{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.markey.senate.gov/news/press-releases/senators-markey-and-warren-urge-reconsideration-of-decade-old-air-permit-for-proposed-biomass-fired-power-plant-in-springfield-and-reassessment-of-air-quality-impacts", "Senators Markey and Warren Urge Reconsideration of Decade-Old Air Permit for Proposed Biomass-Fired Power Plant in Springfield and Reassessment of Air Quality ImpactsRead More", "2020-12-24", "2020", "2020-12", "Democrat", "House", "MA", "Edward Markey", "M000133", "www.markey.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Wood-burning power\r\nplants have a carbon dioxide emissions rate approximately 50% higher than a\r\ncoal-fired power plant  Washington\r\n(December 24, 2020)  Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and Senator Elizabeth\r\nWarren (D-Mass.) today wrote to the Massachusetts Department of Environmental\r\nProtection (MassDEP) urging the agency to consider suspending and reassessing\r\nthe decade-old Conditional Approval issued to Palmer Renewable Energy LLC for a\r\nproposed biomass-fired power plant in Springfield, Massachusetts, particularly\r\nas the new Biden administration determines its climate and air quality priorities.\r\nThe Senators called on MassDEP to conduct a new review of the proposed plant's\r\nair quality impacts that accounts for the ongoing respiratory health pandemic,\r\nnew public health data, and the impacts to the accelerating climate crisis. The\r\nproposed plant is expected to burn approximately one ton of wood per minute and\r\nemit fine particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, and other\r\nharmful pollutants, which can damage the human respiratory system and make\r\nbreathing difficult. Nearly one in five children in Springfield suffer from\r\nasthma, and 90 percent of city residents are categorized as living within an\r\nenvironmental justice population.  Springfield\r\nresidents deserve an updated air quality analysis that reflects the city's\r\ncurrent health and environmental justice issues, which have become more acute\r\nin the decade since MassDEP initially issued the Conditional Approval,write the Senators\r\nin their letter to MassDEP Commissioner Martin Suuberg.In reassessing\r\nthe Palmer biomass plant proposal, MassDEP needs to account for the latest\r\nresearch into the spread of COVID-19, the respiratory health risks in the\r\nsurrounding population, and the historic burden of air pollution on the local\r\ncommunity. A\r\ncopy of the letter can be found HERE. The\r\nU.S. Environmental Protection Agency has approved Massachusetts' State\r\nImplementation Plan for air quality standards, giving MassDEP the authority to\r\nreview air quality impacts and issue permits to polluting facilities. And since\r\n2013, MassDEP has had the legal authority under 301 CMR 7.02(3)(k) to revoke\r\nthe 2011 Conditional Approval for the proposed biomass-fired power plant in\r\nSpringfield based on Palmer's failure to commence construction of the plant.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.markey.senate.gov/news/press-releases/senators-markey-and-warren-urge-reconsideration-of-decade-old-air-permit-for-proposed-biomass-fired-power-plant-in-springfield-and-reassessment-of-air-quality-impacts"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.1643361542373896, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}