Power Plant In Newark Ignites Another Protest From Outraged Residents

NEWARK, NJ — “We will not stop fighting for the right to breathe clean air.” This was the rallying cry from activists as they gathered to push back against a controversial plan to build a new power plant in New Jersey’s largest city.

On Thursday, a coalition of legislators and community leaders held a press conference and rally outside the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission (PVSC) offices in Newark. Watch video footage here, or view it below.

“We do not need another fossil fuel plant polluting our air, endangering our children, and ignoring the clean energy solutions that already exist,” urged Hazel Applewhite, CEO at the Ironbound Community Corporation, an advocacy group that has been helping to spearhead opposition to the plan.

“Newark deserves better – our children deserve better,” Applewhite said. “We will not stop fighting for the right to breathe clean air and live in a healthy environment.”

The proposal is part of a resiliency blueprint that sprang up in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. During the now-infamous storm, the PVSC wastewater facility in Newark was flooded, spilling billions of gallons of raw or partially-treated sewage into the Passaic River. Read More: Superstorm Sandy Caused Flood Of Excrement In New Jersey 10 Years Ago

Since then, the agency has rolled out a sweeping series of renovations to avoid future calamities. Part of that plan includes building a plant which would provide backup power to their wastewater treatment plant if the grid goes down.

Advocates say that the location of the proposed plant – within the Ironbound section of the city – is already saturated with sources of pollution, including New Jersey’s largest garbage incinerator, diesel fumes from thousands of container trucks, contamination from the Diamond Alkali Superfund site, numerous smokestacks and other “toxic refuse.”

If it crosses the finish line, the proposed facility would be the fourth fossil fuel power plant in Newark, advocates say.

“This is not just about a power plant – it’s about a pattern of disregard for our community,” said Chloe Desir, policy analyst for the Ironbound Community Corporation’s environmental justice team.

“For decades, our community has been targeted as a dumping ground, whether it’s garbage incinerators, immigrant detention centers, or now, another fossil fuel power plant,” Desir said.

“This is environmental racism … period,” Desir added.

• See Related: The Color Purple: Newark Residents Fed Up With Incinerator Smoke
• See Related: Newark Activists Count Truck Traffic, Worry About Air Pollution
• See Related: Newark Plant Is Sickening Community With Putrid Odors, Lawsuit Says

The proposal has also seen pushback from several local lawmakers, including Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, who says that city officials are prepared to fight the plant in court if needed.

Baraka said the PVSC should find a way to use “clean, renewable energy” and “grid-hardening technologies that will not threaten our health and exacerbate the climate crisis.”

“There are viable alternatives to a gas-powered plant,” the mayor said. “There is a compassionate alternative to oppression. And there are easier and less disruptive alternatives to litigation.”

• See Related: Power Plant In Newark Neighborhood Is ‘Slap In Face,’ Mayor Says
• See Related: Put The Brakes On Power Plant In Newark, 20 NJ Lawmakers Say

The PVSC has maintained that the plant will use state-of-the-art emission controls and will have a “negligible impact to the community,” only being used as a backup when a storm cuts out power.

Spokespeople have said the agency continues to explore clean energy alternatives for the facility, and is planning to integrate solar and batteries as part of the project. The agency said it is also working with Siemens – the manufacturer of the turbines that would be used to operate the facility – to transition the fuel used in the turbines from natural gas to a mixture of natural gas and hydrogen and then to 100% hydrogen. Read More: Sewerage Commission Defends Newark Power Plant Proposal, Cites Sandy

Many community members remain skeptical it will make a difference.

“This plant will only make Newark’s air quality worse,” alleged Jonathan Smith, a senior attorney with Earthjustice.

“Startup and shutdown periods are when these plants release the most pollution, and the PVSC has made it clear they plan to start up and shut down frequently,” Smith said.

“To make matters worse, the PVSC is proposing to burn hydrogen in the gas plant turbines — which can actually lead to even higher nitrogen oxide emissions,” Smith added.

HERE’S WHERE THINGS CURRENTLY STAND

The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) recently gave the commission permission to start construction on the proposed plant, which would be built at its wastewater treatment facility at 600 Wilson Avenue.

The proposal is now pending a review from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which has until March 31 to lodge an objection. If a federal air permit is granted, the NJDEP can issue a final decision and the project can move ahead.

The PVSC will also have to vote on the proposal, although it isn’t clear when that vote would take place. No action on the proposed plant was scheduled for the commission’s March 13 meeting, and none can be taken until the EPA’s review period ends, a spokesperson told Patch on Friday.

In the meanwhile, the PVSC will be taking another look at lowering the potential impact of the plant, he added:

“The PVSC will continue its efforts to explore and employ available, viable methods and technologies to reduce air emissions from its facility, including – but not limited to – those identified in the special conditions of the proposed permit. The result of these efforts will be a reduction in the PVSC’s overall air emissions impact to the surrounding community.”

ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE LAW

A major rallying point for activists has been New Jersey’s landmark environmental justice law, which they allege that the plant would violate. Read More: NJ Activists Hope For 'Turning Point' With Environmental Justice Law

Under the law, an "overburdened community" must have at least 35 percent of households that are low-income, 40 percent of residents who are minorities or belong to a state-recognized tribal community, or 40 percent of households that have limited English proficiency.

The NJDEP designates the Ironbound section of Newark as an overburdened area because it has a high percentage of low-income and minority residents.

However, the NJDEP recently announced that the state will allow the plan to move forward, with Commissioner Shawn LaTourette saying the facility will be taking measures to reduce its environmental footprint, including better pollution controls on boilers that treat sewage sludge, replacing older equipment, and installing more solar panels and batteries. He added that there will be “no disproportionate impact” on minority communities. Read a memo about the decision here.

• See Related: Controversial Power Plant In Newark Can Move Ahead, Official Says

Several New Jersey state lawmakers who represent the area criticized the NJDEP's announcement, including Sens. Teresa Ruiz and Renee Burgess, and Assembly members Eliana Pintor Marin, Shanique Speight, Cleopatra Tucker and Garnet Hall.

“The NJDEP's approval of the PVSC power plant in the Ironbound neighborhood is an indefensible and hypocritical decision that blatantly violates New Jersey’s Environmental Justice Law,” Ruiz recently said.

“The people most affected by this act will bear the health and psychological brunt, particularly the children who reside in these neighborhoods, unlike the decision-makers who remain comfortably detached from the consequences of their shocking and reprehensible actions,” the senator added.

Pintor Marin called the decision “deplorable.”

“Newark, designated as an overburdened community by the DEP, faces numerous environmental and public health challenges,” the assemblywoman said. “The East Ward, in particular, bears the brunt of these issues, with some of the highest asthma rates in children nationwide.”

In Newark, it is estimated that one in four children has asthma, far outpacing the national average of one in 11.

The city council member who represents the area – East Ward Councilman Michael Silva – also blasted the state’s decision.

“As a lifelong resident of the Ironbound and a cancer survivor, I am appalled at the complete disdain the PVSC and the NJDEP has shown to the concerns of this community,” Silva said.

The frustration continued to boil over at this week’s rally outside the commission’s office in Newark.

Essex County Commissioner Robert Mercado – a lifelong Newark resident – urged the PVSC board to vote against opening the plant.

“The people of this city have suffered some of the worst impacts of pollution in New Jersey,” Mercado said. “We must stand up for justice and not allow their health to be sacrificed.”

U.S. Rep. Rob Menendez Jr., who represents parts of Newark in the 8th District, said that “resilient infrastructure” can’t come at the cost of public health.

“I encourage PVSC to pursue alternative, cleaner options to fulfill its infrastructure requirements,” the congressman said in the wake of Tuesday’s rally.

Five out of nine commissioners would have to vote against the plant for it to be stopped, advocates said. The next meeting of the commissioner board is scheduled for April 17.

Meanwhile, advocates say they will continue to keep up the pressure.

“This project is entirely unnecessary,” said Asada Rashidi, an organizer with South Ward Environmental Justice Alliance.

“The PVSC has already invested heavily in flood protection infrastructure after Superstorm Sandy, and PSE&G has spent over $2 billion to fortify the electrical grid,” Rashidi said. “There is no valid justification for adding another major source of pollution to our community here in Newark.”

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