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Picnic and Making it a Great Success
3/31/2008
Harvesting Wind at the Fresh Kills Landfill
| Call it tilting at Fresh Kills. Or call it a possible dream. James P. Molinaro, the Staten Island borough president, sent a letter to Gov. David A. Paterson on Thursday asking him to consider turning Fresh Kills, the former landfill, into a wind farm. Specifically, he suggests a feasibility study for establishing a wind farm, with seven turbines, to power the park planned at the former landfill. He wrote: Pending State and City approvals, the seven 400-foot turbines could generate 17 megawatts of energy, enough to power 5,000 homes. It would take 4.3 million gallons of oil per year to achieve this electric production. With oil at more than $100 a barrel today, the energy costs would be staggering. Through a spokeswoman, Gov. Paterson indicated the plan was not quite quixotic: The governor wants to see wind energy greatly expanded in New York. He is very interested in the Staten Island proposal because it may provide clean power in an area of the state that really needs it. We await the details of the proposal and as long as it complies with state and local laws, we look forward to working with the borough president to explore this clean energy option for Staten Island. Mr. Molinaro noted that BQ Energy, which has worked upstate, is willing to develop the farm at no cost to the city. “The city needs to begin the land lease process now,” he wrote. He first began promoting the plan in August. But the cooperation of the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation would be required, and has not been forthcoming. In the letter, Mr. Molinaro wrote that one official there he met with in December had a “lukewarm at best” reaction to the plan. “She said she would have to study the issue, but has yet to get back to us,” he wrote. |
