Opponents hold Andover forum on proposed power plant

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October 2, 2008

By Bethany Bray

It would release low levels of nitrogen dioxide, particulate matter and other pollutants from 80-foot smoke stacks, and it might be built a little more than five miles from your home.

Want to know more?

Residents of Andover are invited to a forum on the Billerica Energy Center, a proposed natural gas-burning power plant to be built on the Billerica/Tewksbury town lines. The plant, currently in the planning stages, would operate only during peak times of energy use and would burn diesel fuel as a backup.

The meeting, organized by billericapowerplant.org, a citizens group in opposition to the plant, will be held next Thursday, Oct. 9, at 7 p.m. in Memorial Hall Library.

"There is a slice of West Andover included in the pollution path (of the plant) ... It's important for Andover to be informed about the project, and how it fits into the energy plan for the Commonwealth and for New England," said Senator Sue Tucker, who represents both Andover and Tewksbury.

Tucker said she has not received any letters of calls about the plant from Andover residents.

"I think that most people in Andover have no idea (about the plant). I'm glad that this forum is taking place," Tucker said. "It needs to be in the context of where it is appropriate to build power plants. The state really lacks criteria of where it's appropriate to build power plants."

The proposed plant would be constructed at 134 Billerica Ave. in North Billerica, near Interstate 495. The plant's proposal is being considered by the state energy facilities siting board, with a public hearing planned for today, Oct. 2.

A study by Environmental Health and Engineering Inc., a firm retained by Billerica and paid by the plant's developer, DG Clean Power, LLC of Thornton, N.H., to study the proposal, noted that prevailing winds blow northeast from the power plant's proposed location, bringing some emissions to Andover airspace.

The plant's emissions would include nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter, both of which are "believed to be harmful to people at certain levels of exposure," said David MacIntosh, principal scientist with EH&E. But the plant would emit low levels of the pollutants, in accordance with existing environmental laws, he said.

Thomas Carbone, Andover's director of public health, said he plans on attending the Oct. 9 meeting.

"Any opportunity for people to hear what's going on is a good thing," Carbone said. "It's a great idea, to get the word out to folks. At the moment, I'm not too worried about the plant, based on what I've seen. But we've got to keep a constant eye on it."

The Billerica Energy Center project is a regional issue, with far-reaching impacts, said Paige Impink, a founding member of billericapowerplant.org. The presentation her group has planned for Andover next week is the same model it has brought to several other towns surrounding the proposed site.

"Anyone that thinks they won't be impacted because they don't live in (Billerica), they're wrong. We know this stuff (pollution) travels, and travels far," said Impink, a Tewksbury mother who lives a mile from the plant's proposed site. You won't be able to see or hear or smell it, but you'll breathe it."

The organization does not invite the power plant's developer to forums they host, said Impink.

"The developer feels they've met their obligation in notifying the public, and we don't think so," she said. "We're just giving out public information, and people can take what they want from it."

The plant would have to pass through Billerica's conservation commission, and planning, zoning and health boards.

Tucker said she's concerned about the plant because it's slated to be built in the middle of a residential area — less than 600 feet from the next house, she said. The location is also in close proximity to the Concord River, which feeds into the Merrimack, providing drinking water for thousands, said Tucker.

Tucker is also skeptical of things changing once the plant is built, because the developer is not the plant's long-term owner.

"Because our energy future is so uncertain, promises that are made today can be changed tomorrow," Tucker said. "We need urgent focus on conservation and forms of alternative energy."

The Oct. 9 meeting will be recorded and rebroadcast on Andover public access cable television.

"What we'd like to see is people talking to their public officials (about the plant), and help raise awareness in their communities. These power plants can be built anywhere. Nobody's immune. Their impact extends far beyond the community where they're built," said Impink.

Information session

Forum on the proposed Billerica Energy Center power plant

Thursday, Oct. 9, 7 p.m.

Memorial Hall Library, Elm Square, in the top-floor meeting room

Hosted by Billericapowerplant.org, a citizen's group in opposition to the plant