DEP | FROM PAGE 4 “How can this be right? Wheelabrator Saugus will actually get a pass on meeting standards,” Vincent said. “Require Wheelabrator Saugus to meet the same standards as everyone else,” she testified. “Please do your job … do what’s right,” Vincent said. Saugus Board of Selectmen Chair Debra Panetta read a letter she wrote on behalf of the full Board of Selectmen several weeks ago which raised concerns about the DEP document. That letter noted “Wheelabrator Saugus does not currently meet the new nitrogen oxide (NOx) limits, where their EMC outlines an emission reduction strategy that does not adhere to the MassDEP’s standards.” “We understand that Wheelabrator Saugus is the oldest incinerator in the United States, but that shouldn’t give them a ‘pass’ on meeting today’s standards, especially when dealing with health and safety of our town,” the letter continues. The letter was written before Rep. Vincent learned that the DEP document included a provision for Wheelabrator to be able to purchase ERCs to meet the proposed emission standards. “You’re here to protect us ... please,” Panetta said. “Please do not subsidize corporate wealth with my community’s health … It’s not fair,” she said. THE REVERE ADVOCATE–Friday, October 18 , 2019 sions affecting Wheelabrator. Page 5 “The bottom line is that nitro“This is not a car” A number of Saugus elected representatives amplified Panetta’s plea. Wheelabrator “should not be allowed to pay to pollute,” Precinct 1 Town Meeting Member Ann Devlin said. Stephen M. Horlick, Town Meeting member in Precinct 8, noted that if he had a 20-year-old car that failed emissions standards, he would fail the annual state automobile inspection. “I can’t buy a credit to keep it on the road,” Horlick said. “This is not a car. This is an incinerator. Big difference,” he said. Saugus’s longtime Wheelabrator critic Peter Manoogian noted, “It’s generally accepted that power plants have a life expectancy of 40 years.” “This plant is close to 50 years old and it’s starting to break down,” he said. With the DEP allowing Wheelabrator to buy credits that could be used for emission reductions, it was eliminating any incentive for the company to make necessary improvements for the plant so that it could meet standards on its own, Manoogian added. He also noted that top state officials – including the governor and lieutenant governor – were receiving campaign contributions from Wheelabrator, which could be favorably influencing state decigen oxide is a poisonous gas,” said Elle Baker, a former Saugus resident who currently lives in Revere and is a member of the Alliance for Health and Environment. “Why should we have more toxic air so that somebody else living near a clean incinerator gets better air,” Baker said. “Buying credit makes no sense.” Baker also suggested that the quality of air coming out of Wheelabrator Saugus’s smokestacks could be worse than what officials think because it’s tested one day every nine months. Saugus Town Meeting Member Martin Costello of Precinct 10 reminded the DEP of its mission statement: to protect the state’s land, water and air. “This is an absurdity that we’re even having this meeting tonight,” Costello said. “If you can’t comply, close down. It’s as simple as that,” he said. Attorney George Hailer, special counsel to the Town of Saugus on Environmental Affairs, told The Saugus Advocate before the hearing that he was ready to back the DEP document. But that was before he learned of the ability of Wheelabrator to purchase ERCs. Hailer later testified that he feels “very uncomfortable” that there was a lack of public knowledge of the ERCs. “I would like the Department [DEP] to give another 30 days for public comment,” Hailer said. Start Your Weekend at the Marina Dance Party! Dance to the Sounds of Revere's Own... Saturday, October 19 at 9 PM Dance to the Hits of Yesterday and Today! DJ LOGIK Friday, October 18 at 9 PM DJ RICKY MONDAY'S SHUCK! $1.00 Oysters SUNDAY BRUNCH BUFFET Only $19.95 / 11am-2pm Featuring Al Whitney Jazz Band BOOK YOUR NEXT FUNCTION WITH US * GIFT CARDS AMPLE FREE www.marinaatthewharf.com 543 North Shore Rd. Revere 781-629-3798 PARKING For Advertising with Results, call The Advocate Newspapers at 781-286-8500 or Info@advocatenews.net AMAZING WATER VIEWS
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