McMahon to Christie: Honor Your Campaign Pledge
McMahon to Christie: Honor Your Campaign Pledge
Congressman urges Governor to prevent construction of proposed Linden, NJ coal plant
Island’s delegation joins in opposition
May 25, 2010 4:08PM
Staten Island, NY - While campaigning for Governor of New Jersey, Chris Christie vowed to oppose the proposal for a coal plant to be built in Linden, NJ. In an October 6, 2009, press release touting his endorsement from the New Jersey Environmental Federation, Christie cited the proposed coal plant as not being in line with his environmental plan for New Jersey because he “recognize[ed] the environmental injustice it places on a community already overburdened by pollution.”
Seven months later, Rep. Michael E. McMahon is fighting to ensure Governor Christie keeps his word.
“Residents from both Staten Island and New Jersey should not be subjected to a potentially toxic experiment – and that is exactly what the proposed Linden power plant is,” said Rep. McMahon. “No plant like this currently exists in the United States and the technology its proponents are touting is too new to be reliable. Further, the claim that we can pump our carbon emissions 70 miles offshore and have them remain their indefinitely without disturbing our ecosystem or affecting our health is just false.”
On Thursday, May 20, 2010, Rep. McMahon sent a letter to Governor Christie expressing his strong opposition to the proposed PurGen Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) power plant, which is slated to be built in Linden, NJ by SCS Energy. The PurGen plant would use un-proven carbon capture technology to store carbon 70 miles off shore under the Atlantic ocean. Rep. McMahon’s letter was signed by Staten Island’s entire delegation as a sign of how vehemently this project is opposed just across the water from its intended site.
Today, Rep. McMahon’s office reached out to New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) Commissioner Bob Martin’s office who confirmed that the project is still in review phases. On March 2, 2010, however, Commissioner Martin was quoted as saying:
“We oppose [the proposed Linden power plant]. I oppose it. The governor opposes it for a lot of reasons, and including environmental justice-type reasons…. We have serious concerns about that plant and we don’t know that it’s fair that that community takes on another plant. It doesn’t seem right to me. It doesn’t seem right to the governor, either.”
To date, Governor Christie has neither taken nor proposed any action to block the development of the PurGen plant.
On the other hand, Rep. McMahon has been working with environmental groups and local elected officials to prevent the construction of the PurGen plant. Over 30 organizations have come out in opposition to the proposed plant. A list of these organizations can be found at the bottom of the release.
Chief among Rep. McMahon’s concerns is the health of his constituents. According to the letter, “Staten Islanders and Brooklynites already breathe some of the most polluted air, and suffer from some of the highest lung cancer rates, in the nation.” It is estimated that the PurGen plant will process 1.3 tons of coal each year creating carbon dioxide. The plant would achieve this by employing carbon capture and sequestration, which would separate the carbon dioxide from the processed coal, liquefy it and then store it underground. One of the main dangers with respect to this process is that carbon dioxide, in either liquid or gas form, is deadly to humans. If an accident were to occur at the PurGen plant, it would affect the nearly two million people who live within 10 miles of it.
“While SCS Energy’s proposal for the PurGen plant is still being reviewed by environmental agencies, now is the time take the necessary action to prevent this environmental injustice from being built,” said Rep. McMahon
REP. MCMAHON’S MAY 20, 2010 LETTER TO GOVERNOR CHRISTIE:
May 20, 2010
The Honorable Chris Christie
Governor of the State of New Jersey
125 West State Street
P.O. Box 001
Trenton, New Jersey 08625
Dear Governor Christie:
We are writing to express concern about the proposed PurGen Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) power plant slated for construction by SCS Energy in Linden, NJ. We urge you to take all administrative or legislative actions necessary to halt development of this facility, and we ask you to honor your campaign pledge and recent comments by New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) Commissioner Bob Martin to stop this plan in its tracks.
As you know, PurGen plans to construct a coal fired power plant in Linden, NJ across the Arthur Kill from Staten Island, NY that would capture the plant’s carbon dioxide emissions and pump them 70 miles offshore. The gas would then be injected one mile below the ocean floor with the expectation that it would remain there undisturbed indefinitely.
The PurGen project represents a threat to the health and well-being of all of our constituents. Staten Islanders and Brooklynites already breathe some of the most polluted air, and suffer from some of the highest lung cancer rates, in the nation. This plant is not clean energy. First, by the developer’s own admission, 10% of emissions would still be released into the atmosphere. Second, carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) has not been tested on this scale in the United States. A large-scale European project that the developer points to as a model sequestered only one-third as much CO2 in three years as PurGen will sequester in one year. It does not make sense to site the first major test case of offshore CCS in one of the most densely populated metro areas in the United States.
We are not alone in this assessment. The Environmental Justice Advisory Council of NJDEP voted unanimously against the proposal, citing the long history of environmental degradation suffered by the residents of Linden, including polluted air and water. Additionally, an unprecedented coalition of 29 organizations, with membership ranging from environmentalists to sport fishermen, have banded together to oppose PurGen’s proposal.
What’s more, PurGen represents a bad investment at a time of huge budget deficits. While the developers claim that the plant will be privately financed, the truth is they are counting on millions of dollars in tax credits. We believe that taxpayers in New York and New Jersey are overburdened enough in this economy without being asked to pitch in for short-sighted development projects.
As elected officials, we have all pledged to protect the health and welfare of our constituents. We need to end our reliance on foreign energy sources, and produce clean energy here at home. However, as currently conceived, the PurGen proposal poses too many risks to public health. During your campaign for Governor, you publicly opposed the PurGen plant, noting that it would only further pollute the air in a community already overburdened with poor air quality. More recently, NJDEP Commissioner Martin stated emphatically that both you and he oppose the plant. We urge your Administration to stand by these commitments.
Again, we ask your Administration to take all necessary steps to halt the development and construction of the PurGen IGCC power plant.
Sincerely,
Michael E. McMahon, Member of Congress
James P. Molinaro, Borough President, Staten Island, New York
Diane J. Savino, New York State Senator
Andrew J. Lanza, New York State Senator
Louis R. Tobacco, Member, New York State Assembly
Matthew J. Titone, Member, New York State Assembly
Janele Hyer-Spencer, Member, New York State Assembly
Michael J. Cusick, Member, New York State Assembly
Deborah Rose, Member, New York City Council
James S. Oddo, Member, New York City Council
Vincent Ignizio, Member, New York City Council
cc: Bob Martin, Commissioner, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
ORGANIZATIONS OPPOSING THE PURGEN PROJECT:
Arthur Kill Watershed Alliance
BlueWaveNJ
Clean Ocean Action
Cornucopia Network of NJ
Edison Wetlands Association
Environment New Jersey
Environmental Research Foundation
Environmental Justice Advisory Council to the DEP
Food and Water Watch
Green Hearts Environmental Movement, Bloomfield College
Green Party of Essex and Passaic Counties, NJ
Green Party of Monmouth County
Jersey Coast Angler’s Association
Lakeland Universal Unitarian Church
Lawrence Brook Watershed Partnership
Linden Society for Sustainable Development
NY/NJ Baykeeper
NJ Environmental Federation
NJ Environmental Lobby
NJ Environmental Justice Alliance
NJ Friends of Clearwater
NJ PEER (Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility)
NJ Sportsman Federation
Northeast Sustainable Energy Association
People’s Organization for Progress, Central Jersey
Physicians for Social Responsibility
Sierra Club
Skylands Clean
Surfrider
Tremley Point Alliance
350.org