Alabama Power is planning a hydro energy project that could force dozens of residents off their land in St. Clair and Etowah Counties.

The Chandler Mountain Project is still in the pre-application phase, and many details about the project have not been finalized, including how much land the power company will need to acquire in order to make their hydro pumped storage project a reality.

Many landowners in the town of Steele are still unsure whether they would lose their property if the project moves forward. Some say they will lose land that has been in their family for generations, or worry that their home values will plummet due to being in the project area.

Others fear the town’s school might close and local businesses go under if the population drops because of the project.

SEE MORE: ‘Who’s going to buy my house now?’ Alabama Power reservoir plan draws ire

‘This will destroy our town’ Residents fight Alabama Power on dams, reservoirs

There are many uncertain aspects of the project, but here are the things we do know:

It’s not a done deal

The project may not be approved by federal regulators, or Alabama Power could decide not to move forward with their application.

“It is important to remember that no decisions have been made; we are in the preliminary stages of exploring the opportunity at Chandler Mountain,” Alabama Power said in an emailed statement.

It will take a long time

Even if the project does move forward, it will take some time. Alabama Power says conducting impact studies and submitting the final application is expected to take another 4-5 years, with the full application expected to be filed in summer 2027 at the earliest.

From there, approval by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is expected to take another 2-4 years, depending on what issues are identified in the application. Construction cannot begin until FERC and other agencies approve the project.

An estimated timeline developed by Alabama Power shows construction beginning in 2031 at the earliest and continuing for 5-7 years before completion.

Eminent domain is a possibility

FERC project manager Sarah Salazar said during Monday’s public meetings that if the project is fully approved, Alabama Power could use eminent domain to acquire property for the project via state court proceedings, forcing people to give up their land even if they don’t want to sell.

It would be a big dam deal

The project proposal calls for building two new reservoirs on or around Chandler Mountain.

At the top of the mountain, Alabama Power would build one large dam that will combine with the natural bowl shape of the mountain to create a 526-acre upper reservoir atop the mountain. That lake would be at an elevation of around 1,366 feet at the top.

Then, four smaller dams would create a horseshoe-shaped 1,090-acre reservoir at the base of the mountain. That lake would have an elevation of around 667 feet above sea level.

An underground pump house would contain four reversible pump-turbine units that can be used to pump water from the lower reservoir uphill to the other lake and then generate electricity as the water flows back down to the lower reservoir.

Those four turbines could generate up to 1600 megawatts of power.

The nearby Neely Henry Dam has a capacity to generate 72.9 megawatts.

No swimming, boating, fishing

The water levels of these lakes will change dramatically while in operation. Alabama Power application documents state that the upper reservoir could drop by up to 63 feet when in use, and the lower reservoir level could change by as much as 27 feet.

Because of these drastic fluctuations in water level, recreational use of the reservoirs would not be allowed, the company said.

It would use more power than it generates

Timing is everything in life and in the electrical grid.

The four turbines could generate up to 5.4 million megawatt-hours a year, assuming they’re operating 10 hours a day. But the operation of pumping the water back uphill would use about 7 million MWh per year.

The advantage is that Alabama Power can pump the water uphill in non-peak hours, when there is excess power on the grid. Then it will be there in the peak hours when HVAC systems are running full-blast.

Alabama Power says this type of energy storage would be useful going forward, as more intermittent renewable energy sources like solar are added to the power grid, as this plan could provide power when the sun isn’t shining.

Critics are skeptical of this argument, citing the company’s solar fees and slow pace of adopting solar.

What about the wildlife?

According to FERC, there are a number of threatened or endangered species that might be impacted by the project.

These include: northern long-eared bat; gray bat; Indiana bat; trispot darter; Canoe Creek clubshell; Coosa moccasinshell; finelined pocketbook; Georgia pigtoe; ovate clubshell; southern acornshell; southern clubshell; southern pigtoe; triangular kidneyshell; upland combshell; Alabama leather flower; Georgia rockcress; green pitcher-plant; and Tennessee yellow-eyed grass.

Upcoming environmental impact studies will try to show whether the project would further harm these or other protected species.

What’s next?

FERC is accepting public comments until August 12, 2023. Comments can be made online at https://ferconline.ferc.gov/FERCOnline.aspx.

FERC is also evaluating which studies need to be conducted. Alabama Power has proposed a list of studies, including environmental, cultural and archaeological to be conducted before the final application is filed.

FERC may require additional studies. FERC is expected to approve a final study plan by February 2024. Alabama Power could conduct those studies beginning in 2024 and stretching into roughly 2026. A final license application could then be filed, potentially by August 2027. FERC could take another 2-4 years to issue a decision.

Construction could then begin around 2031.