Environmental considerations played a major role in the plant’s design. Air pollution is minimized by injecting water into the gas turbines' combustors, and by a selective catalytic reduction system on each turbine to treat the exhaust gas. In addition, the existing brownfield site required immediate mitigation and special handling of soil during site excavation. Activities included provisions for site cleanup following the dismantling of the existing oil-fired plant. Because the site frontage is adjacent to a residential area, special measures were put in place to lessen the facility’s visual impact and to reduce noise and air emissions.
Facility improvements included two new 115-kV transmission line interconnects to the existing power grid, as well as extensive upgrades to the Town of Wallingford's switchyard. The peaking plant's new 115-kV substation is inter-tied with the town's substation in a ring bus arrangement so that the town has available a third 115-kV transmission line to bring power into the Wallingford substation.
