Brian Smith lives near Marcellus Shale well in Daisytown
Washington County, Pennsylvania - Brian and Amy Smith seem to be the first example in western Pennsylvania of a homeowner being denied a mortgage because of gas drilling on a next-door neighbor's property.
The drilling goes on day and night at a new Marcellus Shale well in Daisytown, Washington County, and Brian Smith told Channel 4 Action News(video link) investigator Jim Parsons that he has no complaints -- except one.
"As far as drilling and the noise and the lights in the window? No," he said. "But when it affected the value of my home? Absolutely."
The Smiths live across the street from the new gas well. They applied for a new mortgage on their $230,000 home and hobby farm, and Quicken Loans congratulated them on their conditional approval.
"They said all the paperwork will be done by the end of the week and we'll be able to close," Brian Smith said. "Somewhere in there, they called us and said, 'Your loan got denied.' "
In an email, Quicken Loans told the Smiths, "Unfortunately, we are unable to move forward with this loan. It is located across the street from a gas drilling site." Two other national lenders also turned down Brian Smith's application.
Quicken Loans emailed the following statement to Channel 4 Action News: "While Quicken Loans makes every effort to help its clients reach their homeownership goals, like every lender, we are ultimately bound by very specific underwriting guidelines. In some cases conditions exist, such as gas wells and other structures in nearby lots, that can significantly degrade a property's value. In these cases, we are unable to extend financing due to the unknown future marketability of the property."
Clean Water Action said that in other parts of the country, when shale gas drilling has arrived, mortgages at nearby properties sometimes get denied. This is the first case they've heard in Pennsylvania.
"The banks aren't stupid," said Myron Arnowitt, director of Clean Water Action in Pennsylvania. "They're going to look at that and be more cautious in terms of what they are willing to mortgage."
"If I can't refinance, could somebody get a loan to purchase my house? And that would be my concern. That's definitely a worry," Brian Smith said.
Homeowners who are denied by national lenders because of gas drilling could try local banks. First Federal in Washington, Pa., said it does not deny mortgage applications based solely on nearby drilling.
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In previous comments I have described the absolute necessity of filtering water of Fukushima fallout. This is a do it yourself project because no one will do for you. The water bottlers and municipal water companies filter water to make it look and taste better but do not go to the added expense to remove particulate down to the nano particle level. This is a must because when uranium/plutonium burns, and tons of it have, sixty percent of it becomes airborne as nano particles. Ingest just one of these particles and it can potentially kill you. I say potentially because you may become contaminated and then be hit by lightning but if you live long enough it will kill you.
No one is doing anything about this. No one is even talking about it. The drama plays out around us every day as if everything is just fine.
Well water is better than surface water as it percolates down through the earth and is filtered to one degree or another but this is still not good enough. The very best water available today is what hydrologist call fossil water. This water generally lies in deep aquifers that are not replenished from the surface and has been there for millions of years. Most of this water has been used up in the developed world and is rapidly being exhausted. Whats left is being contaminated by the frackers so that rich men can make more money.
If you live on planet earth I recommend you get a reverse osmosis water filter system and upgrade it with a zeolite pre filter, then an activated carbon block, then a one micron sediment filter followed by the r/o membrane, then nuclear grade mixed bed deionizing resin. This makes lab grade water that tests at zero parts per million. This is very clean water but not healthy to drink as its acidic, though its very good for cleaning. Next mineralization is done with two canisters of calcium and corosex two to one ratio. Corosex is a brand name for magnesium in pellet form that efficiently dissolves the calcium. I finish with more carbon for a crisp clean water taste.
You should not purchase water that has not been cleaned to this level of purity. The problem is you can't buy water like this anywhere at any price. You have to do it yourself or hire someone build a similar system. I advise you study water filtration and acquire the components to build and maintain your own and not rely on anyone for this most important of necessities.