On Wednesday, May 3, Christopher McKinnon left a comment on the article Legacy Farms Residents at Risk from Failed Mitigation System. According to his LinkedIn profile, Mr. McKinnon is a Senior Specialist in Media Relations at Eversource.
The comment reads: Eversource was not contacted to provide information or confirm the accuracy of this story. Anyone looking for information regarding LNG and safety details related to our facility in Hopkinton, MA can visit our dedicated web page.
To Eversource:
With due respect, Mr. McKinnon, the article Legacy Farms Residents at Risk from Failed Mitigation System cites testimony provided under oath by Eversource employees and consultants in Eversource Energy v. Board of Assessors of the Town of Hopkinton, June 21, 2021, a case in which Eversource appealed (and lost) their property tax assessment. In attempting to justify their lower valuation, Eversource experts revealed that there have been concerns about the age of the plant and specifically the three cryogenic storage tanks since 2012.
It also relies on public records from the Town of Hopkinton Planning Board, which includes documents from the developer, Mr. MacDowell and his consultant, Georges Melhem, CEO of ioMosaic. Here is one such letter.
Furthermore, as the article accurately states, the maintenance of the burn back lamps is not the responsibility of Eversource; they are the responsibility of the Legacy Farms LOA to maintain. That decision was made on August 15, 2016 in a Decision of Site Plan Review for Legacy Farms North, page 10, condition 28, by the Hopkinton Planning Board. It’s unclear to us why Eversource would have any opinion about this mitigation system.
To your point about the public safety exercise taking place tomorrow, May 5: This is good progress and shows an improved spirit of cooperation between Eversource and the Town of Hopkinton. As you are no doubt aware, former Fire Chief Stephen Slaman wrote a scathing letter to the Department of Public Utilities on June 10, 2019 citing Eversource’ lack of transparency regarding a “thermal anomaly” at the plant, an event Eversource reported to the town some eight months after the fact. We include the document here for your reference.
Nonetheless, Hopkinton residents are aware that this is the first time in more than 20 years Eversource and the Hopkinton Fire Department have performed a joint training exercise at the plant. Given what is at stake, the length of time that has passed between training exercises makes some residents understandably uneasy.
Hopkinton residents continue to have many questions about Eversource’ planned investments to ensure the safety of the plant. HopNews welcomes the opportunity for you to provide a comment on this or any other matter related to the safety and security of the plant and the nearby residents. Our editor can be reached at editor@hopnews.com.
