PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Nexamp believes there is still a path to getting a solar array at Pontoosuc Country Club.
The Boston-based company was just recently denied by the Conservation Commission because of the access road to the proposed 6.5-megawatt array infringed on wetlands. The array was hotly contested among the neighbors, who mounted a coordinated opposition to the project at Conservation Commission and the Zoning Board of Appeals meetings on it.
In the wake of that denial, Nexamp's business development manager Joseph Fiori asked the Zoning Board of Appeals to hold off on voting for that permit in hopes to reassess the project.
"We have our work cut out for us. We do think there are solutions and we want to be able to propose those solutions in a comprehensive way," Fiori told the Zoning Board of Appeals on Wednesday.
The ZBA agreed to table its vote until January to give Nexamp time to make any changes to the proposal and seek either an appeal, resubmit a new plan, or find an alternative that does not require the Conservation Commission's approval for the access road. Fiori said the company hasn't had time to look at alternatives yet.
"We received today the actual order [from ConCom] and have read through those comments this morning and we are sort of waiting on that to determine how best to address those concerns," he said on Wednesday.
The issue has been before the Zoning Board of Appeals for a few months. In October, there was a lengthy meeting with Nexamp presenting its plans and the neighbors giving a presentation opposing it. The ZBA later held a site visit to see the lay of the land themselves.
ZBA member Esther Bolan said she was willing to vote on it Wednesday night but the other members agreed to give Nexamp a chance to further address concerns raised by the ZBA, the ConCom, and the neighbors.
"There is a lot to address," ZBA Chairman Albert Ingegni.
Ingegni also said the ZBA was ready to cast a vote on the issue Wednesday night. The ZBA and the ConCom approvals are separate and have different focuses. However, the ZBA prefers to have any Conservation Commissions issues addressed first for instances such as this when changes could be required.
The neighbors who have been fighting the plans have realized that the victory with the Conservation Commission isn't the end and had attended the ZBA meeting in great numbers only to have the hearing continued.
Thursday night, sitting the City Council Chambers because as the snow fell outside, Rivers-Murphy and what seemed like the entire Ridge Avenue neighborhood were yet again fighting a 6.5-megawatt solar project proposed for the Pontoosuc Lake Country Club.
The Conservation Commission needs more time before rendering its decision on a hotly debated solar array at the Pontoosuc Country Club. The Boston-based solar developer Nexamp Inc. is proposing a 6.5-megawatt solar array on 25 of the course's 131 acres of land.
The neighbors around the Pontoosuc Country Club have mounted a coordinated attack in opposition to the proposed solar array. The Boston-based solar developer Nexamp Inc. is proposing a 6.5-megawatt solar array on 25 of the course's 131 acres of land.
Ridge Avenue area neighbors feel blindsided by a plan to construct a 6.6-megawatt solar facility at the Pontoosuc Country Club. The Boston-based solar developer Nexamp is looking to take over 25 of the 131 acres on the course for a photovoltaic array. The planned array is located on the southern portion of the property - the Hancock Road side of the first handful of holes.
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State Fire Marshal: New Tracking Tool Identifies 50 Lithium-Ion Battery Fires
STOW, Mass. — The Massachusetts Department of Fire Services' new tool for tracking lithium-ion battery fires has helped to identify 50 such incidents in the past six months, more than double the annual average detected by a national fire data reporting system, said State Fire Marshal Jon M. Davine.
The Department of Fire Services launched its Lithium-Ion Battery Fire Investigative Checklist on Oct. 13, 2023. It immediately went into use by the State Police Fire & Explosion Investigation Unit assigned to the State Fire Marshal's office, and local fire departments were urged to adopt it as well.
Developed by the DFS Fire Safety Division, the checklist can be used by fire investigators to gather basic information about fires in which lithium-ion batteries played a part. That information is then entered into a database to identify patterns and trends.
"We knew anecdotally that lithium-ion batteries were involved in more fires than the existing data suggested," said State Fire Marshal Davine. "In just the past six months, investigators using this simple checklist have revealed many more incidents than we've seen in prior years."
Prior to the checklist, the state's fire service relied on battery fire data reported to the Massachusetts Fire Incident Reporting System (MFIRS), a state-level tool that mirrors and feeds into the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS). NFIRS tracks battery fires but does not specifically gather data on the types of batteries involved. Some fields do not require the detailed information that Massachusetts officials were seeking, and some fires may be coded according to the type of device involved rather than the type of battery. Moreover, MFIRS reports sometimes take weeks or months to be completed and uploaded.
"Investigators using the Lithium-Ion Battery Fire Checklist are getting us better data faster," said State Fire Marshal Davine. "The tool is helpful, but the people using it are the key to its success."
From 2019 to 2023, an average of 19.4 lithium-ion battery fires per year were reported to MFIRS – less than half the number identified by investigators using the checklist over the past six months. The increase since last fall could be due to the growing number of consumer devices powered by these batteries, increased attention by local fire investigators, or other factors, State Fire Marshal Davine said. For example, fires that started with another item but impinged upon a battery-powered device, causing it to go into thermal runaway, might not be categorized as a battery fire in MFIRS or NFIRS.
Albert Ingegni III was applauded for four decades of service on the Zoning Board of Appeals during City Council. Mayor Peter Marchetti presented him with a certificate of thanks for his commitment to the community.
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Between disagreements about site design and a formal funding process not yet established, more time is needed before a decision can be made.
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The Ordinances and Rules subcommittee on Monday unanimously supported a pay raise for election workers, free downtown parking for veterans, and safeguards to better protect wetlands.
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A parking study of North Street will be presented at Tuesday's City Council meeting. The design maintains parallel parking while expanding pedestrian zones and adding protected bike lanes. click for more