Environmental Compliance

The Jamestown Board of Public Utilities (BPU) Continuous Emissions Monitoring Systems (CEMS), monitors every pound of oxides of nitrogen (NOx), carbon dioxide (CO2) and carbon monoxide (CO) exiting the smoke stacks on a 24/7 basis. This CEMS system monitors the emission output levels for the General Electric LM6000 natural gas turbine.

The BPU relies on natural gas to generate electricity and no longer burns coal. As a result, the air emission output has been reduced by more than 75%. In addition, two former coal boilers were converted to fire natural gas. As natural gas burns more efficiently, a CEMS system is not required for these two boilers which now qualify as Low Mass Emitters.

All air emissions are reported to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) on a quarterly basis as per our U.S. EPA Title V Air Permit.