(CN) — What’s the price of a proposed pair of water reservoirs in north Alabama, which the state’s largest electric utility can harness to power more than a million homes during hours of peak demand? For some residents of St. Clair and Etowah counties, it could cost them everything.
But according to a notice of intent filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission this past April, Alabama Power is pressing on with its proposal to construct a new 525-acre reservoir on top of Chandler Mountain and a new 1,090-acre reservoir at its base, coupled with a conveyance system between the two, powering a pumped storage hydroelectric generating facility.
The project will impound the waters of the Little Canoe Creek and is anticipated to provide 1,600 megawatts of generating capacity. In documents submitted to FERC, the investor-owned utility claims the facilities will “provide reliable, long-duration energy storage to meet the needs of Alabama Power customers and balance the daily energy cycle.”
The “pumped storage facility” would generate electricity by releasing water from the upper reservoir into the lower reservoir over hydroelectric turbines during hours of peak demand and pumping the water back up during low demand.
“Energy storage projects such as the Chandler Mountain Project are used across the country to help ensure a reliable and resilient electricity system that is increasingly integrating intermittent renewable forms of energy such as wind and solar,” the company claims.
But local residents, consumer advocates and environmental organizations are mounting opposition to the proposal, claiming it’s a vast corporate land grab for an outdated and inefficient technology, which is threatening to destroy an environmentally sensitive and culturally significant environment. Alabama Power and FERC are holding joint public hearings on the proposal Monday at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. at the Rainbow City Community Center in Rainbow City.
Reached by phone on Monday, Daniel Tait, executive director of the consumer nonprofit group Energy Alabama, said a passionate community meeting June 2 indicated affected residents are gearing up for a fight.
“It’s quite clear the local community is not happy in the least,” Tait said, noting the Chandler Mountain proposal dates back to the 1980s but bucks a more recent nationwide trend away from new dam building that affects natural watersheds. Tait also suggested the proposed generating facility will have an efficiency rating of around 30%, whereas modern solar and battery storage facilities can reach 80% to 90% efficiency.
“So it’s a net energy consumer,” Tait explained. “This is a subpar solution. Alabama Power has been fighting for years [against] the things that consumer advocates and clean energy advocates like us have been asking for years, anything that has been cost effective, affordable and reliable.”
The company has not disclosed an estimated cost for the project, or how the cost will be passed on to consumers. Alabama Power spokesman Anthony Cook said today the company is still studying the proposal.
“It's a multi-year process so we're currently in the very early stages of the investigation,” Cook said, adding Monday's meetings are for FERC to gather public comments. “This is a hydro facility and we consider it to be a viable technology. And our goal always is to be a reliable source of power for our customers so we're exploring this opportunity because it could possibly be a way to address the future energy needs of the state. We're a growing state and that means our energy needs will be growing, and we're trying to make sure that we're prepared to meet those needs.”
Cook emphasized “nothing has been decided.” The company is maintaining a licensing website for updates about the project.
The 300-page notice of intent does provide further details, including the project’s potential impact to as many as 2,297 people in three Census blocks in Etowah County and 3,155 people in another three Census blocks in neighboring St. Clair County. Fewer than 12% of those affected are minorities, according to the company, but 15% are below the poverty level.
The company also acknowledged the Little Canoe Creek and Middle Coosa River watershed is home to at least 12 protected species of mussels, along with protected darter fish, bats, turtles, snakes and amphibians. It noted no comprehensive cultural study had yet been performed, but the project area comprises at least six sites eligible for listing to the National Register of Historic Places and potentially more than 20. The federal record indicates the company has reached out to local Native American organizations.
Nancy A. Miller-Borg, a council member in the nearby town of Steele on the south side of Chandler Mountain, wrote FERC on June 27 to express her concern as the 18-year owner of an 18-acre llama farm within the project area.
“We planned for this to be our ‘forever’ home and are devastated by the possibility of a hydro project in our front yard,” Miller-Borg wrote. “There are many things here that you can't find any place else — Indian artifacts, native animals (we only have fox, deer, coyotes and armadillos on our farm) including black bears that have been seen in town and on the mountain and fantastic terrain.”
Barbara Harrington, a resident of Gallant on the north side of Chandler Mountain, frequently uses Rocky Hollow Road at the base of the mountain to access services such as the bank and post office in larger Steele.
“I see only a decline in Steele’s future because of the loss of easy access from Gallant and Gallant Road,” Harrington wrote FERC of her concerns July 1. “Construction will last several years and create a lot of noise pollution, as well as destroy flora, fauna and Indian artifacts.”
Fran Summerlin, an organizer of an effort to help “Save Chandler Mountain,” submitted comments July 6 suggesting the project relies on ”mammoth dams” and “old technology,” echoing Tait’s claim about a negative loss of energy.
‘[Alabama Power Company] could not have chosen a more valuable area to destroy,” she wrote. “We, the citizens of Steele, Chandler Mountain and Rocky Hollow, are horribly concerned that this will be the death of our community. Please help us reject this travesty from taking over our wonderful area. I am so afraid of losing our lives and property to a greedy industry.”
Beyond Monday’s meeting, FERC will continue to solicit comments on the Chandler Mountain Pumped Storage Project on the “e-file” tab of its website. The project number is 15229-001.
“This is something that's going to take some time, even under the most aggressive schedules,” Tait said. “So stakeholders should get involved and there will be plenty of opportunity for them to make their concerns and voices heard.”
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