WASHINGTON - October 29 - Dozens of groups throughout Pennsylvania and New York are calling on federal regulators to thoroughly review a proposed pipeline that would cut through portions of northeastern Pennsylvania.

The 39-mile pipeline, known as the MARC I Hub Line Project, is proposed by the Central New York Oil and Gas Company. It would run through Bradford, Sullivan, and Lycoming Counties in Pennsylvania, cutting through mountains and watersheds, disturbing some 591 acres and leaving 236 acres permanently altered.

The company’s request comes as the region grapples with an explosive rate of gas drilling and an outbreak of industrial accidents and pollution related to rushed and irresponsible development.

The non-profit environmental law firm Earthjustice filed comments on behalf of the groups with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission late yesterday.

The following is a statement from Earthjustice attorney Deborah Goldberg:

“Pennsylvania rushed into developing the Marcellus Shale with no comprehensive review of the potential effects on public health or the environment. The State was unprepared for the drinking water contamination, air pollution, and dangerous accidents that came with the frantic pace of drilling. It’s time to stop scrambling to respond to crises and instead to prevent them in the first place. This proposed pipeline is just one of many inter-related gas development and infrastructure projects that will be built in sensitive watersheds and forest ecosystems throughout the Marcellus region.  Before federal regulators jump to approve this project, the law requires that they examine it in its larger context.”