Archive: Opinions

"The amount of dollars you have to put in to maintain that tilting function (on solar panels to maximize capturing sunlight as the sun traverses the sky) versus the extra megawatt hours you get out are not worth it," said Heorot Power Vice President of Development Jerry Goodenough at a meeting to explain the Empire State Data Center plan.

He looked over at Caroline Councilwoman Irene Weiser, a strong advocate against repowering the Cayuga Power Plant with non-renewable energy sources, who had indicated agreement.  "You're agreeing with me?" Goodenough teased.  "That's twice tonight!"  And Weiser said to me, "Dan you'd better put that in your article."

That may be one of the most compelling demonstrations of why tangible New York State support of the data center proposal -- allotting the hydro-power produced electricity the company has asked for, and issuing an Empire State Development grant to help re-use existing electrical equipment at the plant -- is the right thing to do.

While Weiser and others still have environmental concerns about the disposition of the plant, its landfill, and the safety of the lake, Weiser isn't the only one who supports the new plan.  Turning the facility into a consumer of green energy (generated by the hydro-electric facility at Niagara Falls) rather than a producer of energy that uses fossil fuels to do so is something that everybody in Tompkins County can agree on.  That is no mean feat, especially considering that Weiser's Caroline Town Board and the Tompkins County Legislature weren't the only ones who went on record as opposing the repowering of the plant with natural gas.  And the rash of protests around the County that prevailed over the past six or seven years.  And the often expressed sentiment by some Lansing representatives that the rest of the county was ganging up on the Town.

The Tompkins County Legislature passed a resolution in support of the plant earlier this month, weeks ahead of the Lansing town Board doing the same on Wednesday.  Heck, the NY Building and Construction Trades and Sierra Club announced their support almost three weeks ago!  We simply haven't seen this level of solidarity in Lansing in a long time.

But community unity isn't the only reason the state should support the project.  In May Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that all remaining coal plants in New York State would be forced to shut down by the end of 2020. 

"As our federal government continues to support the dying fossil fuel industry, deny climate change, and roll back environmental protections, New York is leading the nation with bold climate action to protect our planet and our communities," Cuomo said. "With the adoption of these final regulations, we are taking yet another step toward a cleaner, greener, long-term energy solution to safeguard the environment for generations to come."

'All' the remaining plants were two: the Cayuga and Somerset plants, both owned by Heorot Power. They also happen to be the two that will make up the Empire State Data Center.  So this project not only fulfills Albany's push for green energy, but it also saves a community resource.  Goodenough says he doesn't think the assessed value of the new business will reach the highs the power plant was assessed at in its heyday, but it will certainly help reverse the plummeting value the property and contribute to making up for lost tax revenue.

Or to put it succinctly, The Governor takethed away, so it is on him to giveth.  Givething will not only support his own energy agenda, but it will help a community that has been significantly hurt by the fall of coal.

Finally, we're not just talking about any power plant here.  Cayuga was and is the cleanest coal-powered plant this side of the Mississippi.  Additionally, Goodenough has long talked about bringing renewable energy production to the plant.  He told me about his dreams of a solar farm long before the Cayuga Solar project (which Goodenough says is still on the table) was announced in 2017.  This is a company that has been thinking of ways to transition to clean energy for a long time.  Not to mention the company's and its employees' many contributions to the Lansing community.

So let's add up the pros and cons.  First the pros: The state gets to meet its clean energy goals and can be seen to be offering real support to make that happen, while supporting a community that has already suffered losses as the power plant decreased in value (let's not forget that Lansing was ineligible for state aid to recover from the devastating loss of power plant assessed value because the plant was not closed entirely).  It keeps a business in New York, even if it becomes an entirely different business.  Significant, well paying jobs come to Lansing, which will generate more business for existing concerns such as Lansing Market.  Plant and Town officials are projecting that the data center will attract other businesses to the north-west corner of Lansing, including re-purposing the actual plant building for office space other companies can rent.  And no more threat of natural gas pipelines, or trucks full of gas passing close by our schools. 

Now the cons: .

(To be fair, the future of current power plant employees who will find it hard to transition to such a different kind of work makes their futures unpredictable.  Goodenough said Wednesday he wants to do everything possible to help them make 'a soft landing' as he effusively lauded their good work and dedication.  So that could be a con.  Or turn into a pro -- we don't know at the moment.)

Everybody wins. And after that exchange between Weiser and Goodenough, they agreed a third time. You certainly don't see that every day.

So Governor Cuomo, you're up!  Do the right thing.

v15i24