BEAT Queries Residents on Future of Pittsfield Peaker Plant
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Environmentalists continue to push for the decarbonization of the last peaker plant in Berkshire County.
On Tuesday, the Berkshire Environmental Action Team solicited feedback about the future of Pittsfield Generating Co. at Allendale Elementary School, which neighbors the power plant.
Talks about transitioning from fossil fuels to renewable energy with battery storage are underway between the owners, state agencies, and other stakeholders. BEAT will present data from this meeting to inform the conversation.
"The reason we're holding meetings like this is to let the community pipe in while they're making those decisions," said Rosemary Wessel, No Fracked Gas in Mass program director.
"It's still early in the process."
When queried, a small group of community members voiced that they would like to see the plant decommissioned or removed. Some are also open to battery storage.
"We've already got the space. We've already got the structure in there, just to throw out the generators and throw in some batteries, you’re good to go," a California Avenue resident said.
Concerns were raised about noise pollution and the aesthetic of the facility, and a majority of attendees said they are concerned about health effects, the plant’s environmental impact, and their utility bills.
"We definitely don't want the plant to operate and we definitely, a lot of us, are on board for decommissioning and removing it and to this possibility of something else," Drake Reed, Breathe Easy Berkshires Project co-manager, oberserved while looking at the chart BEAT made to organize residents feedback with Post It notes.
Peaking power plants — also known as peaker plants — run when there is a high electricity demand. Facilities on Woodland Road in Lee and Doreen Street in Pittsfield were shut down in 2022 and have been removed entirely, with usable parts auctioned off.
The remaining is Pittsfield Generating Co., owned by Hull Street Energy. The gas-powered plant is over 30 years old and runs less than 5 percent of the time, during "peak" hours.
Wessel said the plant has recently appealed to the state tax board to have its taxes halved for depreciation, and is looking to do it again. After a tour with the Massachusetts Office of Energy Transformation, she observed that the facility is up to regulations but "only just."
"We started talks about four years ago with the owners now, and at that time, they were paying about $675,000 (in taxes)," Wessel reported.
She said fuel emissions can cause lung and cardiovascular disease, preterm birth, and raise the incidence of cancer. A recent study done by the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission found that those living in the Morningside and Westside of Pittsfield have an average life span that is 10-12 years shorter than southeast Pittsfield residents.
The benefits of converting fossil fuel peaker plants to battery energy storage systems (BESS) and renewables include reduced emissions and economic longevity. Pittsfield Generating is already in an industrial zone and connected to the existing grid.
"The great thing about this being open too, is there's room for solar," Wessel said, pointing to the land around the plant on a map.
Gov. Maura Healey created an Energy Transformation Advisory Board that informs the newly established Office of Energy Transformation focused on affordably, equitably, and responsibly accelerating the gas-to-electric transition and readying the electric grid to meet the state's climate and clean energy mandates. A working group has been established to address peaking power plants.
In 2021, the Pittsfield Board of Health signed a letter in support of the transition away from fossil fuels and to promote engagement with plant owners.
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