Longtime TVA smokestacks in Cumberland City are starting to come down

The small town of Cumberland City will have a very different "skyline" this time next year.

The two tall orange and white steam stacks, that have been there since the Cumberland City Fossil Plant first began construction in 1970, will slowly be coming down over the next year. The 1,001 feet tall smoke stacks haven't been used in decades, when TVA built two shorter towers with scrubbers. Still, they've been an unmistakable landmark as you depart Montgomery County and drive into Stewart County.

According to TVA's website, the two chimneys were the tallest ever built in the world.

There won't be a big implosion, because the fossil plant is still actively in use. But crews will be able to use specialized equipment to slowly bring them down, in smaller chunks, over the course of several months.

“The machinery is starting 1,000 feet up and will be working inside the stack. So the only thing really visible is scaffolding. It will be a slow process continuing through March of next year,” said Scott Brooks, a TVA spokesperson.

Eventually, the fossil plant will close all together as TVA transitions the facility into a natural gas plant for electric production. That decision to re-purpose the plant came in January 2023. The plant will retire in two stages, with one unit closing up by the end of 2026 and the second unit by the end of 2028.

On a personal note, I grew up fishing Yellow Creek, near the Cumberland Fossil Plant, with my dad. Obviously, seeing the big smoke stacks takes away from some of the natural beauty of the area. In that regard, it will be a nice change. At the same time, seeing them tower over the area brings a certain familiarity, since they've been there for so long. In fact, on really clear sky days, you can see the TVA stacks from New Ashland City Highway up in Clarksville.

However you feel about the change, it will certainly be a big change for the small community.

Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at Chris.Davis@NewsChannel5.com.

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