Group claims power lines application incomplete

Responsible Energy Alliance,  a citizen coalition, on Monday filed a motion with the Public Service Commission asking the agency to rescind its finding that American Transmission Company’s application to extend high-voltage power lines to the Vantage Data Centers Lighthouse Campus in Port Washington was complete.

The group of Saukville, Trenton, Fredonia and Farmington residents fighting to keep the power lines out of their communities filed the expedited motion, contending ATC’s application is incomplete and violates Wisconsin law requiring that unless there are extenuating circumstances, new lines should be routed along existing utility corridors.

The matter is time sensitive, the group argues, noting there is a Friday, July 17, deadline to file direct testimony in the case.

If the PSC does not rescind its Dec. 15 determination that ATC’s application is complete, the petition says the agency should order ATC to file a new application that would permanently withdraw two greenfield routes for the power lines from consideration.

The motion notes that Vantage has supported running the power lines through the so-called south alternate route, which avoids the sensitive greenfields that Responsible Energy Alliance is fighting to preserve.

It notes that ATC has not explained why it wants to use the so-called preferred and preferred-contingent routes, which send power lines through ecologically sensitive areas.

“A route largely following ATC’s own existing right-of-way remains on the table — an alternative that, per Vantage’s own testimony, would still meet the project’s technical and operational requirements,” the group said in a press release.

Support for that route has come from numerous municipalities, including the City of Port, and the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection in its agricultural impact statement for the project.

In addition to Responsible Energy Alliance, similar motions have been filed by Restoring Lands and Town of Saukville residents Tom and Mary Uttech.

Responsible Energy Alliance quoted wildlife biologist Gary Casper as saying that routing the power lines through the greenfield options “most definitely will cause harm, there is no question about that.”

He said that the timeline does not allow adequate seasonal survey work on the project, citing the fact that work to confirm if a federally endangered dragonfly species is in the affected area needs to be done during the flight season in July and August.

Erik Olsen of Eminent Domain Services, who is representing Responsible Energy Alliance, said the fact that Vantage backs the southern alternate route should decide the matter.

“Why are ecologically sensitive greenfields even being considered for such massive transmission lines when Vantage itself seems perfectly fine with the route that spares these special lands and follows Wisconsin law?” he wrote. “I just don’t get it.”

If the PSC agreed to rescind its finding that the application is complete, ATC would have to file a new application and restart the review process.

That’s not something to worry about, Olsen said.

“(It is) the process protection Wisconsin law is supposed to provide for a project of this size and cost,” he said.