State to dismantle one of city’s dirtiest former power plants

NY Daily News wrote about the demolishment of the Charles Poletti Power Project, one of the bigeest poluters in New York. The facility started producing electricity in 1977 and was shuttered in 2010, after a law suit and years of opposition

One of the city’s dirtiest former power plants is being razed to the ground, ensuring that it cannot be resurrected to once again pollute the air in northwestern Queens.

The Charles Poletti Power Project, located off 20th Ave. in Astoria, is to be dismantled in early 2013, elected officials said Tuesday.

The facility, which began operation in 1977, was shuttered in 2010 following a lawsuit and years of sustained community opposition.

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Former Gov. George Pataki announced in 2002 that the Poletti facility would be phased out. The 885-megawatt plant, which burned oil and natural gas, was operated by the New York Power Authority. It was phased out over the next eight years and was replaced in 2005 by a newer, cleaner New York Power Authority facility nearby.

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But Astoria and Long Island City still produce the bulk of the city’s power supply — a fact bemoaned by local environmentalists who blame the area’s high rates of asthma on the facilities.

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State Sen. Michael Gianaris (D-Astoria) said it is significant that a few of the smoke stacks, a common sight on the edges of Astoria, are coming down.

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