Residents are fighting back after learning a battery plant might move into their neighborhood in Clarksville.
ATLASBX said they would bring 200 jobs and pump approximately $75 million into the local economy. Many residents said the benefit isn't worth the risk of pollution.
"I don't trust the state. I don't trust the company!" Jeff Stewart said.
Stewart doesn't want the plant to be on International Boulevard. It would be less than four miles away from a high school, a hospital, and a winery. In a town hall meeting, he pointed at local politicians and asked for help.
"This is your job to protect us from this!" Stewart said.
According to John Fuss with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, the plant would emit under 1,000 pounds of lead into the air each year. The company believes 11.3 tons of sulfuric acid and sulfur dioxide could seep into the atmosphere each year.
"Relatively speaking, it's not a high amount. There are other facilities in Tennessee that have much higher emissions," Fuss said.
The state believes the permit will be approved.
"At this point in time, the levels of lead that are predicted do show attainment with the national air quality standard," Fuss said.
Families who live less than two miles away from the proposed battery plant are worried that their children could be exposed to lead.
"You're not even going to monitor the pollution, so how can you tell me it's going to be safe? Especially if you only monitor it once a year! To me, that's a joke," Lindsey Nail said.
Up next, the planning commission will vote on whether to approve the site plan.
