The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has rejected permit applications for a proposed biochar plant in Saratoga County.
Saratoga Biochar Solutions proposed $83 million facility would see more than 700 tons of biosolids a day shipped six days a week to the Town of Moreau.
Biosolids are the by-products of processed sewage, which Saratoga Biochar wants to use to make fertilizer.
Now, without DEC approval, progress on the plant has seemingly come to a halt.
Residents organized against the facility, raising concerns about potential air pollution caused by incineration.
The company says its process, which heats the biosolids at temperatures upwards of 1,000 degrees, fully destroys harmful “forever chemicals” like PFAS.
Saratoga Biochar Solutions says its facility will help manage the state’s solid waste – the proposed plant was intended to process up to 15% of the biosolids generated in New York.
The decision from DEC said while the facility showed promise, “there are too many unanswered questions about the effectiveness of the process and too little information about its safe implementation at an industrial scale to approve the SBS applications.”
Tatiana Bubello was among opponents celebrating the DEC’s decision at Moreau town hall on Tuesday.
“Shortly after I bought my home, I became aware of this project and it actually would be located at the back of my property. I’m a nurse, I’m the mother of five young children, we wanted this to be the place where we set our roots and allow our children to grow. Obviously, I was very upset, concerned. So, to try to make myself feel better I did a lot of research, the more research I did the worse I felt,” said Bubello.
Lifelong town resident Maureen Jackson points out the previous slate of town board members initially approved the project. Current Independent Supervisor Jesse Fish beat the incumbent Todd Kusnierz, a Republican, by a 3-to-1 margin last November after running on a platform opposing the project.
“They’re more for the people, for the town, not saying that the town doesn’t want to grow into the 21st century, but we want to do it responsibly in something that benefits everybody not just one particular person or one group, but the town as a whole. I have to honestly say I didn’t go to board meetings so I took a lot for granted that the town board was doing what we wanted and how we saw the town proceeding. So, when this came about it kind of angered a lot of people myself included in that it was thrown in our face and we weren’t involved in the process,” said Jackson.
Jackson, an environmental geologist, had major concerns with the proposed facility.
“One of the main things was there was no proof behind the facts they were trying to tell us and shove down our throats as facts. To me, as a scientist, wasn’t making sense for what they were saying and what they were trying to get us to believe,” said Jackson.
In a statement, company CEO Raymond Apy says his company remains confident in its proposed technology, and while they don’t agree with the DEC’s decision, “we do respect it and are hopeful that one day we can be a partner to the state of New York in helping to protect our environment, improve quality of life and grow economic opportunities statewide.”
Speaking after Tuesday’s meeting, town board member John Donohue welcomed the decision.
“You know the people spoke and they spoke loud and clear, they didn’t want this industry in this town. It’s as simple as that. So, we listened to that and we’ve done everything we could possibly do to try to keep this out of our community. But the reaction of the town residents is what really motivated us. The people spoke, this is their town. We don’t need someone coming in here bringing stuff that may not be good for our town,” said Donohue.
The town board implemented a construction moratorium in the industrial park set to host the plant in March and established a task force to rewrite the town’s zoning codes, which hadn’t been updated since 1989, in April.
A public hearing for the zoning code changes is set for November 26th.