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Action Alert: Stop the New Gas Plant Proposed in Kenosha County to Power Hyperscale Data Centers
- 1 day ago
- 7 min read
Updated: 24 minutes ago
We Energies wants to use our water and pollute our air to power data centers. We won't let them. Make your voice heard to ensure that rural Wisconsin doesn't become a health sacrifice zone for unchecked utilities and big tech:
The Public Service Commission (PSC), which regulates Wisconsin utilities, is currently accepting public input on a new gas plant proposal. The Red Oak Ridge Gas Plant would be a 1,200 MW polluter in the Town of Paris in Kenosha County, Wisconsin. We Energies/WEPCO has plans to buy the plant after Invenergy builds it for new data centers. Hyperscale data centers require a massive amount of energy, and if powered by fossil fuels, massive amounts of water. If approved, this would be one of the largest gas plants in Wisconsin and the third gas plant in the Township of Paris.
Air pollutants, such as particulate matter (PM 2.5), nitrogen oxides, and benzene, can make people of all ages sick. These pollutants negatively affect almost every organ system, including the kidneys, lungs, heart, and brain, and contribute to low birth weight, miscarriages, and increased infant mortality.
Talking Points
Due to the numerous negative impacts associated with methane gas facilities, we are asking that the PSC deny the Foundry Ridge Gas Plant proposal.
We Energies is using a loophole in Wisconsin law to avoid scrutiny and they might try to stick us with the bill - Please also make sure the PSC's new 'very large user' rate is applied to this gas plant to ensure Wisconsin families don't pay for it. The richest companies on the planet shouldn't get a discount while our bills rise.
What loophole? Wisconsin law allows independent energy developers to build “merchant plants” without first proving there is a need for the electricity and with less economic review. Invenergy, an independent energy developer, is using this pathway to propose two new gas plants in Southeastern Wisconsin– Foundry Ridge and Red Oak Ridge. We Energies/WEPCO has already filed a buy-sell application to buy both gas plants from Invenergy. Therefore, this merchant plant loophole would allow major fossil fuel infrastructure to advance before regulators fully evaluate whether they are needed, enabling projects intended to serve hyperscale data centers to move forward with less public scrutiny.
This loophole puts us at risk for higher utility bills - In response to widespread public concern, the Wisconsin Public Service Commission recently adopted a 'very large user' rate for data centers in We Energies' territory to protect customers from the energy infrastructure for data centers. But this gas project application was submitted by Invenergy, and before that policy took effect. Unfortunately, that means that even though this gas plant is for data centers in We Energies' territory, it remains unclear whether the new protections will be applied, so we must make it abundantly clear that Wisconsin families shouldn't pay a cent on their bills.
Health harms - This new methane gas plant would cause significant health risks, including an estimated 91 early deaths and $1.07 billion in health damages.
From extraction to combustion, methane ‘natural’ gas contributes to increased health harms: cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, cancer, kidney disorders, neurodevelopmental disorders such as Alzheimer's, cognitive and behavioral issues, and lower academic performance.
Air pollution can negatively affect almost every organ system, including the kidneys, lungs, heart, and brain, and it contributes to low birth weight, miscarriages, and increased infant mortality.
Exposure to poor air quality is a leading risk factor for early death.
National Institutes of Health research shows those living in a zip code with a fuel-fired power plant experience asthma hospitalization rates 11% higher, respiratory infection rates 15% higher, and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) rates up 17% higher than demographically similar zip codes with no power plant.
Medical research shows there is no safe level of particulate matter for human health.
This rural community is already unfairly overburdened by poor air quality - According to EPA air monitoring data, Southeastern Wisconsin’s air quality is already so polluted that it is failing to meet the safety standards of the Clean Air Act. This small township already has two harmful gas plants, and a third would deeply worsen that pollution and cumulative health impacts. Rural Wisconsin is not a sacrifice zone.
Southeastern Wisconsin’s air quality is already so polluted that it is failing to meet the safety standards of the Clean Air Act. In 2025, the EPA ruled that the situation should be reclassified as serious.
The Public Service Commission approved a second gas plant in Paris Township just last year. That means that this gas plant is the third gas plant in this rural town. Southeastern Wisconsin cannot continue to be a sacrifice zone for harmful projects, which further worsen our already poor air quality.
The DNR air monitor in Kenosha has already exceeded the standard for ozone monitoring twice this year as of May 27th. The Red Oak Ridge methane gas plant will continue to worsen our already poor air quality.
Our fresh water shouldn't be used to power data centers - Fossil fuel power generation is already responsible for 70% of water withdrawals in Wisconsin, and that number would rise if more gas plants are built.
According to an analysis by Clean Wisconsin, if fossil fuels are used to meet the energy needs of the Port Washington data center alone, “the off-site water use would be at least 54 million gallons a day. For comparison, that’s the water use of about 970,000 Wisconsin residents. It’s more than twice the amount of water used by every home, business and manufacturer in the City of Green Bay.”
Renewable energy and energy efficiency provide alternatives that do not use massive amounts of water. Clean water is fundamental to human health and makes Wisconsin special. We must protect it, especially as droughts become more common.
Climate impacts - Internal memos show that fossil fuel companies have scientific evidence suggesting that the lifecycle emissions from methane gas may be equal to those from coal, but continue to market it as 'natural' or clean to lock in profits. Gas is not a climate solution, and this plant will lock us into decades of dangerous pollution.
The Governor’s Task Force on Climate Change explicitly suggests to “avoid all new fossil fuel infrastructure for electricity generation” and “avoid any new natural gas plants.”
The extreme weather events we’re already experiencing, including historic droughts and floods, superstorms, record-breaking wildfires, and heat, will continue to worsen unless we cut greenhouse gas emissions rapidly. These extreme weather events damage our quality of life, housing, the economy, and increase utility outages (reliability) and costs when infrastructure is damaged.
In 2021, the World Health Organization declared climate change to be “the single biggest health threat facing humanity.”
Studies from the Environmental Defense Fund show that methane leaks from U.S. onshore gas pipelines are occurring between 3.75 times and 8 times greater than estimated by EPA.
The solution - deny the project. We have better, safer, and cheaper energy options that won't make Wisconsinites sick.
A study of the Wisconsin energy system demonstrated that in-state clean energy production is not only possible, but it would prevent over 85,000 asthma and respiratory cases and 2,000 premature deaths every year- culminating in a total of $21 billion in annual health savings for Wisconsin families while growing Wisconsin's GDP by 5%.
We have safer, cheaper alternatives that can meet Wisconsin’s needs with fewer public health impacts. Clean energy can provide safe, cost-effective, and reliable energy, as opposed to gas plants, which have been found to be disproportionately vulnerable to failure during severe weather.
We Energies, which has already submitted a buy-sell application for this gas plant, has stated that ‘resource diversity’ is one of its priorities. But in 2025, they were approved for two new methane gas plants (in Oak Creek and Paris), while, according to their own data, they generated nearly a third of their power from natural gas, a third from coal, and a third from nuclear, while utilizing only 2.6% solar and 2.6% wind. A true commitment to resource diversification would require a rapid expansion of renewable energy.
Gas proposals will often be framed under the lens of creating jobs, but reports show that investing in solar PV creates 1.5 times as many jobs as fossil fuels per $1 million.
Example Comment
This is a long example; to provide options for people to copy any lines they feel strongest about. Even submitting a single sentence is helpful, and your story is powerful.
First Name: Jane Last Name: Doe, DNP (Note: add your health credentials to your name)
“As a concerned [citizen/healthcare professional/parent…] I ask that the PSC deny the Red Oak Ridge Energy Center project because it will cause community health and environmental harm.
This gas plant will make people sick, especially young children in nearby rural communities. Methane gas plants lead to health harms such as cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, as well as cancer, kidney, and neurodevelopmental disorders. Research from UW-Madison shows this plant alone would kill an estimated 91 people and cause $1.07 billion in health damages. That doesn't count the health harms caused by the climate pollution from this plant.
Southwestern Wisconsin's air quality is already so polluted that it is failing safety standards set by the Clean Air Act. The Town of Paris already has two harmful gas plants, and a third would deeply worsen that pollution and cumulative health impacts.
No community should be sacrificed to meet the energy demands of a hyperscale data center and forced to grapple with the harms of a new 1.2 GW methane gas plant in 2026 when the science clearly shows that we have better options. And no Wisconsin family should be forced to pay for it. The new VLC protection must be applied to this case. Please fulfill your obligation to protect the public and provide safe and affordable energy by denying the Red Oak Ridge Gas Plant. Thank you.”
Events to Learn More
Have five more minutes to make a difference?
Take a moment to weigh in on the Foundry Ridge gas plant in Darien, Wisconsin, which is open for public comment until July 23rd.