In a battle between two environmental conservation organizations that co-own a piece of land in Northeastern Pennsylvania, a federal judge has ruled that natural gas drilling is not permitted under the conservation easement on the property.
In a 40-page opinion and order issued today in Stockport Mountain v. Norcross Wildlife Foundation, U.S. District Judge James M. Munley of the Middle District of Pennsylvania granted defendant Norcross Wildlife Foundation’s motion for summary judgment, finding that the conservation easement on the land it co-owned with plaintiff Stockport Mountain Corp. unambiguously bans drilling.
