Bianca Sanchez, bianca.sanchez@sierraclub.org
BROOKFIELD, Conn. – Connecticut’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) has tentatively approved the last air permit needed to move forward Berkshire Hathaway and TC Energy’s state-crossing “Enhancement by Compression” project. The proposal will expand pipeline-adjacent compressor stations, one within 1,900 feet of a middle school in Brookfield, Connecticut and two in Athens and Dover, New York. The Milford, Connecticut compressor station will increase its cooling capacity.
The proposed Brookfield expansion – located in a severe ozone non-attainment area – will increase further exposure to carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and other pollutants, according to a 2024 study. Due to the serious health and safety risks, experts recommend compressors stay at least 1.8 miles away from occupied buildings. The proposed Brookfield expansion is located within a mile of 800 residential buildings, home to 2,000 residents.
In total, the "Enhancement by Compression" project will increase the amount of gas transported through Connecticut to New York City by 125 million cubic feet per day. Following the tentative air permit approval, DEEP Commissioner Katie Dykes may give notice of a public hearing.
“The Enhancement by Compression project serves no need in Connecticut,”said Samantha Dynowski, State Director of Sierra Club’s Connecticut Chapter. “Still, our neighbors, families, and children at the adjacent Brookfield middle school will bear the brunt of the project’s harm. By issuing this permit, Governor Lamont’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection is failing to live up to its name and mandate. Expanding the Brookfield facility will mean more air pollution, more climate destruction, and no justice for the impacted community.”
"Brookfield is a small town, with its residents living everyday life, and being taken advantage of by a multinational fossil fuel company without most of the homeowners, parents, or kids aware of the life long health issues they may develop,” said Daniel Myers, resident of Brookfield, CT. “Peer reviewed science has identified cancer, asthma and neurological issues associated with compressor stations, and the close proximity to our sole middle school means we are forced to accept harm and risk to our kids or to leave. CT DEEP failed our town and bowed down to an industrial giant, throwing our kids under the bus when they could have easily said no. It is clear Governor Lamont's ‘policies’ on climate have no teeth and CT DEEP has been directed to disregard them."
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.