Coal-Burning Power Plant In Beesley Point Shutting Down After More Than 50 Years Of Service
CAPE MAY COUNTY, N.J. (CBS) – A coal-burning power plant, that you've definitely seen when driving to the Jersey Shore, will shut down in South Jersey on Wednesday. The BL England Power Plant has been in service for 50 years in Beesley Point.
The landmark has been like a giant mile marker along Route 9 and the Garden State Parkway, letting people know they've entered Cape May County, but tomorrow it shuts down for good.
With its towering smoke stack against the back drop of the serene Great Egg Harbor Bay, it's hard to miss the BL England Power Plant in Upper Township.
Some might say it's an eye sore in the middle of pristine wetland beauty, but the coal-burning plant has supplied power to generations and economic stability to its host municipality Upper Township.
"It's been a great partner for many years, it's been great for the township. We have excellent schools and a lot of that is because the agreement to have the plant built here in the first place," Upper Township Mayor Rich Palombo said.
But this week marks the end of an era.
The plant, which has been sparsely used for the last year, will officially shut down on Wednesday per an agreement with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.
Plans to modernize the plant by converting it to natural gas fell apart as did a controversial proposal for a supply pipeline through the nearby Pinelands. While future plans for the site are unknown right now, one idea is to use some of the BL England infrastructure to tie proposed offshore energy projects into the electric grid.
"The pipeline being defeated, the plant closing has been so many years in the making and is really a credit to the activists that have worked for so many years on this project," Pinelands Preservation Alliance Rhyan Grech said.
As state regulators and potential investors eye the property, local officials hope it will continue to supply municipal support. Between property taxes and the $6 million energy receipt it brings, the power plant has supplied almost half of Upper Township's revenues. Palombo says financial commitments remain intact for next year, but beyond that, it's less clear.
"I don't think it will have any real immediate impact on the township but five or 10 years down the line we have to start planning for that as well," Palombo said.
Attempts to reach the plants owners to find out about future plans were unsuccessful Tuesday.
Local officials say they were told several employees will remain at the facility as it goes through the decommissioning process.
