Here's where efficient plants such as Clean Power blow Laidlaw completely out of the water.

y Gerald Warner Politics Last updated: November 26th, 2009

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Just a few considerations in addition to previous remarks about the explosion of the East Anglia Climategate e-mails in America. The reaction is growing exponentially there. Fox News, Barack Obama’s Nemesis, is now on the case, trampling all over Al Gore’s organic vegetable patch and breaking the White House windows. It has extracted some of the juiciest quotes from the e-mails and displayed them on-screen, with commentaries. Joe Public, coast-to-coast, now knows, thanks to the clowns at East Anglia’s CRU, just how royally he has been screwed.

Senator James Inhofe’s Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works has written to all the relevant US Government agencies, acquainting them with the nature of the e-mails. But the real car crash for Obama is on Capitol Hill where it is now confidently believed his Cap and Trade climate legislation is toast. It was always problematic; but with a growing awakening to the scale of the scientific imposture sweeping the world, as far as the Antipodes, the clever money is on Cap and Trade laws failing to pass, with many legislators sceptical and the mid-term elections looming ever closer.

At the more domestic level, the proposed ban on incandescent light bulbs, so supinely accepted in this servile state of Britain, is now provoking a huge backlash in America. US citizens do not like the government coming into their houses and putting their lights out. Voters may not understand the cut and thrust of climate debate at the technical level, but they know when the Man from Washington has crossed their threshold uninvited.

The term that Fox News is now applying to the Climategate e-mails is “game-changer”. For the first time, Anthropogenic Global Warming cranks are on the defensive, losing their cool and uttering desperate mantras such as “You can be sceptical, not denial.” Gee, thanks, guys. In fact we shall be whatever we want to be, without asking your permission.

At this rate, Copenhagen is going to turn into a comedy convention with the real world laughing at these liars. Now is the time to mount massive resistance to the petty tyrants and hit them where it hurts – in the wallet. Further down the line there may be, in many countries, a question of criminal prosecution of anybody who has falsified data to secure funds and impose potentially disastrous fiscal restraints on the world in deference to a massive hoax. It’s a new world out there, Al, and, as you may have noticed, the climate is very cold indeed.

Boston.com recent article

"Wood-fired power plants are no environmental cure-all

November 28, 2009

IT ALWAYS seemed bizarre to think that cutting down trees and burning them for fuel could be a good way to reduce carbon emissions. And yet both the Kyoto climate change treaty and a key bill in the US House look favorably on generation not just from biofuels such as ethanol but also from so-called biomass, including wood. Fortunately, scientists are beginning to consider biomass with a more skeptical eye. Late last month, Massachusetts launched a study on whether biomass power-generation plants are sustainable - the crucial question in the debate on four plants proposed for the western part of the state.

These plants could burn wood left over from landscaping, milling operations, and forest-thinning projects. But these unobjectionable sources might not be enough to feed the plants; their operation, critics worry, would require major cuts in private and public woods, reducing the forests’ ability to absorb carbon dioxide. The state’s study, which will be reviewed by an independent advisory panel, should ensure that the state does not give a boost to biomass plants that harm both the atmosphere and the state’s forests.

Biomass and biofuels have won privileged status in global warming agreements in part because the carbon dioxide they absorb from the atmosphere would return to it no matter what - either through burning or through natural decomposition over time. But only recently has it begun to sink in that, far from lowering emissions, leveling a forest full of carbon-absorbing trees adds to emissions - whether the trees are burned in a power plant or simply removed to clear land for biofuel crops like corn or soybeans.

In the future, utilities will be required to obtain an increasing percentage of their power from renewable sources. The Massachusetts study will inform new state regulations on whether and how biomass and biofuels facilities will qualify to meet that rule. Thanks to good marketing and good lobbying by agribusiness and forestry interests, biomass and biofuels are prominent in many discussions about green energy.

But Massachusetts should make sure that supposedly renewable energy sources don’t make a global climate problem worse."

A Divided Berlin

I'm interested in hearing from Laidlaw and Clean Power on some answers to some questions and encourage their input as well as input from experts within the biomass field.


1. I have heard that a fluidized bed boiler is very noisy due to significant fan exhaust and that toxins are emitted during use. This is also true of other boilers. What plans do you have to notify residents of these toxins though they may be within State safety limits and what plans do you have to mitigate noise from the boiler and truck traffic? If you have chosen to utilize a fluidized bed boiler why would you do so, and if you are not using a fluidized bed boiler what are your reasons for not using one? Is an alternative design less toxic?

2. Since the closure of the Burgess Mill, tourists and locals are enjoying crystal clear skies. Is there a way to capture all or part of the steam permeating from cooling towers? How much steam do you actually expect to come from these cooling towers? Will this steam have an impact on icing roadways, visibility? If this steam is not utilized for another synergy what happens to this steam?

3. What has been your experience with businesses locating next to biomass facilities. What types of businesses should we expect to locate next to your facility? Can we expect an attractive array of businesses to move next to the Burgess mill site based on your experience among other biomass plants?

4. Do you believe that free enterprise surpasses quality of life?

5. Based on the current complaint Clean Power has against PSNH and all the requests the PUC is seeing for intervenor status do you think this complaint will simply focus on the legality of the complaint or will it in fact become a sounding board for what is in the best interest of the 2025 initiative for the State of New Hampshire evaluating the highest use of its wood supply? If not, how would the PUC effectively analyze the complaint without taking wood supply into consideration?

6. How many regional businesses do you feel may be forced to go out of business if fuel chip price increases?

7. How large of a biomass plant can this area support without starting to effect currently operating wood commodity businesses?

Sierra Club signals alarm on PSNH/Laidlaw relationship while acknowledging its support for the Clean Power Development Proposal

excerpt from the minutes of the prehearing conference of Clean Power's complaint against PSNH


"MR. CUNNINGHAM: I'll be brief,
{DE 09-067} [Prehearing conference] {11-03-09}
44
1 Mr. Chairman. Thank you very much, members of the
2 Commission. We particularly like this Clean Power
3 Development from a policy point of view for the Sierra
4 Club, because it's sustainable. We're concerned about
5 forest practices. We're, obviously, concerned about
6 renewable energy. We think that the Clean Power
7 Development project fits the Sierra Club criteria for
8 appropriate projects in this day and age.
9 We ask this -- we ask the Commission to
10 very, very carefully, very carefully examine the good
11 faith issue that's been suggested here by the Commission
12 this morning. I've heard some disturbing facts this
13 morning that I hadn't heard before about this Laidlaw
14 relationship. So, I would ask the Commission to very
15 carefully and very thoroughly investigate that issue, in
16 terms of Public Service Company of New Hampshire's conduct
17 with respect to this Clean Power Development project.
18 And, we wish to participate in that review. Thank you."

I think answers to Bisash's questions deserve a new post, as these questions lead to actions or inactions that are central to a New Berlin, to the region, New Hampshire, New England, the USA.

Though PSNH is claiming Laidlaw has no power purchase agreement with Laidlaw, Laidlaw has claimed that such an agreement exists and that within that agreement Laidlaw can not provide power to the city or other industry opting to locate next to their facility. That eliminates a huge reason to locate next to a plant that would be belching out steam and toxins within steps of your employees. Additionally, with a tractor trailer arriving or departing every six minutes with noise created by back up beepers, loaders moving chips constantly, and fans running constantly as part of the fluidized bed boiler, could you imagine enticing a business to locate nearby? Can you clearly see the negative impact that such a business could create if it were placed at the entrance to the Pease tradeport, or for that matter to witness its negative impact such a plant could have on the entrance way to a New Berlin Burgess mill site?

As to wood supply, interestingly, the parties seeking intervenor status in the Clean Power complaint against PSNH are mostly from outside of Coos county and are focusing on this already as the very reason for PSNH not to do business with Laidlaw, and to do business with Clean Power because Clean Power will not consume the wood supply that can be used for better purposes. Keep in mind that at the recent tour of the McNeil station in Vermont, it was pointed out that when the Burgess mill was running, wood supply was tight at the McNeil facility at times which goes to show why we have a huge regional concern for wood supply. McNeil station is three hours away from Berlin and yet they felt the effect of our pulp mill's usage of wood. Keep that in mind.

The main element of the Clean Power complaint against PSNH is about legality of reasons PSNH has to refuse to entertain a power purchase agreement proposal with a least cost provider, yet the focus has clearly been demonstrated by those looking to intervene, that protection of the forest is intertwined and equally as important. To see the likes of close to a dozen legislators intervening on this subject as well as a town, a city, businesses and organizations at this early stage should be a comforting sign to those looking to synergize through the efficient use of biomass for fuel.

If Laidlaw goes on line, one can say that would be akin to the State of NH thumbing its nose at efficient use of the State's wood supply at the expense of NH businesses, municipalities, and citizens forever losing the opportunity to use their own wood supply for more efficient uses, let alone the risk of business closure as the result of chip price increase.

Yesterday I heard from a source but have yet to confirm that PSNH sent their representatives to meet with the Winchester board of selectmen that morning to discuss why Winchester, (the other town Clean Power is developing a biomass plant around their waste water plant), was intervening in the Clean Power complaint against PSNH in Berlin.

When questioned by the one of the selectmen regarding their agreement with Laidlaw in Berlin the response from the PSNH rep was apparently: "There is no agreement, no contract, nothing with Laidlaw. It’s my understanding that we’re at the very beginning of starting to discuss things with them and if, in the end, when they set a price, if it’s around 7cents per kwh, then we’ll take it."

There was then a follow up question where the selectmen asked then to confirm that there was no agreement. The PSNH response was reportedly: "None, nothing whatsoever with them."That meeting just happened yesterday, so the minutes are not yet available, but I will provide a link or provide them when they become available.

One has to wonder if there is no such agreement, why Laidlaw would go on record at a council session stating Laidlaw can not provide power to the city of Berlin or businesses due to an agreement with PSNH. Why would Laidlaw risk stating such a disadvantage if one didn't clearly exist?

These are simply examples of how closely Berlin's development of biomass is being watched by the rest of the state and rightfully so. Wood needs to remain sustainable in one of the country's most forested states, but also needs to be sustainably used efficiently if we are truly striving towards the governor's 2025 initiative.

A better idea for the Burgess Mill Site

I understand that Max Makitas' tour of the McNeil biomass plant was an eye opening event where the tour guide was very honest that such a plant doesn't belong in close proximity to an area's population and mentioned that opinion on several occassions. Apparently it was also mentioned that the type of boiler that Laidlaw had suggested, (fluidized bed) was not the type of boiler they'd recommend.

So what better use for the Burgess mill site? Berlin is the largest city in a 75 mile radius.The city should become the hub of the economy that supports the people within the new vision ofNew Hampshire's Grand tourism branding initiative. Berlin doesn't need to just count on tourism. It can be the "working city" that tourists find charm in visiting just like Portsmouth. It can be the city in the mountains just as Portsmouth is the city by the Sea. In this day and age of computers, transportation is not the key to business success for all businesses. Many successful companies operate without a need for a specific location, but do need a population base to begin with.

The transformation of Pease Airport base to Pease Tradeport is a perfect example of what could happen to Berlin's Burgess mill site on a smaller scale. The following excerpts from the tradeport's history show how it can be financed, how hazardous waste doesn't keep development away, and what impact an environmentally friendly atmosphere can have on an area's job base, State revenue, and draw to the area. Interestingly, one of the developers of Pease, Greg Whalen, is also involved currently with the Burgess mill site in at least as much he is an officer of the LLC of record. Ask yourself, would Pease be as successful as it is with a boiler spewing steam, toxins, and noise along with a 300 foot smokestack at its entrance?


The history of Pease's transformation and success can be viewed at http://www.peasedev.org/about_us/history.asp but in an effort to simplify some data here's how Pease came to be Pease Tradeport.

excerpts from Pease transformation to a Tradeport:


1." the law provided a $250 million bonding capacity ($50 million obligation bonds and $200 million of revenue bonds)."

2."The board's mission was and is "to capitalize on the unique opportunities the Pease facility affords for economic benefit while preserving New Hampshire's quality of life and environment."

3."One of the practical effects of the FFA was to coordinate cleanup of the 43 hazardous waste sites identified by the USAF as part of their ongoing Installation Restoration Program (IRP) with redevelopment efforts, allowing both processes to occur simultaneously."

"Since the original transfer in April of 1992, 2,100 new jobs have been created with a projected number of 3,745 by the year 2000. Over 510,000sq ft of new construction has been built and approximately 1,000,000 sq. ft of existing buildings have been occupied."

"After getting off to a slow start, things began to move at what became the New Hampshire International Tradeport at Pease with the arrival of Celltech, a British firm later acquired by Lonza Biologics. Lonza now employs more than 700 workers at Pease and is one of several biotech and other high-tech firms at a tradeport that includes manufacturing firms, office buildings, a hotel, half a dozen restaurants, the Red Hook brewery and a variety of retail and service establishments."

"Today, Pease International Tradeport has 256 companies occupying 4.4 million square feet and employing roughly 7,000 workers. There is still room for development on about 60 acres, and at full build-out the site will likely have some 10,000 employees, Mullen said."

Mill Days Are Gone

Berlin NH is currently experiencing a cancer unlike other cancer created by the paper mill in the past. Where the cancer used to be the one caused by emissions killing Berlin citizens, it is now a political posse lead by county commissioners/ mayor elect Grenier, and James Brady. These politicians are like old school boys riding bucking broncos through six gun city in an effort to completely disregard a progressive future designed by professionals of a branding initiative to move us into a new economy, a new Berlin if you will. These cowboys need to be challenged in a big way. Their apparent lack of enthusiasm for the potential this area has to offer needs to change. The industrial nature of this city needs to change for purposes of curb appeal to attract people to this area. Industry needs to be moved away from the city center.

One of the key elements to any city center is a positive perception. The curb appeal of Main St. will be enhanced dramatically by focusing on two remaining segments; the Cote block and the Rite Aid blocks. If you take those two blocks out of the mix, Berlin's Main St. has already come a long way. With the addition of numerous businesses looking to build around the waste water treatment plant, the Burgess mill site no longer needs to be Berlin's industrial base and the city can enjoy a toxin limited city center as it should be where the area's population resides.

New England is becoming educated to the fact that big biomass plants that threaten forest sustainability and higher efficiency uses of biomass are not the bandade fix to the woods industry they were cut out to be.

Articles are appearing everywhere regarding efficient use of biomass within our cities and towns while proposals for large biomass plants offering no more than 25% efficiency are being questioned. It is good to see questioning prior to poor forestry practices much of New England has already endured through absence of law to protect sustainability. Perhaps we've learned a lesson this time around?

Remember, before you read any further that there will only be one biomass plant in Berlin.

Let's assume everyone ends up choosing the more efficient proposal around the wastewater treatment plant. Here's what could happen: Clean Power would build a plant that would look like a working farm. Chips would be housed in Silos. Loggers would be put back to work. 25+ jobs would be created through Clean Power. Additionally Steam from the plant would be supplied to nearby industrial facilities, such as the paper mill in Gorham. A variety of industrial users could tap into that steam at their desired pressure at a reasonable cost, without the capital cost of their own steam generating system, or the operational cost of oil, maintenance or staff. Synergistic companies are partnering with Clean Power to provide more jobs to a location (a waste water treatment plant) that couldn't ask for a better use.

Now the Burgess mill site. Numerous people have asked, what would you do with a Brownfield site like that if the last stack were to fall? Where would you get the money?
This author has researched the players behind the Burgess mill site and they are not just Laidlaw. These professional developers are well acquainted with developing the entire brownfield site into a center for a New Berlin. A Pease Berlin Tradeport if you will. A connector for ATV and Snowmobile access East to West. Home to computer age businesses not reliant on road access. A toxin safe, 60 acre, fresh slate to build upon with prestine presidential mountain views absent of any industrial eyesores within viewing distance. A rebirth of Berlin.

November 14, 2009 3:52 AM

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