Deadline to comment on proposed power line Jan. 5
A map of the proposed power line.
Only a few days remain for the Bureau of Land Management to take public comment as it prepares an environmental impact statement on the construction of the proposed 33-mile, overhead high-voltage power line through portions of northern Santa Fe County and southern Rio Arriba County. The deadline to submit remarks is Jan. 5.
At issue is whether the region needs the 345-kilovolt Verde Transmission Line, which Hunt Power of Texas wants to build. It claims the line will increase capacity, make power more reliable and fill in holes in the current regional transmission system. The line would run from a Public Service Company of New Mexico substation near Chili, in Rio Arriba County, to another substation some 12 miles west of Tesuque, in Santa Fe County. The estimated cost is between $60 million and $80 million. The company would pay for upfront construction costs, and PNM and other companies would pay a fee to use the line.
Neighbors of the proposed line have been vocal in opposition — most, that is. The governments of three of the region’s pueblos, Ohkay Owingeh, Santa Clara and Pojoaque, are in favor of the project. A third of the route is on federal BLM land, with much of the remainder going through the three pueblos. A fourth pueblo, San Ildefonso, has expressed concern that the line will be too near to sacred sites at Black Mesa and would adversely affect neighbors in El Rancho.
A more direct route for the line would run through San Ildefonso, in fact, but the pueblo has not agreed to consider such a path. This project, evidently, is not just dividing Native and non-Native neighbors, but even the pueblos themselves.
That’s unfortunate, just another reason the BLM should not give the green light to the Verde line. The height of the power transmission poles and the lines themselves would be an unnecessary blight on the landscape of Northern New Mexico, destroying the views that draw both tourists and filmmakers to our region. It’s unclear, too, whether the transmission line would benefit residents or be more of a conduit to carry power elsewhere. The company has not clearly established just why the project is needed.
For many reasons, the BLM should reject this application. That decision will be made easier if the weight of public comments against — with facts and solid arguments and not just emotional responses — are introduced into the public record. Submit comments online at www.blm.gov/nm/verde, via email at BLM_NM_Verde@blm.gov or by mail at Bureau of Land Management, Verde Transmission Line Project, P.O. Box 27115, Santa Fe, NM 87502-0115.
By Thursday, Jan. 5, it will be too late to weigh in.
