East Walpole residents, power company talk

Though East Walpole is miles from the proposed power plant site, residents in that part of town had plenty of questions for Competitive Power Ventures at a meeting last Wednesday night.

Nearly thirty residents met with Competitive Power representatives at the Civic Center on Union Street. The company was invited there by members of the East Walpole Civic Association, many of whom left two townwide public forums late last year feeling some issues remained unresolved.

"There have been too few occasions for citizens to sit down and ask questions," said Sue Maguire, association president. The public forums were dominated by a vocal minority, she added.

"The average person never gets a chance to hear the facts," she said.

ueries touched on water usage, on site oil storage, and sewage infrastructure, among others.

"We've heard (the water concerns) loud and clear," said George Grunbeck, a Competitive Power vice president of operations. The company's engineers are working to answer one question right now, he added: "What can we do to reduce the water consumption?"

The current proposal is for an average daily use of 125,000 gallons, with a maximum of 200,000.

Grunbeck turned the floor over to Dan Merrikan, a Walpole-based engineer who has researched the issue.

Residents have expressed concern over the summertime watering bans, Merrikan said. Lawn watering is not restricted because there is a lack of water, he explained. Rather, the Department of Environmental Protection, or DEP, is trying to get communities to cut back on "unnecessary water usage," most often related to residential use.

The DEP limits Walpole's water in two ways, according to Merrikan - maximum daily usage and average daily usage across each year.

The DEP lets the town draw an average of 3.3 million gallons per day. Last year, the town drew only 2.2 million on average, he said.

The DEP also caps maximum daily withdrawal at seven million gallons. In 2006 the highest day was 3.5 million; the year before it was 4.5 million, he said.

A second issue aired in the question-and-answer session was the fate of plant waste.

Merrikan confirmed the company was studying ways to connect the site of the proposed plant - to be located at 33 Industrial Road in South Walpole - to established area sewer lines. Any changes will come at Competitive Power's expense, he said.

The expansion of sewage lines to Industrial Park is right in line with the town Master Plan, according to Jim Brady, a local attorney representing the company. Adding infrastructure will serve the plant's needs, but it will also open up the entire area for further industrial use at no cost to taxpayers, he said.

"That's a deal in my opinion, a big deal," Brady said.

It would make that area more attractive to business, Maguire said. Otherwise, the town will become the "low income housing Mecca of Massachusetts," she said.

For one local resident, the sticking point for this natural gas fired power plant was the oil that will be stored for backup. Jason Skypack wondered if the oil costs fell below those of natural gas would the would plant switch fuels.

Grunbeck initially answered that oil was unreliable and a "pain" to work with.

When Skypack pressed for an answer, Grunbeck asserted it was a possibility, but unlikely. It requires a great deal of maintenance and "takes life out of the equipment," Grunbeck said.

Skypack then asked if the air emission standards were different for an oil-fired plant.

Grunbeck said they would be slightly looser, while Merrikan said they would be the same.

Both caps would be rigorously enforced, Grunbeck said.

Skypack remained unconvinced after the meeting. He said the oil issue was a sticking point for him, though he was neither for the project nor against it.

Near the end of the meeting Competitive Power representatives discussed the future of the plant proposal.

Responding to the question, "What's the next step?" Grunbeck said the company would try to get Board of Selectmen to talk with them.

Back in December the board voted not to enter into any payment in lieu of taxes negotiations, with the company or even to discuss the possibility of locating a plant in town. The vote came after a motion from Selectman David Sullivan.

Sullivan sat in the back of the room throughout the meeting, but did not ask any questions. At one point Maguire pointed out Sullivan's presence and the East Walpole crowd applauded.

"If you want to do something about (this project), let (selectmen) know," Maguire told the crowd.

One person asked if the decisions by Walpole's neighbors Wrentham and Foxborough to vote their disapproval for the project had any bearing on the project.

"Ultimately this is Walpole's decision," Brady said.

Jeb Bobseine can be reached at jeb@walpoletimes.com or 508-668-0243, ext. 13.