Peaker Plants to Solar Power

 Ever since they were built as only a last resort, fossil fueled peaker plants have been looming over the poor neighborhoods of NYC. The pollution they produce was already an issue, but it's only gotten more serious since COVID-19 arrived, since it's a respiratory illness. Because peaker plants usually run when there's extra demand for energy, during the summer when people are using their air conditioners, these peaker plants only continue to pollute the air and cause serious problems for poor neighborhoods, as well as Black and brown communities. The plants were originally built with the sole purpose of being a quick fix for problems such as blackouts, but now there's demand for a better solution due to the pandemic and the fact that peaker plants cause other health problems such as cancer and heart disease. The main solution being looked at is the use of solar power combined with batteries for storage. In NYC there's been several discussions with profit-seeking companies disguising themselves as a public utility, though there is a possibility for cooperation since other cities have found ways to cooperate with large energy companies. There's also been a possible solution found in solar panels being built and people buying parts of it to control their own system, and sell excess energy away. With the earth being in dire need of ways to avoid pollution, the use of solar power could greatly reduce the amount of harmful substances being put in the air. That, and it would be especially helpful during this time where a pandemic is still present in the states. That, and poor communities and minority communities in NYC would no longer have to suffer the consequences of large energy companies that run the peaker plants.

https://www.climatecentral.org/news/the-push-to-turn-nycs-polluting-peaker-plants-into-publicly-owned-solar-power