Power plant
closed down

New Yorkers are one step closer to living in a greener and cleaner environment with the closing of an 885-Megawatt (MW) generating unit at the Charles Poletti Power Project in Astoria.
The decision to close the natural gas and oil fueled generating unit at 11:59 p.m. on January 31 was in accordance to an agreement between the State Department of Environmental Conservation, the City of New York, the borough of Queens and other interested parties looking to limit emissions. The original agreement was reached in 2002.
In return for closing the plant, the city licensed the New York Power Authority (NYPA) to build and operate a new 500-MW facility at the Poletti plant, which began commercial operation in 2005 and continues to help schools, hospitals, municipal buildings, subways and commuter trains.
“The closing of the power plant paved the way for construction of a new, much more efficient plant that came into service in late 2005, which brings Astoria and the rest of the city one step closer to achieving a greener, greater New York,” said Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
The agreement reached in 2002 also required NYPA to invest an additional $50 million over a five-year period in energy efficiency and clean energy projects in the city. It has already spent $2 million on local clean air projects in Queens, including investments in solar power technology, zero-emission electric vehicles, advanced emission-control technologies and green-roof systems. With the closing of the 885-MW facility, NYPA has met all of its obligations under the terms of agreement.
NYPA President and CEO Richard Kessel has been working closely with Governor David A. Paterson and Bloomberg, along with other officials, to ensure an adequate supply of electricity in the future. The Authority plans to acquire additional sources of electricity from the open market while the privately owned Astoria Energy project, a new clean combined-cycle facility is being built, not far from the Poletti plant.
“This news comes as a breath of fresh air for the community, which has been oversaturated with power plants for many years. I commend Richard Kessel and NYPA for honoring a promise that was made eight years ago,” said City Councilmember Peter F. Vallone Jr., who helped bring about the lawsuit that led to the closing of the plant. “This is a major victory, not only for western Queens but for the entire city.”