Health Impact Assessment of the the Shawnee Fossil Plant

The Health Impact Assessment of the Shawnee Fossil Plant addresses social and environmental health impacts related to potential retrofit or retirement scenarios of one of TVA’s oldest coal-fired facilities. Following the five steps of health impact assessment, the stakeholder driven process evaluated health outcomes related to air and water contamination as well as health outcomes related to employment and tax contributions to the local economy.  Baseline health outcomes were established through partnership with the local health department. Environmental health assessment of a “retrofit for continued operations” scenario utilized SO2 air models of the plant’s historical releases to determine vulnerable populations. Economic modeling of retirement impacts accounted for job losses caused by plant closure but also jobs gained due to the decommissioning process.  Recommendations made to local economic and political leaders addressed ways to mitigate job loss within the community through training and long term transition planning while recommendations to TVA for retrofit scenarios addressed management of energy production by-products including coal ash and effluent.  This HIA serves as a model of health assessment for a community that has experienced both the economic benefits and health consequences of coal based energy production and addresses opportunities for positive transitions.