Fauquier County power line debate

[dusty27]

3rd Battle of Thoroughfare Gap
By: Don Del Rosso
12/13/2006

FULL STORY


Robert Duvall, reading glasses perched on the bridge of his nose, scanned the crowd gathered Monday morning at Beverley Mill near Broad Run.

Television cameras rolled, Nikons clicked furiously and nearby Interstate 66 traffic rumbled past at a deafening clip.

The 75-year-old, Academy Award-winning actor slowly unfolded his seven-page speech.

"We are here today to talk about corporate vandalism," Duvall gravely intoned.

Dominion Virginia Power wants State Corporation Commission (SCC) approval to build a 40-mile, 500,000-volt transmission line through the northern Piedmont. The utility wants to erect 125-foot-plus towers every 1,000 feet to support the line, Duvall told the some 200 people who attended the Piedmont Environmental Council-sponsored press conference.

In addition to Duvall, Congressmen Frank Wolf (R-10th District) and Tom Davis (R-11th District), Fauquier Supervisor Bill Downey (Scott District) and Prince William Supervisors Corey A. Stewart and John T. Stirrup spoke against the power line proposal.

Karen Hughes White, president of the Afro-American Historic Society Association of Fauquier County, raised concerns about the proposed lines potential effects on historically import African-American settlements.

The press conference capped a 90-minute, PEC-hosted morning bus tour between The Plains and Beverley Mill that was intended to illustrate the potential visual and land-use impacts a power line would have on the area.

The proposed alignment would roughly follow I-66 in Fauquier.

Though Dominion apparently intends to skirt land under conservation easement and battlefields, critics contend a line through the area would do irreparable damage to viewsheds and property values.

In a no-nonsense voice, Duvall told the audience that the proposed line would stretch from the "Appalachian Trail at the top of the Blue Ridge Mountains through the middle of this beautiful and historically important area, crossing these Bull Run mountains." The actor lives on a 360-acre farm near The Plains.

The $400 million line would connect the Meadow Brook Substation in Frederick County to the Loudoun Substation near Arcola. Besides Fauquier, Frederick and Loudoun, the line also would cut through Warren and Prince William counties.

Duvall called the Dominion proposal an "engineer's plan for the cheapest, most direct way to move power."

"I got nothing against engineers," the actor proclaimed. "Robert E. Lee started off as one." (Duvall portrayed Lee in the movie "Gods and Generals.") "But sometimes they need a little help with the importance of our historical, cultural and environmental resources. And we intend to provide that help."

The audience cheered. A few shouted "Amen!" which Duvall encouraged with a wave of his hand.

He gave a quick history lesson, detailing the region's Civil War history, focusing on Thoroughfare Gap. Duvall referred to federal, state and local programs promoted by individuals to protect the Piedmont's "hallowed ground."

"Will we continue to honor these special places?" he asked. "Dominion wants to put massive steel towers and buzzing, spitting, bird-killing, high-voltage wires right across John Marshall's farm (in Fauquier)."

Duvall urged Dominion to consider alternatives to the proposed line. "Let's do this in a way that benefit's everyone, not just a corporation's bottom line," he said to loud applause.

Wolf delivered the day's stem-winder.

"The importance of these lands is unparalleled, as evidenced by the vast amount of this area under federal and state protection," said Wolf, whose district includes part of the proposed power line corridor. "This is the land that George Washington surveyed. This the land that inspired Thomas Jefferson. This the land that James Monroe walked. This is the land the Chief Justice John Marshall (born in Midland) farmed. This is the land where blood was spilled to help unify our nation. We must not destroy our land."

Thwarting Dominion's line proposal through the area will "remain one of my top priorities," Wolf promised. "We must not allow this landscape to be destroyed after generations have fought to preserve it."

Tom Davis told the audience, "We cannot let this (line proposal) happen. This cannot be a train gathering momentum."

In an interview during the PEC tour prior to the press conference, Davis criticized Democratic Gov. Tim Kaine for allowing Dominion to sponsor a fundraiser last week in Tysons Corner that poured $1 million into Kaine's PAC. The money will be used support Democratic candidates seeking Virginia General Assembly seats.

Davis suggested Kaine had been too busy "soaking up" Dominion-inspired political contributions to pay much attention to the power line proposal.

"(Davis) well knows that that Dominion, as a major employer in Virginia, makes contributions to a lot of people, including the congressman," Kaine spokesman Kevin Hall said in defense of the governor. "And I might also note that friends of the governor and contributors of the governor are very vocal in opposition to this project. So the congressman's inference isn't particularly fair nor valid at this point."

Kaine increasingly has been criticized for dodging the Dominion debacle.

"The governor has not taken a public position (on the proposal) because nothing has been filed (with the SCC) by Dominion at this point," Hall said. "The governor would like to actually review the proposal before commenting on it."

He pointed out that Kaine earlier this year sent a letter to federal regulators urging them not to "pre-empt" the state review and decision-making processes for power line proposals.

Stewart, chairman of the Prince William County Board of Supervisors, called Kaine's absence from Monday's press conference "despicable." In rebuttal, Hall said "we were not aware of (Monday's) event and we were not invited to participate."

The bus tour, which included about two dozen people, began at around 10 a.m. with a panoramic view from Wakefield School ballfields, which overlook the proposed power line corridor.

PEC workers on Sunday tethered about 60 large, red balloons to 125-foot cords along the proposed transmission line path, which roughly follows I-66.

PEC believes the balloons vividly illustrated the intrusive nature of the transmission towers.

The tour then stopped at a farm near Belvoir farm for another perspective on the tower's potential impacts.

The group then traveled a portion of I-66 before stopping at Beverley Mill for the press conference.

E-mail the reporter: ddelrosso@timespapers.com

[brown]

Re: Fauquier County power line debate

It is refreshing to see someone from Hollywood step-up for something like this.

[MuleyGil]

Re: Fauquier County power line debate

As an aside, when Robert Duvall was interviewed for the Gods and General speciality magazine, he stated that his father's family was desended from pro-Union Northern Virginians, and that on his mother's side, he is related to Marse Robert. He comes from good Virginia stock, as opposed to some of the Hollywood types who have settled in the Old Dominion's Hunt Country.

[brown]

Re: Fauquier County power line debate

That make him an even better choice to speak; not just his words of one day, but his publicly stated views longterm support preservation of these lands.

[Charles Heath]

Re: Fauquier County power line debate

Dusty,

I don't know if you saw the mention of the possible use of conservation easements in an attempt to block this project, but that article is interesting in that such easements are typically not used as tactical defense mechanism. This will be well worth watching.

Should this route be designated a National Interest Transmission Corridor these easements may be for naught, since this federal classification enjoys an over-ride on all state and local reviews and approvals. Two other real uglies go with that, but this is the most dangerous of the three when it comes to federal preemption.

With the continuing NoVa growth explosion, expect this to crop up again and again.

[Dignann]

Re: Fauquier County power line debate

BATTLE OVER TRANSMISSION LINES

Preservation Group Seeks To Shield East Coast Land
List of At-Risk Sites Covers Areas Eyed by Power Companies

By Sandhya Somashekhar

Washinton Post [Washington, D.C.]
June 14, 2007

The National Trust for Historic Preservation plans to declare a large swath of the East Coast's most historic land as among the most imperiled in the country because it could one day be crisscrossed by high-voltage power lines.

The area, which spans seven states, including Virginia, Maryland and West Virginia, will be on the group's list of the nation's 11 most endangered historical sites. This is the Washington-based group's 20th annual list, and it will be unveiled officially at the National Press Club this morning.

"Across the United States, there are still places of great character, where historic family farms stand next to hallowed Civil War battlegrounds, where 18th-century white clapboard churches decorate scenic byways, where neighbors have fought to preserve their heritage and quality of life," the group said in a statement.

The states "are waging battles to protect everything that's irreplaceable about their communities," the statement continues, as utility companies seek to erect miles of transmission lines to connect rural power plants to urban areas, where demand for electricity is high.

In April, the U.S. Department of Energy declared the grid for the mid-Atlantic region so inadequate that companies will have special rights to build power lines without state approval.

The announcement sparked an outcry from residents and lawmakers, who are hoping to persuade Congress to revoke those rights. Rep. Frank R. Wolf (R-Va.) and Maurice D. Hinchey (D-N.Y.) are seeking to amend an energy bill this week to block implementation of the federal program.

In response to the National Trust for Historic Preservation's list, Dominion Virginia Power officials said yesterday that they were committed to keeping history in mind when plotting out the routes for power lines.

"The code of Virginia requires that Dominion consider any cultural or historic or environmentally sensitive sites when we propose a transmission line, and we believe we have done this," said Dominion spokeswoman Le-Ha Anderson.

Dominion is hoping to build a 65-mile power line through Northern Virginia, and has faced community opposition over fears it will ruin the landscape and sink property values. This year, the company abandoned a plan to run the line through sensitive parts of Loudoun, Fauquier and Prince William counties.

A proposed line by American Electric Power and Allegheny Power would span about 300 miles, beginning in West Virginia. The line would run northeast through West Virginia's scenic Allegheny Highlands to a substation to be built near Damascus. Although the specific route has not been determined, it could pass by the Antietam National Battlefield, where 23,000 soldiers were killed in the Civil War.

Fifteen-story steel poles strung together by cables could do irreparable harm to those sites, said Robert Nieweg, director of the preservation group's southern field office.

"The line of towers along the countryside will cause a kind of visual pollution, an industrial-style blight on a countryside that deserves more careful treatment," Nieweg said.

Some of the area covered in today's announcement has been featured in earlier lists by the group. In 2005, the group deemed endangered a 175-mile stretch of road from Gettysburg National Military Park to Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, which threads through Civil War-era towns and battlefields and faces a threat from suburban sprawl.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/13/AR2007061302172.html

Eric

[Dignann]

Re: Fauquier County power line debate

US trumps states over siting power lines

Designated as part of a national power 'corridor' Tuesday, Virginia could see transmission towers near Civil War sites.

By Mark Clayton

The Christian Science Monitor
October 4, 2007

Huge transmission lines could soon skirt Civil War battlegrounds, historic districts, and the Appalachian Trail following a federal order that designates national corridors in two key regions of the United States with fast-growing electricity needs.

The corridors are designed to make it easier for utilities to get approval for power lines in areas where the electric grid is congested. They allow the US Energy Department – not states – to be the final arbiter of where the lines are built.

Tuesday's move is certain to spark a fresh round of lawsuits and inject vigor into congressional debates about new energy legislation, critics say, especially over provisions for the new eastern corridor. At stake is the reliability and cost of electric power in the Northeast, its embrace of green energy, and the ambience of hundreds of thousands of rural acres from New York to Virginia.

Arguing that the US badly needs new transmission lines to prevent future power shortages and possibly even blackouts, federal energy officials say newly designated "national interest electric corridors" in the Mid-Atlantic states and the Southwest are a much needed insurance policy.

"These National Corridors serve as an important indication by the federal government that significant transmission [power] constraint or congestion problems exist," Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman said in a statement. "The goal is simple – to keep reliable supplies of electric energy flowing to all Americans."

But opponents, including the governors of New York and Virginia, state regulators, and others, say it's anything but simple. The newly designated corridors hold potential to push power lines through some of the most scenic and historic areas of 11 states. They would also undermine Northeast states' bid to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions by causing them to rely more on cheaper coal-fired power from the Midwest, rather than cleaner but higher cost electric generators fired by natural gas.

"I am deeply disappointed in the department's decision to go forward with this designation," says Rep. Frank Wolf (R) of Virginia. "It makes no sense and has the potential to destroy neighborhoods and desecrate huge swaths of historically significant land."

Under provisions of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is allowed to preempt local and state zoning laws when it designates a "national interest electric transmission corridor." It also permits the use of federal powers of eminent domain that would require landowners to sell their property.

As reported by the Monitor in May, at least eight power lines stretching 2,000 miles through six eastern states at an estimated cost of more than $9 billion are under active consideration or have been formally proposed by power companies. But those plans, which make it possible to bring power from the Ohio Valley to the East Coast, face increasing opposition.

Indeed, the new corridors are not needed to boost reliability, say state officials and some grid-reliability experts. They say the corridors are aimed mainly at making it possible for large, deregulated utilities to profit from transmitting cheap coal-fired power from the Ohio Valley to the East Coast.

What raises suspicions for some is the sweeping scope of the corridor along the Eastern Seaboard. Transmission planners and engineers say upgrades to existing lines could address reliability without a need for most new lines. The two new corridors are not exactly narrow pathways for power lines, but encompass wide swaths of 11 states. The new Mid-Atlantic power corridor, for instance, encompasses 116,000 square miles.

"The FERC cited the Hudson Valley in New York as a bottleneck for power – but that's wrong," says George Loehr, a power engineer and executive committee member of the New York State Reliability Council. "It's just that independent generating companies in upstate New York would like to be able to move more power to New York City and Long Island. That's the highest priced market and would earn them more money there. But that's not a reliability issue."

But Dominion Resources, which has proposed a 65-mile power line through the Virginia countryside narrowly skirting battlefields, has said it expects state regulators to make a positive decision on its recent application. If the company doesn't like the decision, it may now apply to FERC for review of its power-line proposal.

Some of the most heated resistance is in Virginia where the new national corridor includes 11 historic districts, one national historic landmark, 19 state or national historic sites, seven Civil War battlefields, and the Appalachian Trail. Some of the most famous sites of the Civil War – Manassas, Antietem, and Gettysburg – lie within the Mid-Atlantic corridor.

Mark Brownstein, a managing director at Environmental Defense, a New York-based environmental group, says his group is examining the possibility of a lawsuit. The new corridor border divides Appalachian coal reserves and large urban populations on the East Coast. "It seems no accident these corridors are exactly along the borders of states that have committed to reducing greenhouse gases," he says.

http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/1004/p03s02-usgn.html

Eric

[Dignann]

Re: Fauquier County power line debate

Environmentalists Sue DOE

By KIMBERLY HEFLING

Associated Press
January 14, 2008

WASHINGTON (AP) — Eleven environmental groups sued the Department of Energy on Monday over its creation of a corridor in the mid-Atlantic region that could smooth the way for construction of new power lines.

Under a 2005 law, the federal government can approve new power transmission towers within corridors such as this one if states and regional groups fail to approve such lines. The law was passed following the 2003 blackout that rippled from Ohio to Canada and New York City.

Last year, the Energy Department designated the mid-Atlantic corridor and another in the Southwest.

In two separate complaints, the environmental groups claim the Department of Energy violated environmental laws by failing to study the impact the corridor designation would have on air quality, wildlife, habitat and other natural resources.

They asked the court to declare the corridor invalid and in violation of the law.

The National Wildlife Federation, the Piedmont Environmental Council, the Sierra Club, National Parks Conservation Association, Environmental Advocates of New York, Clean Air Council, Pennsylvania Land Trust Association, Civil War Preservation Trust, Catskill Mountainkeeper, Brandywine Conservancy and National Lands Trust filed the complaints in federal court in Pennsylvania's middle district.

The mid-Atlantic corridor includes parts of Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia.

Julie Ruggiero, an Energy Department spokeswoman, said in a statement Monday that designation of the corridors "in and of itself has no environmental impact."

She said the designation "identifies a problem and shines a spotlight on areas of the country that are experiencing or could experience interruptions in power supply ... designation of corridors is critical because it encourages stakeholders to look at electricity generation from a regional and national perspective, identify solutions, and take prompt action."

Last week, another environmental group, the Center for Biological Diversity filed a similar lawsuit in federal court in California challenging the designation in the Southwest. The Southwest corridor includes seven counties in Southern California and three counties in southwestern Arizona.

In a nod to critics, the Department of Energy said in December it would take more time to review requests for a rehearing on the corridor designations.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jUAYKjXaNb0UbYadhIOt3nwte31gD8U5S1AO2

Eric