CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. -- A group that calls themselves “Friends of Chesterfield” held a rally shortly before the Chesterfield Board of Supervisors monthly board meeting Wednesday night.
The group's reasoning for the rally was simple: They do not want a new Dominion Energy plant in Chesterfield.
They say they want transparency and community input regarding the project, which is aiming to build a new peaker power plant called the Chesterfield Energy Reliability Center.
Rally attendees said they were concerned about the alleged environmental and health concerns a potential plant could bring to the area.
“I don’t want to breathe in pollutants and I don’t want other people breathing in pollutants,” said rally attendee Chris Zahar.
The group is challenging the project despite the Board of Supervisors not having any action regarding the plant on their meeting agenda Wednesday night.
Dominion Energy said they are in the process of selecting between two Chesterfield properties, with one serving as the former home of Dominion Energy’s Chesterfield Power Station coal plant on Coxendale Road.
Dominion Energy believes the new plant is needed to meet the region's energy demand, which is growing at an “unprecedented rate.”
Some residents spoke to the board in strong opposition to the project and its proposed location.
They told the board that they are planning to legally challenge the county planning department. The group also argued that Dominion Energy should be required to obtain a new permit to operate the plant since a permit would come with a new process of consideration from elected officials and community input.
“We really want to take action where we have given them power and voted them into office and give the community a voice,” said Melissa Thomas.
Currently, Dominion Energy says they are not required to get a certain permit if they select the Chesterfield property, since they already received one from the county when the former Chesterfield Power Station was created.
Dominion Energy also said they obtained a letter from Chesterfield County stating that they argue they are using the plant for the same approved purposes and still have to get new permitting approval to operate from agencies like the State Corporation Commission, and an air permit with the Department of Environmental Quality.
“We need to increase our amount of generation to keep pace with that growth. It is vitally important for the reliability of the grid,” said Dominion Energy Spokesperson Jeremy Slayton.
Dominion also said they considering the second property due to feedback received from the community at the 8 meetings they held in 2023 when they first introduced the project.
“Community engagement is vitally important because we want to hear from the community," Slayton said. "They are the ones that live in the community and know the community best and that’s why we want to hear from them and hear their input so we have all the factors when we make a decision."
One person spoke to the board in favor of the proposed plant. He shared how the project would be a great way to bring in jobs.
A spokesperson for the Board of Supervisors said board members are currently unable to comment on the project due to pending or potential litigation.
Dominion Energy has not set a specific date on when they will decide on the final proposed location of the project.
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