Somerset Station
A few miles north of Brayton Point Power Plant near the Taunton River in Massachusetts sat another coal-fired power plant, Somerset Station. The owner NRG Energy closed the plant down in January 2010 due to noncompliance with “Filthy Five” regulations but was planning to reopen using an experimental new technology that would have continued to use coal along with a mix of other fuels. Fortunately, these plans were shuttered and NRG asked MA DEP to withdraw the approvals for its plans, saying the company had decided not to pursue the project. In early of 2011, NRG announced that it will shut the plant down permanently thus ending its pollution legacy in Somerset.
Looking Back
According to the Clean Air Task Force, Somerset Station was responsible for 6 premature deaths, 11 heart attacks, and 97 asthma attacks per year. Since 2007, CLF, in conjunction with Toxics Action Center and Somerset residents, has led a persistent fight to stop this toxic air pollution from Somerset Station from harming an already overburdened community.
Under the “Filthy Five” regulations, NRG Energy was required to either re-power the plant with cleaner technology or shut down by January, 2010. Initially NRG sought approval from MA DEP to prolong the life of the power plant by converting it to an untried technology to produce electricity from coal known as plasma gasification. Despite the fact that the new technology would continue to spew toxic chemicals into the air and increase greenhouse gas emissions by 81,000 tons per year, MA DEP granted NRG draft approval for the project. In 2008, CLF filed an appeal in Massachusetts Superior Court to overturn the permits issued by MA DEP citing that the permits were granted without sufficient environmental review and that the untried technology posed unknown health and environmental threats to the community. Luckily, NRG abandoned these plans citing several reasons including CLF’s pending lawsuit.
Looking Ahead
The shutdown of one of the state’s oldest and dirtiest power plants was truly a historical moment in the state’s efforts to reduce our dependence on dirty fossil fuels and work towards a cleaner energy, coal-free future. More importantly, it is clear proof that retrofitting old, obsolete plants to continue to burn coal is just not viable. At the end of the day, NRG made its decision to shut down based on economics, proving that coal in the 21st no longer makes economic sense.
CLF is now working with local residents and officials to find a re-use for the 39-acre riverfront property. The town has created a re-use study committee to ensure the community is involved from full clean-up of the site to a re-use that will benefit the community.