Private investment in power lines is to be expected
NORWICH – The U.S. Department of Energy doesn’t have to invest in power line research and development, it just has the authority to ensure that private companies like New York Regional Interconnect Inc. can.
After repeated calls to the DOE Monday and Tuesday morning, a department spokesman contacted The Evening Sun for an interview to follow-up a report that power line research and development was not listed as one of the DOE’s top budget priorities. While it may not be a budget priority, spokesman Craig Stevens said private power line investment will be “imperative” to the nation’s energy plan.
“It’s absolutely imperative,” Stevens said. “Power is needed for the large congested areas.”
When asked if NYRI’s 190-mile-long power line was a plausible solution – or if utilizing existing transmission corridors, corridors closer to the demand for energy, or other alternatives should be considered instead – Stevens said he could not comment. He said he did not want to preempt an upcoming draft report that could possibly outline the designation of National Interest Electricity Transmission Corridors. A state within a corridor could be blocked or overruled by the federal government from reviewing a power line project.
NYRI is proposing to build a 400,000 volt power line from Oneida to Orange County in an effort to relieve energy congestion downstate. The $1.6 billion line would use upstate electricity supplies and land, and citizens along the line fear that the project would have devastating impacts on the economy and environment of the 190-mile long region.
“We have to fight this issue on the idea that there has to be other ways,” said Norwich resident Perry Owen. “This seems like the easy and dirty way of throwing power lines across the land.”
Owen suggests energy conservation, co-generation, or building facilities closer to where the demand is needed are relevant and long-term solutions the problem.
Stevens said generation sites in or near New York City are not likely.
In a Feb. 21 speech, DOE Deputy Secretary Clay Sell said states, regions and the nation as a whole will have to rethink their energy stances, citing that alternative energy sources, such as nuclear, wind, solar, or clean coal generation plants, will still need more power lines to deliver the electricity.
“How dependent do you want your state, your region, or your company to be, 15 or 20 years from now, on natural gas as a generation fuel?” Sell asked. “This question is crucial, because almost all of the alternative generation sources – including nuclear, clean coal, wind, and other renewables – will be sited far from load centers and will present significant transmission requirements.”
If large transmission lines were necessary, Owen contends there is still an alternative.
“If that’s the case – Why don’t they put these power lines underground?” Owen asked. “Bury them, the technology is there. They need to look at that first. It would be far less hazardous.”
NYRI officials claim burying the line is not feasible.
After repeated calls to the DOE Monday and Tuesday morning, a department spokesman contacted The Evening Sun for an interview to follow-up a report that power line research and development was not listed as one of the DOE’s top budget priorities. While it may not be a budget priority, spokesman Craig Stevens said private power line investment will be “imperative” to the nation’s energy plan.
“It’s absolutely imperative,” Stevens said. “Power is needed for the large congested areas.”
When asked if NYRI’s 190-mile-long power line was a plausible solution – or if utilizing existing transmission corridors, corridors closer to the demand for energy, or other alternatives should be considered instead – Stevens said he could not comment. He said he did not want to preempt an upcoming draft report that could possibly outline the designation of National Interest Electricity Transmission Corridors. A state within a corridor could be blocked or overruled by the federal government from reviewing a power line project.
NYRI is proposing to build a 400,000 volt power line from Oneida to Orange County in an effort to relieve energy congestion downstate. The $1.6 billion line would use upstate electricity supplies and land, and citizens along the line fear that the project would have devastating impacts on the economy and environment of the 190-mile long region.
“We have to fight this issue on the idea that there has to be other ways,” said Norwich resident Perry Owen. “This seems like the easy and dirty way of throwing power lines across the land.”
Owen suggests energy conservation, co-generation, or building facilities closer to where the demand is needed are relevant and long-term solutions the problem.
Stevens said generation sites in or near New York City are not likely.
In a Feb. 21 speech, DOE Deputy Secretary Clay Sell said states, regions and the nation as a whole will have to rethink their energy stances, citing that alternative energy sources, such as nuclear, wind, solar, or clean coal generation plants, will still need more power lines to deliver the electricity.
“How dependent do you want your state, your region, or your company to be, 15 or 20 years from now, on natural gas as a generation fuel?” Sell asked. “This question is crucial, because almost all of the alternative generation sources – including nuclear, clean coal, wind, and other renewables – will be sited far from load centers and will present significant transmission requirements.”
If large transmission lines were necessary, Owen contends there is still an alternative.
“If that’s the case – Why don’t they put these power lines underground?” Owen asked. “Bury them, the technology is there. They need to look at that first. It would be far less hazardous.”
NYRI officials claim burying the line is not feasible.
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