By Heather Michon
Correspondent
For nearly 20 years, the low thrum of Tenaska’s gas-fired power plant has been the unwanted soundtrack of life for many who live on and around Branch Road, a persistent reminder, they say, of promises broken and noise complaints brushed aside.
On Monday night, as Tenaska pitched a second gas-fired plant across the road from its existing site, nearly 100 residents packed the Fluvanna County High School auditorium, not to debate economic benefits, but to ask why they should trust a company they say never fixed the first one.
The town hall, organized by Cunningham Supervisor Chris Fairchild and co-hosted with Fork Union Supervisor Mike Goad, gave residents a chance to voice frustrations and questions about Tenaska’s proposed Expedition Generation Station, a $2 billion project the company says could generate $250 million in local tax revenues over the next three decades.
Tenaska representatives sat mostly in the background, rising occasionally to respond to questions. But it was clear that many in the audience were less interested in hearing reassurances than in being heard.
NOISE COMPLAINTS
The persistent issue of noise dominated the evening.
Residents who have lived near the original plant for years said company officials had long dismissed their complaints, insisting that the sound levels met state guidelines – or denying that the noise even existed.
Fairchild recalled when a sound study was conducted some years ago, the final report said that the noise, in part, “said it was because of the bugs. Because bugs were making noise.”
That history, audience members said, made it hard to believe the company’s latest study, presented at an August community meeting, which claimed that a second plant would cause only minimal noise impacts.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
The second fault line of the evening was environmental.
Several residents pressed company representatives about the project’s potential impact on air quality and particulate emissions, asking repeatedly to see environmental impact studies before the county grants a special use permit.
Their frustration grew when Jerrod Pitts, Tenaska’s senior director of development, explained that the studies would only be conducted after local approval was secured. That admission drew groans and jeers from the audience.
The conversation soon shifted from air to land.
Suzy Morris, a longtime advocate for preserving Fluvanna’s rural character, pressed Tenaska officials on their promise to place roughly 350 acres south of the project site into “conservation.”
Her questions drew a quick distinction: was the company talking about putting the land in conservation, or placing it under a conservation easement?
“We have to be very careful that we do have a conservation easement, and one that is in perpetuity,” she said. Anything less than that could allow to later develop for their own purposes.
Morris was also concerned about the impacts of withdrawing millions of gallons of water from the James River to cool the two plants and discharging millions of gallons of heated water into the Rivanna.
The Rivanna, she said, “is a national treasure,” and needed to be protected.
Her comments cut to the heart of the community’s unease: that once the permits are approved and the bulldozers arrive, any assurances about sound, water, and land protection could prove fleeting.
“Sacrificing the peace of mind of the few for the wealth of the many is morally wrong,” said KP, who operates Grass or Grain Beefhouse near the site. “This is being fast-tracked before anyone says, ‘Hey, let’s wait.’ I’m not asking you to say no — this could benefit our community profoundly. But at what cost?”
RISING TENSIONS
The town hall follows weeks of rising local activism.
A citizen-led group, the Fluvanna Horizons Alliance, has been pressing Tenaska for greater transparency since the project was announced. The alliance, a coalition of residents and advocacy groups, hosted its own public forum on Sept. 27 and has kept up a steady drumbeat on social media to help residents understand what’s at stake.
In recent weeks, Tenaska has begun to push back on the criticism, defending its record, touting the economic benefits of the Expedition Generation project, and insisting it intends to work in partnership with the community.
PLANNING COMMISSION SET TO MEET
For now, the project’s future rests with the county’s Planning Commission, which is set to consider Tenaska’s request for a special use permit on Oct. 7 at 7 p.m. at the Fluvanna County courthouse.
If the commission recommends approval, the proposal will move to the Board of Supervisors for a final vote.
Residents will have another chance to speak during Tuesday’s public hearing — and many say they intend to.
