The Pittsburgh Presbytery has ended a yearlong moratorium on shale gas leasing and development on church property, which could clear the way for construction of a gas pipeline across its Crestfield Camp & Conference Center near Slippery Rock where 3,500 children and adult visitors a year attend ministry camp.

The decision not to renew the year-old ban on shale gas development was made by approximately 230 voting members of the Presbytery at its May 9 meeting after a spirited discussion, and did not follow the recommendation of a special Presbytery shale gas task force that proposed extending the ban for another year.

Approximately one-third of the Presbytery voted in favor of renewing the moratorium.

At the same meeting, the Presbytery also approved a recommendation by its executive committee allowing negotiation of a lease with Shell Oil and Gas Co. for a 32-inch gas pipeline across an unused and undeveloped corner of the 226-acre Crestfield property. Most of the revenue from a pipeline lease would flow into the camp's coffers.

"I personally, along with other representatives from our church, support extending the moratorium to allow for consideration of a soon-to-be-released Congressional report on shale gas fracking, and to make sure that the long-term environmental interests of Camp Crestfield won't be endangered by the [pipeline] project," said the Rev. Randy Bush, pastor of East Liberty Presbyterian Church.

Reports that East Liberty Presbyterian and other churches are withholding financial support from Camp Crestfield to protest the pipeline project are untrue, Rev. Bush said. However, he said his church must fulfill a prior financial commitment to the Community House homeless shelter before giving money to support the camp.

The camp is dependent on funding support from the region's 150 Presbyterian churches because its operating budget was all but eliminated for this summer by the Presbytery due to budgetary constraints.

Sheldon Sorge, general minister to the Pittsburgh Presbytery, acknowledged the division within the Presbytery on the moratorium and the pipeline, but he said the churches maintain a strong environmental commitment.

"There is significant controversy in our communities about shale gas development, and because it is in our communities, it is in our churches where we see deeply divided concerns," Rev. Sorge said. "But we remain united in responsible stewardship of the environment, even those open to churches talking to gas companies."

The Presbytery approved task force recommendations calling for congregations to study shale gas extraction in the context of "care of God's creation," for Pennsylvania environmental agencies to strengthen regulatory oversight and for the drilling industry to use best practices.

Rev. Sorge said Shell Oil Co. approached the Presbytery about constructing a half-mile of a new natural gas pipeline through Crestfield, a property with camp buildings, woods and fields that borders Slippery Rock Creek. Several Presbytery leaders confirmed that negotiations are underway on a contract that would allow the pipeline, but emphasized it would be located on a corner of the property away from the creek, camp buildings and activity areas.

The Rev. Betty Angelini, executive director of Crestfield, said negotiations with Shell are in "a preliminary stage," that there's not yet an agreement on a price for leasing the 40- to 50-foot-wide right-of-way, and that although the pipeline route hasn't been finalized with the Presbytery, negotiators will have final say on its location.

"It's not along Slippery Rock Creek in our section," Ms. Angelini said. "Our goal is to make sure the property is utilized appropriately and our first goal is to use it as a camp for our campers."

The Rev. Daniel Merry, pastor at Southminster Presbyterian Church in Mt. Lebanon and chair of the Presbytery's executive committee that recommended not renewing the moratorium and starting the pipeline negotiations, said the two issues are unrelated.

"Money was not a consideration in ending the moratorium. After some debate the executive committee decided it wasn't in our best interest to extend the moratorium another year," Rev. Merry said. "The camp [pipeline] issue is totally different. It has nothing to do with drilling."

Although allowing drilling leases could help church budgets and the pipeline could improve the finances of Crestfield Camp, Rev. Sorge said those are secondary considerations when reviewing the pipeline project and other proposals made to lease gas rights under church property. Rev. Merry said the pipeline lease could garner "in the area of $50,000."

"The issue is not how many dollars this will bring in but that we will continue to be good stewards of the land," Rev. Sorge said, noting that several individual churches already have been approached. "I have absolutely no doubt we will monitor this project closely and err on the side of caution in protection of the environment.

"Whether that allows for some drilling or shale gas development is the question we have some disagreement on."

First Published: May 29, 2013, 4:00 a.m.