Bill could black out plans for (Massachusetts) area power plant

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://enterprise.southofboston.com/articles/2007/11/30/news/news/news13.txt

Bill could black out plans for area power plant

By Alice C. Elwell, Enterprise Correspondent

BRIDGEWATER— A state official says that pending legislation could pull the plug on proposed power plants across the state, including ones in Brockton and Taunton.

Secretary of Energy and the Environment Ian Bowles spoke to business leaders this week during the fourth Business and Economic Advisory Council, hosted by Sen. Marc R. Pacheco, D-Taunton, and discussed the sweeping changes of the Clean Energy bill.

“The biggest single thing we can do is unleash energy efficiency ... rather than build power plants,” said Bowles. “We all need to get used to a new world.”

The bill could jeopardize proposals for more than a dozen power plants, including a $200 million facility in Brockton and a $320 million plant in Taunton.

Bowles warned that only a small percentage of the proposed plants will get built, because his office favors energy conservation and alternative and renewable energy sources over fossil-fuel energy sources.

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The legislation aims to reduce greenhouse emissions 20 percent by 2020, reduce the use of fossil fuels by 10 percent and reduce the total energy consumption in Massachusetts by 10 percent.

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Bowles said solar energy takes more than a decade to pay for itself, but he's ready to launch a rebate program as an incentive.

Pacheco agrees it's not possible to eliminate fossil fuels in the short term, but the legislation “weans” the state away from oil and gas while heading in a new direction, “native energy” of solar and wind.

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