The Shawnee Fossil Plant was created with the intentions of providing sufficient electricity to the national defense industry escalating demand for power which could not be met with the Commonwealth of Kentucky's then-current infrastructure.

The plant also provided economic growth to the area in the post-WWII era creating jobs and a stronger infrastructure to support future state developments.

[9] Overall the Shawnee Fossil Plant disposes of ash within a 300-acre area which includes groundwater access locations polluting the local ecosystem.

[9] With Unit 10 already decommissioned on June 30, 2014, the president of the Tennessee Valley Authority, Jeff Lyash, announced plans to close the TVA's coal fleet (including the Shawnee Fossil Plant) by 2035 with hopes of transitions to cleaner energy solutions making less of an impact on the surrounding environment.

[10] Through the resources of the Tennessee Valley Authority and AECOM the Shawnee Fossil Plant installed scrubbers that remove both sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides produced in Units 1 and 4.