CURWENSVILLE – The Sunnyside ethanol plant project was a main topic at Monday night’s Curwensville Borough Council meeting.
Speaking on behalf of Citizens for a Clean Curwensville, group President Pam Sheeder thanked Aaron Keirn, Mark Curulla and the planning commission for acting in the best interest of Curwensville Borough at last week’s planning commission meeting concerning the Sunnyside project.
Sheeder said her group is not against biofuels or ethanol or jobs for Curwensville, but that they are against a waste coal fired co-generation plant being placed within the confines of Curwensville, more specifically by their schools.
Sheeder presented information to council concerning a 2007 bill signed into law, the Energy Independence and Security Act. She stated that this law defines how ethanol must be produced if it is going to be sold to oil companies.
She read that according to the law, for oil companies to received credits, they must purchase their ethanol from plants that are compliant with the regulations of EISA.
According to information provided by Sheeder, EISA states that ethanol must be produced in a manner that the sum total of all greenhouse gas emissions from the ethanol making process must be 20 percent lower than that of producing gasoline. Sheeder said that oil companies purchasing ethanol from plants not operating within the guidelines may not count that purchase toward their government required minimums.
Plants that are grandfathered are not held to those EISA requirements. Sheeder said that according to experts from the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Sierra Club, Sunnyside is not nor will be a grandfathered facility.
“It is our intention to continue to pursue this in conjunction with NRDC and the Sierra Club if you continue to move forward with a project that is not EISA compliant and therefore not EPA compliant,” stated Sheeder. “You can ignore our cry for more meetings, you can ignore our cry for a clean air ordinance but I present to you tonight that you can not ignore the federal EISA guidelines. I specifically ask on behalf of Citizens for a Clean Curwensville that you do not give local land use and building permits to Sunnyside until such time Sunnyside proves their compliance with EISA.”
Citizen Elizabeth Ritz said that initially she was concerned over the traffic that Sunnyside might bring. She asked that council consider having Sunnyside return for other meetings.
“I’m not against the plant,” said Ritz. “Lord knows we need industry.”
She went on to state that she was against the plant burning waste coal. She stated that if they could use electricity it would be cleaner. One man behind her commented on where electricity comes from.
Another man commented on his concern over how the plant would affect water temperatures and fish in the river. Another man asked council to consider real-time air quality monitoring devices, the data of which would be available to the public, for new industry.
Curulla said her information would be passed onto the borough’s solicitor for review.
At one point the meeting took personal tones.
Council member Fred Sopic addressed Sheeder at one point, pointing out to comments she allegedly made on a Web site. Sopic took umbrage with Sheeder alleging that prior councils bankrupted the community.
“You made an off the cuff statement and I resent it,” said Sopic.
Sheeder responded.
“This situation is about the health of Curwensville, not about personal issues.”
Sopic also called fellow council member and media director for Citizens for a Clean Curwensville Sam Ettaro an idiot. After some gavel pounding by Curulla Ettaro called Sopic a child.
Council Chairman Curulla said that there was nothing more for council to do. He stated that if citizens or citizens’ groups wanted to hold meetings they could. He stated that if they were going to hold meetings they should do it soon.
“If they (Sunnyside) meet the criteria, we can’t stop them,” said Curulla. He added that if council tries, they could be sued.
“We’re trying to do the best we can with what we have to work with,” said Curulla.
Later in the meeting Ettaro asked council to consider holding further meetings to get the pros and cons of an ethanol plant in Curwensville. His motion failed for lack of a second.
Ettaro also asked for council to endorse the consideration of a 24/7, real-time air control ordinance. That motion also failed due to lack of a second.
Ettaro also provided information he received from an economic policy panelist concerning the Sunnyside project.