FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 15, 2025
CONTACT:
Olivia Miller, West Virginia Highlands Conservancy, olivia.miller@wvhighlands.org
Nikki Forester, Tucker United, tuckerunitedcomms@gmail.com
Judy Rodd, Friends of Blackwater, info@saveblackwater.org
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Three citizen groups are continuing their efforts to uncover hidden information in an air pollution permit for the proposed Ridgeline facility in Tucker County, West Virginia. The groups, Tucker United, West Virginia Highlands Conservancy, and Friends of Blackwater, filed a Notice of Appeal with the West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals challenging a Sept. 4 order by the state Air Quality Board. The order dismissed the groups’ objection to the WV Department of Environmental Protection’s (WVDEP) overly broad redaction of confidential business information.
The appeal argues that the Air Quality Board erred when it ruled it did not have jurisdiction to hear the case. The board claimed the dispute occurred too early in the permitting process, but 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 a right to know about the air pollutants that will be dumped into our community,” said Nikki Forrester, spokesperson for Tucker United. “We have a right to make meaningful, informed comments before a permit decision is made. We cannot do that when the agency keeps critical information secret.”
Earlier this year, Tucker United, West Virginia Highlands Conservancy and the Sierra Club appealed the WVDEP’s May 12 decision to accept extensive redactions in Fundamental Data’s air pollution application—reversing an April 25 agency letter that questioned the confidential business information claims and paused the review. That appeal was later dismissed by the Air Quality Board, prompting this escalation to the Intermediate Court.
This filing comes on the heels of a separate legal action on Sept. 15, 2025, when citizen groups challenged the DEP’s approval of the Ridgeline air quality permit, citing excessive secrecy and the agency’s misclassification of the plant as “synthetic minor source.”
“West Virginians deserve transparency when it comes to industrial projects that could affect their air, health, and quality of life,” said Marilyn Shoenfeld, president of the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy. “We’re appealing because decisions about projects of this scale must be made in the open.”
“By concealing basic information, like smokestack height, the redactions make it extremely difficult for the public to understand how harmful pollutants will disperse and concentrate in sensitive areas, like our nearby school and nursing home,” said Forrester. “This secrecy undermines the public’s trust in the WVDEP and denies West Virginians the information they need to protect their own health and safety.”
“The WVDEP has had a good track record of allowing for citizens to comment on projects but not in this case,” said Judy Rodd, executive director of Friends of Blackwater. “We are disappointed.”
10/15/2025
