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English Station ducks wrecking ball, for now

Demolition plans fall apart due to environmental concerns. Read more from the New Haven Independent.

I have to admit I'm a little confused. They were pumping oil out of transformers, so obviously they were not pumping fuel oil. PCBs were used as dilectric cooling fluid for transformers during most of the life of this power plant. So...should it be a surprise to discover a "99%" concentration of PCBs? I take issue with the characterization of this concentration being "very high". It's almost pure PCB.

I still don't understand why no one is going after Quinnipiac Energy to find out what happened to the clean-up money. Does anyone know where they are and has anyone tried to audit that account? UI? City of New Haven?

English Station to be destroyed

After initially proposing to turn the site into a fuel cell generation station, the real estate developer that owns the English Station claims to have a new plan that involves razing the historic, century-old building. Luther Turmelle reports for the New Haven Register.

This could be a relief for breathing members of the New Haven community, to whom the dormant plant represents an ongoing threat of a urban pollution. Obviously people will be anxious to see the term "undetermined industrial purpose" better defined.

While the developer has a history of preserving historic buildings (here and here), it seems that converting the polluted coal and oil burning facility into living space is not in the cards. As I have previously reported, UI shelled out almost $2million for environmental remediation but that money seems to have gone missing. Still, one wonders if the original building might be suitable for some "undetermined industrial purpose". It's a beautiful building.

(photo copyright 2007 Bruce Crowder)

Electric rates set to go down

DPUC approved new lower rates for electricity users in CT. CL&P customers should see approx 8% reduction while UI customers will see a more modest 1.5% dip. Read more here.

Still, you may find lower rates from an alternative provider. Click here for a list of providers and prices.

Madison saves big bucks on energy bills

Updated control systems help make sensible choices, like not heating or cooling rooms that are not in use. CT Energy Efficiency Fund (funded through our electric bills) shelled half of the $68k installation, allowing the school to save $27k per year. That's an impressive 2.5 year pay-off.

Click here to read more from the New Haven Register's Alexandra Sanders.

"Exotic" wind turbine in Torrington

Not all wind is harnessed equally. Here's an interesting 150 KW wind turbine design by Optiwind and installed at a farm in Torrington.

Read more.