KNOXVILLE, Tenn.­­ — The Tennessee Valley Authority is inviting the public to review and comment on the draft of its new Natural Resource Plan. This document guides how TVA manages public lands and waters in its seven-state service area and the Tennessee River watershed.  

The previous plan, published in 2011, organized TVA’s work into six resource areas. In the 2020 Natural Resource Plan update, TVA proposes 10 focus areas that are more encompassing of TVA’s natural resource functions. These focus areas include:

Reservoir Lands Planning, Section 26a & Land Use Agreements, Public Land Protection, Land & Habitat Stewardship, Nuisance & Invasive Species Management, Cultural Resource Management, Water Resource Stewardship, Recreation, Ecotourism and Public Outreach & Information.

The proposed update features more clearly defined strategies, including objectives and programs for each focus area and a flexible approach for long-term planning, which will help TVA prioritize funding and support its mission of environmental stewardship. TVA is also releasing a draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement to analyze the potential effects of these changes. More information, along with the documents, is available at www.tva.gov/nrp.

TVA is hosting four open house public meetings and a webinar to obtain public input, answer questions and receive comments (all times local):

• June 12, 2019 (5 pm to 6:30 pm) - Knoxville Public Works Complex – Community Room at 3131 Morris Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37909
• June 13, 2019 (5 pm to 6:30 pm) - Chattanooga State Community College – CBIH Building in Room 120 at 4501 Amnicola Highway, Chattanooga, TN 37406
• June 18, 2019 (5 pm to 6:30 pm) - TVA Muscle Shoals Reservation – Multi-Purpose Building Room 202 at 1010 Reservation Road, Florence, AL 35661
• June 19, 2019 (5 pm to 6:30 pm) - Apex Bank, Camden, Tenn. – Mary Teague Community Center (located behind the bank) at 180 US Hwy 641 N., Camden, TN, 38320

In addition, TVA is also hosting a Public Webinar about the draft NRP and SEIS on June 14, 2019, at 11 a.m. EDT.  TVA plans to record the webinar and make it available on this website. Please pre-register here for the webinar, or follow the link at www.tva.gov/nr. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

Comments may be submitted at the public meetings, by email at [email protected], or in writing to Matthew Higdon, NEPA Compliance, Tennessee Valley Authority, 400 West Summit Hill Drive, WT 11D, Knoxville, TN 37902-1499. Comments also may be submitted on the project website at www.tva.gov/nrp. Any comments received, including names and addresses, will become part of the administrative record, and will be available for public inspection. Please submit comments by July 8, 2019.

To lean more about TVA and its 86-year mission of service to the Tennessee Valley, click here.