Ravenswood Generating Station

Challenging DEC procedures in issuing a water withdrawal permit
for operation of Ravenwood Generating Station in Queens

Sierra Club and Hudson River Fishermen's Association v. NYS DEC (2019 Ravenswood Permit)

Appellate Division, Second Department, Docket No. 2020-02580

Notice of Entry of May 1, 2024 Judgment, filed May 10, 2024.

Reply Brief of Petitioners-Appellants, filed December 21, 2020.

Brief of Petitioners-Appellants, filed October 13, 2020.

Appendix, Vol. 1, Vol. 2, filed October 13, 2020.

Queens County Supreme Court, Index No. 2949-14

Decision and Order, dated October 31, 2019, filed and recorded November 7, 2019.

Petitioners' Reply Memorandum of Law, dated September 6, 2019, filed September 11, 2019.

Respondent Helix Ravenswood's Memorandum of Law, dated August 12, 2019, filed September 11, 2019.

Respondent Helix Ravenswood's Verified Answer, dated August 12, 2019, filed September 11, 2019.

Respondent DEC's Memorandum of Law, dated August 12, 2019, filed September 11, 2019.

Respondent DEC's Verified Answer, dated August 12, 2019, filed September 11, 2019.

Petitioners' Memorandum of Law, dated July 12, 2019, filed September 11, 2019.

Verified Petition, filed April 18, 2019.

DEC Water Withdrawal Permit Proceedings 2018-2019

Water Withdrawal Permit issued to Helix Ravenswood LLC for the operation of its Ravenswood Generating Station, February 20, 2019.

Response to Public Comments, February 20, 2019.

Final Amended EAF, Part 3, February 14, 2019.

Sierra Club Atlantic Chapter comment letter, November 16, 2018.

ENB announcement comment period extended to November 17, 2018, October 17, 2018.

ENB announcement of new draft permit and negative declaration, October 3, 2018.

Draft Permit same as permit issued March 7, 2014.

Environmental Assessment Form (EAF) Part 3 (negative declaration), September 25, 2018.

Notice of Complete Application, September 25, 2018.

EAF Part 1, May 4, 2018.

SPDES negative declaration, December 11, 2006.

Click here for additional information about the Ravenswood water withdrawal, SPDES and air permits

Sierra Club and Hudson River Fishermen's Association v. Martens (2013 Ravenswood Permit)

Appellate Division, Second Department, Docket No. 2015-02317

Decision, January 10, 2018. Published at 158 A.D.3d 169 (2nd Dep’t 2018).

Reply Brief of Petitioners-Appellants, filed January 12, 2016.

Brief of Respondent DEC, filed December 2, 2015.

Brief of Respondent TransCanada Ravenswood, filed November 24, 2015.

Brief of Petitioners-Appellants, filed July 27, 2015.

Record on Appeal (24 MB), filed July 27, 2015.

Queens County Supreme Court, Index No. 2949-14

Petitioners' Notice of Appeal of Judgment dated Nov. 25, 2014, filed January 7, 2015.

Judgment by Justice Robert McDonald dated November 25, 2014.

Order by Justice Robert McDonald dated October 2, 2014.

Decision by Justice Robert McDonald dated October 1, 2014.

Petitioners' Reply Memorandum of Law, May 8, 2014, filed with the court June 6, 2014.

TC Ravenswood's Memorandum of Law in Support of Motion to Dismiss, April 24, 2014.

Respondent DEC's Memorandum of Law, April 24, 2014.

Respondent DEC's Verified Answer, April 24, 2014.

Petitioners' Initial Memorandum of Law, March 21, 2014, filed with the court June 6, 2014.

Respondent DEC's Updated Administrative Record, March 13, 2014.

Refiled Petition (identical to original petition filed December 6, 2013), February 18, 2014.

Media Coverage of Case and Related Issues

DEC's handling of water regs criticized, John Ferro, Poughkeepsie Journal, March 3, 2016.

Molinaro questions DEC's execution of water law, John Ferro, Poughkeepsie Journal, December 8, 2015.

Millions of gallons taken from Hudson with no review, John Ferro, Poughkeepsie Journal, November 29, 2015.

New York Court Rejects Sierra Club’s Challenge to First Initial Water Withdrawal Permit Issued Under New State Law, Hiscock & Barclay, October 2014.

Hearings on Water Permits for Indian Point, Matthew Wald, New York Times, July 22, 2014.

Power plant may be killing fish, Queens Crap, June 16, 2014.

Sierra Club worries Ravenswood plant kills fish, Juan Soto, Queens Times-Ledger, June 15, 2014.

Sierra Club Fights NY Over Water & Power, Marlene Kennedy, Courthouse News Service, March 6, 2014.

Sierra Club and Hudson River Fishermen File Suit to Challenge DEC's Ravenswood Water Withdrawal Permitting Process, Sierra Club Atlantic Chapter Press Release, December 9, 2013.

Permit Materials

Water Withdrawal Permit Materials

Ravenswood Water Withdrawal Permit, February 20, 2019

Notice of Application, DEC Environmental Notice Bulletin, October 3, 2018.

DEC Corrected Ravenswood Initial Permit, dated March 7, 2014.

DEC Notice of Intent to Modify Ravenswood Initial Permit, dated February 19, 2014.

Ravenswood Professional Engineer Certification Regarding Maximum Water Withdrawal Capacity, dated December 17, 2013.

Ravenswood Revised Water Withdrawal Reports, dated December 10, 2013

DEC Response to Comments, November 15, 2013.

Ravenswood Initial Permit, dated November 15, 2013.

RT Comments on Ravenswood Water Water Withdrawal Permit Application, Sept. 11, 2013.

Amended Notice of Application, DEC Environmental Notice Bulletin, August 28, 2013.

Notice of Application, DEC Environmental Notice Bulletin, August 7, 2013.

Ravenswood Water Withdrawal Permit Application, May 31, 2013.

State Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (“SPDES”) Permit Materials

Ravenswood SPDES Discharge Permit, October 1, 2012, including Appendix A Industrial Fact Sheet and Appendix B, Biological Fact Sheet Cooling Water Intake Structure

DEC Approval of Ravenswood Technology Installation and Operation Plan, dated August 29, 2007.

2011 SPDES Permit Renewal Application (8MB, 408 pages).

Ravenswood Technology Installation and Operation Plan, dated August 1, 2007

2007 SPDES Permit

Ravenswood SPDES Permit Negative Declaration, December 11, 2006

EPA-Approved New York Source-Specific Provisions, Part 249: Best Available Retrofit Technology (BART). Ravenswood Generating Station, TC, Boilers 10, 20, 30, Permit Id 2-6304-00024, effective 4/6/12
8/28/12, 77 FR 51915; Ravenswood Steam Plant, Con Edison, Boiler 2, Permit Id 2-6304-01378 effective 3/20/12, 8/28/12, 77 FR 51915.

Fish Entrainment Studies

The Relationship between Cooling Water Capacity Utilization, Electric Generating Capacity Utilization, and Impingement and Entrainment at New York State Steam Electric Generating Facilities, Nieder, William C., New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Technical Document. Albany, NY. July 2010.

Ravenswood Generating Station, Impingement Survival Monitoring Studies, June 2006 – February 2007
Final Report prepared for KeySpan Corporation by ASA Analysis & Communication, Inc., October 2007.

Ravenswood Generating Station, Impingement Survival Monitoring Studies, March 2005– February 2006, Report prepared for KeySpan Corporation by ASA Analysis & Communication, Inc., August 2006.

Fish Reimpingement Study at Ravenswood Generating Station, Prepared by Normandeau Associates for Consolidated Edison Company, May 1999.

Thermal Tolerance Assessment for Ravenswood Generating Station, Prepared by Normandeau Associates for Consolidated Edison Company, April 1999.

Ravenswood Generating Station June 25, 1999 Velocity Studies, Prepared by Normandeau Associates for Consolidated Edison Company, March 1999.

Ravenswood Generating Station Diagnostic Study Report, Prepared by Consolidated Edison Company of New York. Inc., Pursuant to the December 23, 1993 Order on Consent, in Dec File No. R2-2985-90-04, April 30, 1996

Ravenswood Generating Station Impingement and Entrainment Report, February 1993 – January 1994, Prepared by Normandeau Associates for Consolidated Edison Company of New York, Inc., April 1994.

Title V Air Permit Materials

RAVENSWOOD GENERATING STATION, 2-6304-00024/00039, Feb 04, 2010
Permit ID:2-6304-01378/00002
Facility DEC ID: 2630401378
ISSUANCE OF A STATE OPERATING PERMIT
Issued by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Region 2
Petition No.: II-2001-08
Title V of the Clean Air Act (“CAA” or “the Act”), 42 U.S.C. §§ 7661-7661f, CAA §§ 501-507, to the Ravenswood Steam Plant located in Long Island City, New York. The permittee will be referred to as “Ravenswood” for purposes of this Order. The Ravenswood permit was issued by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Region 2 (“DEC”), and took effect on October 22, 2001, pursuant to title V of the Act, the federal implementing regulations, 40 CFR part 70, and the New York State implementing regulations, consisting of portions of 6 NYCRR parts 200, 201, 621, and 624.

Permit Review Report, 2009

Article X Materials

Key Study Assumptions for the Helix Ravenswood GT 9 Deactivation Assessment, Kevin DePugh, ESPWG/TPAS, November 17, 2017.

Notice to PSC of Mothball Status of Ravenswood GT 3-4, August 20 2011.

TransCanada Corporation's New York Energy Highway Request for Information Response, May 30, 2012.

Materials on Fish Impingement and Entrainment

DEC Website, Aquatic Habitat Protection Power Plants

Giant Fish Blenders: How Power Plants Kill Fish and Damage Our Waterways - Sierra Club

Economic Damages of Impingement and Entrainment of Fish, Fish Eggs, and Fish Larvae at the Bay Shore Power Plant - Gentner Consulting Group

Burning Our Rivers: The Water Footprint of Electricity - River Network

Best Technology Available (BTA) for Cooling Water Intake Structures - New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

The Relationship between Cooling Water Capacity Utilization, Electric Generating Capacity Utlization, and Impingement and Entrainment at New York State Steam Electric Generating Facilities - New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

California’s Power Plant Once-Through Cooling Regulation - California State Water Resources Control Board

Entergy Corp. v. EPA - Supreme Court of the United States

Cooling Water Intake Structures—CWA §316(b) - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

The Quick and the Dead: Fish Entrainment, Entrapment, and the Implementation and Application of Section 316(B) of the Clean Water Act - Vermont Law Review, 1995.

The Quick and the Dead - Waterkeeper, Winter 2007

Brooklyn-Queens Aquifer Studies

Brooklyn-Queens Aquifer Feasibility Study - NYC.gov
www.nyc.gov/html/dep/html/dep_projects/bqa.shtml

May 4, 2007 - The Brooklyn-Queens Aquifer (BQA) Feasibility Study is a multi-phase study designed to investigate the use of groundwater from aquifers to ...

Simulation of Freshwater-Saltwater Interfaces in the Brooklyn-Queens Aquifer System, Long Island, New York, Angelo L. Kontis, U.S. Geological Survey, Water-Resources Investigations Report 98-4067, Prepared in cooperation with the New York City Department of Environmental Protection, 1999.

Simulation of the Effects of Development of the Ground-Water Flow System of Long Island, New York, Herbert T.Buxton and Douglas A. Smolensky, U.S. Geological Survey, Water-Resources Investigations Report 98-4069, Prepared in cooperation with the Nassau County Department of Public Works, Suffolk County Department of Health Services, Suffolk County Water Authority, and the New York City Department of Environmental Protection, 1999.

History and Hydrologic Effects of Ground- Water Use in Kings, Queens, and Western Nassau Counties, Long Island, New York, 1800’s through 1997, Richard A. Cartwright, U.S. Geological Survey, Water-Resources Investigations Report 01-4096, 2002.