Borello critical of state power policies

State Sen. George Borrello wants to see New York invest in natural gas plants and expand hydroelectric power from the state’s dams and reservoirs.

And, high on his list of changes to the state’s energy policy is to end the state’s importing of power.

Borrello isn’t just giving his opinion in news releases and guest essays to newspapers, though. He recently questioned Doreen Harris, New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, about the state’s importing of power while making it difficult to produce electricity from plants in Buffalo and Dunkirk.

“Right now Western New York, where I live, used to be energy independent until the closing of the two power plants,” Borrello said. “In Western New York we now import power from some of the dirtiest old-fashioned coal plants in America, places like Homer City, Pa. How do you rectify the fact that New York is now importing more power than it ever has from some of the dirtiest sources of power in America? How are we going to become 70 by 30 or 100% renewable if we’re building more pipelines to import power instead of saying we’re actually going to be renewable? How does that work when we’re building new power lines to dirty, old-fashioned coal plants?”

Observer Today

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