution, excessive noise, potential damage to roads from heavy truck traffic and dropping property values.

"Unregulated fracking has already had severe consequences for Pennsylvania," said Tracy Cassidy of Deer Valley, referring to the method by which massive quantities of water are used to release natural gas from rock nearly a mile below the surface. She asked who would monitor drillers to make sure water and chemicals were not illegally dumped in the area.

Mike Hennigan of Crimson Drive said that the township should do baseline measurements of air and water quality now, and then require periodic testing should a drilling site open.

The distance between buildings and a drilling site should be longer, said Wingap Road resident Frank Grzywinski, at least a half mile for most structures, and a full mile for places such as schools, churches and parks. He also argued that drilling companies should be required to post significant bonds in case there was an accident that damaged the area.

Other speakers called for increased fines for violations of the zoning law.

Paul Rice, an engineer who said that he worked in the energy field, said that the industry itself was not sure what chemicals and practices were best.

"We can't be exclusionary, but we can make it costly," he said.

Witherel said that he did not believe that an ordinance could be made much more restrictive than the one adopted later that night by the supervisors, but many in the crowd pointed to Pittsburgh City Council's decision to ban Marcellus Shale drilling completely, and they called for a moratorium on drilling until all options for restrictions could be researched.

Attorney Paul Boas, a resident of nearby Sewickley Heights, said that officials should look at regulating how far drillers could extend horizontally below the surface of the ground, which is where the profit lies for drillers.

"These companies will only come here if they can make a ton of money," Boas said. "They're not interested in our health, our community."

Many in the crowd questioned the supervisors about whose side they were on, particularly targeting Beatty, whose engineering company recently joined with several other firms to enter the Marcellus Shale market. Beatty said, however, that his company's sole participation would be to represent landowners who leased their property to drillers, to ensure that they and their land were protected. Beatty said he would in no way profit financially from the new ordinance, and Witherel confirmed that there was no conflict of interest that would prevent Beatty from voting on the matter.

James Loutzenhiser of Sebago Lake Drive told officials, "We want to feel like the supervisors are taking them on...it shouldn't be us against you."