News: PureSky & Cowls Are Suing Shutesbury!

The multinational energy company PureSky and large landowner W.D. Cowls are suing Shutesbury in pursuit of massively destructive industrial solar development that would clear-cut hundreds of acres of our important forest and pose serious threat to our sole drinking water supply.

Through this aggressive action, they are thumbing their noses at our new solar bylaw that was nearly unanimously approved at a packed town meeting last January. This bylaw introduces safety requirements that protect our critical water resources from lithium-ion battery contamination and degradation by flooding, erosion, and sedimentation, which are likely consequences of massive clearcutting for solar development. 

Despite the resounding vote to pass this bylaw, on April 3, PureSky and Cowls filed a lawsuit against Shutesbury, claiming that the bylaw unreasonably restricts the companies’ ability to profit from their industrial solar installations in the town.

The significance of this lawsuit cannot be overstated and will determine Shutesbury's fate and the fate of many rural Massachusetts communities for many years to come.

We must not allow these immensely wealthy corporate bullies whose primary goal is profit, not climate solutions, to negate the laws democratically passed by our communities. If they are allowed to proceed they will be emboldened to ignore local laws in any rural community and pursue aggressive clear-cutting of thousands of acres of forests for solar development throughout the state and beyond. The two companies already have two large-scale projects on deck in neighboring Amherst and Pelham.

To see what these projects could look like, we need look no further than Williamsburg, MA, where PureSky disastrous solar installation led to massive, irreparable environmental damage and a $1.14 million dollar fine for violations of virtually every environmental protection requirement related to the project. Most recently, in Duanesburg, New York, PureSky is constructing a 65-acre solar project with a battery storage component. So far, a work stoppage, collapsed solar panels, massive structural failures, and subcontractor liens for unpaid bills of $2.3 million reveal a project in disarray with little to no oversight.

The solution must take several forms. Learn more and find out what you can do at our upcoming forum - REGISTER HERE. Other time-sensitive actions can be found HERE.