Beacon Council Opposes Rebuilding of Danskammer

BEACON – The Beacon City Council is on record opposing the rebuilding of the Danskammer electric generating plant in the Town of Newburgh.

The vote came at last Monday night’s council session, which was proceeded by protestors in front of City Hall opposing redevelopment of the plant across the Hudson River.

They chanted, “We’re in a climate emergency. Cuomo, we need urgency,” a reference to Governor Andrew Cuomo.

Among those addressing the council in opposition to the plant was Johanna Fallert, who said Dutchess County was rated as a “D” in air quality by the American Lung Association, and she hopes that the Beacon opposition will improve that rating. “Your constituents are breathing the very air that currently has a poor rating,” Fallert told the council. “This affects people with asthma, bronchitis, and those with weak immune systems. The laws that we currently have by the Clean Air Act don’t establish thresholds that reduce risks to the general population.”

As an alternative, the city council aims to focus additional economic resources to provide prevailing-wage jobs for the construction and operation of clean power generation and will be sending their resolution to the governor.