The Applicant is preparing the EIS which will reflect comments made during the Public Comment period on the DEIS, which closed on August 11. The EIS is expected to be produced before yearend. Draft air permits have been produced as follows:

There are 4 different air permits (3 from DEC and 1 from EPA). The DEC permits are (1) Part 201 Air Permit (which is the Air Quality permit subject to review right now), (2) a Title IV Acid Rain Permit (to be filed later this year), and (3) a Title V Operating Permit (which is filed within 12 months of going into operation). The EPA permit is a Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) permit which Fred discussed last night (also subject to review right now).

The DEC Part 201 and EPA PSD air permit application is on the website here: http://www.cricketvalley.com/Libraries/Air_Permit_Application/CVE_Air_Permit_Application_01.pdf

The draft permit (for Part 201 and PSD) is on the website here: http://www.cricketvalley.com/Libraries/Air_Permit_Application/CVE_Draft_Air_Permit.pdf

If you have any questions regarding these permits or the review process, please let us know.

For follow-up questions, please contact Matt Martin at mmartin@advancedpowerna.com or 845-877-0596. If he cannot answer your questions, he will put you in touch with the right person.

We will continue to advocate for an air quality monitor to be installed at the Dover Middle School/High School, and request that the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies collect, analyze and submit the data to NYS DEC and EPA. It would be best if this monitor be installed sooner rather than later to get a baseline of current emissions from local businesses before CVE comes on line, if approved.

DOVER – An energy company has proposed to build a 1,000-megawatt natural gas fired power plant on an old industrial site along Route 22. Some residents worry about the effect it could have on air quality and noise in town.

Cricket Valley Energy, an affiliate of Advanced Power Services, a Boston-based energy development company, has proposed building the plant on a 131-acre property that includes the Great Swamp. Cricket Valley says the swamp area itself will not be disturbed. Seventy-four acres of the site will be conserved and no significant wildlife habitat will be lost, according to information on the company’s Web site.

Matthew Martin, Cricket Valley’s associate project manager for the proposal, said Cricket Valley will host an open house at its’ local outreach office at 5 Market St. in Dover Plains on Saturday, July 23, from 9 a.m. to noon. There, residents can bring concerns and talk to company officials directly.

Cricket Valley said the plant would result in 25-30 permanent jobs and an average of 300 jobs during the proposed project’s three-year construction period.

The project is now being reviewed by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), which has issued a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS). The DEIS covers various issues relating to the plant, such as effects on traffic, air quality, noise levels, and more. The DEC hosted two public hearings June 28 at Dover Middle School as part of the review process. The DEC is also accepting written comments until Monday, Aug. 1.

Martin said the DEC might issue a final Environmental Impact Statement by the end of the year. If the review process goes well, Cricket Valley might begin demolishing existing buildings in preparation for construction on the site in a year from now.

“We still have a long way to go in the planning process,” said Martin.

Some residents, however, are concerned about the effects the project might have on the Harlem Valley’s air quality.

In written comments to the DEC, Constance DuHamel wrote, “the issue for our region is how much more polluted the air will be in eastern Dutchess, western Connecticut and the Berkshires, with the Cricket Valley Energy 1000 megawatt power plant coming on line.”

She wrote that any study should look at the cumulative impacts of air pollution in the area given the poor air quality the valley reportedly has already.

She proposed that an air-quality monitoring station be placed on the campus of the Dover Middle and High Schools, with the data collected by the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies. DuHamel later said the town should hire its own independent expert to look at air quality studies Cricket Valley has done for the proposal. She said an independent expert should look at the assumptions and models Cricket Valley has used in making its determinations.

“We need an expert to tell us if that’s okay or not okay,” said DuHamel.

Cricket Valley Energy, on its Web site, says the facility will incorporate the latest technology to ensure minimal emissions and preserve air quality. Cricket Valley will assess and model potential air quality impacts to ensure adherence to air quality standards established by federal and state agencies, said the company. This would include hourly assessments of air at monitoring locations. This monitoring will be reviewed during the DEC’s review process, said Cricket Valley.

Also providing written comments to the DEC was Robert Herzog, who lives just about one mile from the proposed site. Herzog wrote that he is former director of the New York City’s Energy Office and helped represent the city during several proposed power plant sitings.

Herzog questioned if the project is even needed, citing the New York Independent Service Operator, the organization responsible for planning and overseeing New York State’s electricity operations. An ISO 2010 study said the state’s power system can meet need through at least 2020,while other electricity generating projects in the state are coming up ahead of Cricket Valley’s and alternative energies can to be developed in coming years that could cover further future needs.

Herzog also wrote about noise. He said the construction of the plant will create noise approaching 90db, and “The plant operators can make whatever claims they want regarding noise, but the practical fact is, once the plant is open, there will be few ways to measure and no ways to mitigate should they exceed their noise standards. No one would close the plant down for a noise violation, the local inhabitants can complain repeatedly and nothing will ever be done. That’s the way the system works.”

According to the DEIS the project would include state-of-the-art design and engineering components to mitigate noise. But, “while the project is expected to comply with the most restrictive night time sound level limit (50 dB(A)) of the Town of Dover Zoning Code at the north and east property lines, the west property line abutting the Metro-North rail line and the southern proposed property line abutting other industrial zoned property are expected to be non-compliant. However, these properties are not occupied by noise sensitive uses. To the contrary, the non-compliant property lines abut a railroad track and a proposed industrial facility.”

Martin, the Cricket Valley officials, said, “We’re here to listen to these concerns and we want to make sure we respond to these concerns.”

He said that for two years the company has been listening, revising its plans in response to what comes up in the process. He said the company has three advisory groups it hosts quarterly in Dover to meet with residents. One group is for noise concerns, one for air quality, one for water concerns and one for traffic/safety. He also said the company has designed an environmentally responsible project to reuse and old industrial site.

A Dover resident raised new issues that cast doubt on several assumptions critical to the proposed Cricket Valley Energy plant last Saturday at the final public session on the DEIS.  Written comments were read into the record by Constance du Hamel of behalf of Robert M. Herzog who could not be present. Those comments went to the heart of the economics of the plant and raised a serious question about noise levels.

Herzog, who has a house around 1.5 miles from the site, was Director of the Energy Office of New York City and was involved in power plant sitings and energy distribution.  He questioned whether the 1000 megawatts of the Cricket Valley Energy plant would be needed.  He cited published reports of the New York Independent Service Operator, known as NYISO, that says energy consumption in the NY metropolitan area is not expected to exceed the modest increase in supply that is already expected.

He also challenged the assumption expressed in the DEIS that newer and less polluting plants are preferred when distribution decisions are made. He said the distribution decisions are made by NYISO on the basis of costs.  A coal fired plant using low cost fuel that is older and therefore has a depreciated basis for establishing costs will generate energy that costs less than a plant using cleaner but more expensive fuel but with a higher amortization schedule.  Cricket Valley’s DEIS assumed that its power would be preferred over power generated by old coal fired plants.

Herzog said NYISO will take power from hydro, nuclear and coal first because that energy is cheaper than gas.

Herzog also addressed the possibility of both Indian Point plants closing as is being urged by Governor Cuomo and an active citizens lobby.  Even then, there are alternatives available that might be cheaper than using a gas fired plant in Dover. He said there are two new plants that are on cue ahead of Cricket Valley, one in Queens and another in Bayonne, N.J.  Both have location advantages since the power grid from the Harlem Valley would run through Westchester where the grid “is congested” while the other two are within the area of heavy use. There is also hydro and wind power coming on line in Quebec and a proposal for bringing that power to NYC via an underwater cable to run down Lake Champlain and the Hudson.

Before Cricket Valley could be built it would need a green light from NYISO.  Investors and lenders would need that green light.

Herzog questions the DEIS statement that the new plant would improve air quality because the more polluting plants would shut down.  If the more polluting plants produced cheaper energy, they would not be shut down, so there would be no net gain.  Absent the shutdown of older plants, the CO2 in the NY power pool would increase 2 % if Cricket Valley is built.

“DEC as lead agency with the mandate to protect our environment has the legal responsibility to consider the NYISO’s findings and the likelihood of far better alternatives available during the time frame when they will actually be needed. Circumventing or ignoring such findings would be a violation of DEC’s mission,” says Herzog in his written statement.

After making a strong argument that the Cricket Valley DEIS errs in its claims as to economic need and its air pollution claims, Herzog then raised the noise issue that he says is significant.  The DEIS says the average noise level will be no louder than 50db meaning that sometimes it will be more and sometimes less.  He cites the World Health organization that says “environmental noise above 40-50db Leq is likely to lead to significant annoyance; outdoor levels of 40-60db may disturb sleep.”

The plant is within 1000 feet of the Dover Plains High School.  Herzog says the ambient noise levels will penetrate into the classroom and interfere with the learning of students.

He also says that the plant’s noise level will exceed that permitted by the town of Dover’s zoning law and that a waiver will be necessary for the plant to operate. Herzog asks that the waiver not be granted.

Herzog questioned the bias of those who conducted Cricket Valley’s DEIS studies.

“The energy cost and environmental impact studies were prepared by General Electric.  GE will also be selling to CVE major pieces of equipment for the facility, for hundreds of millions of dollars.  Their findings in support of the plant are hardly a surprise, and an alternate study performed by a truly independent and unbiased organization, selected by the community, should be conducted for this and all other major findings of the DEIS that were derived from interested parties.  As the DEC’s mission includes supporting environmental justice, it should mandate that CVE provides funds for such studies, since the community is hard pressed to do so.”

Neither the DEC nor Cricket Valley commented on Herzog’s statement at the hearing on Saturday.  Because Herzog’s comments are now part of the record, the DEC as lead agency is obligated to consider them. Herzog recognized that one approach might be to require new studies on the points he raised.  He asked that Cricket Valley pay for those studies, but the choice of who would write them should be the town’s. This comment was repeated by other speakers at the public comment session.

Herzog’s comments were “like dropping a bomb” said Stancy duHammel who has been following the process as resident of Wingdale and member of FROGs and other local groups. “These points go to the heart of the matter.  If there’s no market, this plant won’t happen. With its 282 foot stacks, this plant no longer looks so good.” DuHamel also noted that no comments were submitted on behalf of the town on the scoping session and that the town had not engaged specialists to assist them in assessing or commenting on the Cricket Valley DEIS.

The meeting was held at Dover Town Hall about concerns for the proposed power plant which is planned to be developed at an inactive industrial site off Route 22 in Dover approximately x miles north of the Pawling Town Line.

The DEIS public comment provided the public with an additional opportunity to comment on the DEIS, Cricket Valley Energy’s air and wetlands permit applications, and draft permits. The public comment session was scheduled at the request of the Dover Town Board.

The major topics brought to discussion at the meeting were about possible issues with air quality, noise pollution and water contamination as a result of the construction and operation of the power plant.

There was a huge turnout for the meeting and people from all across southeastern Dutchess County raised their concerns and praises for the proposed power plant. Everyone was given a chance to speak at the meeting and comments ranged anywhere from short general comments to longer written out and researched statements that discussed multiple topics.

All comments were presented to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC), which is the lead agency for the proposed project.

The Dover Town Board is an involved agency in the State Environmental Quality Review process. As an involved agency, the Town of Dover will make its own determination of the potential impacts related to the special permit for the proposed power plant.

Dover Town Councilman Christopher Galayda stated at the meeting that the Town of Dover desired to be the lead agency in the determination of the proposed power plant. “We wanted to be the lead agency because we feel we know best what the town wants and we can address concerns the people of our community have the very best,” Galayda said at the meeting. However, they were overruled by the DEC on appeal.

Galayda also added that there needs to be more research done on the possible effects of the power plant because all the information presented to the public is information that Cricket Valley Energy has done on their own. Many people at the meeting felt as if it would be very useful to hire an independent consultant to evaluate the possible risks for the proposed power plant in order to help make a more informed decision on it.

Noise was a big concern at the meeting and many people questioned whether Cricket Valley Energy would be able to meet the Town of Dover’s noise ordinance of 50 decibels. Cricket Valley Energy states that they will be able abide by this, but many people at the meeting questioned them and asked for some kind of proof.

Another concern brought up at the meeting was that the proposed location for the power plant is approximately one mile north from the Dover Middle and High School. Dover School District Superintendent Craig Onofry has already requested that the Dover School Board be added to the list of interested parties for the environmental review of the power plant.

Some people at the meeting felt as if Cricket Valley Energy was not doing a good enough job of informing residents about their proposed facility. A few people stated that they did not hear about the proposed power plant until two weeks ago. Others at the meeting felt as if Cricket Valley Energy has been doing a very good job of informing the public about their proposed facility. Cricket Valley has put out four newsletters and ran workshops concerning issues involving topics such as traffic, safety, air quality and others.

The power plant would add at least 750 construction jobs at the height of the 2 to 3-year construction project, with annual salaries totaling nearly $50 million, according to Cricket Valley Energy. It would also include 25 to 30 highly skilled permanent employees when the plant is operational, with salaries totaling more than $2 million annually.

The power plant is said to add significant tax revenue to the Dover school system, town and Dutchess County, according to Cricket Valley Energy. The project’s annual tax contribution could be up to $4 million.

Pawling Press
by Steven Joao

Cricket Valley Energy experts will be available to discuss the project and answer questions about the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS)

Written comments on the DEIS must be submitted before Monday, August 1 to the Department of Environmental Conservation, lead agency for the project. Send your comments to the DEC by mail, email or fax:

Stephen M. Tomasik, Project Manager
NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation
Division of Environmental Permits
625 Broadway – 4th Fl.
Albany, NY 12233-1750

Fax: 518.402.9168

Email: depprmt@gw.dec.state.ny.us

To review the DEIS online, visit the CVE Documents page on the Cricket Valley Energy website or the Town of Dover website.

To review the DEIS in-person, visit any of the following locations:

Town of Dover Town Hall, 126 East Duncan Hill Road, Dover Plains, NY
Dover Library, 1797 Route 22, Wingdale, NY
Cricket Valley Energy Community Outreach Office, 5 Market Street, Dover Plains, NY
DEC Region 3 Office, 21 South Putt Corners Road, New Paltz, NY

Their answer is… no. Based on their expert analysis, NYISO stated in its 2009 Power Trends Evaluation, “Based on current NYISO projections, the state’s wholesale electric power system will continue to meet accepted reliability standards through 2018.” The NYISO 2010 report extends the period of reliability even further, to 2020. It might be more, but that is as far as their forecast period extends. The New York Control Area baseline summer peak demand forecast developed for the 2010 report shows a baseline energy forecast growth rate of 0.41% for the years 2011 through 2021. The 2009 report forecasted growth rate for annual energy in that period was 0.78%. That represents a 47% decrease in one year! The energy growth rate in the 2011 forecast is lower than in 2010 due to a lower econometric forecast and an increase in the projected amount of energy efficiency impacts.

Supervisor Courtien, Members of the Dover Town Board, County Legislator Surman, Assemblyman Molinaro, Senator Ball and DEC Region 3 Director Janeway,

After my cursory review of the Cricket Valley Energy (CVE) DEIS, it is my opinion that the Town of Dover will need an expert on natural gas power plants, and one who can assess CVE’s data, modeling assumptions, analysis, estimates and mitigation measures of the proposed 1000 megawatt power plant. In addition, we will need to corroborate the suggestions made by Robert Herzog and Jurgen Werkele [of the Sierra Club,] at the [added] Saturday Public Comment Session, that the Plant is not needed to meet energy demand in New York State, even with Indian Point coming off-line.

How do we pay for this expert? When Chris Wood read the Oblong Land Conservancy’s Public Comments, on the CVE DEIS at the Saturday Session, and referenced Article 10, many of us found out for the first time that funds for independent experts are available to towns or groups in our position. I expect that the Town Board and County Legislator Surman have already begun to research and pursue those funds through assistance from NY Assemblyman Molinaro and NY Senator Greg Ball.

It would seem that the recent legislation (Article 10: A8510 or S5844,) regarding power plant siting and monies for intervener funding, applies to Dover.

“New York’s previous Article X law, which expired on January 1, 2003, allowed for the siting of “major” electric generating facilities, i.e., facilities sized 80 megawatts or larger, and was overseen by a multi-agency siting board that included public representatives.

The legislation passed yesterday [June 27, 2011] renews the previous Article X law and amends it to provide siting oversight for power plants in excess of 25 megawatts of energy, and includes strong protections for public participation, community impacts, and air quality effects.” www.brighterenergy.org

Please note that this “multi-agency siting board” is in place to review “major” electric generating facilities, and “major” is defined at 80MW or larger. To the Town Board, I would ask you to reach out to every member of this board and open a direct dialogue, and please make their contact info available to the public. For a very brief primer, please see this note from Whiteman Osterman & Hanna.

MannaJo Greene of Clearwater, the second speaker during the Saturday session to mention the funds, raised the concern that the deadline for funds under older legislation may have passed, and wondered if we were eligible for funds under Article X. I expect our elected officials to pursue that money anyway, and if in fact we lose to a black or white decision, to request that CVE pay for the expert, as Dover Knolls funded AKRF, our Town Planner.

Thank you in advance for requesting an extension, and researching the funds available to pay for an expert to independently evaluate the Cricket Valley Energy DEIS on behalf of the residents of Dover, NY.

Best,

Stancy DuHamel
Wingdale, NY

For questions about how ALANY “supports an aggressive advocacy program which influences government, corporate and community policies, regulations and statutes, and advances lung health across New York State,” please contact:

Michael Seilback
American Lung Association in New York
631-265-3848×16
mseilback@alany.org
www.alany.org

ALANY’s Hudson Valley Asthma Coalition (HVAC) is a program of the American Lung Association in New York is funded by the NYS Department of Health and the national American Lung Association. For information, please contact:

Jacqueline Rubino
914-347-2094, ext 20
jrubino@alany.org
www.hudsonvalleyasthma.org

237 Mamaroneck Ave, Suite 205
White Plains, NY 10605

American Lung Association in New York 2011 Public Policy Agenda