Biomass plant Archives

Nov 30, 2022

Appeals Officials Uphold Decision Blocking Springfield Biomass Plant

“Burning wood for electricity is a bad idea to begin with and building a biomass plant in a residential neighborhood is just evil,” said Johannes Epke, Staff Attorney at CLF. “The Department of Environmental Protection was right to revoke this permit the first time around, and the appeals office has made the right call today. We will continue our piece of this fight to protect air quality in Springfield by representing the City Council in Land Court in opposition to this facility.”

Protesting the biomass plant in Springfield

Oct 11, 2019

Is Massachusetts Opening the Door to Dirty Energy?

Biomass developers are pushing for state policy changes that would allow their plants to emit more air pollution, underreport their climate impacts, and take families’ and businesses’ money while harming the health of our communities. CLF is joining Springfield residents and other local groups in fighting back.

Dirty energy sources contribute to dangerous air pollution

Aug 21, 2019

Protecting New England Together

On August 15, Massachusetts lost a powerful voice for justice. Michaelann Bewsee was a fearless ally and treasured friend whose passion and selflessness profoundly impacted the lives of her neighbors in Springfield and beyond for generations. In her honor, we want to share this piece, originally published in March of 2015, about her work to… Continue reading Protecting New England Together

Michaelann Bewsee, Arise for Social Justice

Jul 10, 2019

Why Are We Here Again? Standing with Springfield Against Biomass

Springfield, alongside community and environmental organizations like CLF, has been fighting this proposed biomass plant for years. We set the fight aside in 2017 when Palmer Renewable Energy, the company behind the proposal, paused its plans for construction. But now the company is back, hoping that its efforts to weaken state policy will bring its proposal back to life.