the BUFFALOg: Jamestown Power Plant A Go?

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Jamestown Power Plant A Go?

I've made my share of criticisms over Governor Patterson but his recent decision to appoint Wilmers to run the Empire State Development Corporation was excellent. Wilmers, of course, is from New York City and is well-known to New Yorkers because of M&T's growing clout; but he's lived upstate since the early eighties. Good move.

Patterson made another sensible decision this week by indicating approval for the electric-generating plant proposed for Jamestown.

The Paterson administration is lending its support to a new coal power plant project in Jamestown, which also could bode well for the stalled new facility at the Huntley plant in the Town of Tonawanda.

The Jamestown plant is being billed as the first of its kind in the nation … an advanced coal facility that captures carbon dioxide and keeps it for permanent storage underground. If successful, the product could be exported around the world.

The decision will provide needed additional electricity, give Jamestown an economic advantage to offset New York's high taxes and will feature the bonus of local company Praxair's expertise in designing the CO2 sequestration system. If there is such a thing as a "green" economy, this approaches it. It's a complete win for upstate's economy and, finally, a decision on Patterson's part that will provide real economic benefits.

That will make no difference at all, of course, to local environmentalists and the rogue and anonymous Buffalo News editorialist who has railed against the Jamestown project in the past and who, no doubt, is dipping quill into ink, even as you read, to wail about it some more.