Posted by Ed The Post below this one, contains ansewers to three questions from our group and I wish to thank the candidates for taking the time out of their busy schedule to respond to us. We must decide today who will do the same when it comes down to the best interest of our area. Here's the link and the full text enclosed: http://boston.bizjournals.com/boston/stories/1998/08/24/story2.html Blackstone Valley towns tussle over power plant plan Three power plants are proposed for the area, with a fourth already operating in Milford, and local officials said they are concerned that their part of the state could become crowded with electric power plants being developed to take advantage of the newly competitive energy market. To prevent that from happening, Franklin town officials have taken the town of Bellingham to land court to block the proposed siting of a 580-megawatt generating facility by Houston's American National Power--even though the state Energy Facility Siting Board approved the company's plans on Aug. 18. Franklin, which borders Bellingham, has asked the state land court to prevent its neighbor from issuing special zoning permits to pave the way for the plant's construction, said J. Raymond Miyares, a Boston attorney representing the town. Joseph S. Fitzpatrick, a senior vice president with ANP, said his company has tried unsuccessfully to settle out-of-court with Franklin, most recently offering $2.5 million to resolve complaints by the town and residents concerning the amount of water the plant uses, its impact on traffic and the effect of its appearance. "It's the quintessential NIMBY case," Fitzpatrick said. Fitzpatrick said that the legal action by the town of Franklin could delay construction of the Bellingham plant, which was set to start in the fall and expected to be finished in 2000. But a state lawmaker for the area contended her constituents' argument is "not only in our back yard." "We're not opposed to any one company," said Rep. Marie Parente (D-Milford), who has filed legislation on behalf of her Bellingham constituents to prevent power plants from being established within 10 miles of one another. "But you have to support the idea there is undue proliferation of power plants in this one area." Since state lawmakers began considering deregulation, proposals have been made and construction has begun on a number of new plants in other parts of the state. But opponents of the Bellingham plant claim that nowhere in the state is there such a concentration of power facilities. Bellingham, a town of more than 15,000 nestled in the Blackstone Valley along the Rhode Island border, could be the site of two new power plants, including the one proposed by ANP. Neighboring Milford already is home to a 175-megawatt ANP plant, while ANP is planning a plant identical to the one in Bellingham for the town of Blackstone. In its Aug. 18 decision, the EFSB unanimously agreed that the Bellingham site was appropriate, so long as certain conditions are met. High on the list was a deal struck between ANP and the Charles River Watershed Association that would result in the company paying $620,690 to offset water depletion expected to result from the plant's operations. ANP also consented to several other measures, some health-related, others aesthetic, to mitigate the impact of the plant being located in Bellingham. The company said it would upgrade the transmission lines to the plant to reduce the electromagnetic field given off by the wires. It also agreed to plant trees and shrubs and attach window awnings to homes of people who might have their view spoiled by the plant. An official with the watershed association and Rep. Parente were quick to note that ANP has been a good corporate citizen. But mitigating water loss and planting trees to preserve views does not address the core problem with this and other plants, Parente noted. At stake is the landscape becoming dotted with generating facilities as a result of the electric industry deregulation act, Parente asserted. The law, which Parente would like to see repealed by referendum in November, was intended to create a competitive energy market, a byproduct of which is the growth of competitive power suppliers. Parente said her region suffers because it is where a mass of transmission wires and gas lines converge, making the Blackstone Valley's towns an inexpensive and therefore understandably popular place to build electric generating facilities. "Collectively, the siting board needs to take a look and answer, `How many power plants in the Blackstone Valley is enough?' They cannot expect us to shoulder the responsibility for providing power to the entire state," Parente said. ANP also has asked the state for permission to build a duplicate plant in nearby Blackstone, which Fitzpatrick said does not have the opposition of local residents. He said he expects the EFSB to approve the project by December or January. That plant, he said is not opposed by Franklin and the approval process should progress smoothly.
on April 14, 2007, 1:06 am
24.34.144.49
Here is an article not directly related to our election but when you vote ask yourself are we the next Blackstone Valley or do we wish to remain the Merrimack Valley!
Boston Business Journal - August 21, 1998
by Edward Mason
Journal Staff
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