Editorial

Properly Placed Plants For Power Needs

Next Monday elected officials are calling for their constituents to join them in a rally at the Citicorp Building in Long Island City to protest the New York Power Authority's decision to put two generating plants on the East River waterfront close to the Queensborough Bridge.

Seven such plants, generating 79.9 megawatts of power each, are slated to be placed around New York City in anticipation of growing power needs this summer. Without the generating facilities, the Power Authority claims, New Yorkers can look forward to power interruptions in the form of dips, brownouts and possibly even the major power shutdowns known as blackouts as the city's antiquated and inadequate generating structure tries to meet escalating demand.

Even minor power dips and brownouts can cause computers to malfunction and air conditioners to shut down as well as interfering with other appliances which people find convenient if not vital to their lives. The blackout of 1977, unlike its predecessors in the 1960s, saw looting and vandalizing in many neighborhoods. A beleaguered police force was hard pressed to keep order. The localized blackouts of 1999, while happily absent the widespread lawlessness of the 1977 event, inconvenienced many people and caused serious losses for many businesses. Life support equipment functioned only with backup power systems. We have no desire to see more power interruptions in any form in New York City.

Opponents of the generating plants, however--and those opponents include almost every elected official in the borough from Borough President Claire Shulman on--claim that there must be better places to locate the plants. Shulman is calling for siting the plants either at John F. Kennedy Airport in Howard Beach or at the former Phelps Dodge plant in Maspeth. Civic organizations opposing the plants claim that the existing generating facilities are a major cause of pollution and related illnesses in western Queens and adjoining neighborhoods.

Opposition to the plants also arises from the fact that putting the facilities in Long Island City will bring about a major setback to two of the area's most promising growth industries--market rate and luxury housing on the waterfront, especially at the Queens West development, and the burgeoning film and television production industry, as one of the proposed generator sites would occupy land sought by Silvercup Studios for expansion of its production facilities. The returns on Queens West and Silvercup far outpace any temporary gains to be made by the construction.

We admit to the need for more power generating capacity in New York City. The localized brownouts and blackouts in upper Manhattan of a few years ago marooned many elderly New Yorkers in their apartments, in some cases threatening their well-being. It is obvious, even without examples from history to draw upon, that power shortages can be life-threatening if they affect hospitals, nursing homes and other patient care enterprises. From a novelty and a rich person's toy slightly more than a century ago, electric power has become a major part of all elements of our lives. Just how much we depend upon a continuing supply of inexpensive power is never more obvious than when we are faced with the prospect of going without it.

The plants are generating 79.9 megawatts of electricity to stay under the 80-megawatt threshold at which they would require environmental impact statements and the installation of pollution control devices that would make them more expensive to build and operate. At a time in human history when new solutions to old problems seem to be arising almost daily we are certain that a way to build clean, efficient plants that are inexpensive to construct and operate is within reach. Let us find it.

This is the first year of a new century and a new millennium. There are few better ways to enter into a new era than by exercising responsible stewardship of our environment. Clean, safe, efficient, inexpensive electric generating plants located in areas where they affect as few people as possible demonstrate such stewardship in a way that will benefit generations to follow as well.

Sanit Workers Start Year Off Right

The year 2000 went out with a bang when a snowstorm Dec. 30th dumped 11 inches of snow on New York City. By morning of the following day, however, all that remained of the white stuff on most of the streets of Queens was piled along curbs or gone altogether. Crews from the Department of Sanitation worked the clock around to get the streets cleared and keep them that way. As a result, it was business as usual for most of the borough. Snowstorm? What snowstorm?

As if that wasn't enough, they went on to clean up after the world's biggest New Year's Eve party in Times Square. By 10 a.m. Jan. 1, the only trace of 700,000-odd revelers who had crowded the streets hours before was an occasional flake of confetti. Party? What party?

All honor and glory to New York's Strongest. Guys, you did us proud and we thank you.