News Release December 11, 2001
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
EUB APPROVES AES CALGARY'S APPLICATION TO BUILD A 525-MEGAWATT NATURAL GAS-FIRED POWER PLANT EAST OF CALGARY
Calgary, Alberta (December 11, 2001) The Alberta Energy and Utilities Board (the Board) has issued Decision 2001-101, which approves, with conditions, AES Calgary ULC's application to construct and operate a 525-megawatt (MW) natural gas-fired power plant, located approximately 1.6 kilometres east of Calgary city limits.
Having carefully considered all the evidence, the Board has determined that the proposed project can be built and operated in a manner that is safe to the public. Therefore, it is in the public interest of Albertans for the project to proceed. The application by AES was considered at a public hearing held in Chestermere, Alberta, from August 13 to September 12, 2001.
The Board believes that the stringent conditions attached to this approval effectively mitigate concerns raised by interveners during the hearing in Chestermere. These conditions focus on health and safety concerns such as emergency response planning, air monitoring, noise, insurance, and operational standards.
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This news release, backgrounder, and Decision 2001-101 are available on the EUB Web site at http://www.ercb.ca.
For more information, please contact:
Bob Curran, Senior Advisor
EUB Communications
Tel. 403-297-3392
Fax 403-297-3757
Email: bob.curran@gov.ab.ca
NR2001-38
Backgrounder
DECISION 2001-101: EUB APPROVES AES CALGARY'S APPLICATION TO BUILD A 525-MEGAWATT NATURAL GAS-FIRED POWER PLANT EAST OF CALGARY
The following is an excerpt from Decision 2001-101, Section 10: Decision.
The Board finds that approval of the proposed AES Calgary ULC 525-megawatt natural gas-fired turbine is in the public interest for the reasons set out in the previous sections of this report.
The impact that the power plant may have on the local residents has been thoroughly reviewed at the public hearing and the Board is satisfied that the health and safety of the local community has been safeguarded through the design and operational features of the plant and the strict compliance with provincial environmental guidelines and Board requirements.
In reaching this decision, the Board notes that Alberta Environment has reviewed the application and concluded that "the emissions from natural gas fueled combined cycle power plants are well understood and the decision was made to not refer the application for screening to the Environmental Impact Assessment and Strategy Division."
Furthermore, the Board notes that the CRHA has also reviewed AES's application and supplemental information requested by the CRHA. Following its review, the CRHA concluded "with reference to public health protection from acute and chronic health risks and NOx, particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), SO2, CO, formaldehyde and PAH emissions from the AES generating station, the CRHA does not object to the proposed development."
Therefore, the Board approved Application No. 2001113 with the following conditions:
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AES will include all the safety recommendations contained in sections 7.3 and 7.5 of Dr. Bercha's report into the design and operation of its power plant. In addition, AES will consider including the recommendations contained in section 7.4 of Dr. Bercha's report into the final design and operation of its power plant.
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AES will design and implement a monitoring program to determine the extent to which the cooling tower drift may contain biochemical contaminants and will report the results of the monitoring program to the Board at semiannual intervals until the Board determines such monitoring is no longer required.
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AES shall provide continuous ambient monitoring for NO2, wind speed and wind direction. Monitoring shall be conducted in accordance with Alberta Environment's Air Monitoring Directive. AES shall suggest an appropriate monitor location; this location must receive approval from Alberta Environment. Monitoring data must be reported monthly. A minimum of six months of background data must be gathered prior to start-up of the facility. An additional three years of data must be gathered during and after the start-up of the facility, for the purpose of confirming resulting ambient concentrations. AES shall also observe any monitoring requirements defined by Alberta Environment.
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The Board directs AES to work with local residents and EUB staff to design and conduct an appropriate noise validation survey once the plant is operating at full capacity to confirm Permissible Sound Levels (PSLs) are being met. Should the PSLs be exceeded an appropriate enforcement action, including possible suspension of operations, would be initiated by the EUB.
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AES will submit the draft Emergency Response Plan to the EUB Operations and Compliance Branch for review and approval in conjunction with the MD's review.
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Beginning immediately, AES will provide quarterly reports to the Board detailing its progress for each quarter.
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To verify that the performance of the new technologies meets the guaranteed emission limits at various operating conditions, such as start-up, full load etc., AES shall file with the Board, in addition to the quarterly progress report, the following information:
Acceptance test reports for:
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Gas turbine-generator,
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Selective Catalytic Reduction or other post-combustion method for reducing NOx emissions,
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Water Treatment Plant, and
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Cooling tower
Should any design changes be required, details of the original design problem and subsequent modifications to rectify the problem should be filed with the Board immediately after the decision to implement the modifications is made. As well, if certifying bodies are involved, their reviews of the test results must also be included.
When performance tests are conducted for the purpose of verifying guaranteed performance, performance codes and parameters required to be established prior to the tests must comply with standards commonly used in North America, such as The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) standards for gas turbines, and ASME or Cooling Technology Institute (CTI) standards for cooling towers.
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Should AES desire to make any material changes to the plant or vary the design, the construction, and/or specifications of the plant from what is described in its application, evidence given at the hearing, or what the Board has approved, AES must acquire Board approval prior to proceeding with any such changes.
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Prior to commencing construction of the power plant, AES shall prepare and file with the Board, for its approval, a report, which identifies the nature of the future decommissioning of the power plant, its probable cost, and the means of securing the funds required to complete the decommissioning.
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Prior to commencing construction of the power plant, AES Calgary ULC shall provide to the Board, for its approval, an analysis of appropriate level of insurance coverage regarding the risk of significant public liability. In addition and also prior to commencing construction of the power plant, AES shall file a copy of its public liability insurance policy with the Board for its approval and shall file a commitment from the insurer that it will notify the Board of any modifications to said policy. Should AES, at any time, allow the policy to lapse or be deemed by the EUB to be inadequate, the plant shall cease to operate until such time as the policy is reinstated, replaced, or returned to a level of adequacy. Board approval of both the decommissioning and liability insurance reports will be a condition of any facility approval granted by the Board.
