For over a century, Connecticut and all of New England has relied on polluting fossil fuel sources — namely coal, gas, and oil — to power our communities. Now, coal is breathing its last breath in the region.
With set 2025 and 2028 closure dates for New Hampshire’s last remaining coal-burning units at Merrimack and Schiller Stations, coal power is waning. Meanwhile, public — and market — demand to move beyond fossil fuels is growing daily.
With climate change threatening the stability of our ecosystems, homes, and weather patterns, our region faces a pressing crossroads: Will we tie ourselves further to our existing gas system or forge a new clean energy path?
The way forward is clear and clean. For proof, look no further than the retiring New Hampshire coal plants. Once offline, Merrimack Station will be refashioned into a clean energy park and Schiller Station into a battery storage facility, storing wind energy harnessed off the shore of Martha’s Vineyard and the Gulf of Maine.
By investing in offshore wind, battery storage, solar and energy efficiency, Connecticut and our neighbors across New England can ensure the sustainability of our neighborhoods, landscapes, and wild spaces, all while boosting grid reliability and lowering costs. Together, our grassroots efforts across the region have successfully managed to take down coal region-wide. Now, to secure the complete clean energy transition our states need, we must set our sights on the next fight: gas.
[RELATED: Is CT’s electric grid ready to handle more power?]
Over-reliance on gas power has resulted in decades of devastating health, economic, and safety concerns for local families and residents. Gas pipelines, compressor stations, power plants, and more gas infrastructure release health-harming emissions, endanger our ecosystems, and put neighboring communities at risk of devastating mishaps. Black, Latino, and Indigenous residents and families across New England are disproportionately affected by these consequences, experiencing some of the region’s highest asthma rates. Additionally, because of gas price volatility, energy bill costs have drastically fluctuated region-wide — reaching new heights in 2022 following a 400 percent increase.
Despite the consequences, the prospect of gas expansion still looms large here in Connecticut and across New England. Currently, Enbridge is seeking to construct Project Maple — an expansion of an existing pipeline through Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, and New Jersey. Emissions from the pipeline are equivalent to an astounding seven coal plants, threatening to erase all of New England’s coal-free progress.
Separately, in the town of Brookfield, Berkshire Hathaway and TC Energy are awaiting one final permit to double the size of a dangerously polluting compressor station 1,900 feet from the town’s middle school.
Coal’s end in New England presents the ideal opportunity to correct course and get our communities off the gas and fossil fuel rollercoaster for good. First, our leaders must reject Project Maple, the Brookfield compressor station expansion, and all other gas proposals. Then, it’s time to double down on a just, clean energy transition.
Thankfully, the clean, renewable energy alternatives needed to achieve our emission-reduction goals are abundantly available. With the help of the Inflation Reduction Act, many states have already begun planning, developing, and constructing renewable energy sources like offshore wind farms, networked geothermal systems, and battery storage sites to offset retired fossil fuel sources.
Across the Northeast, clean energy like offshore wind can power our homes, economies, and way of life. New England is home to some of the nation’s best offshore wind resources, giving us a unique advantage in reaping the energy sources’ benefits like reduced energy costs, local job creation, and transformative emissions reductions. Through a groundbreaking joint procurement process, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island have recently received proposals for local offshore wind projects totaling 5,570 megawatts of clean energy. That’s more than twice as much energy as Millstone Nuclear Power Plant, the region’s largest single power generating source.
On the heels of this historic coal-free New England win, we look ahead with confidence and even greater determination, fixed on stopping gas in its tracks and advancing clean energy solutions across the region. Together, we can stop Project Maple and other gas proposals and, instead, set in motion the energy transition our states need for cleaner air, lower energy costs, better-protected ecosystems, and safer communities for all New England.
Andrea Callan is the Sierra Club Northeast Deputy Regional Field Director. Samantha Dynowski is Sierra Club Connecticut Chapter Director.