The Oak Ridge City Council reviewed public and staff concerns about operations at the Powerhouse site leased by Carbon Rivers and discussed the next steps in a rezoning process that will be considered by the Municipal Planning Commission.

Planning and development staff told council the site currently sits under a "FIR" (federal) zoning category and that Carbon Rivers submitted a request to rezone portions of the site. Staff said rezoning is required by code and that any recycling or industrial activities would require careful review; recycling is not a use by right in any industrial zone and would need approval by the Board of Zoning Appeals if allowed.

City staff reported they had asked Carbon Rivers for a hazard analysis in July 2023 and had not received it. After reinspection, planning and fire officials identified 36 violations at the site; the violations ranged in severity and included concerns about large, hard-to-access material piles, access for fire apparatus, required hydrants and the need for truck-access roads around stacked materials. Staff said the site’s configuration and the existence of wetlands and beaver ponds near bridge approaches complicate access and emergency response planning.

Members of the public and the Sierra Club praised the city’s attention to environmental protection. Several council members asked staff to pursue code- and fire-code enforcement vigorously and to ensure wetlands are protected. Council and staff discussed that one portion of the property has ash-pile cleanup status and may be subject to state cleanup authority (TDEC) or federal oversight; those cleanup discussions are ongoing outside the zoning process.

Council heard from a Carbon Rivers representative, reported by one audience member, that the company does not intend to disturb wetlands and would prefer assistance protecting those areas. The planning commission will make a recommendation on a zoning district before the council is asked to adopt any rezoning ordinance. The city’s code requires a recommendation and a council decision on the appropriate permanent zoning district once FIR is removed. No final rezoning ordinance was adopted in this meeting.