

Unlike IOUs*, a municipal utility is owned and controlled by the municipality through its local utility board, over which residents can exercise a much greater level of control.
Municipal Utility Study, MA Dept of Energy Resources, July 2010
* Investor Owned Utilities include Eversource and National Grid
Name, Title
Call for Action:
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Tell Wakefield Light Commissioners to Vote to Opt Out of the Peabody Peaker - Wednesday, May 11, 2022
6:30pm
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WATCH: The June 22nd Public Forum organized by MMWEC designed for them to share their plan and listen to stakeholders, with Facebook livestream. Copy of my remarks at the forum are here.​​
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Join the Breath Clean North Shore and Stop the Peabody Peaker Facebook groups for updates.
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Donate to the Stop Peabody Peaker Legal and Advocacy Fund.
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If you are in a participating municipal utility district, send the commissioners, your elected officials and the local newspaper a letter asking for them to Stop the Peabody Peaker.
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Latest News:
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March 11, 2022 - Protestors plan hunger strike over Peabody power plant, The Salem News
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March 10, 2022 - Peabody Generator Opponents Make Late Plea to Halt Project, Patch
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December 9, 2021 - Proposed Peabody 'peaker' plant 'misguided,' Environmental League of Massachusetts president says, WGBH News
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November 23, 2021- Amid the push for a cleaner future, a proposed power plant threatens to escalate the war over the region’s power grid, Boston Globe
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November 18, 2021- Peabody Generator Opponents Refuse To Give Up Fight, Patch PM
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August 12, 2021 - Peabody power plant gets green light, The Salem News
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June 30, 2021 - Heatwave puts Peabody plant in spotlight, The Salem News
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June 25, 2021 - Peabody commission hears concerns about planned power plant, The Salem News
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June 23, 2021 - Opponents: Power plant changes a start, The Salem News
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June 23, 2021 - Communication Pledge Follows Peabody Power Plant Forum, Patch
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June 22, 2021 - Proposed Peabody Power Plant Defended, Challenges at Public Forum, Patch
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June 22, 2021 - As Opposition Rallies, Peabody Power Plant Plans Community Forum, WBUR
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June 21, 2021 - Letter: It is Time to Rethink Wakefield's Participation in New Fossil Power Plant, Wakefield Daily Item
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June 21, 2021 - Marblehead residents push for pause on peaker plant, WickedLocal
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June 21, 2021 - Letter: Looking for Dialogue, The Salem News
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June 19, 2021 - No justification for proposed Peabody gas plant, Commonwealth Magazine
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June 17, 2021 - Column: The Peabody peaker challenge, The Salem News
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June 16, 2021 -MMWEC extends pause on plant, The Salem News
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June 12, 2021 - Power plant foes hope for "meaningful dialogue" at June 22 forum with MMWEC, The Salem News
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June 11, 2021 - Peabody Power Plant Opposition Delivers Petition Ahead of Forum, Patch
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June 11, 2021 - MCAN Press Conference after Petition Drop - watch here (Facebook)
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June 8, 2021 - Peabody Power Plant Battle Heats Up as "Pause" Nears 30 Days, Patch
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May 31, 2021 - Group urges MMWEC to meet with public, The Salem News
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May 17, 2021 - Letter: Peabody citizens must be heard on power plant, The Salem News
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May 14, 2021 - Letter: Renewable energy can meet peak demands, The Salem News
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May 13, 2021 - Power Plant foes disappointed by Executive Session, The Salem News
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May 12, 2021 - Plans for Peabody power plant on hold, The Salem News
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May 11, 2021 - Proposed Natural Gas Plant in Peabody On Hold, For Now, WBUR 90.9
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May 11, 2021 - Power Company Slams Brakes on Proposed Peabody Plant, Patch
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May 11, 2021 - Residents, officials speak out against power plant, The Salem News
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May 11, 2021 - Peabody Power Plant Opponents Cheer Pause in Project, Patch
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May 6, 2021 - North Shore Officials, Peabody Light Spar Over Proposed Gas Plant, Patch
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May 4, 2021 - Peabody power plant plans caught city off-guard, The Salem News
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April 20, 2021 - Gas 'peaker' plant would make way for more renewables, Massachusetts utilities say, Energy News Network
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April 12, 2021 - Peabody gas plant faces opposition, The Salem News
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April 21, 2021 - Lack of transparency cited by power plant foes, The Salem News
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March 3, 2021 - Project owner MMWEC has petitioned the Dept of Public Utilities (Docket 21-29) seeking approval to take on $170 million in tax-exempt debt to build the Peabody Power Plant and its associated infrastructure - an expanded natural gas pipeline, a compressor station, and a new oil tank.
Ask Wakefield to exit the costly and polluting 30-year Peabody Power Plant contract
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Julie's Letter to the WMGLD
Wakefield Municipal Gas and Light Department (WMGLD) is one of 14 municipal utilities in Massachusetts that, around 2017, agreed to enter into a 30+ year power contract that will enable the construction of a 55 megawatt (MW) natural gas and oil power plant to be located in Peabody, MA (known as MMWEC Special Project 2015A). Municipal utilities work on behalf of their local ratepayers, and yet not a single one of the 14 towns held a public listening session on a plant which is estimated to:
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Emit nearly 51,000 tons of the greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide, into the atmosphere every year - the equivalent of adding 11,000 combustion engine cars to Massachusetts' roads/year;
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Require the installation of a natural gas compressor to increase natural gas pressure, a new 200,000 gallon oil tank, a 90-foot smokestack and a 2,500 to 7,500 new tank to hold either aqueous urea or the hazardous gas, aqueous ammonia;
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Spew tons of particulate matter into a region located within half a mile of at least two designated environmental justice areas; and
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Commit ratepayers to paying for 30 years of high priced capacity, at a time when lower cost and cleaner alternatives are readily available and GHG-emitting power is likely to have to carry a cost of carbon in the foreseeable future.
Scientists tell us that we stand "on the brink of failure when it comes to holding global warming to moderate levels" unless we take "unprecedented actions" to cut carbon emissions over the next decade. In January, Governor Baker committed the Commonwealth to an ambitious target of net zero emissions, noting that "meeting this challenge will require bold action and partnership throughout every sector of the economy." Being bold starts at home.
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If confronting the existential climate threat isn't compelling enough, consider the high cost and very real financial risk of committing to an oil-fired power plant. In the first debate, now President Joe Biden declared "No one’s going to build another oil fire plant in America. They’re going to move to renewable energy." He can say this because renewable energy is now cost-competitive with conventional fuels. In fact, the cost of energy capacity has declined 62% since Wakefield committed to this project and is expected to continue to fall as offshore wind and other renewables enter the market. Wakefield has other options that will save money without damaging the environment. It is also quite possible that this plant will become a "stranded asset" if laws and regulations are successful at requiring 100% clean energy prior to the Peabody plant being paid off.
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Since WMGLD first reviewed the project in 2015, there has been an unprecedented shift in the energy market. Technological advances, scientific revelations, regulatory and political mandates, and falling costs demand that the WMGLD reassess its decision to commit Wakefield ratepayers to a 30-year contract. As a municipal utility, we, the residents and ratepayers of Wakefield, should be fully informed about the true cost of our power sources.
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Learn more about what you can do in the FAQ section. To stay updated as more information becomes available, please add your name to the email list.
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