The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection Division of Air Quality approved air quality and construction permits for Fundamental Data’s Ridgeline Facility.
Public comment on the application for the standalone energy microgrid, slated to be built between the towns of Davis and Thomas at the head of Canaan Valley, was largely against the permit’s approval.
However the DEP said most commenters failed to provide a technical or regulatory basis for a reconsideration.
Nikki Forrester is the spokesperson for Tucker United, a grassroots organization concerned about air and water pollution from the microgrid.
She says they feel regulators are siding with industry over community
“We really feel like the DEP isn’t abiding by their mission to protect the air, land and water of West Virginia for West Virginians,” Forrester said. “Instead, they’re siding with industry to push forward a proposal that could harm our community.”
Tucker United and Forrester take particular issue with the project’s categorization as a minor source of contamination, despite the application describing multiple natural gas-fired turbines, fed from a pipeline to the site.
Citing confidential business information, all information about the turbines and specifics about their emissions have been redacted from the application.
“There’s no other power plant of the equivalent size that has been approved as a minor source of the contaminants,” Forrester said. “Yet, the DEP has determined that Fundamental Data, this company that has zero experience building power plants, can achieve something that no other power plant of this size has been able to do. The DEP said they’ve never rejected a permit before, so we’re not surprised that this is the decision that we’ve made, but we’re just shocked that they’ve put trust in this company who hides important information from the public about their plans.”
The area’s recent history of drought, role in the regional tourism economy and even the geography have all enhanced general concerns about potential pollution from the Ridgeline center.
“Canaan Valley is a big bowl, and so we experience these things called temperature inversions, where basically cold air gets trapped in the valley for hours, or sometimes days at a time,” Forrester said. “The risk here is that if there’s a power plant and it’s emitting all these toxic air pollutants, that those pollutants could get trapped in the valley just the same way this cold air does, and could lead to prolonged exposure for people in our community.”
A public comment period is currently underway for a similar microgrid project in Mingo County.
“That is also important to keep tabs on,” Forrester said. “The DEP is basically doing the same thing with the facility there, except they won’t even hold the public in person meeting with them. So we are not backing down from this fight.”