KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Dozens of Tennessee residents, climate organizers and local community groups gathered outside Tennessee Valley Authority headquarters Wednesday evening to protest the launch of construction on the 122-mile Ridgeline Expansion Project — a methane gas pipeline planned across East and Middle Tennessee.
The demonstration coincided with the TVA board meeting, as critics demanded that leaders halt the project and reconsider energy alternatives. Residents and advocates argue the pipeline will cut through sensitive watersheds, damage wildlife habitats, and lock the region into energy sources they say worsen climate change.
“Tennessee deserves energy that does not hurt the amazingly unique creeks and rivers in our state,” said Sue Havens, a community advocate with Ridgeline Voices. Her home is near Clear Creek — one of the many waterways that advocates warn could be put at risk by pipeline construction.
Her husband, Keith Havens, echoed the frustration many feel over TVA’s decision-making process. “TVA has not shown us why clean energy was not the obvious choice for Tennessee’s future.”
Pushback on Gas Expansion Costs
The Ridgeline pipeline is designed to supply methane fuel to a proposed 1,550-megawatt gas plant intended to replace aging fossil fuel capacity. TVA has proposed nine new gas-fired power plants and three associated pipelines — moves that energy activists say are both costly and outdated.
“TVA is putting us on a collision course with high energy costs coupled with high environmental costs,” said energy policy activist Kent Minault. He criticized what he described as the agency’s lag in adopting renewable technologies: “They’ve dragged their feet on solar for so long that they’re justifying the gas buildout by saying spikes in demand are too urgent to wait. It’s all deceptive. No matter how urgent they think the demand curve is, solar and storage are the fastest way to ramp up supply. Digging up our farmland and our scenic ridges for a pipeline is the dumbest way to respond to energy needs.”
A TVA cost study acknowledged solar and battery storage as an available option for replacing the Kingston coal plant but the agency instead opted for the gas plan — one economists estimate will cost more than $1 billion above renewable alternatives.
Rally Fueled by Local Voices & Regional Impacts
Speakers at the demonstration stressed that Tennessee’s continued reliance on fossil fuels threatens both affordability and quality of life.
“We are young enough to do what it takes,” said Emily Cathcart of Third Act Tennessee, which organizes seniors to push for a clean energy transition.
“Our electric bills are going up, our air quality is suffering, and storms like Hurricane Helene are devastating our region,” added Gabrielle Lichtenstein, Tennessee Energy Democracy Field Coordinator for Appalachian Voices. “We cannot accept this. We will continue to fight for TVA to invest in clean energy and good union jobs to power our communities.”
The rally featured live music, partnerships across environmental justice groups, and a message of continued resistance. Participants included Ridgeline Voices, Third Act Tennessee, Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, Appalachian Voices, the Sierra Club, and the American Indian Movement Indian Territory TN.
Highlighting Human Stories Along the Route
As part of the protest, Appalachian Voices and the Sierra Club unveiled a new digital storytelling effort spotlighting Tennessee residents directly affected by TVA-contracted gas pipelines.
The project includes five firsthand accounts from people living along the Ridgeline pipeline’s proposed route, urging media and policymakers to consider the human toll of high-pressure methane pipelines in rural communities.
More information and personal narratives can be viewed at NoTVAPipelines.com.
Originally reported by Appalachian Voices.
