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Fluvanna Horizons Alliance
Protecting Our Community and Our Future
Fluvanna Horizons Alliance is a group of local residents working to protect our health, our environment, and our community.
We believe decisions that shape our future should be informed, transparent, and guided by the voices of the people who live here. We work to protect our air, water, and land, and to ensure that our community is not asked to bear a disproportionate share of impacts without being heard.
Fluvanna's Land Use Values
Rural Protections vs Industrial Expansion
Health Impacts of a Second Gas Power Plant
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What the Health Analysis Shows
An independent public health analysis finds that the proposed second gas-fired power plant would significantly increase harmful air pollution across Fluvanna County and central Virginia. The analysis focuses on fine particulate matter (PM2.5), a pollutant with no safe level of exposure, and links the project to widespread and measurable health harms.
Documented Health Risks
According to the health analysis, increased PM2.5 pollution is associated with:
•Higher rates of asthma and other respiratory illnesses
•Increased risk of heart disease, stroke, and premature death
•Disproportionate impacts on children, older adults, and people with existing health conditions.
Health Impacts
The study estimates $27 million to $50 million in health damages every year, totaling hundreds of millions of dollars over time and potentially exceeding $1 billion. These are real costs tied to increased air pollution and its effects on human health.
Who Would Be Most Affected
The greatest impacts are concentrated in Lake Monticello and Palmyra, with effects extending across Columbia, Rivanna, Scottsville, and Keswick. Pollution does not stop at county lines. It is projected to affect communities across Fluvanna, Louisa, Goochland, Cumberland, Powhatan, and Buckingham, with additional impacts reaching Albemarle, Henrico, Chesterfield, Hanover, and Richmond. This is a regional impact with widespread public health consequences.
Only Part of the Picture
These figures capture health impacts only. They do not account for increased water use and discharge, methane emissions, heavy truck traffic and road damage, or noise and light pollution. The true cost to the community is higher.
Why This Matters
This is a long-term decision with lasting consequences. Fluvanna’s Comprehensive Plan was created to prevent incompatible industrial development in rural areas. The Planning Commission has already found this proposal not in substantial accord with that plan. Moving forward means accepting known health risks and setting aside the community’s stated vision.
Tenaska’s “Environmental Report” Falls Short
Meeting Air Standards Is Not the Same as Protecting Rural Fluvanna
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Meeting federal air standards does not mean a project is safe, appropriate, or compatible with rural Fluvanna.
Residents are being told the proposed second gas-fired power plant poses no environmental concern because it complies with federal air rules. That claim confuses permit eligibility with real-world impact.
Federal air standards regulate regional pollution levels. They do not evaluate whether doubling heavy industrial infrastructure is appropriate, compatible, or acceptable in a rural community.
Compliance does not eliminate:
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construction pollution and diesel emissions
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water demand and wastewater
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land disturbance, noise, and lighting
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heavy truck traffic on rural roads
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cumulative impacts of two power plants operating side by side
Regulatory compliance alone does not protect Fluvanna’s health, land, or rural character.
The Problem
Tenaska aims to double its footprint in Fluvanna County
Tenaska, a Nebraska-based energy company and one of the largest privately held companies in the United States, is seeking to expand its operations in Fluvanna County by constructing a second gas-fired power plant near its existing facility. If approved, the combined output of these plants would make the site among the largest gas-fired power generation complexes in Virginia, with significant implications for the county and surrounding region.
While Tenaska highlights potential tax revenue and economic benefits, those claims must be weighed against documented environmental and public health costs. The Southern Environmental Law Center estimates the proposed plant’s annual health-related costs at approximately $13.6 million, rising to $21.1 million by 2040, totaling about $275 million over time.
Gas-fired power plants are associated with air pollution, including nitrogen oxides and particulate matter, which are linked to respiratory and cardiovascular impacts, meaning nearby communities may bear meaningful health and environmental risks alongside any economic benefits.
Health and Environmental Impacts
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Gas-fired power plants emit greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4), as well as nitrogen oxides (NOx), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), fine particulate matter (PM2.5), carbon monoxide (CO), and various hazardous air pollutants (HAPs), even with controls in place.
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There is no safe level of fine particulate matter, and Tenaska's plant would release these pollutants, leading to higher rates of illness and death among nearby residents.
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The existing plant uses 3 to 4 million gallons of water daily from the James River. It discharges 1.5 million gallons of "hard water" daily into Cunningham Creek, which flows into the Rivanna River.
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The new plant would draw an additional 6 to 7 million gallons from the James River daily, with an anticipated daily discharge of 1.5 million gallons per day.
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Water for the plant would be drawn from the James River and, after use, released into the Rivanna watershed. Mixing waters from different rivers can pose significant dangers to ecosystems and human health.
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Methane leaks are unavoidable at gas plants, and methane is more than 25 times more potent than CO₂.
Whose Demand?
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Tenaska says rising electricity demand justifies another massive gas plant in Fluvanna. But according to the 2025 Virginia Energy Report from George Mason University, Virginia’s energy use has “remained relatively stable over the past 20 years despite major population and economic growth,” and future demand growth is expected to come “primarily” from data centers, not ordinary residential growth or household electricity use.
At the same time, PJM’s demand forecasting is facing growing criticism over speculative data center projections and aggressive long-term assumptions. PJM’s 2024 capacity auction prices also spiked nearly 10-fold after major modeling changes, while PJM’s own market monitor said the results reflected market assumptions and design choices, not simply real-world shortages.
The proposed plant would sell power into the regional PJM market, not directly to Fluvanna residents, and there is no guarantee of lower local electric bills.
Fluvanna would still bear the impacts:
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more industrialization,
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more emissions,
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more infrastructure strain,
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and decades of additional dependence on fossil fuels.
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Before approving another massive gas plant, regulators should require independent evidence that this level of projected demand is real and necessary, and that it cannot be met through less damaging alternatives.
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