|
|
| Power plans have charged up residents |
| |
|
By BRUCE A. SCRUTON
bscruton@njherald.com
It would be one of the largest construction projects in northwestern New Jersey, but being spread out along 46 miles, most people only will see bits and pieces of the work along a major electric transmission corridor to replace towers and add more lines by 2012.
The proposal by Public Service Electric & Gas to add 500-kilovolt service to the existing 230-kilovolt lines is now before the state Board of Public Utilities with another set of approvals needed from the state Department of Environmental Protection because the route travels through the Highlands, a multi-municipal region that supplies much of the state’s drinking water.
The bureaucratic wrangling that will unfold the next few months has all the elements that get people riled and companies on the defensive — concerns for people’s health, worries about the environment, deep-set beliefs in a business model and service to the community and forward-thinking people on both sides of the question of the power needs of the future.
PSE&G’s arguments are provided in part by PJM Interconnection, the regional organization that oversees electric power production and transmission for a 56,250-square-mile area that includes 13 northeastern and Midwestern states and the District of Columbia.
PJM said the new line, which would stretch from Susquehanna, Pa., to Roseland in Essex County, is part of an upgrade needed for its area to ensure reliable service, as well as meet future demands. PSE&G is responsible for building the section between Roseland and the Delaware River while PPL is responsible for the Pennsylvania portion.
As part of its arguments, PSE&G and PJM said electric usage will increase in the next decade, requiring additional lines. Building the new lines also gives the utilities the opportunity to replace the existing 230-kilovolt lines, some parts of which date to the late 1920s, when the towers were first built.
PSE&G announced the project in early June and said it was looking at three possible routes to link up with its giant substation in Roseland.
In July, the chosen corridor was unveiled. It passes through the Sussex County towns of Stillwater, Fredon, Newton, Andover, Byram and Sparta.
Last month, PSE&G chose to go before the state Board of Public Utilities for a blanket approval for the project, rather than seeking approval from each of the 15 townships along the route.
That choice prompted several municipalities to form a new association and share resources as participants in the approval process. While no hearings have yet to be scheduled by the state, municipal officials want meaningful hearings held close to the affected areas, rather than in Newark, where the board is headquartered.
“We are the ones who know our municipalities. We know the geology, the people, the potential for problems,” said Scott Olson, a Byram councilman who has been outspoken about the process since the beginning.
Olson said there are many unanswered questions, especially about the environmental impacts through the Highlands area.
Other areas of concern include the increased voltage along the corridor.
Grass-roots organizations, such as Fredon-based Stop the Lines, have raised concerns about electromagnetic forces. The group said some studies have shown a possible link between electromagnetic forces and some forms of cancer. Other studies have shown no link.
There also are concerns about property values, not just for those properties where the lines pass overhead, but for homes that are in the sightlines of the string of new taller towers.
The existing latticework towers were built in 1929 and are about 90 feet tall. The new towers, a combination of monopole and latticework, will be twice that height.
Some critics have said having metal poles towering above the woods and along ridgelines will spoil the scenic beauty of northern New Jersey’s hills.
Stop the Lines said there are options to slow, or even reduce, the demand for power, such as conservation and renewable energy.
Earlier this month, PJM confirmed power usage in its area had dropped the past year and projected a further drop this coming year.
The state’s Energy Master Plan calls for increased use of solar power and wind power. Critics said the PSE&G proposal flies in the face of that master plan.
Those are questions the BPU, and likely appeals, will answer in the coming months.
Created: 2/14/2009 | Updated: 2/15/2009
|
|
|
