DAVIS – A citizens group and environmental agencies have filed a second appeal regarding the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection’s handling of applications for a proposed power plant in Tucker County.

The proposed Ridgeline Power Plant would be a 500-acre natural gas power plant fueling a data center, both built by and belonging to the company Fundamental Data. The facility would be located between the towns of Davis and Thomas.

The three groups filed a Notice of Appeal after the state Air Quality Board dismissed an original appeal they filed against the state DEP back on May 12.

The original appeal, filed by Tucker United, the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy and the Sierra Club, appealed the WVDEP’s decision to accept extensive redactions in Fundamental Data’s air pollution application.

The Air Quality Board dismissed the appeal, saying the group’s dispute occurred too early in the permitting process. The groups contend that the DEP’s decision to conceal key emissions information prevented the public from meaningfully commenting on the draft permit.

“We have two appeals with the group and the one the Air Quality Board dismissed was an appeal over confidential business information that was in the air permit,” Nikki Forrester, spokesperson for Tucker United, told The Inter-Mountain.

“The DEP at first wrote to the company (Fundamental Data) and said they weren’t sure the information qualifies as confidential business information. So the company wrote back and responded and then the DEP withheld their ability to keep all that information redacted,” Foster said. “So we appealed that and then more recently the Air Quality Board, through the DEP, basically dismissed our appeal, saying that we filed it too early in the process. So we have appealed their decision to dismiss our appeal.”

Forrester said because of the appeal by the Air Quality Board, the groups aren’t able to gather valuable information about the proposed plant.

“The DEP really didn’t give us information about the facility,” Forrester said. “Even basic information like the types of turbines that they will be using or the smoke stack heights. Information that could be given to the public to help them better understand this project.”

Forrester said the group’s appeal is now going to an intermediate court. There will be an evidentiary hearing on Nov. 5 over the group’s second appeal that was filed earlier this year. That appeal was for the WVDEP’s approval of an Air Quality Permit to Fundamental Data.

“There were a number of issues we found with that permit and the biggest one being that they allowed the facility to be classified as a minor source of emissions instead of a major source of emissions,” Forrester said.

She noted the groups are continuing to compile as much information as they can about the proposed plant.

“We are still doing research and trying to gather information based on what is publicly available right now,” Forrester said. “And I think we are also looking into similar facilities elsewhere to try and figure out what might be the plans here.”