NO STOPPING
BRONX TIMES REPORTER,8 SEPT. 17-23, 2021 BTR
South Bronx eyed for 2
renewable energy proposals
BY ROBBIE SEQUEIRA
By the end of the year, the New York
State Energy Research and Development
Authority (NYSERDA) is hoping to procure
innovative renewable energy projects
that will transition New York City
away from fossil fuel-fi red generation dependency
and create a renewable energy
private sector that can create a wealth of
new jobs in the city.
Out of the seven proposals sent to NYSERDA,
two renewable energy projects, if
selected, could bring heightened qualitative
energy and air quality improvements
to the Bronx, but also include unpopular
installations of high-voltage converter
stations in the southern portion of the
borough.
Excelsior Connect, an underground
renewable energy superhighway project
proposal that aims to connect wind energy
from upstate New York’s Sullivan
County to Queens, is eyeing several undisclosed
South Bronx locations for its
AC/DC converter station.
This proposed transmission line
will originate in Utica and follow the
New York State Thruway right-of-way
into New York City, where it will enter
through the Bronx and terminate at the
Rainey substation in Queens. The project
would address the congestion issues between
upstate and downstate regions and
span more than 108 miles.
If sited in the Bronx, very few locations
would be viable, according to energy
experts.
Two possibilities along the stated
right-of-way include the privately held
Fordham Landing site west of I-87 and
north of Roberto Clemente State Park,
and northern portions of Van Cortlandt
Park, which is bisected by the highway.
Excelsior Connect offi cials did not
confi rm nor deny those locations with the
Bronx Times, however, they did tout the
benefi ts of the South Bronx as a connector
point.
“There are mass benefi ts to the residents
of the Bronx when it comes to the
Excelsior project, including and most
importantly a higher quality of life,”
said Sebastian Libonatti, vice president
Business Development for Avangrid Networks,
Inc. “Also, a lot of this project will
not be seen by the public, because it’s underground
so Bronx residents can experience
the benefi ts of clean energy without
the eyesore that wiring can bring to
neighborhoods.”
Avangrid’s proposal, Excelsior Connect,
would deliver clean renewable
generation into Queens, helping retire
higher emitting generations of New York
City’s fossil fuel dependency and improve
air quality.
Another project, Clean Path NY, a
proposal that encompasses a 1,300-megawatt,
176-mile high voltage direct-current
power superhighway from Delaware
County to New York City that would run
underneath the Hudson and Harlem rivers,
has received pushback from Bronx
offi cials in the past.
When CleanPath NY was fi rst pitched
Out of seven renewable energy proposals
sent to NYSERDA, two projects could include
improvements to the Bronx, but also include
installations of high-voltage converter stations
in the South Bronx. Photo CleanPath NY
in early 2021, the plan was to construct a
high-voltage DC to AC converter station
and a seven-story containment structure
on a one-acre site at Bronx Terminal
Market at East 151st Street and Exterior
Street.
The project — which boasts $12 billion
in savings to New Yorkers and would create
more than 10,000 jobs while eliminating
39 million tons of CO2 emissions over
the next 25 years — received concerns
from Bronx residents that an installation
of a converter station would be detrimental
to the public health of a district that is
already considered “asthma valley.”
Representatives from U.S. Rep. Ritchie
Torres’ offi ce told the Bronx Times that
their offi ce received a promise from
CleanPath NY offi cials, in writing, that it
would not construct or install a converter
station in the district.
Another partner in the CleanPath NY
proposal is the New York Power Authority,
which currently operates six fossil
fuel-fi red “peaker” plants in New York
City, including in Mott Haven and Port
Morris.
A spokesperson with the New York
Power Authority told The Times, that
“if their proposal is selected, locations
and specifi cs of the CleanPath NY project
would be discussed with local communities”
in regards to infrastructure plans
for affected neighborhoods.
CleanPath NY also states that it will
invest $70 million in environmental justice
programs specifi cally in the Mott
Haven and Hunts Points sections of the
South Bronx, and the project would lead
to billions in health savings in vulnerable
communities across the state over the
next two and half decades, the proposal
says.
NYSERDA’s CES White Paper found
that without displacing a substantial
portion of the fossil fuel-fi red generation
that New York City currently relies upon,
it would be unable to accomplish New
York’s plan to supply 70% renewable electricity
by 2030.
A NYSERDA spokesperson told the
Bronx Times that a decision on a project
could be made by the third quarter of
2021, which ends Sept. 30.