South Brunswick Passes Resolution Opposing Power Plant In Woodbridge

SOUTH BRUNSWICK, NJ — Council on Tuesday passed a resolution opposing the proposed power plant in Woodbridge. The resolution passed 3-0. Mayor Charlie Carley and Councilwoman Archana "Ann" Grover were not present during the meeting.

Competitive Power Ventures (CPV) has proposed to build a new 630-megawatt gas-fired power plant in Woodbridge.

CPV has proposed to build the power plant in the Keasbey section of Woodbridge, which is already overburdened with pollution.

If approved, this new facility would be adjacent to an existing CPV plant, Woodbridge Energy Center. It could emit nearly 2.3 million tons of greenhouse gasses each year, along with hundreds of tons of toxic air pollutants – including carbon monoxide, ammonia, sulfur dioxide, volatile organic compounds, sulfuric acid, and lead, activists said.

Ahead of Tuesday’s council meeting, activists spoke to the Council, urging them to oppose the power plant.

“Polluted air which is exacerbated by the climate crisis affects us all,” Holly Cox, a Food & Water Watch volunteer from Montville, said. “The Woodbridge plant will be the seventh in Middlesex County. These plants are the largest climate polluters in New Jersey.”

Cox brought the resolution to the Council for their consideration. “With the Woodbridge power plant less than 20 miles from South Brunswick, your residents will be on the forefront of health effects. The entire South Brunswick school system will be affected by the proposed plant,” Cox told Council members.

Resolutions opposing the power plant have also been passed in Edison, Highland Park, Hoboken, Perth Amboy, Franklin, Sayreville and Rahway.

The Somerset County Commissioners and the Highland Park Board of Education also adopted resolutions opposing the project.

Community organizer Charlie Kratovil encouraged the council to vote yes on the resolution. “Air quality is one thing we can do better. Despite the efforts of good folks in South Brunswick, we get an F rating on air quality from the American Lung Association. Building a power plant will only make that worse,” Kratovil said. “When you’re taking the vote today, think of the children of South Brunswick.”

CPV is currently waiting on several key approvals from the state, including an air pollution permit from the state Department of Environmental Protection.

Rachel Dawn Davis, a public policy and justice organizer with Waterspirit, told the Council prior to their vote, “I hope that we can all be part of solutions which is what current and future generations need.”

South Brunswick is the 10th elected government body to oppose the proposal. More: 3 New NJ Power Plants Coming, 2 Will Definitely Use Natural Gas

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