Council to vote on PurGen plan
By Paul Greulich , Staff Writer
LINDEN — Local officials are preparing to vote on a settlement agreement ending litigation surrounding the site of a proposed coal-fueled, electric-generating facility known as the “PurGen” plant. If approved, the settlement would allow the developer, the Massachusetts-based SCS Energy LLC., 60 months to obtain approval for the project.
A similar agreement was voted down by the City Council in October, but according to the new deal, the property owner, chemical giant DuPont will pay the city of Linden upwards of $350,000 each year for a total of $2.5 million over five years.
Mayor Richard Gerbounka said the new deal “sweetens the pot” for the city of Linden.
“They are willing to compensate the city of Linden for our patience while they go through the regulatory process,” Gerbounka said.
If the developer cannot obtain approval within 60 months, the agreement is rendered null and void. Regardless, the city would retain the money it has been paid.
Frank Smith of SCS could not be reached for comment by press time.
Intended to occupy 98 acres of brownfields in the industrial area along the Arthur Kill, the proposed PurGen plant is designed to function as a “clean” coal plant, using carbon capture and sequestration technology, capturing the carbon dioxide by-product from heated coal and transporting it through 70 miles of underwater pipes into underwater caverns below the Atlantic Ocean.
Bradley Campbell, an attorney and former Department of Environmental Protection commissioner who serves as project representative for SCS Energy, said the poisonous gasses will remain safely trapped there forever, reducing global warming.
The plant hopes to bring in the coal for their operations through barge and rail rather than trucks, further reducing carbon monoxide associated with such an operation. Some residents were unconvinced, though, and said they did not want any more industrial pollution coming from the area, a sentiment echoed by critics on council.
LINDEN — Local officials are preparing to vote on a settlement agreement ending litigation surrounding the site of a proposed coal-fueled, electric-generating facility known as the “PurGen” plant. If approved, the settlement would allow the developer, the Massachusetts-based SCS Energy LLC., 60 months to obtain approval for the project.
A similar agreement was voted down by the City Council in October, but according to the new deal, the property owner, chemical giant DuPont will pay the city of Linden upwards of $350,000 each year for a total of $2.5 million over five years.
Mayor Richard Gerbounka said the new deal “sweetens the pot” for the city of Linden.
“They are willing to compensate the city of Linden for our patience while they go through the regulatory process,” Gerbounka said.
If the developer cannot obtain approval within 60 months, the agreement is rendered null and void. Regardless, the city would retain the money it has been paid.
Frank Smith of SCS could not be reached for comment by press time.
Intended to occupy 98 acres of brownfields in the industrial area along the Arthur Kill, the proposed PurGen plant is designed to function as a “clean” coal plant, using carbon capture and sequestration technology, capturing the carbon dioxide by-product from heated coal and transporting it through 70 miles of underwater pipes into underwater caverns below the Atlantic Ocean.
Bradley Campbell, an attorney and former Department of Environmental Protection commissioner who serves as project representative for SCS Energy, said the poisonous gasses will remain safely trapped there forever, reducing global warming.
The plant hopes to bring in the coal for their operations through barge and rail rather than trucks, further reducing carbon monoxide associated with such an operation. Some residents were unconvinced, though, and said they did not want any more industrial pollution coming from the area, a sentiment echoed by critics on council.
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