Proposed power plant faces delays
The developer of a power plant proposed for the banks of the Concord River in Billerica may not get the first shovel in the ground this summer, as once expected, as opponents race to secure top-flight backing for their case.
The president of the company attempting to build the 348-megawatt Billerica Energy Center acknowledged pushing the potential opening date from next year to 2010. But Joseph Fitzpatrick, president of DG Clean Power LLC of New Hampshire, said delays have not prompted investors to give up on the so-called peaker plant, which would operate during periods of peak electricity demand and burn mostly natural gas.
"The investors understand these things happen with power plant projects, and we're proceeding," Fitzpatrick said last week.
The developer is forging ahead even while opponents snag to their side state lawmakers, area selectmen, and residents, delaying decisions on local and state permits for the plant.
The opponents, though, say they resent Governor Deval Patrick's silence on the project.
"He's the only one who has the power to say, 'Hey, just a minute, guys. These people are right. What are we doing to really get some oversight?' " said Edward Camplese, one of the founders of Billerica Watchers Group, the chief opponent to the plant.
Camplese, of Billerica, said he believes the plant would cause air pollution when it has to burn diesel fuel and might endanger drinking water. His group also has concerns about potential rupture of tanks on the site topped with diesel and aqueous ammonia, used to scrub emissions. He said that is particularly worrisome because the plant would not be staffed most of the time.
"People are concerned about the health of their children and the elderly," he said.
"We have a really legitimate beef here."
Opponents from Billerica and several neighboring communities, including Chelmsford, Lowell, Pepperell, and Tewksbury, are urging Patrick to get involved.
"I really don't know where he stands," said Jacqueline Cunniffe, a Chelmsford mother of two. "I think he needs to come out publicly on this."
Patrick's office last week referred questions about the plant to Lisa Capone, spokeswoman for the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, which must still sign off on the project. Capone said the administration did not have a position on the project, calling it "inappropriate to take a position at this point, where it's under environmental review."
At the urging of opponents, however, local Democratic state representatives William Greene Jr. and James Miceli and Senator Susan Tucker have voiced reservations about the plant, proposed for about 16 acres off Billerica Avenue near the Tewksbury town line.
"It's the wrong place for a power plant," said Tucker, who represents Tewksbury and other area communities.
"It's too densely populated and too close to the river where we get our drinking water."
Miceli vowed to file legislation banning the plant.
One selectman in Chelmsford and all the selectmen in Tewksbury also have gone on record in opposition, unlike the board in Billerica, which stands to gain millions of dollars in fees and payments in lieu of taxes.
While DG Clean Power has not signed on the dotted line, Fitzpatrick said he has made a preliminary offer to fork over $1.5 million a year as payment in lieu of taxes for 20 years. A building permit fee could yield as much as $3 million more.
Billerica officials are awaiting the results of three independent studies - on the plant's possible impact to the environment, water supply, and sewer capacity - that have stalled local permitting.
A report on the environmental impact of the plant being done by John Spengler, a Harvard School of Public Health professor, is expected to be presented at the end of this month or early in March.
Along with the building permit, DG Clean Power must secure local approvals from the Fire Department for an emergency response plan, the Department of Public Works for water and sewer use, and the local Conservation Commission for compliance with wetlands regulations.
The state fire marshal must permit the on-site storage tanks. In addition, DG Clean Power must also provide proof of the region's estimated upcoming electricity demand.
The project may need the approval of several federal agencies, including the Army Corps of Engineers.
It also must get the nod from the state Energy Facilities Siting Board, which licenses power plants.
After several hearings, the siting board was scheduled to rule as early as this week, but it now has no date set to make a final decision, said Timothy Shevlin, its executive director.
Shevlin said once the decision is made, opponents can appeal it to the state Supreme Judicial Court.
Anticipating approval, the Billerica watch group is raising money to hire a lawyer for an appeal.
Fitzpatrick said the permitting is taking more time than anticipated, and a court challenge would drag it out further.
But the biggest hoop for the company to jump through is providing data about impacts on air, water, wetlands, wastewater, hazardous waste, noise, and traffic.
After the proponent files a final environmental impact report, Ian Bowles, secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs, must wait a month for public response and then has seven days to make a decision.
Fitzpatrick, a former Massachusetts secretary of energy, said he is certain the plant will get the go-ahead.
He said the plant will "meet all federal air-quality standards to address conditions of air pollution to the most vulnerable in the population" by burning natural gas most of the time, with diesel to be used only during "a severe winter cold snap."
DG Clean Power has had tests determining that any spills from its tanks would not harm residents, wetlands, or the river, and on-site video cameras will monitor plant operation, he said.
Staff will be brought from a nearby plant in Lowell when the Billerica facility is on line, he added.
Most important, said Fitzpatrick, demand for energy in New England is likely to grow.
The Billerica plant would supply electricity to Independent System Operator New England, the Holyoke organization that runs the region's six-state power grid.
The facility would operate up to 2,300 hours a year, but would run only during periods of peak electricity demand.
Billerica resident Louis Antonellis, business agent for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 103, said he agrees with Fitzpatrick. He touted the jobs the plant would bring to the area and the income it would give the town.
And he said he believes the plant would also be environmentally safe.
"I don't think for one minute my kids' or anyone else's health will be hurt by this plant. And if I did, what kind of person, what kind of father, would I be?"
Connie Paige can be reached at cpaige@globe.com. 