Polluting waterfront power plants get three-year extension

Two fossil-fuel power stations have operated from permanently moored barges along the Sunset Park waterfront for more than 50 years. In 2023, the Gowanus Generating Station emitted 9,141 metric tons of greenhouse gases — roughly equal to the annual emissions of 45 commercial heavy-duty freight trucks, according to EPA data.

These are peaker plants — power stations designed to start quickly when electricity demand spikes, particularly on the hottest days of summer. They feed electricity into the grid to help prevent shortages or blackouts.

UPROSE, a Sunset Park environmental justice organization, has called peakers “the dirtiest power plants in New York City.” It says the two waterfront stations have contributed to “some of the highest localized pollution burdens in New York City” and an “unfair burden” on the health of Sunset Park residents.

“These plants release nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions which not only worsen the climate crisis but also contribute to the formation of ground-level ozone, exacerbating respiratory and cardiovascular conditions and harming the surrounding community,” New York Lawyers for the Public Interest said in 2025, when plans to retire the plants were announced.

The New York State Department of Health says outdoor air pollution has been linked to asthma and heart disease. The Environmental Protection Agency says ground-level ozone can aggravate asthma and contribute to doctor and emergency-room visits and hospital admissions. Children, older adults and people with asthma are among those most at risk.

After years of environmental advocates pushing for cleaner energy, it appeared that the plants would close. In June 2025, their owner, Alpha Generation, filed notices to retire the Gowanus and Narrows stations this July.

But Alpha Generation withdrew those notices in April 2026 after the New York Independent System Operator determined that the plants would still be needed to maintain a reliable electric grid through May 2029.

The Gowanus Generating Station, near 27th Street, has 32 simple-cycle combustion turbines distributed across four barges and a capacity of 260 megawatts. Alpha Generation describes it as “one of the largest floating generating stations in the world.” Half of its turbines can use either natural gas or oil.

The Narrows Generating Station, near 53rd Street, has 16 dual-fuel turbines across two barges and a capacity of 322 megawatts. Both stations can begin generating power within about 15 minutes.

UPROSE and New York Lawyers for the Public Interest are members of the PEAK Coalition, which was founded in 2019 to call attention to heavily polluting peaker plants concentrated in lower-income communities and communities of color and to advocate for cleaner alternatives.

That same year, New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation adopted its “Peaker Rule,” which sharply limits nitrogen oxide emissions from the state’s oldest simple-cycle turbines. The rule set stricter limits beginning in May 2023 and May 2025, but it also permits temporary extensions when NYISO determines that affected units are needed for reliability.

NYISO, the nonprofit organization that manages New York’s wholesale electricity market and bulk power system, initially determined that Gowanus and Narrows were needed through May 2027. A later assessment found that without the plants, New York City and the Lower Hudson Valley could face a power deficiency during expected summer peak-demand periods.

The grid operator extended the plants’ reliability designation through May 2029, the latest date allowed under the rule.

“These units continue to play a critical role in maintaining grid reliability in New York City,” Alpha Generation CEO Curt Morgan said when the retirement notices were withdrawn. “Given updated market conditions and the NYISO’s reliability determinations, we believe it is prudent and appropriate to continue operating Gowanus and Narrows on a merchant basis.”

Members of the PEAK Coalition argue that the plants can be replaced without sacrificing reliability.

“Energy storage, especially paired with renewable energy, can be an excellent replacement for most peaking units,” Abbe Ramanan of Clean Energy Group wrote in an email to the Sunset Post. “Unlike a gas-fired peaker, batteries can dispatch energy immediately when needed without having to ramp up or down, and can charge during times of high renewable generation and low demand.”

Ramanan also pointed to demand-management programs that reduce electricity use during peak periods.

In March, Alpha Generation proposed replacing the six existing barges with three new lower-emitting power barges and adding a 150-megawatt battery storage project at Gowanus. The PEAK Coalition opposes building new fossil-fuel infrastructure and has called on the company to focus on utility-scale battery storage instead.

But for now, the turbines, which date back to the age of bellbottoms and the Nixon administration, will remain on barges off the Sunset Park waterfront and fire up when needed.