 2008 Will be decisive year
In 2008, Dominion, the current owners of the Salem Harbor power plant, will decide their next steps. To remain in compliance with state regulations, Dominion must either invest significant capital to retrofit the plant with pollution-reducing equipment, replace the plant, shut the plant or sell it, handing off the problem to someone else. Their decisions will have profound economic, job, Salem tax revenue, environmental and quality-of-life influence on the whole North Shore.
Ten years. That is how long ago it was that a group of your neighbors asked the simple questi"n, "Why does Marblehead have elevated cancer rates?” HealthLink was born from that question. The answers—that pollution from power plants and other sources cause numerous diseases--surprised and motivated us to seek, and get solutions.
HealthLink alerted the community, joined coalitions, and galvanized the clout to require the Salem Power Plant to run cleaner, emit fewer toxic emissions and start to reduce greenhouse gases. In the last five years, HealthLink turned its attention to renewable energy. We launched a public awareness campaign on subways and billboards, facilitated idea exchanges among local Renewable Energy Committees, and furthered the installation of geothermal, solar, and wind energy in homes and public buildings. The renewable energy work was funded by the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative.
Now HealthLink has come full circle and once again, needs the help of the whole community.
HealthLink has an extraordinary track record of effectiveness at representing the public’s interest, collaborating with elected officials at every level, joining with responsible businesses for the public good and shaping public opinion through education. For the sake of all of us, HealthLink needs the resources to continue to represent us with the State and Dominion for the next chapter in the power plant saga.
2007 Update on Power Plant Cleanup
Dominion, the current owner of the Salem Harbor Generating Station, continues to provide to HealthLink quarterly progress reports on their compliance with the agreement. (See below.)
In July 2008, the plantowner will have to determine what, if any, major capital improvements to add in order to stay in compliance after 2010/2011. This is due to the fact that they received credit for making early pollution reductions. Without these early reduction credits, the plant would not be currently in compliance. However, the credits are expected to run out sometime in the 2010 or 2011. Given the amount of time it will take to retrofit the plant to meet the State regulations once the early reduction credits are exhausted, they will need to make a decision in 2008.
Pollution at power plant is criticized
By Nathan Hurst, Globe Correspondent April 1, 2007
A Boston-based environmental advocacy organization is calling for the owner of what the EPA calls the state's two highest-polluting power plants to step up emissions controls at its Salem coal-fired facility.
The push follows the release of the Environmental Protection Agency 's 2005 Toxic Release Inventory , which measures the amounts of pollutants emitted by fuel-burning plants. That report, released last week, named coal-burning Brayton Point in Somerset and Salem Harbor Station as the worst polluters in the state, emitting more toxic chemicals than the next three highest polluters combined.
The Salem plant's emissions increased 37 percent over 2004 levels, according the report. Advocates at the Conservation Law Foundation say the increase points to a need for better environmental controls at the plant.
Dominion Energy , the Virginia-based power conglomerate that bought both facilities in 2005 , defended its environmental policies, saying both plants are operating well within federal and state laws governing emissions.
"At Brayton Point, we are installing equipment to reduce certain pollutants," Jim Norville , a Dominion spokesman, said yesterday. "At Salem Harbor, we are able to meet new regulations by using low-sulfur coal."
Norville said much of the increase between 2004 and 2005 at the Salem Harbor facility was due to increased productivity used to fulfill growing energy demands.
For lawyers at the Conservation Law Foundation , however, Dominion's actions aren't enough.
Seth Kaplan , senior attorney for CLF, said he recognizes Dominion has made strides in reducing emissions at the Brayton Point facility, including the recent installation of pollutant reduction equipment on plant exhausts.
In Salem, he said, little has been done to curb the output of pollutants other than the plant's recent switch to cleaner-burning coal and participation in state and federal pollution allowance programs. And those measures are short-term solutions, he said.
"The state negotiated a plan that requires them to return to the table next year and present a long-term plan," he said. "They're going to have to come forward with a better solution.
EPA: Salem power plant is state's second-highest polluter
By John Zorabedian/salem@cnc.com
GateHouse Media
Fri Apr 13, 2007, 12:31 PM EDT
Salem -
An increased demand for electricity from the fossil-fuel burning Salem Harbor Station seems to have caused a 37 percent increase in toxic emissions from 2004 to 2005, according to a recent report from the Environmental Protection Agency.
War and hurricanes drove the cost of oil and gas sky-high in 2005, creating an increased demand for cheaper sources of energy such as the Salem Harbor Station coal-burning power plant, which increased its output to meet that higher local demand. The result was a 37 percent boost in toxic emissions from the plant over the previous year, according to the latest toxic release data from the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Salem’s power plant released more than half a million pounds of toxic chemicals in 2005, making it the second-highest polluter in the state, the EPA reported last month. In response, local environmentalists are calling on the plant’s operator, Virginia-based energy giant Dominion Resources, Inc., to speed up its plans to curb emissions at the facility.
The highest polluter was Brayton Point, a larger plant that is also operated by Dominion, in New Bedford.
Dominion must cut the rate of emissions of four major pollutants, including mercury and the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide, under an agreement with environmental groups and state regulators reached in 2005, when it purchased the plant from its bankrupt former operator, PG&E.
But the company has been permitted to use emission reduction credits to come into compliance with the agreement, and has until July 2008 to come up with a long-term plan to reduce emissions. The company must also announce next year whether it intends to continue operating the plant beyond 2011.
“We are all supposed to come back to the table in 2008,” says attorney Seth Kaplan of the Conservation Law Foundation, which was a party to the 2005 agreement. Until that time, he says, “the current regime continues.”
After the EPA report last month, advocates from the Swampscott-based environmental group HealthLink and the CLF now say that the agreement, known as an administrative consent order or ACO, doesn’t go far enough.
“They’ve been buying time since the ACO with little fixes,” says HealthLink’s Lori Ehrlich. “But it’s not a long-term solution.”
HealthLink and the Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) point to the upgrades Dominion made to the larger Brayton Point power plant in New Bedford, and have called upon the company to make a similar commitment at the Salem plant.
But adding pollution-control equipment to the Salem Harbor Station just doesn’t make financial sense, the company says, especially considering it may not choose to operate the plant beyond 2011.
“It’s more cost effective for us to put [pollution controls] in a larger power station than a smaller one,” says Dan Genest, a Dominion spokesperson.
As for the plant’s higher output of toxic chemicals in 2005, Genest says those chemicals “do not pose a health risk,” because the plant’s emissions are dispersed over a wide area.
“The fact that we report on these [chemicals] does not mean that there are any infractions,” Genest says. “Salem Harbor is in compliance with all regulations.”
Genest says the company is studying its options for the future, but won’t be making any announcements about its plans until next year.
Both the Salem and the Brayton Point plants have complied with regulations. However, not everyone agrees that there is no health risk.
“The health risks are greatest for people living closer to the plants,” according to the Harvard School of Public Health, which released a report in 2000 detailing the impact on New England by the two power plants. “Twenty percent of the total health impact occurs on 8 percent of the population that lives within 30 miles of the facilities.”
The 2000 study calculated the connection between the plants’ emissions and some 32 million people living in New England, eastern New York and New Jersey, and linked the emissions from the two plants to more than 43,000 asthma attacks and nearly 300,000 incidents of upper respiratory symptoms each year. The study also estimated that 159 premature deaths per year could be attributed to the pollution.
Meanwhile, the company is preparing to renegotiate its tax bill with the city. Currently, the plant accounts for about 4 percent of tax revenues collected by the city.
City officials publicly worry that tighter regulations on greenhouse gases could make the plant less valuable as a taxpayer, and if Dominion opts to shut down the plant it would deprive the city of its biggest single source of tax revenue.
Environmental groups like HealthLink and CLF don’t want to shut the plant down, Ehrlich says, they just want Dominion to clean up their act.
“This newest round of pollutant data shows fossil fuel-fired power plants like Dominion’s Salem Plant come at a very high price to the health of humans and the environment,” says Cynthia Liebman, a CLF staff attorney.
In the final cost-benefit analysis, however, there are a lot of stakes in the equation: Consumers want clean but cheap energy, the power plant operator wants profits and the city wants revenue. And no one seems to know how to create a winning scenario for everyone.
ISO-NE approves deactivation of New Boston Unit 1
11 July 2007 -- The Independent System Operator New England (ISO-NE) has approved the deactivation of New Boston Generating Station's Unit 1, effective August 1, 2007. Activities relating to the deactivation of Unit 1 are expected to take at least four months.
"Our decision to deactivate Unit 1 is based purely on economics," said Mark Schiavoni, Exelon Power President. "Without the Reliability Must Run (RMR), Unit 1 at New Boston is not profitable."
New Boston was party to an RMR with ISO-NE from Jan. 1, 2002 until Nov. 15, 2006, under which the station was used to ensure reliability within the regional power grid during periods of high-energy demand. Various upgrades to the power grid have resulted in a decreased need for Unit 1 at New Boston. Since Nov. 15, 2006, the New Boston station has been operating as a merchant plant.
Initially built in 1965, New Boston Unit 1 is a 350-MW natural gas intermediate unit. Unit 2, which was capable of producing 350 MW, was damaged in a fire in 2002 and is no longer in operation.
Exelon Generation is assessing future potential use of the property and facility and has not made a decision about the future of the New Boston site. Until a decision is made, Exelon will maintain the site as it has done for other deactivated/decommissioned sites.
AGREEMENT REACHED ON SALEM POWER PLANT CLEANUP
HealthLink and its environmental colleagues, the State of Massachusetts, the City of Salem, IBEW Local 326, and new Salem Harbor Power Station owners Dominion Energy today announced an agreement to bring the Salem power plant into compliance with tough air pollution regulations which HealthLink advocated for and helped to pass in 2001.
Under the new plan, the plant will be required to comply with Massachusetts plant limits for sulfur dioxide (SO2), mercury and carbon dioxide (CO2).
The plant will immediately begin burning cleaner coal that emits less nitrous oxide (NOx) and toxic SO2 into the air than the current coal. The new coal will be phased in over the next 22 months, and the steady progress to reduce pollution will continue.
SALEM, MA, May 26, 2005
Pictured left: Jane Bright of HealthLink at podium addrerssing press conference. Left to right: Lt Gov Kerry Healey, David Heacock of Dominion, Mass Secretary of Commonwealth Devlopment Doug Foy and Salem Mayor Stan Usovicz.
"After agreeing with PG&E in 2003 on a plan to clean up the Salem Power Station, we never expected to be back at the negotiating table so soon," said Jane Bright, lead negotiator for HealthLink. "But back we went to hammer out a new agreement with the new owners. This agreement also includes milestones in 2008 and 2011 to insure the cleanup is implemented and future plans for the plant are shared publicly well in advance of any changes."
HealthLink and its colleagues at Clean Water Action, MassPIRG, the Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) and the Wenham Lake Watershed Association were key players in the settlement negotiations before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission that resulted in a revised plan to clean up the plant.
"CLF is proud to have represented and worked with a broad coalition of environmental, health and community groups in bringing the Salem Harbor Power Plant into compliance with critical environmental regulations," CLF Senior Attorney Seth Kaplan said. "This settlement will bring immediate reductions in air pollution, even greater long-term reductions and a pathway for open decision making about the future of the plant. It also puts the responsibility of paying for environmental compliance in the place it belongs – on the shoulders of the owner of the plant."
"The North Shore has paid a tremendous environmental price for hosting this plant over the past half-century with our health, drinking water and air," said Lori Ehrlich, who represented the Wenham Lake Watershed Association during the negotiations. "The local volunteers of HealthLink and Wenham Lake Watershed Association have demonstrated remarkable endurance in their efforts to achieve a clean-up that all parties can accept so far and we remain united and ever-vigilant while the new owners hash out their board room details as to how they will meet the full force of the Massachusetts regulations after 2011."
"This is another step toward a cleaner energy grid in Massachusetts, and that’s a very good thing for several reasons. Local residents will breathe cleaner air, and Massachusetts will serve as a model for the rest of the nation for how to clean up old, dirty power plants,"said MassPIRG Energy Advocate Frank Gorke.
"When all is said and done, this is still about public health," said Jed Thorp, Energy Campaign Organizer with Clean Water Action. "We are pleased that the questions raised by the sale of the plant and its unique circumstances have been answered and that the new owners have a clear roadmap to make significant pollution reductions that will protect the public from these harmful pollutants."
The agreement, like the State regulations, gives credit for reductions the plant has already made while also satisfying concerns that sufficient electricity is produced in the region to meet demand. The credits, however, will run out in 2011, requiring the plant owner to start adding more pollution controls as early as 2008.
"The plant has cut its emissions by more than 50% since HealthLink was formed in 1998. Some of that reduction is from the plant running less, while much of the progress is due to positive initiatives at the plant plus incentives in the regulations and the 2003 agreement for immediate emission cuts," said Bright.
HealthLink co-founder Lynn Nadeau added that after many years of work on a cleanup plan, the environmental group is pleased with today’s announcement. "Had you told me in 1998 when we started that we would still be working on this, I would not have believed it. At least we have anticipated future needs and built in checkpoints to this agreement. It has been a long, difficult campaign and it isn’t over yet," said Nadeau.
"Foremost in the minds of local citizens is the health gained by this cleanup," said HealthLink member and retired Salem State College Professor Pat Gozemba of Salem. "But Salem – the most vital city in Essex County – remains in an insecure financial position in the long term. Still unresolved is what will happen in July, 2008 when the plant owners will have to make a decision on whether to make a huge capital investment to be in compliance in 2011."
June, 2004 Salem Harbor Generating Station Summary agreement with PG&E: Conditions carry over to Dominion
- Federal authorities are still determining the long term need for the plant
- Transmission line upgrades are on schedule, increasing the likelihood that Salem Harbor Station will not be needed for electricity reliability after 2007
- PG&E is trying to divest itself of the bankrupt division that owns Salem Harbor Gnenerating Station
- PG&E has applied for Federal funding for a cleanup plan which delays installation of some emission control equipment until 2017.
- The cleanup plan submitted for financing is not the plan HealthLink and PG&E negotiated in 2003.
- The plant is for sale and working with new owners will make many of these issues even more challenging
For more information, see What's New
Background:
Regulations requiring old Massachusetts power plants to clean up were signed by Governor Jane Swift in May 2001. The state Department of Environmental Protection ruled that the Salem Harbor Generating Station must clean up by October 2004. PG&E, the owners of the plant, appealed this decision, demanding to have until October 2006 to install equipment to reduce their pollution. HealthLink, along with several other citizen groups filed as interveners. In the spring of 2003, the state convinced PG&E to enter into negotations. HealthLink worked hard to insure the community was well served in this process. Negotiations were completed in June, 2003 with the following results.
Negotiation results:
After a month and a half of going toe to toe with PG&E, HealthLink is please with the agreement signed May 12, 2003.
Briefly, reductions in SO2 and NOx will start immediately, and deeper reductions after the control equipment is installed will help offset the longer wait for full reductions to be implemented. It became clear very early that construction was going to stretch beyond October 2004, so negotiating early reductions became a priority.
This agreement avoids a protracted legal battle and provides the community immediate relief from SO2 and NOx emissions, finalizes a timeline to reduce Mercury and manage CO2, and deals with the coal dust problem. PG&E gets certainty that they can comply with the DEP regulations.
Summary:
SO2 and NOx are reduced in 2003:
Sulfur dioxide reductions start in 2003, and the oil unit achieves SO2 compliance with the State regulations on January 1, 2004. (SO2 is the primary component of fine particulate matter and a major concern for respiratory disease.)
Nitrogen oxide emissions will be cut immediately. Salem Harbor Station is working on the oil unit burners now, and starting in October 2003, controls on the coal units will be run at more stringent levels year round. New NOx control equipment on the oil unit should be installed by fall, 2004. (NOx is a component of ground level ozone and smog, another health threat.)
Compliance Date is October, 2005:
The technical compliance date for meeting the full Massachusetts regulations is October 2005. While the new control equipment on the coal units is estimated to be is installed in April 2006, pollution emitted in excess of the State's tough clean air regulations after October 2005 must be offset on site with deeper reductions. The reductions made before October 2005 will count toward offsetting the excesses until the control equipment is running, and deeper reductions after the control equipment is installed will be required until the plant makes up the difference. In this decidedly creative approach, the community retains reductions locally while PG&E gets more flexibility in their construction schedule.
Coal Pile Nuisance Addressed:
In addition to onsite pollution reductions starting this year, HealthLink helped to negotiate remediation of the coal pile to cut the grimy debris that blows into the neighborhoods. The work done by the local Dust Committee to reduce this nuisance will now be codified and enforceable by the DEP. The State air regulations do not include coal pile issues and would not have been required without this settlement.
There is more to do. Much could happen between now and implementation, such as a new owner taking over, and the ISO determining the fate of Salem Harbor Station and whether any or all of it will be closed in the future. HealthLink will monitor progress and work until pollution in our community is cut significantly. This agreement is a major milestone, but until the pollution control equipment is installed and running, HealthLink's power plant work continues.
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