Community voices are critical
With your support, we will continue to advocate for a clean energy future for Ravenswood and continue to apply for permits and approvals to make this project a reality.
Community engagement
We’ll be hosting and showing up at community events to continue the conversations around Renewable Ravenswood and Attentive Energy One. We’ll be sharing more about the current initiatives we’re working on, listening for feedback and ideas on what the vision should include, and seeking community support to help make this project a reality.
What we’ve heard so far
Strengthening community support also means hearing from many perspectives and creating a shared vision for Renewable Ravenswood.
Renewable Ravenswood is an exciting opportunity to replace fossil fuel generation, keep good union jobs, and create a new path here in Western Queens focused on the future. I am fully supportive of this initiative and look forward to supporting this proposal as it moves forward. Our partnership with Rise can be a model for how we finally take down the polluting stacks in our city and build an energy revolution.
I applaud Rise Light & Power for taking steps to transition Big Allis and Ravenswood to a clean energy hub. “We are living through a climate emergency, and we need to take bold actions to counteract decades of environmental injustice and bad energy policy. A Renewable Ravenswood not only allows for the green powering of New York City, but it will also be a major step forward on environmental justice.
It becomes more apparent each day climate change is having an adverse impact on our communities, It is vital for us to seize the opportunity to produce clean, renewable energy right here in Queens. Renewable Ravenswood’s vision for a future powered by wind, solar and battery technology that lifts-the-floor for all our friends and family is what we need as we face this climate emergency.
Asthma Alley is a distinction western Queens is not proud of, and that means our community must be centered during the transition to clean energy with union jobs. We need to encourage projects like this, which focus on meeting our climate priorities, including the ambitious goals laid out in the CLCPA passed by our Senate majority, so we can have a just transition and protect our neighbors.
Northwest Queens has too long been burdened by asthma from fossil fuel plants spewing air pollution day-in and day-out, and is ripe for a just transition to clean energy. To meet our climate goals, we need bold action led by a unionized, green workforce. This is exactly the type of ambitious project we need to clean up our air, meet our climate goals, and achieve a just transition.
By redeveloping the Ravenswood Generation Station into a renewable energy hub, we will not only take massive steps toward ensuring New York City meets its clean energy goals, but we will also bring a semblance of health and environmental justice to the families who live near the plant, especially those in our public housing. It’s time to act.
We applaud the Renewable Ravenswood proposal, given its clear benefits for environmental justice and climate progress. Rise has proven to be a dependable partner and is proposing real projects that address the disproportionate harm that communities of color have experienced for generations. I look forward to the day these renewable energy projects are implemented, and call on our partners in government to do everything in their power to move this ambitious proposal forward.
Renewable Ravenswood is the vision and plan that Western Queens has been demanding for decades. New sources of renewable energy, like wind and solar, can keep the lights on while helping us breathe easier!
Renewable Ravenswood has the potential to bring clean power to millions across New York City. We need to leverage every opportunity for green energy to reach New York State's ambitious climate goals. Offshore wind is going to play a major part in decarbonization efforts, and transforming old fossil fuel infrastructure into the renewable infrastructure of the future is an important part of transitioning to renewable energy across the City.
A Renewable Ravenswood is the type of future vision we need to grow clean energy in New York, supported by workers with the expertise needed to continue to reliably power our city.
With projects up and down the Northeast coast, including in the New York Bight, we will have significant clean and renewable energy off our shores. Now we just need to bring it the consumers. Rise’s move to shift Ravenswood from the fossil fuels of the past to a model for repurposing aging fossil fuel infrastructure for the future could be part of the solution. We should give serious consideration to this important work for the state’s energy transition.
Renewable Ravenswood presents a bold vision with the potential to combat the climate crisis, address environmental injustices, and propel the long-term growth, and prosperity of the region. RPA is encouraged to see our private-sector partners doing their part for a healthy and sustainable future, and looks forward to engaging in the process to ensure this vision comes to fruition in ways that benefit the city, its communities, and our environment.
Renewable Ravenswood sets the stage for New York City’s just transition to green energy and a sustainable future. The suite of projects proposed by Rise, including a critical link for offshore wind and an innovative thermal energy proposal, will deliver clean energy for generations and while preserving high-quality union jobs.
As community conversations happen over the course of 2023, we’ll report back on what we’ve heard here.
Check back later for a report back!
The Community Benefits of Attentive Energy One
Cleaner Air
1+ million tons of carbon dioxide reduced = 13% of New York City’s cars off the road each year! Other emissions such as particulate matter, sulfur, and nitrogen will be reduced.
Affordable Energy
Over the life of the Attentive Energy One project, households statewide will save $10 billion on electricity bill savings. Of those $10 billion, $500 million in savings are for low-income households.
Community Investments
The Attentive Energy One project includes a proposed $300 million community and environmental benefits fund. $78 million of those proposed investments are slated for programs and organizations based on the needs and recommendations of community leaders, and others will be decided along the project process and by continuing to engage community members. Those needs include investments in environmental stewardship and mitigation, workforce development in partnership with community organizations, STEM education programs for students, and new green spaces.
Job Training & Opportunities
More than $60 million of the community and environmental benefits fund has been set aside for workforce development! This money will be used to:
- Develop programs with community-based organizations and institutions like LaGuardia Community College.
- Provide scholarships and wraparound services to reduce obstacles to accessing these programs.
- Train Ravenswood Generating Station’s existing employees to transition and operate renewable energy equipment.
Overall, this project will preserve existing union jobs at the plant and create about 2,600 jobs.
Have other ideas or want to learn more about how these benefits could work for your community?