Invenergy’s proposed $700 million fracked gas and diesel oil burning power plant in Burrillville is running into some water problems. The Pascoag Utility District, at a special meeting called by board chair Al Palmisciano for August 19, will decide for or against allowing Invenergy to access well 3A, which is closed by court order due to MTBE contamination.
A decision in Invenergy’s favor is by no means certain. In fact, Invenergy already seems to be searching for other options. On August 9 the Harrisville Fire District is taking up Invenergy’s, “inquiry as to whether and under what conditions Harrisville would be willing to consider developing and constructing a well and distribution means to supply water to the power plant at Invenergy’s expense.” Invenergy is also asking Harrisville to “authorize such additional pump and water testing and legal research as is necessary to determine the yield, viability and estimated cost of developing a well on the Victory Highway site and constructing an appropriate means of distribution at Invenergy’s expense.”
The Harrisville meeting is taking place at a time that overlaps with the RI Department of Health (RIDOH)’s public commentary hearing at the Burrillville High School, part of the Energy Facilities Siting Board (EFSB)’s process of determining the fate of the power plant. This will have the effect of dividing the potential audience, but over the last few weeks water has become a very big issue in northern Rhode Island because the area is experiencing a severe drought, with rainfall five inches below average.
Aquifers and wells are feeling the effect of the lack of rainfall. Invenergy plans to use an average of 100,000 gallons of water a day to cool their plant, and almost a million gallons a day when burning oil. This is in addition to the 4 million gallons of water used to cool Burillville’s existing power plant, Ocean State Power. This strain on the area’s water supply may be lead to even more severe water shortages in the area. At the very least, it will forestall the possibility of future growth in the area.
Even if both Harrisville and Pascoag deny Invenergy their water, it doesn’t necessarily put an end to the company’s plans. Water could be imported from over state lines, and of course there is always the option used by Ocean State Power. According to a video by Paul Roselli of the Burrillville Land Trust and Burrillville resident Norman Derjarlais, the company seems to be trucking in the water from Western Sand & Gravel, a nearby superfund site, in leaking trucks. From 1975-1979 about 12 acres of this area was used for the disposal of liquid waste, including chemicals and septic waste.
You can watch the video below.
RIDEM’s third data request to Invenergy, released yesterday, reads as a devastating critique of the proposed $700 million fracked gas and diesel oil burning power plant. If Governor Gina Raimondo was serious when she recently told ecoRI News that, “…if there are issues then the plant won’t go forward,” then the project is dead on arrival.
In addition to “missing info” that renders the application incomplete, on page 3 the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management notes that impact of the the various projects in Burrillville has been fragmented, making the cumulative impact of Invenergy’s proposed power plant; Spectra Energy’s Aim Project; Eversource Energy, National Grid and Spectra Energy’s Access Northeast project and TransCanada’s Ocean State Power difficult to determine.
“For the purposes of comparing costs and benefits to wildlife, all of the existing and proposed work related to increased natural gas operations (processing and transport) in Burrillville should be reviewed as a single and complete project,” says RIDEM, “Piecemeal review of related projects in different stages by different applicants undercounts their cumulative impacts from loss of forests and fragmentation, air, noise and light pollution etc. in an area of the state that has been a longstanding conservation priority.”
On page 7, RIDEM alleges that the “applicant makes several confusing and conflicting assertions about the purpose and need for the project…
“The emissions and cost-benefit analyses both primarily only list benefits. A proper analysis should include costs, yet there is no mention of loss of forests, biodiversity, ecosystem services etc… This seems particularly important since the application notes that the majority of the benefits outlined (e.g. construction jobs and energy costs savings) would be rather short-lived and the majority of the foreseeable costs would be long term or permanent.”
When it comes to selling the idea of a fracked gas power plant, the RIDEM data request accuses Invenergy of circular logic. “A pointed example includes dismissing hydropower in the Power Generation Alternatives section (and omitting it from all other sections) solely because it would not be appropriate on the proposed [power plant] site, which was selected for proximity to the gas line, and then dismissing alternative project locations because they do not have the desired natural gas infrastructure.”
Further, the “premise that natural gas is the only way to meet [New England’s energy] demand is not borne out by the information provided,” says RIDEM.
RIDEM’s report to the Energy Facility Siting Board (EFSB) will be shaped by Invenergy’s answers to these and other questions. Though these questions raise serious doubts about the need for the new plant and Invenergy’s integrity in preparing its application, ultimately the EFSB takes RIDEM’s report as advisory only, meaning the board could choose to approve the project despite these issues.
Yet Governor Gina Raimondo’s words, that “if there are issues then the plant won’t go forward,” ring loudly here. The issues raised in this set of data requests are serious, and the questions raised must be addressed honestly.
After a meeting with Governor Gina Raimondo, Rep. Cale Keable and Sen. Paul Fogarty introduced legislation that would give residents in Burrillville the ability to vote on “any tax agreement negotiated between the Burrillville Town Council and the developers of a proposed power plant in town be subject to voter approval.” Keable and Fogarty represent voters in Burrillville.
On Facebook, Keable described Raimondo as “gracious.” According to Keable, “We re-iterated the points in our letter to the [Energy Facilities] Siting Board (EFSB) and asked her to use the power of her office to stop the power plant. She listened to each of our concerns and stated that she is currently planning a meeting in Burrillville to hear directly from the people. She asked good questions about our concerns and showed an understanding of the issues. I came away from the meeting believing that she has real concerns about this project’s impact on water, children and the environment.”
Keable and Fogarty also gave the Governor a pile of emails, petitions and correspondence from Burrillville residents opposed to the power plant, as well as a bumper sticker, tee shirt and a lawn sign. (see picture)
In addition to allowing Burrillville residents the ability to vote on tax treaties negotiated by the Town Council, the legislation also makes changes to the EFSB. The number of seats on the board would be increased from three to nine members, including the chairperson of the Commerce Corporation (the state’s economic development agency), the general manager of the state Water Resources Board, the director of the Rhode Island League of Cities and Towns, and three members of the public.
In addition, of the three members of the public, “one must be experienced in environmental issues, one in energy issues and one in labor issues,” and “None must have received a significant portion of their income in the previous two years from the developer of an energy facility or an electric, gas or oil company.”
A final feature of the bill mandates that the EFSB must take into consideration “any resolution regarding” applications for new power plants.
You can read the full press release here:
Rep. Cale P. Keable and Sen. Paul W. Fogarty are introducing legislation to require that any tax agreement negotiated between the Burrillville Town Council and the developers of a proposed power plant in town be subject to voter approval.
The legislation, which emanates from Invenergy’s pending proposal to build a 1000-megawatt, fracked gas power plant in Pascoag, was introduced in response to the frustration expressed by residents and elected officials of Burrillville and across the state regarding their lack of input into the approval process.
“The people of Burrillville are the ones who will lose our unspoiled woods and instead get pollution, risk to our water supply, traffic and noise. We deserve a say in the matter, and this is one way to provide it,” said Representative Keable (D-Dist. 47, Burrillville, Glocester).
The legislation, which was introduced in the House today and is expected to be introduced in the Senate next week, would alter an existing state law that applies only to Burrillville and was enacted in 1987 to allow the town to negotiate a tax treaty with Ocean State Power, the 560-MW power plant in Burrillville that began operating in 1990.
Representative Keable’s and Senator Fogarty’s legislation adds a clause to the law that would subject any such tax agreement to a binding referendum of town voters. If that referendum can’t be held at the same time as a regular election, the entity proposing the plant would be required to pay the town’s costs of holding it.
“The people of our districts have spoken loud and clear. However, under current law, all they can do is ask for consideration from those who get to make the decision. That’s not right, and we intend to do something about it,” said Senator Fogarty (D-Dist. 23, Glocester, Burrillville, North Smithfield). “Every single voter in Burrillville deserves the opportunity to have a real say in whether they are going to host another power plant.”
The legislation also adds to the membership of the Energy Facilities Siting Board, currently a three-member panel that includes the chairperson of the Public Utilities Commission, the director of the Department of Environmental Management and the state associate director of administration for planning. The bill adds six new members: the chairperson of the Commerce Corporation (the state’s economic development agency), the general manager of the state Water Resources Board, the director of the Rhode Island League of Cities and Towns, and three members of the public. Of the members of the public, one must be experienced in environmental issues, one in energy issues and one in labor issues. None must have received a significant portion of their income in the previous two years from the developer of an energy facility or an electric, gas or oil company. The sponsors say the change would add diverse viewpoints to the board so decisions about power plant locations are made with careful consideration toward the environment and natural resources, the state’s business development strategies, the needs of cities and towns and the opinions of residents.
The bill also adds a requirement that prior to issuing any decision on an application for a power plant, the EFSB must take into consideration any resolution regarding it.