CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – Tenaska has filed an air permit application for the proposed Expedition Generating Station in Fluvanna County with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).

“As part of our commitment to transparency and open communication, we want to be the first to share this news with you,” the company said in a media release.

The Fluvanna County Board of Supervisors last month approved the additional plant adjacent to its Branch Rd. facility that’s been operating 20 years.

The release said, “DEQ has a thorough review process that provides multiple opportunities for public engagement. We expect this process to span about a year.”

In addition, the company said, they are preparing a wastewater discharge application “under the Virginia Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (VPDES), administered by DEQ. The application is expected to be submitted this summer.”

After those applications are submitted, the company expects to hold an open house on the air and water matters at a date to be determined.

A Tenaska spokesperson declined to comment upon inquiry by Cville Right Now until a date closer to when that open house will be.

Opponents of the power plant are ready as Fluvanna Horizons Alliance in a social media post said, “We Aren’t Finished. Take Action.”

“Watch the DEQ: The project still requires state-level air and environmental permits. Sign up for DEQ Public Notices at deq.virginia.gov to ensure your voice is heard during the next phase,” the Thursday post said.

“The Board of Supervisors may have already approved the expansion, but the state-level review is just beginning.”

The group also highlighted an accident on a Fluvanna County road they didn’t name involving a large generator that either fell off a truck, or was on a truck involved in a crash as the image was not clear.

“Talk about a sign from above! It’s almost like our rural roads aren’t equipped to handle heavy trucks delivering heavy loads!!”, the social media post said.

Fluvanna Horizons asserted Fluvanna’s rural roads are not built for heavy industry.

“Construction hasn’t even started. Delivery of one generator cause this. How will our roads handle the loads of concrete, steel cables, and heavy, oversized equipment, along with 1,600+ daily movements during plant construction?”, according to their social media.

They claim a traffic study commissioned by the Board of Supervisors showed the roads were not ready to handle the large construction loads, but Tenaska convinced them otherwise.

The post said, “Look at this new “yard decoration,” a generator delivered “off-peak” that ended up in a front yard instead of at the plant. This was just one load for the existing facility. Imagine the disruption to the homeowners and neighbors, or worse, if it had hit a passing vehicle.”