West Virginia- West Virginia’s Air Quality Board has until Feb. 2 to rule on an appeal for a natural gas plant permit in Tucker County.
Local environmental groups have appealed the permit, arguing little information about its emissions and public health effects were provided for public review.
Nikki Forrester, spokesperson for the group Tucker United, said experts recently testified to the Board, arguing the plant’s emissions will fluctuate dramatically.
“This permit application was submitted in a way to make it look like the emissions are going to have far less of an impact on our community than they actually are going to,” Forrester contended.
The Virginia-based company, Fundamental Data LLC, is proposing to build the plant alongside a data center near Davis. Opponents of the project said the plant will emit toxic chemicals with known harms to human health. Supporters said the plant could bring jobs to the region.
Forrester noted there are three potential pathways forward: The board could uphold the application submitted from the company, they could choose to revoke it, or a third option would be reclassifying the plant from a synthetic minor source to a major source of pollution.
“If it is reclassified as a major source, then that means it’s subject to much stricter regulations,” Forrester pointed out.
Gas power plants significantly harm nearby communities through air pollution, releasing nitrogen oxides, fine particulate matter and other toxic chemicals. The pollutants are strongly linked to higher rates of asthma, heart disease, stroke, respiratory issues and adverse birth outcomes in neighboring communities.
