Latest News

May 15, 2012

Wildrose Criticizes PCs for High Power Bills

The Official Opposition Environment and Utilities Critic Joe Anglin criticized the PC government for creating the current electrical market that leaves families and seniors at a disadvantage.

In this news release, Anglin said, “The current power market primarily benefits power producers and continues to fail families and seniors, especially those who rely on fixed incomes. With the construction of unnecessary power lines along with extra costs being tacked onto Albertans’ power bills, there needs to be more concerted effort to make sure competition and the market is working for consumers.”

May 12, 2012

Calgary Mayor Says Power Lines Not Needed

The Calgary Herald reports that Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi called the building of the Western Alberta and Eastern Alberta 500 kilovolt power lines a “terrible” idea.

He said the lines won’t be needed because Calgary’s city-owned utility is building a $1 billion gas-fired power plant that will address Calgary’s peak-demand power needs. The Mayor said, “And to build both of them (power lines) and to put those costs on everyone, even ratepayers in Calgary who, once the Shepard Energy Centre is built, actually won’t be using them very much, strikes me as very, very strange public policy.”

RETA could not agree more.

May 11 & 14, 2012

High Alberta Power Bills

This letter to the Edmonton Journal reads, “Deregulation of utilities in Alberta is tantamount to thievery.” The writer indicates he paid $375 between January and May to provide electricity to an empty condo in Edmonton.

Another letter to the Edmonton Journal reads, “It is time the Alberta government steps in to protect the consumer against gouging by utility companies in what is basically a monopoly where free-market forces do not provide any protection to consumers.”

The Alberta government has been criticized repeatedly for its failed deregulation experiment and insistence on getting unnecessary high voltage power lines built throughout Alberta, both of which have resulted in Albertans paying among the highest electricity rates in the country.

May 1, 2012

Country Club Fights Power Line

Longue Vue Club, a country club founded in 1920 on 370 acres above the Allegheny River in Penn Hills, Pennsylvania, has squared off in court against Duquesne Light over a proposed power line upgrade (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette).

Duquesne Light claims an upgrade from 69 kilovolts to 345 kilovolts is necessary and will require almost a doubling in the height from 80-foot poles to 150-foot towers. Longue Vue Club claims the new towers and lines will negatively impact the view from their facilities. The Club’s claim reads, “Longue Vue has a strong historical and esthetic interest in preserving the unobstructed view of the Allegheny River valley, for which it was named and which constitutes a material part of the value of its property.”

Based on our research, RETA would agree with Longue Vue Club. Overhead high voltage power lines are ugly and blight the landscape. If they are necessary, they need to be buried in cases like this.

April 24, 2012

Merritt B.C. Residents Concerned About B.C. Hydro Line

Residents in several communities in Merritt, B.C. are concerned about the negative health effects and property devaluation associated with a new overhead 138 kilovolt transmission line planned by B.C. Hydro (Merritt News). Electromagnetic fields (EMFs) emanating from overhead high voltage power lines have been conclusively linked to many diseases including many forms of cancer.

April 19, 2012

Residents Fear Property Devaluation from Power Line

FirstEnergy Corp. is planning a new 60-mile overhead 138kV power line from Clark County to Delaware County, Ohio (Springfield News-Sun).

Residents fear their properties will decrease in value or will be taken by eminent domain. NoNewWires.org has a petition with more than 1,200 signatures from people opposed to the project impacting residents’ properties. (See this link for the facts on overhead high voltage power lines negatively impacting property values.)

April 13, 2012

Irish Farmers Want Power Line Buried

Farmers who live next to a proposed 400 kilovolt power line to serve south Leinster and east Munster, Ireland, want the line buried. They are concerned about the negative impacts of overhead lines and pylons (towers) on their farming activities and on protected landscapes.

Eirgrid’s CEO says the transmission company prefers overhead lines but the cable may be placed underground where constraints are a factor.

April 4, 2012

Texas Tornadoes Take Out Power

Up to 13 tornadoes wreaked havoc in the Dallas-Fort Worth area April 3, leaving tens of thousands of homes and businesses without power. A day later, over 14,000 customers remained without power. Hundreds of homes were damaged (Reuters).

Had the transmission lines been buried, there would have been no power outages and millions of dollars would not need to be spent to repair power line damages.

April 1, 2012

Jurupa Valley Residents Continue Opposition to 230kV Line

Further to our Aug.4, Aug. 10, Aug. 21 and Sept. 1, 2011 coverage, Jurupa Valley residents continue their battle against Southern California’s proposed Riverside Transmission Reliability Project which would see an overhead 230kV power line built through their community (Press-Enterprise).

Residents have raised concerns about unsightly transmission towers, health risks associated with the electromagnetic fields, impacts on their property values, environmental impacts, and negative effects on commercial development opportunities.

March 29, 2012

More Complaints about High Power Costs

This letter to the Edmonton Journal is but one more example of Albertans’ frustration with high electricity costs. The letter points out how electricity deregulation has failed miserably, how power costs keep going up to pay for all the new and unnecessary high voltage lines, and that many of these new lines Alberta ratepayers are forced to pay for will be exporting power to the United States.

High electricity costs, unnecessary new transmission lines, negative impacts of overhead high voltage lines, and the cozy relationship between the Alberta PC Party and AltaLink, are all key provincial election issues.

March 29, 2012

Power Line Critics Want Line Run Underwater

Residents of James City, Virginia are worried about the environmental, visual and property value impacts of a new overhead high voltage power line to be built across the James River (Virginia Gazette). Many critics prefer that Dominion Resources Inc. run the 500kV line underwater.

Dominion has significantly overestimated the capital cost of running the line underwater. When capital, maintenance and transmission loss costs are combined over the life of a line, buried lines are less expensive than overhead lines.

March 27 & 29, 2012

SNC-Lavalin’s CEO Resignation a Mystery

On the issue of SNC-Lavalin’s CEO suddenly resigning earlier this week amid allegations of breaching the company’s code of ethics, the San Francisco Chronicle says, “you have to burrow through tons of legalese to get an idea of what the problem was……..(Pierre) Duhaime’s guilt or lack thereof notwithstanding, no one disputes that he was in charge when $56 million officially went missing.”

Meanwhile, AltaLink, which is owned by SNC-Lavalin, tried to distance itself from its parent company by suggesting that the controversy over SNC-Lavalin’s financial problems in Libya and the related CEO’s resignation will not affect AltaLink’s operations and leadership (Calgary Herald). This is hard to believe considering that 100% of AltaLink is owned by SNC-Lavalin, and three of AltaLink’s nine Board of Director members are SNC-Lavalin vice presidents (Gilles Laramee and Jim Burke are Executive VPs, and Don Chynoweth is a Senior VP). Patricia Nelson, past Alberta PC Minister of Energy and Minister of Finance, also sits on the AltaLink Board.

March 22, 2012

Cogeneration of Power Negates Need for Massive Transmission Lines

Big industry in Alberta has been telling the Alberta government we don’t need all the massive transmission lines that the government wants to get built. Recently, Imperial Oil Ltd. provided yet another example of why there is no need for 5ookV power lines from dirty coal-fired generation at places like Wabamun to feed the oil and gas industry in northeast Alberta.

Imperial’s in situ thermal Nabiye expansion at Cold Lake will include a 170 megawatt cogeneration facility which will sell excess power into the Alberta grid (see Calgary Herald). It’s estimated that Imperial will consume only about 15% of the power generated from the facility, leaving about 145 megawatts of cogen capacity to be sold into the grid. Not only does Imperial not require expensive coal-fired electricity from Wabamun to be transmitted by the Heartland and other lines, but the excess cogen from the Cold Lake expansion alone would generate about $86 million per year in cash flow for Imperial.

Huge 500kV transmission lines, as planned by the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) and the Alberta government are certainly not necessary to transmit cogen power into the provincial grid – much smaller capacity lines would suffice. This is yet another example of the AESO’s and the provincial government’s huge and expensive mistake of insisting on overbuilt lines to and from northeast Alberta. And, the cost of these overbuilt lines will be footed 100% by Alberta ratepayers, while the transmission companies will reap guaranteed 9% returns annually from ratepayers’ investment.

March 21, 2012

SNC-Lavalin Connections Cause Problems

CBC News reports that Ambassador Sandra McCardell is no longer the top diplomat to Libya. This follows earlier CBC reports that SNC-Lavalin had hired McCardell’s husband, Edis Zagorac, to work as part of a military-civilian engineering unit that the Montreal-based engineering firm created with the tyrannous Gadhafi regime. SNC-Lavalin, which had billions of dollars in contracts with Libya, hired the ambassador’s husband shortly after her appointment to Libya.

SNC-Lavalin owns 100% of AltaLink and, together, they will be building the Western Alberta Transmission Line and the Heartland Line in Alberta.

March 21, 2012

Taking of Private Land for MATL Power Line

The Choteau Acantha reports that Montana Alberta Tie Ltd. (MATL) is asking the courts to grant it easements on the private properties of 46 landowners (79 parcels) who refuse to permit the 214-mile-long merchant high voltage line from Lethbridge to Great Falls to be built on their land.

The MATL transmission line has seen its fair share of controversy: landowners refusing easements on their properties; original MATL owner running out of money and buy-out by Enbridge; significant construction cost overruns; delays over work quality, safety and contract interpretation issues; and not meeting with some landowners.

March 17, 2012

EPCOR Boasts High Profits – Customers Pay Outrageous Rates

As with AltaLink about 3 weeks ago, EPCOR has announced soaring revenue and profits (see Edmonton Journal). At the same time, EPCOR customers are complaining about outrageously high power costs and getting gouged.

One of the reasons for the outlandish power rates is the fact that ratepayers in Alberta foot 100% of the cost of new transmission infrastructure, while companies like EPCOR get to own it and reap guaranteed annual 9% returns on this infrastructure. High power costs are also being blamed on the Alberta government’s failed deregulation experiment.

Customers have been switching to power companies that offer more competitive rates than EPCOR. (EPCOR and AltaLink will be building the controversial Heartland power line, together with Montreal-based SNC-Lavalin.)

March 17, 2012

Facts Contradict Alberta Cabinet Minister

At a recent meeting in Lethbridge, Keith Wilson, property rights expert, refuted P.C. Cabinet Minister Greg Weadick’s assertion that 2 major north-south transmission lines are urgently needed, and that most Albertans support the government’s new land-use laws, including Bills 19 and 50 (see Lethbridge Herald article).

Industrial power consumer groups, ENMAX, and university studies have shown that the 2 north-south transmission lines dubiously labeled as “critical” by the Alberta government are not needed, or at minimum are significant overbuilds. And, it is a well-known fact that there was widespread opposition across Alberta to both Bill 19 and Bill 50 when they were passed in 2009. Bill 19 makes it easier for the government to unilaterally designate private land for high voltage power line corridors, and sterilizes the land for other purposes. Bill 50 takes away the public’s opportunity to review the need for new high voltage power lines, even though ratepayers foot 100% of the cost for this new infrastructure.

March 17, 2012

More Troubles for AltaLink’s Parent Company

Members of the Will County Board near Chicago, Illinois, continue to distance themselves from Montreal-based SNC-Lavalin. They do not want to consider a proposal by Congressman Jesse Jackson and SNC-Lavalin to build a new airport in Will County because of the links between SNC-Lavalin and the Libyan Moammar Gadhafi family (see Daily Chronicle article).

SNC-Lavalin owns 100% of AltaLink and, together, they will be building the Heartland Transmission Line and the Western Alberta Transmission Line in Alberta.

March 16, 2012

High Voltage Lines Cause Major Forest Fires

Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) and its contractors recently paid $29.5 million to the federal government to settle lawsuits over 2 major forest fires in 2004 in California (see Modesto Bee article). High voltage transmission lines caused the fires in national forests in El Dorado and Trinity counties. A decayed “hazard tree” fell on one line, and a tree being cut to keep the power line right-of-way clear fell on another line. In total, 11,500 acres of land were burned, including 8,500 acres of national forest.

U.S. Attorney Benjamin Wagner said, “These fires cause lots of damage, and some of the harm cannot be remedied with money, but the funds will go to compensate for costs of battling them, for the loss of valuable timber, and the expense of restoring and re-foresting the land.”

These and many other fires caused by overhead high voltage lines would not have happened had the lines been buried.

March 16, 2012

Hot Air Balloons Collide with Power Lines

A hot air balloon with 9 people aboard collided with power lines in Marana, Arizona, March 16 (see KVOA Tucson coverage). Sparks generated from the collision ignited parts of the balloon but fortunately only minor burns were reported by 3 passengers.

A much more serious accident occurred in New Zealand January 7, 2012, when a hot air balloon crashed into a power line, burst into flames, and killed 11 people on board (Mail Online).

Overhead power lines pose major hazards to hot air balloons, paragliders, hang gliders, fixed wing aircraft and helicopters. Burying these lines would avert danger to humans and avoid costly damages.

March 14, 2012

Overhead Power Lines Downed by Truck

An 18-wheeler being towed knocked over a power line today, bringing down the lines at a major intersection in Edmonton. An EPCOR spokesperson said the downed lines are dangerous and warned motorists and pedestrians to stay away from the wires (iNews 880 and Edmonton Journal).

Similar accidents occur regularly, where overhead power lines are brought down to the ground and pose an electrocution danger to people. Burying these lines would not only eliminate the danger, but also save millions of dollars in damages and repair costs.

March 13, 2012

Controversial CAPX 2020 Power Line

We’ve been keeping our readers updated on the controversial proposed 150-mile-long CAPX 2020 high voltage power line from Minnesota to Wisconsin.

Residents are having their final say on the line at public hearings that started March 13. Residents are concerned the overhead line will ruin their properties, harm the environment, harm scenic views along the Mississippi River, and kill a brand new subdivision. And, many people don’t think the line is needed at all (see WKBT coverage).

March 12, 2012

EPCOR Rates Too High

This writer to the Edmonton Journal is switching to another company because he says his EPCOR power bills are “outrageous”. Many other EPCOR customers have made similar complaints, and have switched or are switching to other companies that offer better rates.

March 10, 2012

Eastern AB Line Before Western AB Line?

Alberta Energy Minister Ted Morton suggests ATCO Electric’s Eastern Alberta Transmission Line (EATL) may be built before AltaLink’s Western Alberta Transmission Line (WATL) because there are fewer protests over routing of the former (see this article). More specifically, Morton says, “Even though the western line is the shorter line, it’s very possible the eastern line will be completed before that because there is much less landowner concern.”

The AUC hearing for the WATL is scheduled to start June 11 in Red Deer, and the hearing for the EATL is scheduled to start July 23 in Brooks. Both lines are controversial, and have received significant opposition from landowners and power consumers. The need for the lines cannot be questioned at the hearings because the Alberta Government has taken away this opportunity by legislating the building of both lines (Bill 50).

March 10, 2012

Opposition to SaskPower Line Continues

The Star Phoenix reports continuing opposition to a controversial 24-kilometre-long SaskPower high voltage line in the Pike Lake area of Saskatchewan. Local landowners are protesting expropriation of their land for the power line, estimating that construction of the line above ground will devalue their land by 40%. (See this link for more facts on overhead lines devaluing properties.)

March 9, 2012

Undergrounding Considered in Northern Ireland

Alternative technologies such as underground cabling are being considered as part of an inquiry into a 400kV power line proposed by Northern Ireland Electricity.

Undergrounding is being considered because of concerns raised about the negative impacts of an overhead line on public health, the ecology, natural heritage and protection of habitats for protected species (see this article).

March 7, 2012

Negative Impacts of Gateway West Line

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management has received 2,600 comments on the proposed 1,100-mile-long high voltage Gateway West Transmission Line Project across Wyoming and Idaho (see this article). The project is proposed jointly by Idaho Power and Rocky Mountain Power.

Concerns and questions by landowners and homeowners include: is the line needed?, green energy can be produced closer to home, impacts on the environment, impacts on the airspace, resulting higher power rates, safety of residents living near the line, and diminishment of viewsheds.

Public pressure is building across North America and around the world to bury unsightly overhead high voltage lines to eliminate negative impacts on health, safety, the environment, property values, tourism, agriculture and aesthetics.

March 6, 2012

Overhead TransGrid Line Worries Residents

Residents in New South Wales, Australia, are worried about a proposal by TransGrid to build a 100km-long high voltage power line through their communities (see this article). They are concerned about loss of views, property devaluation, safety and compensation. These concerns would not exist if the lines were buried.

March 5, 2012

Snow Storms Down Power Lines

The Petoskey News reports heavy wet snow caused widespread power outages in northern Michigan March 2 and 3. As of today, 35,000 Consumer Energy customers and close to 18,000 Great Lakes Energy customers remained without power.

A late January 2012 snowstorm left 254,000 Puget Sound Energy customers without power in western Washington (see Reuters article).

Millions of dollars in damages to overhead power transmission and distribution lines caused by snowstorms could be saved annually if the lines were buried.

March 1, 2012

Deadly Tornadoes Down Power Lines

Tornadoes that have killed 13 people and ripped across Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, Kansas, Nebraska, Indiana and Tennessee, have resulted in major power outages (see KFVS and ect.coop coverage).

Tornadoes, hurricanes, ice storms and other inclement weather cause millions of dollars in direct damage to overhead electricity transmission and distribution lines every year. Resulting power outages cause many more millions of dollars in related damages and lost production. These types of very costly power outages and damages could be prevented if power lines were buried.

Feb. 24, 2012

AltaLink Profits While Consumers Suffer

The Calgary Herald reports profit increases for AltaLink while Alberta power consumers pay some of the highest electricity prices in Canada. That’s because Alberta power consumers pay 100% of the transmission infrastructure costs while AltaLink takes no risk and receives a minimum 9% guaranteed annual investment return, a sweetheart arrangement approved by the Alberta Government.

This is particularly unethical when you consider AltaLink is wholly owned by Montreal-based SNC-Lavalin which had close ties to Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi’s military regime.

Feb. 9, 2012

Power Line Towers Shock Neighbors

Neighbors of Pineridge Natural Area, Colorado were shocked and angered when short wooden power poles were replaced by 100-foot-tall metal poles (see this article). Residents say the new towers are eyesores and will diminish the open space in nearby parks and neighborhoods. The Fort Collins City Council had threatened to sue to block the project unless alternatives such as undergrounding were studied. Unfortunately, the Western Area Power Administration refused to consider burying the line.

Jan. 20, 2012

Power Price Spike Shuts Down Plants

Sharp spikes in electricity prices due to the cold weather, increased demand and poorly-planned shutdowns of power generators are hitting some industries particularly hard (see Edmonton Journal). AltaSteel and Alberta Newsprint have recently shut down their plants for several days when power prices peaked because it was uneconomical to continue production. For example, electricity accounts for 40% of Alberta Newsprint’s costs.

Many industries and businesses have complained over the recent past that high power prices in Alberta are making it difficult for them to compete with companies situated in other provinces or the U.S. where power prices are more reasonable.

Jan. 18, 2012

Daysland Residents Opposed to ATCO Line

Concerned Neighbours in Partnership (CNIP) in the Daysland, Alberta area are circulating a petition asking Premier Redford to repeal several land-use related bills. Among them are Bill 50 which took away Albertans’ right to review the need for new expensive high voltage power lines; and Bill 19 which makes it easier for the Alberta Government to freeze private land for power line corridors. One of the goals of the petition is to restore “property and democratic rights of Alberta landowners.”

The impetus for residents’ concerns is ATCO Electric’s proposed controversial 500kV HVDC Eastern Alberta Transmission Line from Gibbons to Brooks. The group hopes to make this an issue leading up to and during the upcoming provincial election. See this Camrose Canadian article for details.

Jan. 13, 2012

No One Wants CAPX 2020 Power Line

Western Wisconsin residents are essentially unanimous in their rejection of the proposed overhead CAPX 2020 high voltage power line (La Crosse Tribune article).

They cite concerns about the effects of the above-ground line on: livestock, organic farms, property values, tourism, recreation, health, stray voltage, forest and wildlife.

Jan. 12, 2012

Petition Calls for Power Regulation

The Alberta NDP has initiated a petition calling for the provincial government to regulate electricity prices which have been skyrocketing in recent years to the point where Albertans are paying some of the highest prices in Canada (Edmonton Journal article). The petition can be signed at ndpopposition.ab.ca/powerprices.

Jan. 12, 2012

Residents Continue Opposing Overhead Line

Montville, New Jersey residents continue their battle against the proposed 500kV Susquehanna-Roseland Power Line (MontvillePatch article). They are concerned about the health impacts on residents, especially children in Lazar Middle School located right next to the proposed line. There are hundreds of studies that report increased cancer risks associated with living or attending school near overhead high voltage lines.

Residents are also worried about documented decreased property values next to overhead lines, the negative visual impact of ugly towers and lines, and the negative environmental impact on recreation and natural areas including a national park.

Jan. 11 & 13, 2012

Land Values Plummet Due to Power Lines

Residents near Saskatoon are upset with SaskPower’s expropriation of private land for a new 138kV power line to service an Agrium potash mine expansion (StarPhoenix article and CBC coverage).

Landowners near Saskatoon have watched their land values increase substantially as urban expansion moves their way. However, with the new high voltage power line proposed on or near their land, property values have decreased and the compensation offered by SaskPower is a “pittance” according to some landowners. In addition to property devaluation, homeowners are worried about health effects of EMFs which will only decrease their property values even more over time.

Property devaluation caused by overhead high voltage power lines has been well documented in the literature (see this RETA link).

Jan. 9, 2012

Winds Down Overhead EPCOR  lines

Another power outage is reported in this Edmonton Journal article; this time high winds damaged overhead power lines on the south side of Edmonton.

Just another example of the time, costs and safety hazards associated with power lines built above ground. Had these lines been buried, there would have been no outage.

Jan. 8, 2012

Transmission Costs More Than the Power

A Smoky Lake resident indicates in this letter to the Edmonton Journal that electricity costs per kWh have increased by only 23% since 1999, while transmission and distribution costs have increased 449% over the same period. This is why Albertans’ total power bills are skyrocketing.

And, the Alberta Government, the AESO and transmission companies want to increase the transmission costs to consumers even more by building hundreds of kilometres of new overhead high voltage lines that are not needed (such as the Heartland 500kV line). The Alberta P.C. Government even legislated the building of these unnecessary lines by passing Bill 50 in 2009, against the wishes of almost all Albertans.

Jan. 4 – 6, 2012

Electricity Deregulation Has Not Worked

Albertans continue to pay among the highest electricity rates in Canada due to the unsuccessful deregulation of the power generation industry by the Alberta P.C. Government. The power industry in Alberta, dominated by coal-fired electricity, is very inefficient, expensive and carbon-footprint-heavy. The provincial government promised competitive pricing under deregulation, but just the opposite has occurred. See this letter to the editor, article and news release for details.

Jan. 4 & 6, 2012 & Dec. 31, 2011

RETA Appeals AUC Heartland Decision

RETA joins Strathcona County and rural Sturgeon County landowners in appealing the November 1, 2011 decision by the AUC to permit AltaLink and EPCOR to build an above-ground 500kV Heartland line next to 5,200 homes, several schools and daycare centres, a hospital, many businesses and many environmentally sensitive areas. For details see Sherwood Park News, St. Albert Gazette and CBC News coverage; and this RETA blog.

Jan. 1, 2012

Hope For The Hills – An Inspiration

Read this article in the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin for some inspiration on how a group of people opposed to an overhead high voltage line in their community has managed to stop construction of the line (even after construction started).

Hope For The Hills, together with key politicians, convinced the California Public Utilities Commission to stop construction of the line and order Southern California Edison to review the feasibility and cost of several  alternatives. Read this RETA blog for more details.

Dec. 13, 2011

No One Wants Overhead Transmission Lines

There most likely isn’t a new high voltage power line proposed anywhere in North America that is not opposed by someone. For example residents near Tucson, Arizona indicate a proposed line with 140 to 199-foot-high steel monopole towers would be an “eye-sore” (aka “ugly”) that would ruin their view.

Ohio residents don’t want a new above-ground transmission line to cut through their properties because they know their property values will significantly decrease. If you can believe it, a First Energy staffer in Ohio said, “We need to base where that line should go on technical criteria and not the fact that somebody doesn’t want it in their back yard…” This sentiment is so common within the electricity transmission industry…that is, industry doesn’t care about the negative impacts of their overhead lines on people, they just care about building them where it’s the easiest and presumably the cheapest.

Burying high voltage lines eliminates the negative property value, environmental, health, safety, visual, tourism, livestock and crop impacts of above-ground lines. It’s time the electricity industry joined the 21st century. If transmission lines were buried in specific circumstances when they run near homes, schools and environmentally sensitive areas, people would not be opposed to them.

Dec. 9, 2011

AltaLink Continues to Deceive Landowners

This letter to the Prairie Post editor points out how AltaLink continues to mislead landowners and homeowners into believing that they actually consider environmental and residential impacts when siting new high voltage power lines.

The Heartland 500kV line is a classic example of AltaLink intentionally ignoring all of the facts on the negative impacts of the overhead line on 5,200 homes (over 15,000 people) and many environmentally sensitive areas under or next to the line.

The letter encourages Albertans who are approached by AltaLink regarding new proposed high voltage power lines near their homes, schools and environmentally sensitive areas to contact RETA for the facts.

Dec. 3, 2011

AUC Finally Says “No” to AltaLink

The Livingstone Landowners Group is celebrating, for the moment, because the AUC has ruled that subsequent routes proposed by AltaLink veered away from the originally-proposed route of a new high voltage line between the Pincher Creek area and the Crowsnest Pass. See this Lethbridge Herald article for details.

Although the AUC is to be congratulated on catching AltaLink trying to manipulate the regulatory system in this case, they should also have ruled against AltaLink’s and EPCOR’s Heartland Transmission Project application for the same reason because the applicants’ preferred route changed location significantly so many times during the public consultation process and even during the AUC hearing on the Heartland line. It got to the point where residents did not know where AltaLink and EPCOR were actually proposing to build their line, and whether they would be using 60m towers or 77m towers, or lattice towers or monopole towers.

Nov. 30, 2011

Lawsuit Against Overhead Power Line

The controversial Susquehanna-Roseland power line to run through New Jersey and Pennsylvania is being challenged by a lawsuit recently filed in the appellate division of Superior Court. The overhead line has been challenged on a number of grounds including: drop in electricity demand due to reduced energy use and development of renewable energy sources, and negative impacts on the environment including the world-renowned Appalachian Trail. See NJ Spotlight coverage.

Nov. 28, 2011

More Overhead High Voltage Power Lines

Global News reports the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) is planning even more overhead high voltage power lines and substations in the Capital Region. There has been a flurry of building new transmission lines in Alberta far in excess of any demonstrable need or demand. Critics say it will needlessly increase electricity charges, and points to the Alberta Government’s desire to export electricity at the expense of Alberta power consumers who pay 100% of the transmission infrastructure costs.

Nov. 28, 2011

Premier’s Broken Promises

This Lloydminster Meridian Booster article suggests it’s difficult to keep track of all the lies and broken promises by Premier Redford. One of many examples cited is the Premier’s overruling of her Energy Minister’s request of the AUC to suspend consideration of the Heartland power line until the government had time to review its approach to new high voltage power lines.

Nov. 22 & 23, 2011

National Park Service Says No to Power Line

Further to RETA’s earlier reports on the proposed Susquehanna-Roseland high voltage power line, the U.S. National Park Service has said the best environmental option for the line as proposed through the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area is not to build the line at all.

The 145-mile-long 500kV line, proposed by PPL Electric Utilities and Public Service and Gas, is also opposed by residents, businesses, and environmental groups in New Jersey and Pennsylvania due to all of the negative impacts of above-ground high voltage lines on property values, safety, health, and the environment. As well, the overhead lines are just simply ugly. See lehighvalleylive.com and Times-Tribune articles.

Nov. 19 & 22, 2011

Land Use Bill Changes “Cosmetic”

Wildrose Leader Danielle Smith called the government’s proposed changes to the controversial Land Assembly Project Area Act (Bill 19) “cosmetic”, and said anything short of repealing the law will not fix the problem. The legislation makes it easy for the government to designate private land for a high voltage power line corridor without adequate input from, or compensation to, landowners. See this Edmonton Journal and Sherwood Park News article.

Nov. 11, 2011

Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) Obsolete

In the wake of the recent decision by the AUC that the Heartland power line be built above ground, and the Market Surveillance Administrator’s (MSA) decision to fine TransAlta only $370,000 of the $5.5 million it overcharged its customers, this Sherwood Park News editorial suggests the AUC and MSA are obsolete and it’s time to purge the institutions.

Nov. 11, 2011

Strathcona to Appeal Heartland Decision

The Sherwood Park News reports that Strathcona County will be appealing the recent AUC decision on the Heartland line. There has been overwhelming anger over the AUC decision which said it is in the public interest to build an overhead 500kV power line next to 5,194 homes, several schools, a hospital, many businesses and many environmentally sensitive areas.

Nov. 9 – 18, 2011

TransAlta Manipulates Power Prices

TransAlta was found guilty by the Market Surveillance Administrator (MSA) of manipulating electricity prices, artificially inflating prices for all provincial consumers while pocketing the profits. See Calgary Herald, Calgary Beacon, Epoch Times and Edmonton Journal articles. Unfortunately, the MSA issued a fine to TransAlta of only $370,000, whereas the estimated actual cost of TransAlta’s infraction to consumers is a whopping $5.5 million.

The scandal highlights the fundamental flaws in the Alberta market, including having the highest-cost electricity at the end of the hour setting the price for the entire hour. The Industrial Power Consumers Association of Alberta says this is yet another glaring example of how Alberta’s open market fails to protect consumers and shows how toothless the role of the MSA really is.

All Opposition parties hammered the P.C. Government for creating this problem in the first place by deregulating the market, which now grossly favours the power industry over consumers. Similar failures in power market deregulation experiments have occurred in the U.S. (see this RETA post.) Alberta consumers now pay some of the highest electricity prices in Canada.

Oct. 31, 2011

Time to Stop Coal-Fired Power Generation

The President and CEO of Enmax indicates in this Calgary Herald article that the main reason all of the new high voltage power lines are being proposed (e.g., Heartland, Eastern Alberta, Western Alberta lines), is to move power from dirty coal-fired generation near Edmonton throughout Alberta. This flies directly in the face of federal standards for greenhouse gas emissions; the federal government has called for coal-fired generation to transition to cleaner and more environmentally-friendly power generation such as natural gas-fired.

Enmax rightfully argues that gas-fired plants, such as Enmax’s new Shepard Energy Centre in Calgary, locates the generation right next to where the power is needed and thereby eliminates the need for long and expensive transmission lines (such as proposed by the Alberta Government,the AESO, coal producers and transmission companies.)

Coal-fired generation in Alberta contributes one of  the highest percentages of total provincial power output of any province in Canada. Other provinces rely to a much greater extent on hydro, natural gas-fired, wind and solar power generation.

Oct. 25 & Nov. 8, 2011

Heartland Line Compensation Considered

Sturgeon County Council has tabled a motion that would direct County administration to develop a bylaw to use County revenues received from the Heartland power line (and subsequent projects) to compensate landowners  negatively and unfairly impacted financially by such industrial projects.

The basis for the motion is “the present system of compensating landowners negatively impacted or affected by linear infrastructure is unfair, inequitable and inadequate, resulting in affected landowners bearing a cost far in excess of benefits received”. See article 1 and article 2 in the Morinville News.

Sturgeon County residents are concerned about the significant property devaluation associated with the massive Heartland line that has been approved by the AUC. The line will run near many homes in the northeast part of the County. Unfortunately, the Alberta Government has no legislation that obligates transmission companies like AltaLink and EPCOR to financially compensate homeowners and businesses for significant property value losses near overhead high voltage lines, and the transmission companies consistently refuse to recognize such property devaluation. (See RETA Fact Sheet #9 for details on property devaluation.)

Oct. 16, 2011

Power Line Protesters Intimidated

Peura Village residents in Indonesia have been intimidated by representatives of PT Poso Energy, the district government and the local parliament, over their opposition to having high voltage towers erected in densely populated areas. Villagers are worried about the health impacts of electromagnetic fields from an overhead line. The energy company has not consulted with the community, and is working closely with government officials and legislators to ram the project through. One local legislator told the villagers, “There is no impact from overhead high voltage power lines. If you are not going to listen to us, we won’t listen to you.” See this Inside Indonesia article for details.

This is somewhat similar to the manner in which transmission companies, Alberta Energy and the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) work very closely together to get new high voltage power lines built in Alberta. These entities all argue that overhead power lines have no negative impacts on health, even though the scientific and medical literature indicates otherwise. Here in Alberta, the provincial government has even passed legislation precluding anyone other than itself from questioning whether new high voltage lines are needed.

Oct. 14, 2011

Councillor Intimidated by Tory MLA?

CBC News reports that Sturgeon County Councillor Karen Shaw says Athabasca-Redwater Tory MLA Jeff Johnson told her the provincial government would cut funding to her municipality if she didn’t stop opposing the province’s land use legislation. Bill 19 and Bill 36 have Alberta landowners worried and upset that this legislation passed by the Alberta Government has eliminated their right to stop utilities like overhead high voltage power lines from crossing their property.

St. Albert lawyer Keith Wilson says he was repeatedly told that local councillors did not attend information meetings he spoke at about the land use and power line legislation, under threat from their local P.C. MLAs that they could lose their provincial funding.

Oct. 13, 2011

Involve Public in Power Line Conversation

The Lavesta Area Group encourages Premier Redford, in this letter to the Lacombe Globe, to repeal Bill 50 and restore the public’s right to question the need for new high voltage power lines. The letter says this would only be fair since the public is paying for these new lines. An informed conversation based on facts and evidence is required to determine what’s best for Albertans, as opposed to what’s best for AltaLink and other transmission companies.

Oct. 12, 2011

New Premier Should Repeal Bill 50

The proposed Heartland power line and other Bill 50 high voltage lines legislated by the P.C. government are massive overbuilds, states this letter to the St. Albert Gazette. Premier Redford should fix the mistakes her predecessor made on electricity transmission, rather than indicating that two of the Bill 50 lines are needed. For example, the Industrial Heartland Association has clearly stated the Heartland line exceeds any reasonable power demands in the Heartland region.

Oct. 10, 2011

Politicians Can’t Evaluate Need for Power Lines

This letter to the Calgary Herald  indicates politicians don’t have the skill set to evaluate the need for new high voltage transmission lines. The writer says it should be regulators, engineers and the public who should evaluate the need for new lines. When the Alberta Government passed Bill 50 in 2009, public input was taken away and decisions left solely with Cabinet.

Oct. 4, 2011

ENMAX – Smart Power Producer

Today, ground was broken for ENMAX’s new Shepard power plant on the eastern edge of Calgary. The $1.3 billion mega-project will see a natural gas-fired plant produce half of Calgary’s current power needs and half of the carbon dioxide emissions of a coal-fired plant (such as the one that will feed the proposed Heartland power line from Wabamun to the Industrial Heartland). By building this much “greener” power plant right where the electricity is needed, there will be no need for long expensive high voltage transmission lines such as those currently planned by the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO). See CBC News coverage.

Overhead high voltage power lines have many negative impacts on health, safety, the environment, property values, aesthetics and overall quality of life for those people who live near the lines.

Oct. 3, 2011

Tell Premier Redford “No” to Heartland Line

The Landowners Against Bills Society of Alberta (LABSA) encourages Albertans to write to Premier Redford and correct her recent statements that the proposed Bill 50 Heartland power line is needed. The proposed line is a massive overbuild and not necessary for industrial growth in the Industrial Heartland.

(Strathcona County, Edmonton City Council, Sturgeon County, Industrial Heartland Association, Industrial Power Consumers Association of Alberta, RETA, and many other interveners at the recent AUC hearing on the proposed Heartland line have all opposed the building of the line.)

Oct. 3, 2011

Chino Hills Continues Fight Against Line

The City of Chino Hills will continue its battle against Southern California Edison’s proposed high voltage power line through the City by asking the California Supreme Court to review a Court of Appeal’s decision that the Public Utilities Commission has exclusive jurisdiction on the routing of the line. Residents and the City have many concerns about the proposed above-ground line including visual impact, danger of towers and lines falling onto homes, property devaluation and health impacts of electromagnetic fields. See this Inland Valley Daily Bulletin article.

Sept. 27 & 30, 2011

Doug Horner on Electricity Transmission

Articles in the Edmonton Journal, Edmonton Sun, Calgary Herald and Sherwood Park News report that Alberta Progressive Conservative leadership candidate Doug Horner has promised, if he becomes Premier, to issue a request-for-proposals to bury power lines such as the proposed Heartland Transmission Project. He wants to find out how much it really costs to bury high voltage power lines, and then determine whether those additional capital costs warrant burying lines in special circumstances when they run close to high-density areas.

(RETA’s expert testimony at the recent Alberta Utilities Commission hearing on the proposed Heartland line indicates that a partially buried Heartland line could cost as little as only 15% more to build than an entirely above-ground line. However, if capital, maintenance and transmission loss costs are combined over the life of a line, a buried line can be cheaper than an above-ground line.)

Horner also said his government would conduct a review of how competitive Alberta’s entire electrical system is, including an analysis of how transmission lines are built and financed, consumer protection, and a strategy on alternative fuels and power generation. He’s also recommending a new mandate for the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO).

Sept. 24, 2011

Towers Unsightly and Cause Health Issues

The proposed 150-mile-long CapX2020 $1.9 billion overhead high voltage power line in Minnesota and Wisconsin would have massive towers that are unsightly, and some people will lose the use of their land. As well, people living near the line would have increased risks of many health problems including leukemia. This Post Bulletin editorial suggests the line should be built where it affects the fewest homeowners.

Sept. 23, 2011

Put Brakes on Old Coal Technology

Unlike in other provinces, coal-fired electricity generation comprises the vast majority of power generation in Alberta. This letter to the Edmonton Journal points out that coal-fired plants pump significantly more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere than other types of generation (e.g., gas-fired, hydro, wind, solar). The writer says we need to put the brakes on unfettered development of old coal technology. The federal government is clamping down on this dirty electricity producer, but existing coal-fired plants will be allowed to continue until they expire.

Sept. 20, 2011

Bill 50 Stealing from Albertans

This letter to the Barrhead Leader suggests that Bill 50 , passed by the Alberta Government in 2009, is a thief that has stolen Albertans’ right to question the need and accounting for new high voltage power lines in our province. The letter describes the overbuild of electricity transmission infrastructure that will needlessly cost Alberta industry, other businesses and homeowners billions of dollars.

Sept. 20, 2011

Damages Caused by Overhead Power Lines

With all of the recent hurricanes and other high winds in North America, overhead power distribution and transmission lines have caused millions of dollars in damages so far this year. For example, the worst wildfire in Texas’ history was caused September 4, 2011 by power line sparks igniting dry vegetation underneath 2 separate lines, after winds had blown trees into the lines. So far, 1,500 homes have been burned and 2 people have been killed.

Just think of how many lives and how many homes and other infrastructure would be saved if electricity distribution and transmission lines were buried.

Sept. 16, 2011

Local Wildrose Candidate on Power Lines

Garnett Genuis, the Wildrose Party candidate for the Sherwood Park constituency, reminds Albertans that the Wildrose Party has always been opposed to the Heartland power line and Bill 50 (that took away public involvement in reviewing the need for new high voltage lines). Genuis suggests the P.C. leadership candidates are trying to distance themselves from the troublesome situation they have helped create. See this Sherwood Park News letter.

Sept. 16, 2011

Enmax Reducing Need for Power Lines

Construction has started on Enmax’s  800 MW natural gas-fired Shepard power plant in southeast Calgary (Calgary Herald article). Benefits are manyfold including: low-cost fuel source, much cleaner burning than all the coal-fired generators in Alberta, and no need for long high voltage power lines to transmit power from coal mining areas to where the power is required. The plant will emit half the carbon dioxide of a conventional coal-fired plant. Unlike Capital Power,  TransAlta and Maxim Power, all of which produce primarily coal-fired electricity in Alberta, Enmax is addressing the federal government’s plans to reduce greenhouse gases, while at the same time addressing the growing concerns by Albertans about overhead high voltage power lines.

Sept. 13, 2011

Battle Continues After Court Loss

Following another court fight loss, the City of Chino Hills, California, will continue its battle to stop an overhead high voltage power line (Tehachapi Project) from being built through city neighborhoods. Residents fear the 200-foot-tall “monster towers” could fall on their homes during high winds or earthquakes. They are also worried about increased cancer risks from electromagnetic fields and the reduction of their property values. Residents have suggested the line go underground. See this Inland Valley Daily Bulletin article.

Sept. 9, 2011

Power Line Issues Can Determine Next Premier

As Strathcona County Councillor Vic Bidzinski indicates in this Sherwood Park News column, construction of new high voltage power lines in Alberta has become a hot topic for Alberta P.C. leadership candidates. This has become a particularly hot topic for residents living in the Sherwood Park and Edmonton Greenbelts, where AltaLink, EPCOR, the AESO and the Alberta Government want to build an overhead 500kV Heartland power line with 77-metre-tall towers.

Councillor Bidzinski gives an example of a woman, who has never before voted Conservative, willing to buy a P.C. membership so she can vote for the candidate (Rick Orman) who has promised to get the Heartland line buried.

Sept. 9, 2011

Local Doctor Supports Rick Orman

Sherwood Park Dr. Stan Kolber took out a full-page ad in the Sherwood Park News indicating his and Strathcona County Mayor Linda Osinchuk’s support for Rick Orman as Alberta’s next Premier. Rick Orman, one of 6 Alberta Progressive Conservative Party leadership candidates, has been unequivocal in stating that, if he becomes Premier, he would get the proposed Heartland line buried, as well as other new special circumstance high voltage lines that run close to densely-populated residential areas and schools.

Sept. 8, 2011

Power Line Impacts on Boreal Forest

Heading into its fourth term in office, the Manitoba NDP is committed to building a new high voltage power line on the west side of Lake Winnipeg, in order to protect the east side’s pristine boreal forest. Although the west route will cost more, the NDP want to protect the world’s largest carbon sink and the high biodiversity on the east side of Lake Winnipeg, hoping to promote the area as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. See this rabble.ca article.

(This is an excellent example of the extent to which overhead high voltage power lines negatively impact the natural environment and tourism – to the point where the Manitoba Government is willing to spend more money to have the line built in an area where its environmental impacts will be lower.)

Sept. 7, 2011

Power Line Appearance and Safety Concerns

The State reports that Richland County Council and the Town of Blythewood, South Carolina, have concerns about the appearance and safety of a proposed new above-ground high voltage power line. Blythewood officials are concerned about the visual impact of an overhead line on their gateway into town. State Rep. Joe McEachern is also concerned about how many trees would have to be cleared for the power line right-of-way.

(Buried high voltage power lines are not visual eyesores and do not pose the health, electrocution and other safety hazards that above-ground lines do. As well, since the right-of-way for buried lines is much narrower than for overhead lines, less vegetation including trees need to be cleared.)

Sept. 4, 2011

Politicians Worried about Overhead lines

The British Secretary of State for Defence and Member of Parliament for North Somerset, Liam Fox, has sided with the Protect Kent branch of the Campaign to Protect Rural England, which is campaigning to stop huge swaths of countryside from being dominated by high voltage transmission lines. See this yourcanterbury.co.uk article. If National Grid is given permission to build overhead lines, sensitive landscapes would be damaged, and the towers and lines would be a visual blight for residents and tourists.

The campaign chairman has said the cables should be buried. National Grid has inflated the cost of burying the lines to 12 times that of building them above ground, whereas campaigners have more realistically estimated the undergrounding capital cost at less than 2 times that for overhead lines. (When capital, maintenance and transmission loss costs are combined over the life of a line, underground lines can actually be cheaper than overhead lines.)

Sept. 2 & 8, 2011

Candidates Continue Sparring Over Bill 50

At a forum September 1 in Red Deer and September 7 in Calgary, the Alberta Progressive Conservative Party leadership candidates continued debating Bill 50, the legislation passed in 2009 by the Alberta Government that put an end to public consultation on the need for new high voltage power lines in the province. See Edmonton Journal coverage (article 1, article 2).

Sept. 1, 2011

Jurupa Valley Continues Opposition to Line

Jurupa Valley City Council and residents continue their opposition to Southern California Edison’s proposed 230kV overhead high voltage power line. They are concerned about the impacts of  an overhead line on health (electromagnetic fields), commercial development and the environment. See this Press-Enterprise article.

Aug. 29, 2011

Underground Power Line Options Included

Underground options are included for three of four possible routes for two American Transmission Company high voltage power lines planned for Milwaukee and Wauwatosa, Wisconsin. Underground options are included due to residents’ worries about the impacts of overhead lines on public safety and property values. See this Journal Sentinel article.

Aug. 26, 2011

Legislation Concerns Most P.C. Candidates

The Lethbridge Herald reports that Rick Orman, Gary Mar, Alison Redford and Doug Griffiths expressed concerns about electricity transmission/land use legislation or Alberta ratepayers paying to export electricity out of Alberta. All 6 P. C. leadership candidates attended a forum in Lethbridge Thursday evening.

Aug. 24, 2011

Power Line Raises Cancer Concerns

The Tillamook Headlight Herald reports that residents from Tillamook to Oceanside, Oregon are worried about cancers associated with a proposed high voltage line through their communities. They’re also concerned that the line will diminish the value of their land.

Aug. 23, 2011

Albertans Willing to Pay for Buried Lines

An Edmonton resident writes to the Sherwood Park News that Albertans would not be willing to pay any extra costs to have a segment of the proposed Heartland line buried.

Based on a Leger Marketing public opinion survey conducted of a cross-section of 900 Albertans in October 2009, Albertans are willing to pay an additional $3.55 on their monthly power bill to have high voltage lines buried in Alberta when they run close to people’s homes or schools. (This Fact Sheet summarizes the survey results.) A partially buried Heartland line would cost the average Albertan only a cup of coffee a year. That would be for any additional capital cost to bury the line – however, when you combine the capital, maintenance and transmission loss costs plus add the property devaluation and health costs of an overhead line over the life of the line, a buried line is cheaper than an overhead line.

Aug. 22, 2011

MAPP Line Delayed

The Mid-Atlantic Power Pathway high voltage line has been delayed by PJM Interconnection and Pepco Holdings Inc. Under pressure from the public worried about their local landscapes, the proposed 152-mile-long line from northern Virginia to Delaware had already seen its route change to reduce its aerial segment and run more of the line underwater. See this Stardem.com article.

The Eastern Shore Land Conservancy is pleased with the announcement of the delay, indicating that the need for the line was never proven from the beginning. (Sound similar to the proposed Heartland Transmission Project?)

Aug. 20, 2011

New Rules for Coal-Fired Power Plants

Long-awaited federal regulations were announced August 19 to gradually phase out traditional coal-fired power plants. New coal-fired plants that begin producing power after July 1, 2015 will have to match the lower greenhouse gas emissions of natural gas-fired plants. Ironically, Alberta’s Environment Minister, Rob Renner, whose mandate is to protect the environment, expressed concern because Alberta has the highest dependence on dirty coal-fired power in the country.

Unfortunately, the new regulations will not apply to any coal-fired plants that feed power into the grid before July 2015; the tougher rules would not apply until the end of the life of those plants. An example of a new coal-fired plant that is being rushed through by the Alberta Government and the Alberta Utilities Commission before July 15, 2015, is the Maxim Power Corp. plant near Grande Cache. See this Edmonton Journal article.

Alberta’s dependence on so much coal-fired generation is the reason the government and the AESO have planned for so many new high voltage power lines criss-crossing the province. These lines would not be needed if more natural gas-fired plants were built closer to where the power is consumed.

Aug. 20 & 30, 2011

Power Lines Political in Lebanon

The Lebanon Daily Star reports (article 1, article 2, article 3) that a new overhead power line planned to run very close to homes in several towns has residents worried about health impacts, especially on children. They are calling the line an environmental hazard.  Real estate prices are also falling significantly because of the power line in the area. Residents have urged the government to place the transmission lines underground. They indicate they will not vote for politicians who support the above-ground  project, and some residents are even blocking contractors from building the line.

A local doctor says the Precautionary Principle should be followed, and cites a Council of Europe resolution that reads “…power lines…appear to have more or less potentially harmful, non-thermal, biological effects on plants, insects and animals as well as the human body even when exposed to levels that are below the official threshold values.”

Aug. 19, 2011

Power Line Concerns High in Heartland

A recent survey found that, within the regional context, Industrial Heartland residents are concerned about health care and power lines. The Sherwood Park News reports that Alberta Environment and the Life in the Heartland initiative co-funded the survey of 600 Edmontonians and Industrial Heartland residents.

Aug. 17, 2011

Property Value Impacts of 500kV Line

The Boulder Monitor reports that NorthWestern Energy will be studying the impacts of 500kV power lines on property values in Montana. This is in response to residents telling regulators that building a 500kV intertie line in their subdivision would significantly reduce the value of their properties.  Residents estimate impacts of 50% property devaluation, and are also concerned about impacts on health, water quality, vistas and wildlife.

Aug. 16, 2011

Enbridge Assumes Power Line Debt

Enbridge Inc. is purchasing Tonbridge Power Co. and assuming all debts associated with the controversial and financially troubled Montana Alberta Tie Line (MATL). The 215-mile-long overhead 230kV line from Lethbridge to Great Falls Montana has been stalled for some time now due to financial difficulties and opposition from Montana landowners. See this Great Falls Tribune article and Marketwire article.

Aug. 14 – 17, 2011

Power Line Bills Anger Rural Albertans

Articles in the Edmonton Journal, Grande Prairie Daily Herald-Tribune and Ponoka News report on the growing number of rural Albertans who are angered by power line and land use bills passed by the Alberta Government that have diminished or in some cases taken away property rights. Meetings have been held across the province educating Albertans about these bills, and the more they learn about their implications, the more angry they get.

Aug. 13, 2011

Company Able to Reroute Line

Montana Alberta Tie Ltd. is another example of a power transmission company that will indicate they are not able to change their power line routing, if that is in their best interest. On the other hand, if it is in their best interest to reroute their line, they will do so. It becomes a challenge to know when these companies are telling the truth. See this Daily Inter Lake article.

Aug. 12, 2011

Wildrose Candidate Opposes Heartland Line

Garnett Genuis is the official Wildrose Party candidate for the provincial constituency of Sherwood Park. This Sherwood Park News article reports that Garnett and the Wildrose Party oppose the proposed Heartland Transmission Project but that if there is a need for transmission lines they should be kept away from residential areas. In his campaign brochure, Garnett’s first listed priority is “Cancel the Heartland Transmission Project”.

He says residents have voiced strong opposition to the project, particularly on the west side of Strathcona County where the line is proposed. Some residents have even told him they’ll move if the line gets built above ground. “If it dampens growth on the west side of the city, if people who have called this community home for a long time choose to move elsewhere, it’s going to be really unfortunate”, he said. “It has real potential to hurt the vibrancy of this community.”

Garnett goes on to say, “I think our community, in particular, has been really taken for granted by our government. We see that around the Heartland Transmission Project and around the new hospital.”

Aug. 12, 2011

Coal Plant Will Dodge Federal Regulations

Further to RETA’s coverage of the Pembina Institute’s legal challenge on this matter, this Edmonton Journal editorial rightfully raises the warning flag on the AUC’s recent decision to allow Maxim Power Corp. to dodge new federal regulations aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions from dirty coal-fired power plants.

A quote from the editorial reads: “Our province has enough trouble already with attacks on our environmental reputation by outsiders all too quick to place the worst interpretation on our efforts. Those efforts will be undermined if a new coal plant using today’s technology is approved in a way that suggests our hearts aren’t really in finding ways to meet the higher emissions standards we talk about.”

More information appears in this Calgary Herald article.

Aug. 12, 2011

Montana Alberta Tie Line in Trouble?

Tonbridge, the company building the controversial Montana Alberta Tie Line (MATL), has suspended trading of its stock pending an undisclosed announcement. See this The Republic coverage.

Aug. 9, 2011

AltaLink Will Force Its Way Onto Land

AltaLink does not have permission from 38 landowners to go onto their properties to survey for a proposed high voltage transmission line from Cassils to Bowmanton. Despite any blockades that have been put up by landowners, AltaLink has said it will begin marking the route with stakes in the next week or two. See this Brooks Bulletin article for details.

Residents across Alberta are upset with all of the recently-proposed high voltage and extra high voltage power lines planned by the Alberta Government and the Alberta Electric System Operator, and being approved by the Alberta Utilities Commission.

Aug. 9 & 11, 2011

Controversial Power Line Laws a Concern

This Vermilion Standard article and Lloydminster Meridian Booster article report on the growing concern by Albertans over the controversial electricity transmission legislation passed by the Alberta Government in 2009. At the time, landowners across the province opposed the proposed Bills; however, the Alberta Government went ahead and passed them into law. Bill 19 freezes private land for power line and other utility corridors, while Bill 50 removes public input on the need for new super-high-voltage power lines.

Aug. 4, 2011

Albertans Deserve Who They Vote For

This letter to the Edmonton Journal suggests that Albertans will continue to be frustrated with the overbuilding of electricity transmission infrastructure, funded 100% by Alberta ratepayers, as long as they continue to vote for the Alberta P.C. Party.

Aug. 4, 2011

Bury Lines to Avoid Power Outages

The Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) is implementing a new Line Load Shed Service to help deal with power outages caused by weather conditions such as lightning strikes. See this Calgary Herald article.

If high voltage power lines were buried, they would not be susceptible to lightning strikes or other weather-related outages (e.g., tornadoes, ice storms). Unfortunately, the AESO, Alberta Energy and Alberta transmission facility owners are reluctant to bury high voltage lines, which means Alberta ratepayers will continue to pay the additional costs for repairs to overhead lines and towers due to weather-caused outages. Find out more about the many benefits of burying high voltage power lines.

Aug. 4, 10 & 21, 2011

Residents Worried About Power Line EMFs

Jurupa Valley, California residents are worried about the health impacts of electromagnetic fields that would emanate from a proposed above-ground 230kV Southern California Edison power line. They are also concerned about the unsightly transmission towers and the negative effects of overhead lines on development potential.  The Jurupa Valley City Council opposes the line, along with a long list of other government agencies. See this August 4 article, August 10 article and August 21 article in the Press-Enterprise.

Aug. 3 & 4, 2011

Draconian Alberta Electricity Laws

Lawyer Keith Wilson continues to educate Albertans about their landowner rights that have been taken away by electricity and other land use legislation passed by the Alberta Government. See this Lacombe Globe article and Hanna Herald article.

Aug. 3, 2011

Court Challenge Over Coal-fired Power Plant

The Pembina Institute has filed a court challenge over the fast-tracked approval by the Alberta Utilities Commission of a 500 megawatt coal-fired power plant near Grande Cache, Alberta. Approval of the proposed Maxim Power Corp’s power plant avoided federal changes to environmental regulations aimed to reduce the huge quantities of greenhouse gases emitted by dirty coal-fired electricity generation in Canada. See this Edmonton Journal article for details.

Coal-fired plants generate about 60% of the electricity in Alberta, the highest in the country, whereas other provinces are focusing on generating greener electricity through renewable resources or the cleaner burning of natural gas.

Aug. 2, 2011

Liberal MLA Would Repeal Electricity Laws

Liberal leadership candidate, Hugh MacDonald, would repeal Bill 19 which freezes private land for transmission projects, and Bill 50 which took away public input on the need for all the proposed massive high voltage power lines in Alberta. See this Peace River Record-Gazette coverage.

Aug. 2, 2011

B.C. Hydro Line Should Have Been Buried

This Castlegar Source article describes the poor decision by the B.C  Government and B.C. Hydro in 2008 to build a high voltage power line above ground near homes and a high school in Tsawwassen. Residents had rallied to get the line buried due to serious health concerns about electromagnetic fields, but the line was built above ground.

Taxpayer dollars were used to spy on, intimidate and harass the families who spoke out the loudest against the lines. A massive public relations campaign and offensive was waged against the homeowners by B.C. Hydro.

In the end, B.C. Hydro bought up many of the houses affected by the line, and flipped them at a loss of millions of taxpayer dollars. It would have been cheaper and far less disruptive to have buried the line in the first place.

July 31, 2011

Power Line Forum Disheartening

This letter to the Edmonton Journal editor expresses frustration over the controlled manner in which Alberta Progressive Conservative leadership candidates were asked questions about electricity transmission in Alberta at a recent forum in Vermilion. The writer, who has an ATCO 500kV high voltage power line proposed to “be built in front of our living room window”, is upset that Albertans have no say on whether massive 500kV lines are necessary, yet must foot 100% of the costs of all this new infrastructure, while the transmission companies assume no financial risk, in fact are guaranteed a handsome investment return.

July 31, 2011

Power Deregulation Has Not Worked

Power deregulation in the U.S. has not worked because ratepayers are generally paying more for electricity under deregulated markets. When power markets were deregulated, the theory was that an openly competitive market would bring savings to ratepayers. However, electricity is a “natural monopoly” say experts, which means cartels end up setting and controlling prices. See this Las Vegas Review Journal article.

(This phenomenon is certainly evident in Alberta where electricity generation and sales were deregulated by the Alberta Government in 2001. As a result, Albertans have seen their electricity costs skyrocket with only a handful of companies monopolizing the market.)

July 30, 2011

ATCO Profits Soar – Ratepayers Lose

Northern Alberta wildfires so far this year burned up $27 million worth of power lines and gas meters owned by ATCO Ltd., but ATCO’s earnings and profits won’t suffer. ATCO anticipates ratepayers will cover the loss, and has asked the Alberta Utilities Commission to approve their request. See this Edmonton Journal article for details.

At the same time, ATCO posted a 5% increase in profits for the second quarter, driven by a 28% growth in earnings. And, ATCO’s subsidiary, Canadian Utilities, reported a whopping 30% increase in adjusted earnings for Q2.

The private electricity transmission industry in Alberta is one of the only industries in the country that operates with essentially zero financial risk plus a guaranteed minimum annual return of 9%. Alberta ratepayers assume all of the financial risk. All of this is thanks to the Alberta Government.

July 29, 2011

More on Electricity Export

A number of excellent stories appear in this Watershed Sentinel article on electricity export from Canada and possibly under-sea from Alaska to Russia.

July 28, 2011

AltaLink Continues to Misinform

This Red Deer Advocate article  reports on information provided to residents attending an AltaLink open house on additional high voltage lines planned between Wetaskiwin and Didsbury. AltaLink staff continue to misinform Albertans by downplaying the impacts of overhead high voltage line electromagnetic fields (EMFs) and overstating the costs to bury these lines to eliminate the negative impacts of EMFs on health, aesthetics, safety, property values and the environment.

The article reports AltaLink informed a woman she does not need to worry about EMFs interfering with the safe operation of her pacemaker. The fact is, doctors advise those with pacemakers to stay away from overhead high voltage power lines, especially over prolonged periods of time. (Prolonged exposure would include those who live, work or attend school near overhead high voltage lines.)

The article also reports AltaLink staff told an individual it costs 10 times as much to bury high voltage lines as to run them above ground. This is absolutely false. The fact is, when you combine the capital, maintenance and transmission loss costs over the life of a line plus the additional health care and property devaluation costs of overhead lines, buried lines are cheaper than overhead lines. See these facts.

July 27, 2011

Residents Want Line Built in Open Fields

Residents of Denton, Texas are pushing their city officials to build an upgraded high voltage power line through open fields instead of neighbourhoods. See this Denton Record-Chronicle article.

July 26, 2011

Is the Heartland Battle Lost?

This Sherwood Park News editorial suggests that any activities of Strathcona County, RETA, many other groups and individuals to influence where and how the proposed Heartland power line is built are futile. The editorial suggests the Heartland line will be built above ground in Strathcona and Sturgeon Counties through the Sherwood Park and Edmonton Greenbelts next to 5,194 homes, several schools and daycare centres, a hospital, and many environmentally sensitive areas.

RETA strongly disagrees with this editorial.

July 24, 2011

Power Line – Property Values, Jobs, Costs

The proposed Northern Pass Project will have significant negative effects on New Hampshire residents. The project, proposed jointly by Northeast Utilities, NStar and Hydro-Quebec, could see adjacent property values diminish by up to 63%. Tourism jobs will be lost once the line is built because these overhead high voltage power lines will be massive and unsightly. New Hampshire residents will not benefit from lower cost Hydro-Quebec power because the line will simply run through New Hampshire from Quebec to Massachusetts and Connecticut. See this Seacoast article.

July 21, 2011

CapX2020 Power Line Impacts of Concern

Citizens, the Wisconsin Public Service Commission and members of Power Line Truth continue expressing their concerns about the $450 million project, CapX2020, that would construct more than 100 miles of above ground high voltage power lines in Wisconsin and Minnesota. Potential impacts identified include: endangered species, water resources, agricultural lands, airports, aesthetics and property values. Some argue the line isn’t even needed in the first place. See Winona Daily News article.

July 21, 2011

National Park Service Pushed on Power Line

The U.S. National Park Service is being pressured by U.S. Rep. Charlie Dent to rush its environmental impact statement on the proposed 500 kilovolt Susquehanna-Roseland Power Line. The above ground line, which would be built in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, would cross the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area and other federal lands. Environmental groups are accusing those pushing for speedy project approval of undercutting the National Park Service and pushing an environmentally destructive and unnecessary project. See this Express-Times article.

July 19, 2011

More on High Costs of Unnecessary Lines

Meetings continue around Alberta on legislation passed by the Alberta Government that infringes on Albertans’ property rights and will result in skyrocketing electricity costs in the future. Opposition parties have been pushing for some of this legislation to be repealed, and several candidates for leader of the Alberta P.C. party have indicated they can’t support some of these legislative changes as passed. See Camrose Booster article.

July 15, 2011

Kudos to Strathcona on Heartland Line

In this letter to the Sherwood Park News, RETA extends kudos to Strathcona County Council for its strong and consistent opposition to an above-ground Heartland power line proposed by AltaLink and EPCOR in the Sherwood Park and Edmonton Greenbelts. The power companies’ preferred route, supported by the Alberta Government, would see the line being built next to 5,194 homes, several schools, a hospital and many natural areas in Edmonton, Strathcona County and Sturgeon County.

July 14, 2011

220-Mile-Long Power Line to be Buried

National Grid and Banghor Hydro Electric Company have proposed to build a 220-mile-long, 1,100 megawatt high voltage DC line underground from northern Maine to northeastern Massachusetts. See Smart Grid article.

(An underground line will eliminate all of the negative impacts of an above ground line. Why can’t transmission facility owners in Alberta be similarly progressive and build underground high voltage lines?)

July 13 & 14, 2011

Power Line Company Bullies Landowners

Montana Alberta Tie Ltd. (MATL) of Calgary, Alberta is suing landowners in Montana for 105-foot-wide rights-of-way for their high voltage power line from Lethbridge, Alberta to Great Falls, Montana. MATL is now suing more than 30 individuals, family trusts, and family farming operations in Teton, Pondera, Cascade and Glacier Counties. Local landowners say MATL is one of the most ill-managed projects they have ever had to deal with. See these Choteau Acantha and Great Falls Tribune articles.

July 13 & 27, 2011

Power Line Will Interfere with Flights

Baraboo city officials are worried the 345kV Badger Coulee Transmission Line proposed by American Transmission Co. will interfere with flight operations at the Baraboo-Wisconsin Dells Airport. See this July 13 article and July 27 article in the Baraboo News Republic. (If the line was buried, there would be no concerns in this regard.)

July 12, 2011

Strathcona County & RETA Final Arguments

This Sherwood Park News article reports on final arguments submitted by the County of Strathcona and RETA to the Alberta Utilities Commission on the proposed 500 kilovolt Heartland Transmission Project application by AltaLink and EPCOR.

Arguments for denying the application or directing that the line be buried include: the line is not needed; the applicants’ public consultation process was seriously flawed; the applicants conducted a very poor route selection process; the applicants’ above ground preferred route option through the Edmonton and Sherwood Park Greenbelts would directly and adversely impact too many people; the Edmonton and Sherwood Park Greenbelts (TUCs) were never intended for overhead high voltage power lines; the underground option is the best option because it would eliminate negative visual, property value, health, safety, environmental, social and economic impacts; and, the underground option capital costs are only a bit higher than the overhead option (although combined capital, maintenance and transmission loss costs over the life of the line are less for the underground than the overhead option).

July 9 & 21, 2011

Federal Coal Regulations Side-Stepped

This letter to the Edmonton Journal editor by the Pembina Institute describes how a dirty coal-fired power plant proposed by Maxim Power Corp. north of Grande Cache, Alberta has tentatively side-stepped the federal government’s commitment last year to phase out conventional or dirty coal plants in favour of more energy-efficient and environmentally-friendly power production. The Alberta Utilities Commission fast-tracked approval of the coal-fired power plant by foregoing a public hearing on the proposal, while the federal Environment Minister apparently helped quietly rush through this approval.

The proposed coal-fired power plant would emit more than 3,000,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas pollution every year. Alberta is already the largest producer of  dirty coal-fired electricity in Canada…now it will be even worse. An earlier Edmonton Journal article provides more details on how this project contradicts the federal government’s new coal regulations which require any new project to release greenhouse gas emissions equal to or less than a natural gas-fired power plant.

This later letter to the Edmonton Journal editor indicates coal-fired power plants emit more greenhouse gases than tar sands projects, and approval of the Maxim Power Corp. coal-fired plant means Canada is breaking one of its international promises on the environment.

July 5, 2011

Power Line Towers Collapse

CBC and Post Media News report that two 230-kilovolt B.C. Hydro towers collapsed on the banks of the Fraser River July 5, causing a blackout that affected 25,000 properties in Surrey, New Westminster and Abbotsford, British Columbia. The cause has been attributed to accelerated erosion which destabilized the towers.

Similar erosion concerns have been raised during the AUC hearing on the proposed Heartland Transmission Project along the proponents’ preferred route which would involve the construction of 7 towers within the North Saskatchewan River valley.

Burying high voltage power lines would eliminate problems and save money associated with erosion, high winds, ice storms and other weather factors causing above ground towers and lines to collapse.

July 1, 2011

Strathcona County Says Scrap Bill 50

As part of its continuing support for County residents who think the proposed Heartland power line is not needed or if it is built to bury it, Strathcona County Council voted unanimously to challenge Bill 50.  They want to meet the Alberta Ministers of Energy and Sustainable Resource Development to discuss rescinding or amending the Electric Statutes Amendment Act, 2009 which took away the right of the public to be consulted on the need for new high voltage power lines dubiously labeled as “critical transmission infrastructure” by the Alberta Government. See this Sherwood Park News article for details.

June 27, 2011

Montana Alberta Tie Line Over Budget

As a result of regulatory delays, legal challenges, and landowner and contractor disputes, the MATL merchant transmission project from Lethbridge, Alberta to Great Falls, Montana is $25 million over budget. The developer of the line, Tonbridge Power Inc., is seeking additional funding from its stakeholders. The MATL is the first high voltage power line to connect Alberta with the U.S. and is seen by many Albertans as the beginning of electricity export from Alberta to the U.S. See Calgary Herald article.

June 27, 2011

Health & Safety Concerns Over 500kV Line

Chino Hills, California residents rallied in front of Southern California Edison’s headquarters, protesting the company’s plans to build a 500kV line within 154 feet of their homes. Residents are concerned the 170-mile-long Tehachapi Project would have cancer and other negative health effects, and that the giant towers could fall over in an earthquake or high wind storm. The City of Chino Hills is preparing a lawsuit appealing the California Public Utilities Commission’s decision approving the 200-foot-tall towers. See NBC Los Angeles coverage.

June 26, 2011

Wildrose Would Repeal Power Line Bills

Wildrose party members voted June 25 to support Danielle Smith’s insistence that a Wildrose government would repeal several power line and land use bills including Bills 50 and 19, passed by the Stelmach government in 2009. Bill 50 legislated the building of numerous 500 kilovolt power lines in Alberta without any needs assessment or accountability. Several of these lines have been handed to transmission facility owners on a silver platter without any competitive bidding. Bill 19 gives the Alberta government the unilateral authority to designate private land as a future corridor for high voltage power lines or other utilities, thereby sterilizing the land for any other potential uses.

The Wildrose party has been gaining support across Alberta for its strong stand against this controversial power line legislation.

June 24, 2011

Don’t Build Power Lines in Populated Areas

Residents from Clark and Cowlitz Counties, Washington demonstrated against an above ground 500 kilovolt power line planned by the Bonneville Power Administration. Concerns about health, especially of school children, and property values top the list of concerns. Some residents also describe the proposed towers and lines as an eyesore.  Their primary argument is that high voltage lines should not be built in populated areas. See The Columbian coverage.

June 21, 2011

Alberta Utilities Commission No Help

This letter to the Sherwood Park News suggests that the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) “… is here to make sure these lines go through no matter who it affects, because this government agency has public involvement in these decisions only to make the people think they have a say.”

June 20-27, 2011

345kV Line Worries Wisconsin Residents

WKBT News, Wisbusiness, Capital Newspapers, the La Crosse Tribune and Channel 3000 report that a 150-mile-long overhead 345kV high voltage power line proposed by American Transmission Company from the La Crosse area to northern Dane County in Wisconsin has residents concerned about health, safety, noise, the environment, stray voltage, land devaluation and reliability. Groups such as Save Our Unique Lands (SOUL) and the Town of Stark Committee on Energy Planning and Information are also demanding that the overall need for the proposed Badger Coulee Transmission Line Project be proven by the proponent.

June 20, 2011

Overhead Power Line Impact on Birds

Wildlife enthusiasts are concerned that a 250-mile-long above ground power line planned by  Minnkota Power Cooperative from Center to Grand Forks, North Dakota will uproot several grassland bird species including the western meadowlark, North Dakota’s state bird. This Grand Forks Herald article reports concerns about truck traffic greatly disturbing several grassland species that nest on the ground in tall grass. Predatory birds using high voltage lines and towers as places to perch would also have an unfair advantage over grassland birds which are on the decline. Bird mortality caused by crashing into above ground high voltage lines is a serious concern as well (see RETA Fact Sheet #11).

June 16, 2011

Morton and Redford Critical of Power Lines

Alberta P.C. leadership candidates Ted Morton and Alison Redford, previous Cabinet Ministers under Premier Stelmach, are both critical of the Alberta Government’s insistence that 2 high voltage transmission lines be built from central to southern Alberta. This Yahoo News story reports that Premier Stelmach is wading into the debate and criticizing Ms. Redford. (It is well known that Alberta Energy has been pushing for all of the additional high voltage lines to be built in Alberta, even though they are not necessary – other than for export of electricity to the U.S.)

June 14 & 16, 2011

Montana Alberta Tie Line in Trouble

The CEO and Chief Financial Officer of Toronto-based Tonbridge Power Inc. have stepped down amidst construction problems and landowner court challenges. Tonbridge, the developer of the Montana Alberta Tie Line (MATL) between Lethbridge, Alberta and Great Falls, Montana, is shutting down construction of the controversial power line, pending resolution of a dispute with its engineering, procurement and construction contractor. At the same time, Tonbridge Power Inc. has taken legal action to take easements on land owned by 11 Dutton-area, Montana residents who are suing the company, challenging the state’s new eminent domain law and the MATL project. See June 14 and June 16 Great Falls Tribune articles for details.

June 4, 2011

Where Were Tory MLAs on Bill 50 Debate?

Wildrose MLA, Rob Anderson, asks in this letter to the Calgary Herald, where were P.C. leadership candidates Ted Morton and Alison Redford when the Wildrose Party introduced a motion to repeal Bill 50 in April? These two candidates, who are former Cabinet Ministers, are now expressing concerns about Bill 50 which excludes any public input on determining the need for new 500kV power lines in Alberta.

May 31-June 1, 2011

Alberta 500 Kilovolt Power Lines Not Needed

This letter to the Calgary Herald editor by Alberta P.C. leadership candidate Ted Morton and article in the Mountain View Gazette provide further evidence on why new 500kV power lines planned by the Alberta Government are not needed. Albertans and Alberta businesses and industry cannot afford the cost of all the new electricity transmission infrastructure legislated in Bill 50.

May 31, 2011

Questioning Benefits of Heartland Line

This letter to the Sherwood Park News questions the benefits of the proposed Heartland Transmission Project, and notes that a growing number of politicians are also questioning its need.

May 30, 2011

North Wales Residents Want Lines Buried

Residents want proposed new high voltage power lines buried underground and at sea to protect the sensitive landscape of North Wales. More than 1,500 people protested outside the National Assembly. See Daily Post article.

May 26, 2011

More on AB Electricity Export – WikiLeaks

This in-depth Tyee article reports on further details of the Alberta Government offering in 2003 and 2008 to export electricity to the United States.  See this RETA blog for more details.

May 25, 2011

P.C. Leadership Candidates on Bill 50

This St. Albert Gazette article reports that P.C. leadership candidates Ted Morton and Gary Mar favour revisiting Bill 50 which legislated the building of numerous 500kV power lines in Alberta with no public input on the need for these lines. Candidate Doug Horner says there is no need to revisit or scrap Bill 50, while Doug Griffiths thinks there should have been more public input on Bill 50 and other electricity transmission-related legislation before it was passed.

May 24, 2011

Alberta Party Questions Reasons for Bill 50

Alberta Party MLA Dave Taylor questioned Bill 50 when it was being debated in 2009 and in fact recommended an amendment, and now questions whether it was all about exporting electricity to the U.S. He says Alberta power consumers should not foot the bill for construction of these lines that would provide major profits to a few transmission companies. See Dave Taylor news release.

May 24, 2011

AUC Can Make Right Heartland Decision

This letter to the Sherwood Park News editor challenges the Alberta Utilities Commission to make the decision that is in “the best interests of Albertans”, rather than succumbing to the self-serving special interests of the transmission companies.

May 20 & 21, 2011

Landowners Sue Over Power Line Law

Landowners in Teton and Pondera Counties in Montana have filed a lawsuit against Montana and a power transmission company, claiming that a recently-passed eminent domain law is unconstitutional. Montana passed House Bill 198 earlier this month to retroactively permit power companies to take private land for high voltage transmission lines.  The law was triggered by the proposed Montana Alberta Tie Ltd. power line to run from Lethbridge, Alberta to Great Falls, Montana. The lawsuit says overhead high voltage power lines have known negative impacts on human health and safety. See Missoulian and Great Falls Tribune articles.

May 19, 2011

AltaLink’s Parent Co. Building Jail in Libya

RETA has just become aware that Montreal-based SNC-Lavalin, the parent company that owns 100% of AltaLink, has been doing business with Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi since 1986. Apparently, SNC-Lavalin has signed deals worth well over $1 billion with Gadhafi. SNC-Lavalin’s annual revenues in Libya apparently totaled $279 million in 2009 and $418 million in 2010. Most shocking is the revelation that SNC-Lavalin is now building  a $275 million state-of-the-art prison for Gadhafi in the Libyan capital of Tripoli, according to this rabble.ca article.

AltaLink is considered one of Alberta’s leading electricity transmission corporations, and is currently applying to build the Heartland Transmission Project and the Western Alberta Transmission Line, both 500kV lines. What will Albertans think once they find out that AltaLink’s parent company, SNC-Lavalin, is apparently building a jail in Libya for Gadhafi to fill with protestors?

May 17-24, 2011

Ted Morton Wants Review of Bill 50

Alberta Progressive Conservative leader candidate, Ted Morton, has released his policy on electricity transmission in Alberta and has stated that as Premier, he would “immediately re-visit the transmission plans in Bill 50″ by ordering an independent and impartial needs assessment by a panel of qualified experts. Morton emphasized Bill 50′s potential negative impact on Alberta’s competitiveness and the future viability of Alberta companies and their employees.

Other Tory leadership candidates (Gary Mar and Alison Redford) also have concerns about Bill 50 and the projected high costs of electricity transmission to Alberta ratepayers. See Ted Morton news release, Alberta Surface Rights Group blog, Calgary Sun, Calgary Herald (1), Calgary Herald (2), Edmonton Journal (1), Edmonton Journal (2), Cochrane Eagle, and Camrose Booster coverage for details.

May 17-24, 2011

WikiLeaks Reveals Alberta Electricity Export

WikiLeaks cables recently released show the Alberta Government promised senior U.S. government officials as far back as 2003 that there would be abundant electricity exports available from Alberta, but that limited transmission lines were a major impediment to electricity flowing south. The leaked documents indicate that the Montana-Alberta Tie Line and TransCanada’s Northern Lights power line project would run Alberta-produced electricity to Montana and Oregon.

Critics charge that the Alberta Government has planned all along that Alberta ratepayers would pay for the expensive transmission lines to export power to the U.S. Bill 19 and Bill 50, passed by the Alberta Government in 2009, are both integral elements of the government’s plans to ship Alberta electricity south at Albertans’ expense. In spite of the leaked documents clearly revealing the Alberta Government’s plans, Alberta Ministers such as Hon. Ron Liepert and MLAs like Dave Quest continue to deny any such plans.  See Calgary Herald, Wildrose Caucus, Edmonton Sun, CBC, Oilweek, Vue Weekly, Red Deer Advocate and Sherwood Park News coverage for details.

May 17 & 18, 2011

More Concerns About Bill 19 and Bill 50

This letter to the Edmonton Journal points out the draconian legislation (Bills 19 and 50) that have removed Albertans’ input on important electricity transmission decisions. This letter to the St. Albert Gazette suggests that, because Bill 50 “has made it illegal for the AUC to refuse the (Heartland) project”, the AUC hearing on this proposed line is nothing more than a “kangaroo court”.

May 14 & June 24, 2011

Canadians and Americans Oppose Line

Opposition mounts in Quebec and New Hampshire against the proposed overhead 290-kilometre high voltage power line planned by Hydro-Quebec. The project, dubbed Northern Pass, has raised concerns amongst adjacent landowners about health, property values, visual impacts, lost revenue for tourism-related businesses and the fear that relatively cheap power from Quebec will discourage homegrown sources of renewable energy. The line has been estimated to reduce the value of the land in the immediate area of the line by more than $1 million per lineal mile of line. See this Montreal Gazette article and The Nashua Telegraph article.

May 13 & 14, 2011

Negative Economic Impact of Heartland Line

Industry and business representatives indicated at the AUC hearing on the Heartland Transmission Project that building this line and other planned 500kV lines in Alberta could well drive business and industry out of Alberta. (These 2 sectors pay about 80% of the total transmission infrastructure costs in Alberta, while residents pay about 16% and farms about 4%.) Legislation passed by the Alberta Government in 2009 dictates that specific 500kV lines must be built without any public review of their need. Albertans are already paying some of the highest electricity rates in Canada. See Edmonton Journal, Global TV and CHED News coverage.

May 13, 2011

Heartland Line Moved But Should Be Buried

This letter to the Sherwood Park News indicates that HALO (Homeowners Against Lines Overhead) triggered AltaLink and EPCOR to move their preferred route for the Heartland line a short distance farther away from residents in Sherwood Park. HALO is still pushing for the line to be buried because it is both feasible and affordable.

May 12, 2011

Heartland Hearing Coming to a Close

The Alberta Utilities Commission has completed 5 weeks of its hearing on the proposed double circuit Heartland power line, and should be wrapping up in another week or so. See this iNews 880 coverage for details.

May 9, 2011

Industry Warns of Skyrocketing Power Bills

The Alberta NDP released a letter sent to the Alberta Progressive Conservative Caucus showing Alberta homeowners, business and industry will pay higher power bills once all of the 500kV lines legislated by Bill 50 are built and energized. See CTV News and Canada Views coverage.

May 6, 2011

Heartland Power Line Route Changed Again

On April 26, one-half way through the AUC hearing on this project, AltaLink and EPCOR surprised everyone by altering their preferred route, moving the line farther away from some residents, but closer to other residents and a dense network of pipelines that could well pose a serious hazard. This Sherwood Park News article reports details of the last-minute changes by AltaLink and EPCOR. Up to this point, AltaLink and EPCOR had argued at the AUC hearing that they had spent the last 3 years carefully negotiating with Alberta Infrastructure on the precise location of their preferred route within the Sherwood Park Greenbelt. (At the AUC hearing on May 5, Strathcona County residents had made it clear that moving the line a bit farther away from some homes but closer to others is not what they had been asking for; rather, they insisted that the line be buried as it would negatively affect 5,200 homes (15,000 to 18,000 people).

Along the rural segment of their preferred route, and along their alternate route, AltaLink and EPCOR have made many routing changes, which has left landowners confused about where the proposed line actually is.

The news article also reports on the AltaLink fiasco where one of its land agents had made a number of intimidating comments to a rural landowner in an attempt to get  him to sign an agreement permitting 5 Heartland towers to be built on his land.

May 4, 2011

Crossfield Mayor Against AltaLink Line

Crossfield Mayor Nathan Anderson does not support AltaLink’s proposed Western Alberta Transmission Line because he says no one has proven it’s needed, and we need to decide whether dirty coal-fired electricity generation is the best source of power for Alberta. See this Rocky View Weekly article for details.

April 29 & 30, 2011

AltaLink Apologizes at Heartland Hearing

AltaLink publicly apologized at the AUC Heartland hearing for the appalling conduct of a land agent it hired to make deals with landowners along AltaLink’s preferred route. Among other comments, the land agent had said the Premier and the Alberta P.C. Party support AltaLink, the AUC had already made up its mind that the line was going to be built in the Edmonton and Sherwood Park Greenbelts, and that AltaLink’s alternate route was nothing more than a bureaucratic optics show. This was but one more example of the flawed public consultation process conducted by AltaLink and EPCOR for the proposed Heartland line. See Edmonton Journal and iNews 880 coverage of this story.

April 30, 2011

No Power Line in Transportation Corridor

This Arizona Republic article reports that the federal Bureau of Land Management declined to allow a utility company to use a transportation corridor for a new 500 kilovolt power line because nearby residents had concerns about health, property values and environmental impacts.

April 29, 2011

Strathcona Mayor Urges Community Fight

Strathcona Mayor Linda Osinchuk continued to urge Community members to join the fight countering an overhead Heartland power line. See this Sherwood Park News article.

April 26, 2011

Power Line Buffer Zone Bylaw Clarification

Councillor Vic Bidzinski clarifies in this letter to the Sherwood Park News that there would be no expropriation of land associated with a possible bylaw to create a buffer zone for power lines. Rather, if such a bylaw was passed, it would be used as a tool to challenge the building of overhead high voltage power lines in the County of Strathcona.

April 26, 2011

Opposition to Bill 50 Continues

Articles and letters in the St. Paul Journal and St. Albert Gazette highlight just how upset Albertans continue to be about the Alberta Government ramming Bill 50 through the Legislature in November 2009. Bill 50 took away the public’s right to question the need and accountability for new high voltage power lines in Alberta. The Wildrose Alliance attempted unsuccessfully to repeal the legislation through a motion introduced by MLA Rob Anderson, but the P.C. majority defeated the motion. See this Airdrie City View article and Wildrose news release for details.

April 25, 2011

Power Line Devalues Property By Up To 91%

This New Hampshire Union Leader article reports property devaluation up to 91% resulting from a proposed 180-mile-long Northern Pass high voltage power line planned from Quebec to Deerfield, New Hampshire. Meanwhile, the transmission company’s website indicates “small” property value impacts “in the range of 3-6 percent”. (Electricity transmission companies in North America have intentionally been downplaying the property value impacts of above-ground high voltage power lines for decades because they do not want to bury these lines.)

April 24, 2011

Alberta P.C. Government Intimidation

A St. Albert lawyer, and former provincial Tory, speaking out against land Bills 50 and 19 passed in 2009 by the Alberta Government says the provincial government intimidates individuals who challenge government legislation and policies.  Both Bills, now law, have given the Alberta Government more powers regarding high voltage power line need and siting to the point where Alberta citizens have very little input anymore.  See this Edmonton Journal article.

April 24, 2011

Power Line Approval Bill Killed – Arizona

A Bill aimed at streamlining approvals of interstate power lines was killed by a coalition of environmental groups, the Arizona Farm Bureau Federation and the Arizona Cattle Growers Association. See this Arizona Daily Star article for details. (Sounds similar to the Bill 50 battle in Alberta.)

April 24, 2011

California Residents Don’t Want New Line

Residents of Chino Hills, California have complained that new overhead towers and lines, slated to cut through a 5-mile stretch of the city’s neighbourhood, will impact safety, health, city views and property values. The City filed a complaint in court claiming that the project would “overburden the easement over City property”. See this Daily Bulletin article.

April 23, 2011

Power Companies Can’t Take Your Land

This letter to the Edmonton Journal suggests that landowners in Canada cannot be forced to surrender their land for a high voltage power line.

April 23, 2011

P.C. MLAs Lose Debate on Land Bills

A well-attended debate in Eckville on April 21 saw P.C. leadership contender Ted Morton attempting to defend controversial Bills 19, 24, 36 and 50 (two of which directly affect electricity transmission in Alberta). Based on this Responsible Power blog, the crowd didn’t buy his arguments that this legislation does not strip Albertans of land rights.

April 21 & 22, 2011

Bury the Line Residents Tell AUC

Residents who would live next to the proposed overhead Heartland power line asked the Alberta Utilities Commission to direct AltaLink and EPCOR to bury the line. They cited health, environmental, social and aesthetic concerns including possible closure of schools. Residents were appreciative of the AUC’s efforts to hear their concerns by having a special Community Hearing Session in Sherwood Park. See Sherwood Park News and CBC coverage.

April 21, 22 & 27, 2011

Power Bills in Alberta to Sky Rocket

Based on documents from the Alberta Direct Connect Consumers’ Association, the Alberta NDP says electricity bills in Alberta will jump by 65% by 2013. Because the Alberta Government passed Bill 50 in 2009, there is no accountability for spending on electricity transmission infrastructure, and higher electricity costs will render Alberta businesses less competitive. See Edmonton Journal,  iNews 880  and Peace River Record-Gazette coverage.

April 21, 2011

Too Many Hearings – Too Few Experts

Albertans are complaining there are too many high voltage power lines being planned at the same time, and therefore too many applications before the Alberta Utilities Commission. Legal representation and experts are in short supply, and MLA Rob Anderson says, “It looks dirty on the side of the government. It doesn’t look fair. It swamps people.” See this Red Deer Advocate article.

April 21, 2011

Taking Property for Power Line in Montana

This Independent Record article reports that the controversy continues regarding debate on legislation that would ensure a Canadian company has authority to take property for its power line project in northern Montana. The proposed Montana Alberta Tie Limited power line is planned from Great Falls, Montana to Lethbridge, Alberta.

April 20, 2011

Health Risks of Overhead Power Lines Real

This St. Albert Gazette article reports that, under cross-examination by RETA, AltaLink expressed concern that it is difficult for them to convince the public there are no health effects of overhead high voltage power line electromagnetic fields (EMFs) when groups like RETA provide information to the public indicating there are health risks.

April 19, 2011

Attend Sherwood Park AUC Hearing

This letter to the Sherwood Park News encourages Strathcona County residents to attend the AUC Community Hearing Session Wednesday, April 20, 7:00 p.m. at the Coast Edmonton East Hotel in Sherwood Park.

April 19, 2011

Not Giving Up Fight

This letter to the Sherwood Park News says regardless of how the odds may be against winning the battle to get the Heartland line buried, Strathcona County residents can’t give up.

April 17, 2011

Strathcona County Up Next at AUC Hearing

Strathcona County Mayor Linda Osinchuk indicates in this iNews 880 interview that Strathcona’s lawyer will be asking some tough questions of AltaLink and EPCOR at the AUC Heartland hearing.

April 17, 2011

Heartland Power Line Hearing “Fix Is In”?

Two St. Albert residents suggest in this letter and in this letter to the Edmonton Journal that few people have shown up at the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) hearing on the proposed Heartland line because Albertans have lost trust in the Alberta Government and the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO). The writers further suggest that the Alberta Government and the AESO have already determined the outcome of the hearing, and that the government has stripped not only the rights of landowners but of the AUC as well.

April 15, 2011

“The Fight of Our Lives Is Before Us”

Strathcona County Mayor Linda Osinchuk says, regarding the proposed Heartland power line, “The fight of our lives is before us.” She points out in this Sherwood Park News column that the line is the largest threat ever to the County’s residents and business owners’ health, property value and environment, as well as the fundamental identity of the County.

April 15, 2011

Learn to Live with Lines?

This column in the Sherwood Park News suggests that we might as well learn to live with these ugly above ground high voltage line towers because not enough people seem to care about their negative health, safety, environmental, property value and aesthetic impacts. (When the writer of the column, Alan Dunn, was a County Councillor in March 2009, he introduced a motion that Strathcona County only accept high voltage power lines if they are buried. The motion was unanimously supported by Council.)

April 13, 2011

Views Differ at Heartland Hearing

This St. Albert Gazette article reveals the different viewpoints held by AltaLink/EPCOR and the thousands of residents who would be directly impacted by the Heartland line. Residents want the line buried when it runs close to homes, schools, daycares, hospitals and environmentally sensitive areas, while the transmission companies do not think eliminating the health, safety, property value and environmental risks by burying part of the line is worth it financially.  The irony is that the combined capital, maintenance and transmission loss costs over the life of the line are less for an underground than for an overhead line.

April 13, 2011

AESO and Alberta Government Forecasts Off

This letter to the St. Albert Gazette suggests both the Alberta Government and Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) are notorious for overestimating future electricity and transmission demands and underestimating their costs. The letter goes on to say electricity generators and transmission companies have been given a blank cheque, all at the expense of Alberta consumers.

April 12, 2011

Alberta Power Lines Not Needed

The Landowners Against Bills Society, Alberta Direct Connect and Industrial Power Consumers Association of Alberta continue to question the need for the Heartland power line and others dubiously labeled “critical transmission infrastructure” by the Alberta Government in Bill 50. See this St. Paul Journal article and letter to the editor.

April 12, 2011

Minnesota Residents Worried About Line

Residents in southeastern Minnesota are worried about the impacts of a proposed 345-kilovolt power line on property values, future land uses, health and safety. See Kaal TV and Post-Bulletincoverage.

April 11, 2011

Heartland AUC Hearing Kicks Off

Following are a few media stories on the kick off of the Alberta Utilities Commission hearing on the proposed Heartland power line: CTV Edmonton, CHED News, CBC News and iNews 880.  See AUC Heartland Hearing – Day 1 for details.

April 10, 2011

Coal More Dangerous than Nuclear Power

This Edmonton Journal article reports on a comprehensive study that suggests coal-fired electricity generation is far more hazardous to human health and safety than nuclear-powered electricity generation. “Compared with nuclear power, coal is responsible for five times as many worker deaths from accidents, 470 times as many deaths due to air pollution among members of the public, and more than 1,000 times as many cases of serious illness, according to a study of the health effects of electricity generation in Europe.” (This does certainly not bode well for Alberta, considering over 50% of Alberta’s electricity is produced by coal-fired generation, and Alberta produces more coal-fired electricity than any other province in Canada. For example, the proposed 500kV Heartland line will transmit power from coal-fired electricity generation at Wabamun. )

April 8, 2011

City of Edmonton Says Bury the Line

The City of Edmonton will be carrying the message of “Bury the Line” into the Alberta Utilities Commission hearing starting next week at Edmonton’s EXPO Centre. City Council says Edmonton residents are worried about the negative health, safety, property value and aesthetic impacts if an overhead Heartland power line is built. See Edmonton Sun, CTV, Edmonton Journal, Global TV, CBC, CHED News and iNews 880 coverage.

April 8, 2011

AUC Decision Goes to Court

The Lavesta Area Group has won the right to appeal a decision by the Alberta Utilities Commission to pay AltaLink $38.6 million for preliminary work on a proposed Edmonton-Calgary power line that was scrapped in 2007 due to a spying scandal. See this Edmonton Journal article and news release for details. The Lavesta Area Group wants the Heartland AUC hearing suspended until the appeal is over. An AUC spokesperson says the hearing will proceed until such time as the Heartland panel receives a motion to suspend the hearing.

April 8, 2011

Billions “Needed” for Power Grid Update?

The Conference Board of Canada has conducted research that suggests $294 billion is needed to update electricity generation and transmission in Canada. The utility industry-funded research suggests the lion’s share of the funding ($196 billion) is required for power generation, with a focus on renewable and low-carbon emission sources. (This certainly places Alberta off-side with the Conference Board recommendation, considering most electricity in Alberta is generated by coal-fired plants which emit the highest volumes of greenhouse gases. And, the provincial government continues to support construction of new coal-fired plants, while the federal government has said coal-fired generators need to transition to cleaner and more efficient generation.) The Conference Board suggests the remaining $98 billion is required for new and refurbished transmission and distribution systems. (The transmission industry can expect public pressure to build to bury high voltage power lines in response to health, safety, environmental and property value concerns, especially considering the overall costs to bury these lines over the life of a line are lower than for overhead lines.) See this Edmonton Journal article for details.

April 6, 2011

Heartland AUC Hearing to Start April 11

In this St. Albert Gazette article,  RETA briefly discusses how it will focus on burying the Heartland line at the upcoming Alberta Utilities Commission hearing. RETA’s experts will testify that a partially buried Heartland line would cost less than 9% more than an entirely above-ground line, which is a rounding error in the electricity transmission industry.

April 6, 2011

NDP Criticizes Alberta Electricity Matters

This Fairview Post article reports that NDP Leader Brian Mason has criticized the Alberta Government’s handling of electricity legislation, deregulation and unnecessary transmission lines.

April 5, 2011

Strathcona Considers Power Line Buffer

Strathcona County is investigating the possibility of passing a motion that would create a buffer zone adjacent to overhead high voltage power lines in the County. This Sherwood Park News article reports that Council raised the possibility of such a motion as another part of its battle against an overhead 500kV Heartland transmission line.

April 5, 2011

Wildrose Would Cancel Heartland Line

When commenting on the proposed Heartland line, Garnett Genuis, the Wildrose Alliance candidate for Sherwood Park, indicates in this Sherwood Park News article that “We need a government that will cancel that project”.

April 5, 2011

Gary Mar Weighs in on Heartland Line

Gary Mar, one of the five Alberta Progressive Conservative leadership candidates, recently indicated in Sherwood Park that the following factors need to be taken into account with respect to the proposed Heartland line: how much power is needed, is it feasible to bury the line, how would it affect the school that is close to the line, and how would it affect people’s property values? See this Sherwood Park News article for details. (RETA agrees with Mr. Mar.)

April 5, 2011

Bonnyville Residents Want Line Buried

MD of Bonnyville residents discussed their research on health effects of an overhead ATCO Electric power line proposed for their community. Residents are proposing an underground line. See this Bonnyville Nouvelle article.

April 2 & 4, 2011

Australians Don’t Want Overhead Power Line

Sunshine Coast, Australia residents are fighting plans by Energex to build overhead high voltage lines from Palmwoods to Pacific Paradise. They argue overhead lines would pose a health threat and would damage wildlife corridors, biodiversity and water quality across the region. Some residents want the power lines buried.  They plan to go to court, and one individual has said he will knock down the poles if they’re built. See April 2 and April 4 articles in the Sunshine Coast Daily.

April 1, 2011

Hydro-Quebec Northern Pass Plans Rejected

This Montreal Gazette article reports that New Hampshire residents are solidly opposed to Hydro-Quebec’s plans to boost its New England power sales by building a 180-mile above-ground transmission line. Residents are protesting the impact this line will have on clearing forests through scenic regions, lost viewsheds for residents, fewer tourists and tourist dollars, and lower property values. Opponents have called for the power companies to bury the transmission lines that would interfere with their “postcard-quality scenery”. Residents in Quebec are concerned about the line being built too close to homes, dairy cattle and gas pipelines.

April 1, 2011

Has Call to Bury Line Been Heard?

This Sherwood Park News column asks the very serious question of whether or not the “rally cries to put the lines underground have been heard.” RETA could not agree more.  The column goes on to indicate that the Heartland Transmission Project would have been a lot harder to complete if the Alberta Legislature had not passed Bill 50 in November 2009. (Strathcona County, the City of Edmonton, Colchester School Parents’ Association, RETA and many others have been pushing hard to get the Heartland line buried whenever it runs close to homes, schools, daycares, hospitals and environmentally sensitive areas.)

April 1, 2011

Premier Doesn’t Understand Electricity Bills

This letter to the Edmonton Journal points out how upset Albertans are about Bills 19, 36 and 50, two of which have significant impacts on electricity transmission in our province. In spite of the overwhelming evidence of their negative effects on cost-effective electricity transmission and landowner rights, Premier Stelmach continues to support the legislation. The Landowners Against Bills Society of Alberta continues to press for the repeal of the three Bills.

March 31, 2011

RETA on the Cost of Electricity

RETA, the Independent Power Producers Society of Alberta, and the Industrial Power Consumers Association of Alberta discussed the sharply rising costs of electricity in Alberta on this Alberta Primetime program. RETA made the point that Alberta’s heavy reliance on coal-fired electricity generation along with its attendant expensive long transmission lines adds significantly to Albertans’ monthly electricity bill.

March 29, 2011

Weather Hits Overhead Alberta Lines

This Edmonton Journal article reports that poor weather and salted roads caused power outages in numerous places across Alberta this past weekend. Had the lines been buried, these outages would not have occurred.

March 28, 2011

TransAlta Treats Alberta Differently

This Calgary Herald article reports that TransAlta is going ahead with a second wind energy project on the Gaspe Peninsula. While TransAlta is to be commended for its efforts in the much more environmentally-friendly wind energy industry outside Alberta, it is unfortunate that the corporation continues to build new coal-fired electricity generation capacity (Keephills 3) in Alberta which entails a huge carbon footprint.

March 27, 2011

Eastern U.S. Wants Power Line Buried

Opponents argue the proposed Mid-Atlantic Power Pathway high voltage transmission line, planned for Delaware, Virginia and Maryland, is not needed. Concerned groups say the new towers would harm three vital industries – agriculture, forestry and seafood; and would harm Eastern Shore habitat. If the line is proven necessary, affected parties want the line buried. See Delmarva Now coverage.

March 25, 2011

More on Bury The Line Rally

This Saint City News article and Sherwood Park Independent article report on the Bury The Line rally at the Legislature March 19. Rally participants, including numerous politicians, criticized the Alberta Government over legislation that has taken away citizens’ ability to protect their homes and their health. Protesters questioned the need for all of the new high voltage lines planned by the Alberta Government, and want the lines buried if they are built close to homes and schools. The actual costs of partially burying the proposed Heartland line are becoming more important as the AUC hearing date approaches. The applicants, EPCOR and AltaLink, estimate almost twice the cost to partially bury the line compared to building it entirely above ground. RETA’s experts estimate the underground option would cost only 9% more than the above ground option. The petition recently presented to MLA Dave Quest by Mayor Linda Osinchuk supporting burying the Heartland line contains about 4,500 signatures.  See this Sherwood Park News article for details.

March 25, 2011

Hanna Residents Angry Over ATCO Line

Hanna area residents at an Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) information session were angry the Alberta Government’s legislation (including Bill 50 and Bill 19) has taken away their right to fight the proposed ATCO Electric 500kV HVDC line from Redwater to Brooks. This Hanna Herald article reports that residents are also suspicious this line is all about exporting electricity from Alberta to the United States. AUC representatives indicated to residents the Alberta Government’s Bill 50 has already determined this line is necessary, and as a result the AUC’s “only responsibility is for getting the approved line from point A to point B”.

March 23, 2011

Health Fears – Overhead Power Lines

The Scottish Government is accused of ignoring potential health dangers from overhead high voltage power lines. Ministers are refusing to acknowledge the growing body of evidence linking high voltage power lines to childhood leukemia, Alzheimer’s, adult brain tumors and decreased sperm count. See The Press and Journal article for details.

March 22, 2011

Brooks Area Residents Worried about Line

Residents along a preferred and alternate route for an AltaLink 240kV double circuit power line planned between Cassils and Bowmanton have presented their arguments to the Alberta Utilities Commission. Interveners raised environmental and visual impact concerns. See this Brooks Bulletin article.

March 22, 2011

Bonnyville Residents Concerned about Line

This Bonnyville Nouvelle article reports that residents along a proposed ATCO Electric power line are concerned about negative health, property value and environmental impacts of an above ground line. Residents appear to favour an underground line. See this editorial in the same paper.

March 22, 2011

U.K. Council Presses for Underground Line

The North Somerset, U.K. Council continues to press for a 400 kilovolt power line to run underground. Residents are concerned that an above ground line would destroy the countryside, drive down property values, and have possible effects on people’s health. See this Evening Post article.

March 19-22, 2011

Strong Turnout at Power Line Rally

About 500 adults and several hundred children turned out at a public rally meant to send a strong message to the Alberta Government to bury high voltage power lines whenever they are built close to homes, schools, daycares, hospitals and environmentally sensitive areas. See the following media coverage of the rally: i880 News, Edmonton Journal, CBC News, CHED News, Global TV Edmonton, Global TV Winnipeg, Global TV Calgary, CTV News, Sherwood Park News.

March 19, 2011

Bury the Line Rally – Alberta Legislature

AltaLink’s and EPCOR’s preferred route for the proposed Heartland power line will directly impact 5,200 homes (15,000 to 20,000 people).  RETA is sending the Alberta Government a strong message to bury high voltage power lines whenever they are built close to homes, schools, daycares, hospitals and environmentally sensitive areas. See iNews 880 coverage.

March 17, 2011

Alberta Liberals Support Burying Power Line

The March 17, 2011 Alberta Hansard reports that Alberta Liberal Energy Critic, Kent Hehr, supports burying the proposed Heartland Transmission Project. He asked the Alberta Energy Minister several questions, but Minister Liepert dodged each one, erroneously suggesting that the Alberta Utilities Commission will make all the decisions regarding the line.

March 17, 2011

New Lines Will Increase Power Bills

The Alberta Government’s plans to criss-cross Alberta with high voltage power lines, many of them 500 kilovolt, will significantly increase power bills for Alberta consumers. Consumer groups argue such sharp increases in fixed costs will make Alberta less competitive than neighbouring provinces. See Calgary Herald article for details.

March 17, 2011

Australian Community Wants Line Buried

For three years, the Gold Coast Australia airport, hospital and City Council have continued their calls for the majority of high voltage power line upgrades between Currumbin and Tugun to be buried. They indicate above ground lines “would be an eyesore and a blight on our vista”. The Gold Coast City Council has renewed its calls to put key sections of the proposed line underground near residential areas and in areas of high visibility. See Goldcoast.com.au article for details.

March 17, 2011

Power Line Concerns New Hampshire

This letter to the Nashua Telegraph suggests the proposed Northern Pass high voltage power line from Quebec to Deerfield New Hampshire would negatively impact the state economy, environment and tourism industry. The writer points out the tourism industry would decline due to the aesthetic impact on scenic landscapes, and the proposed line would disturb ecologically sensitive areas, causing disruption of wildlife habitat and forest fragmentation.

March 15 & 16, 2011

Bill 19 Support Not Smart

This letter to the St. Albert Gazette points out how unpopular Bill 19 (Land Assembly Project Area Act) is with Alberta landowners. Alberta Infrastructure Minister, Ray Danyluk, tried to defend the legislation at a recent town hall meeting in St. Paul, but lost the arguments to lawyer Keith Wilson who has been touring the province educating landowners about this and other legislation that has diminished private landowner rights. Bill 19 allows the Alberta Government to unilaterally designate private land as a high voltage power line corridor. Also check out this article in the St. Paul Journal.

March 15, 2011

P.C. MLAs Don’t Respond to Questions

Of 21 MLAs who received a questionnaire from RETA, only one responded by the February 18 deadline – Rob Anderson, Wildrose Alliance MLA for Airdrie-Chestermere. RETA had sent out the questionnaire February 2, 2011 to the 21 MLAs who are slated to have one of the newly-planned 500kV power lines legislated by Bill 50 run through their constituencies. The survey asked numerous questions about the need for the lines, their impacts, and whether or not these lines should be buried in certain circumstances.  See this Sherwood Park News article and RETA news release for details.

March 15, 2011

AESO Should be Removed

This letter to the Sherwood Park News editor suggests the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) should be removed because of their “misguided, outdated and incongruent policies” with respect to Alberta’s electricity transmission system. The letter goes on to say, “The Bill 50 transmission projects need to be stopped and the province’s $16.5 billion transmission plan needs to be re-evaluated…..”

March 14, 2011

Strathcona Heartland Petition Complete

A petition signed by Strathcona County residents opposing an above ground Heartland Transmission Project is complete and will be presented to MLA Dave Quest to table in the Alberta Legislative Assembly. See iNews 880 coverage.

March 13, 2011

Land Act Favours Transmission Companies

This Edmonton Journal column and letter to the editor point out how Bill 36, the Land Stewardship Act, favours the ability of electricity transmission companies in Alberta to build high voltage power lines that would criss-cross our province, with little or no “interference” from private landowners. The letter to the editor also makes reference to the well-known fact that the Alberta Government and transmission companies plan to export electricity to the U.S. through these new 500kV lines paid for by Alberta power consumers.

March 11, 2011

Listen to RETA Speak on Power Lines

Listen to this UPTAG Podcast wherein John Kristensen, VP Technical, RETA, discusses the negative impacts of overhead high voltage power lines and the merits of burying them. Go to the 15:40 minute mark of the Podcast to the beginning of the interview.

March 11, 2011

Applicants Assume They’ll Get Go-Ahead

EPCOR indicates in this Sherwood Park News article that soil testing for towers is being done only in the Edmonton and Sherwood Park Greenbelts, EPCOR’s and AltaLink’s preferred route for the Heartland power line. RETA suggests that it’s presumptuous for the proponents to go ahead with this work when the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) hearing hasn’t even started yet. If EPCOR, AltaLink and the Alberta Government want there to be the appearance of a fair and open public consultation process and AUC hearing, they should at least wait until the AUC hands down a decision on which route is selected, or whether any route is given the go-ahead.

March 10, 2011

Line Impacts Property Values and Tourism

A B.C. MLA has indicated there may have been some misrepresentation on the impact of a 230-kilovolt power line in the South Okanagan. Residents, businesses and tourism operators are claiming the upgraded power line will affect their property values and a vital tourism industry. See Black Press article.

March 9, 2011

P.C. MLAs Don’t Recall RETA Questionnaire

This Red Deer Advocate article reports that Hon. Luke Ouellette and MLA Ty Lund do not recall receiving a questionnaire from RETA which asked numerous questions about the proposed Western Alberta Transmission Line slated to go through their constituencies. Only one of 21 MLAs sent the questionnaire responded – Wildrose MLA Rob Anderson. None of the Progressive Conservative MLAs responded.

March 8, 2011

World’s Longest Underwater Cable Planned

Iceland is proposing to provide its geothermal and volcanic energy to Europe by building an under-sea transmission cable between 1,200km and 1,900km long, depending on the destination country.  This would make it the longest sub-sea cable in the world. See Mother Nature Network and Yahoo News articles. It’s interesting that other countries are extremely innovative when it comes to running high voltage power lines underground and under the sea, while unfortunately in Alberta electricity transmission corporations do not want to bury high voltage power lines to protect Albertans’ health and safety and our natural landscapes.

March 8, 2011

Capital Power Treats Alberta Differently

While Capital Power invests in cleaner electricity generation outside Alberta, the company continues to focus on dirty coal-fired power generation in Alberta.  The company has just  purchased a natural gas-fired plant in Connecticut, and is building wind projects in B.C. and Ontario. However, here in Alberta, Capital Power is about to bring yet another dirty coal-fired plant on line at Keephills. See Edmonton Journal article.

March 8, 2011

Power Lines Not Worth the Risk

This writer to the Sherwood Park Newsletters to the editor does not want her children (or any others) to be part of an experiment to find out whether or not high voltage power lines cause serious health problems.

March 5, 2011

Land Bills Big Problem for Government

This Lethbridge Herald opinion says the assault on private landowner rights (Bills 19, 24, 36 and 50) by the Alberta Government is turning into a nightmare for the Progressive Conservative MLAs and Ministers.  Two of these Bills (19 and 50) very seriously affect Albertans’ rights with respect to new high voltage power lines.

March 4, 2011

Health – Better Safe Than Sorry

This Sherwood Park News column analyzes some of the medical research conducted on the adverse effects of high voltage line EMFs on health, and concludes that “When it comes to building high voltage power lines near our community, it would be irresponsible to take a chance when lives are at stake.”

March 4, 2011

Dirty Coal-Fired Power Not Needed

The proposed Susquehanna-Roseland Power Line, carrying dirty coal-fired electricity (just like that produced at Wabamun, Alberta) in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, has residents and environmental groups upset. The new line would have towers up to 200 feet high, double the height of existing towers. (Does this sound familiar or what?) Residents and other stakeholders say the line isn’t needed and that it will have serious environmental and health impacts (also sound familiar?). See NorthJersey.com article.

March 3, 2011

Only Two Days Left to Sign Petition

There are only two days left to sign the County of Strathcona’s petition to bury the Heartland power line. See i880 News clip.

March 2, 2011

Citizens Stop 765 Kilovolt Power Line

Stop PATH WV, a citizens’ action group, has stopped the building of a massive 765kV line planned to run from St. Albans, West Virginia to Kemptown, Maryland. Allegheny Energy and American Electric Power had proposed the Potomac-Appalachian Transmission Highline for the past 3 years. Citizens opposed the line on the basis of its major environmental impacts and the need for the line. Due to strong public opposition and pressure on politicians, the power companies have withdrawn their permit applications in West Virginia, Virginia and Maryland.

Feb. 23, 2011

Strathcona County Supports Residents

Strathcona County Council has issued a news release indicating that AltaLink’s and EPCOR’s preferred Heartland route through the Sherwood Park Greenbelt is adjacent to a greater number of residents and has more schools, daycares and hospitals within 800m of the edge of the Greenbelt. Council has therefore expanded on an earlier Motion by indicating the Alternate West Route makes more sense. Council’s new Motion still argues for burying high voltage lines when located adjacent to densely populated areas anywhere in Alberta. See Sherwood Park News and CTV coverage.

Feb. 18, 2011

Strathcona Continues Power Line Fight

Councillor Vic Bidzinski says in this column that Strathcona County Council will continue to support County residents by questioning the need for the Heartland line; pushing for it to get buried near densely populated areas, schools and environmentally sensitive areas; and insisting that the costs to bury the line be shared over the entire power-benefiting area. He also indicated the Heartland route that runs west of Edmonton should be the preferred route and the Sherwood Park Greenbelt should be the alternate route.  Councillor Bidzinski reminds residents to sign the petition started by Mayor Osinchuk to get the line buried.

Feb. 18, 2011

Local Paper Has Opinions on Power Line

More coverage in this Sherwood Park News column on the Heartland Transmission Project, burying the line, and financial assistance to RETA.

Feb. 17 & 18, 2011

Cabinet Hears About Power Line Concerns

Sturgeon County residents gave Alberta Cabinet Ministers an earful of concerns about the Heartland Transmission Project at a February 16 town hall meeting in St. Albert. See this Saint City News article. Among the concerns raised were Bills 19, 36 and 50. This St. Albert Gazette article reports that residents are upset these Bills extinguish landowner rights, allow the Alberta Government to unilaterally designate and regulate development on private land, and streamline approval processes for large power lines.

Feb. 16, 2011

City of Edmonton Says Bury Heartland Line

Edmonton City Council is urging the Alberta Utilities Commission to direct AltaLink and EPCOR to bury the Heartland power line if it passes by heavily populated communities. See this iNews880 radio report.

Feb. 15, 2011

Enhanced AUC Process for ATCO Line

AUC announced an enhanced public process for ATCO’s  Eastern Alberta 500kV HVDC Transmission Line. See details here.

Feb. 15, 2011

Colchester Parents Not Exploiting Children

In this letter, the Vice President of the Colchester Parents’ Association takes offense to the Sherwood Park News comments suggesting fear mongering and children exploitation tactics. He concludes by saying, “Bury the lines”.

Feb. 15, 2011

Government Looks to Amend Land Laws

The Canadian Press reports that the Alberta Government is reviewing Bills 19 and 36, and considering amendments to protect private landowner rights including those associated with designating private land for high voltage power lines. The Wildrose Alliance reiterates that it would repeal Bills 19, 36 and 50 if it forms the next Government. Also, the Wildrose Alliance will bring forward a Private Member’s Bill in the Spring Sitting of the Legislature to repeal Bill 50.

Feb. 11, 2011

Power Line Next Challenge – Mayor

Now that funding commitments have been made to Sherwood Park’s new hospital, Strathcona County Mayor Linda Osinchuk says in her recent Mayor’s Report that getting the proposed Heartland power line buried is the County’s next challenge if the AUC determines that the line should be built in the Sherwood Park Greenbelt. She encourages residents to sign the petition to bury the line (details provided at “Heartland Power Line Petition” link).

Feb. 10, 2011

Another Unsightly Power Line Planned

Residents of three Wisconsin counties are reported in this article saying a new overhead high voltage power line is not needed and could harm property values, the environment, tourism and aesthetics. Public pressure is mounting across North America for power companies to get serious about using more advanced technologies to both generate and transmit electricity without stringing gigantic ugly towers and lines above ground across the countryside.

Feb. 10, 2011

Groups Ask for Power Line to be Scrapped

A coalition of New Jersey environmental organizations says the proposed Susquehanna-Roseland power line isn’t needed; however, two transmission companies say the line is necessary to prevent potential blackouts. (This sounds similar to arguments made by the Alberta Government to justify charging Alberta electricity consumers over $14 billion for new high voltage lines in Alberta.)  Construction of another segment of the New Jersey line is not proceeding due to litigation on environmental grounds. See full story here.

Feb. 8, 2011

Funding to RETA Justified

A letter to the Sherwood Park News points out that RETA is a grass-roots non-profit organization that relies on donations and financial contributions to help educate the public about the health, safety, environmental and property value impacts of the proposed Heartland power line. This letter and another letter to the same newspaper applaud the County of Strathcona for financially assisting RETA.

Feb. 8, 2011

Joe Anglin Continues to Fight Power Lines

The Tyee includes a long article on Joe Anglin’s and the Lavesta Area Group’s continuing battle against the Alberta Government’s $16 billion (and growing) electricity transmission plan that would see high voltage power lines criss-crossing Alberta. Most Albertans are convinced these power lines aren’t needed, or at minimum that the lines as planned by the government would be a significant overbuild.

Feb. 8, 2011

Did MLAs Read Bills Before Voting?

This letter to the Rimbey Review asks whether MLAs read Bills 19, 36 and 50 before they voted on them to make them law. The letter provides a good summary of the contentious parts of the 3 Bills.

Feb. 3, 2011

MLA Questionnaire on Power Lines

This Red Deer Advocate article reports the AUC will be holding information meetings on the AltaLink Western Alberta DC Line proposed from Edmonton to Calgary. The article also indicates RETA has sent a questionnaire to the 21 MLAs affected by the three 500 kilovolt power lines currently proposed in Alberta: Heartland AC Line, Western Alberta DC Line, and Eastern Alberta DC Line. The questionnaire asks the MLAs about their views on need for the lines, their impacts, and whether or not they support these lines being buried. RETA will post results of the questionnaire on this website.

Feb. 2, 2011

ATCO Picks Route for Eastern Alberta Line

ATCO has selected its preferred and alternate routes for its 500 kilovolt HVDC line from Gibbons to Brooks. ATCO will now contact affected landowners and other affected parties for their views.  Local landowners, as well as landowners across the province are angry that Bill 50 has taken away their right to be consulted on whether this and other 500kV lines are even necessary. See this Edmonton Journal article.

Feb. 2, 2011

Spruce Grove Opposes Heartland Line

The City of Spruce Grove opposes the Heartland alternate route for a number of reasons including it would interfere with development and expansion plans, trail plans and wildlife movement. The City also indicates that the average Spruce Grove citizen believes these 240-foot towers and lines have negative health and aesthetic impacts. Spruce Grove will be making these arguments at the upcoming AUC hearing on the Heartland line. See Tri Area News article.

Feb. 1, 2011

Strathcona County Gives RETA $95,000

Strathcona County Council has approved a $95,000 contribution to RETA to help the non-profit organization raise awareness about the Heartland Transmission Project. The funding will assist RETA continue educating the public about the project and assist with legal and expert costs that are not reimbursable from the Alberta Utilities Commission. This financial assistance is further indication of the collaboration between Strathcona County and RETA in fighting to get the Heartland line buried. Strathcona County Council has been consistent from early 2009 when it unanimously passed a Motion to accept high voltage power lines in the County only if they are buried. See Sherwood Park-Strathcona County News article.

Feb. 1, 2011

Quest Not Helpful on Heartland Power Line

Strathcona MLA Dave Quest says he understands an overhead Heartland line could close Colchester Elementary School. In this Sherwood Park-Strathcona County News article, he downplays the Alberta Government’s role in the Heartland Transmission Project, even though Alberta Energy has been pushing for the past 3 years to get the line built in the Sherwood Park Greenbelt and the department does not support burying the line. As well, the Alberta Minister of Infrastructure has the final say on whether the 500kV line can be built in the Greenbelt. To top it all off, the Alberta Government passed Bill 50 in late 2009 which has taken away any legal opportunities for residents to question the need for the line.

Jan. 30, 2011

Province Cuts Red Tape for Power Industry

In this letter to the Edmonton Journal, RETA points out that the Alberta Government does a great job of cutting red tape for the electricity transmission industry, but does a terrible job of protecting the environment, protecting public health and safety, and public consultation.

Jan. 28, 2011

Heartland Line Would Close School

Parents are convinced an overhead 500kV Heartland power line would close Colchester Elementary School. The line would be built so close to the school, parents would move their children out of the school for fear of health and safety hazards. Studies on electromagnetic field and corona effects from overhead high voltage power lines show very strong links to childhood leukemia, other cancers and depression. At the same time, RETA challenges the Alberta Government’s assertion that the “lights are going to go out” if hundreds of kilometres of new overhead power lines are not built.  See front-page Sherwood Park News article for details.

Jan. 28, 2011

AUC Tells Capital Power to Keep Promise

In October 2010 Capital Power asked the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) to let it back out of a commitment EPCOR (it’s parent company) made in 2001 to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from its Genesee 3 power plant down to the equivalent of a natural gas-fired plant. This Edmonton Journal article reports that the AUC recently ruled Capital Power must  fulfil its earlier commitment to reduce GHG emissions. RETA applauds this decision by the AUC, especially at a time when other jurisdictions are shutting down dirty coal-fired electricity generation plants. Canada’s Environment Minister has told companies to phase out coal-fired generation in Canada, but the Alberta Government continues to allow new coal-fired power plants to be built.

Jan. 21. 2011

RETA Asks Premier for Environmental Study

This Farm ‘n’ Friends article reports that the Alberta Environment Minister turned down a request by RETA for a formal Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of the proposed Heartland power line, so RETA has appealed to Premier Stelmach for the EIA. See original letter to the Premier.

Jan. 18-27 & Feb. 1-4, 2011

Wildrose Would Repeal Land Use Laws

The Wildrose Alliance Leader, Caucus members and Party members have met with hundreds of Albertans across the province making it clear that the Wildrose Alliance would repeal Bills 19, 36 and 50 if they form the Government following the next provincial election. See the High River Times, Bonnyville Nouvelle, Bow Island Commentator, Vauxhall Advance, St. Albert Gazette, Saint City News, Western Producer, Red Deer Advocate, Cochrane Eagle, and The Tyee. These Bills, especially Bills 19 and 50, have significantly streamlined requirements for electricity transmission companies who are applying to build new monster high voltage power lines. Albertans across the province are liking what the Wildrose Alliance Party is telling them, that if they form the next Government, they will restore private landowner rights and the opportunity to have a say on whether specific high voltage power lines are even needed. The Party also repeats the message that the P.C. Government has fallen out of touch with landowners.

Jan. 14, 2011

Heartland Line a Health Threat

A former professor of molecular biology and Chair of Concordia’s Department of Environmental Health points out in this article there are some very good scientific studies that suggest power lines like the Heartland Line pose a health threat to children. He has major concerns about the Heartland Transmission Project, and was recently elected President of the St. Albert Alberta Party constituency association to fight this project and to work on a number of other issues.

Jan. 14, 2011

More on Heartland Environmental Study

RETA continues to indicate in this Saint City News article that a formal Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of the Heartland Transmission Project is the only way to properly assess the environmental, health, safety and property value impacts. Alberta Environment says they already know what the impacts of the Heartland Line are, even without an EIA.

Jan. 14, 2011

Power Lines and Property Rights – Danger

This Calgary Herald column points out the political trouble the Alberta Tories have created by mixing people’s fears and concerns about overhead high voltage power lines and private property rights.

Jan. 11, 2011

AUC Announces Community Hearings

The Alberta Utilities Commission announced that the Heartland Transmission Project facility application is considered complete. The AUC has also set dates and times for community hearing sessions as part of the enhanced Heartland public hearing process. Anyone choosing this option must register for one of the sessions by February 28, 2011. See news article here, and AUC notices and details here and here.

Jan. 11, 2011

Strathcona County Fighting Power Line

Strathcona County has added $150,000 to its budget to intervene at the upcoming AUC hearings on the Heartland power line.  The County continues to press for the line to be buried where it’s populated. A petition to bury the line can be signed until March 4, 2011 at Millennium Place,  County Hall,  Strathcona County Library, Ardrossan Recreation Complex, Glen Allan Recreation Complex and the Heartland Hall Contact Office. See Sherwood Park News article and Strathcona County news release.

Jan. 10, 2011

Pipeline or Power Line – Not Both

This letter to the Edmonton Journal editor points out that the plans for a new oilsands pipeline from Alberta to the U.S. negates the need for the proposed Heartland power line. If our oilsands are going to be shipped to the U.S. by pipeline,  what is the need for upgraders and refineries in Alberta and therefore what is the need for a 500kV power line from Wabamun to the Industrial Heartland where 9 upgraders had been planned before companies started shipping unprocessed bitumen south?

Jan. 5-7, 2011

Environmental Review of Heartland Line

If the Alberta Government insists that the Heartland Line gets built, RETA has requested that a formal environmental impact assessment of the proposed line be conducted because the Heartland Line would be the largest overhead power line ever built in Alberta, and because the environmental and health impacts of the line are significant. Unfortunately, an Alberta Environment public relations spokesperson has said an environmental assessment is not necessary because they already know the outcome, leading RETA to question the need for the department if it is not interested in protecting Alberta’s environment and Albertans’ health. See Edmonton Journal article, St. Albert Gazette article, CTV coverage, CHED News coverage, Winnipeg Free Press article, and Red Deer Advocate article.

Jan. 5, 2011

Overhead Power Lines Trouble for Germany

Massive overhead high voltage lines and towers planned in Germany are posing serious political risks to Germany’s conservatives as they head into local elections. Underground lines are more acceptable to citizens. See Spiegel article.

Jan. 4, 2011

Heartland Power Line Not Needed

This letter to the Sherwood Park News asks why MLA Dave Quest and the Alberta Government in general continue to insist that industrial, business and residential electricity needs demand construction of hundreds of kilometres of new overhead high voltage power lines throughout Alberta. Industry itself has said they do not need the Heartland Line or other lines deemed “critical transmission infrastructure” by the Alberta Government, especially since most of the largest electricity users co-generate their own electricity.

Jan. 3, 2011

AltaLink Should Bury St. Albert Line

The City of St. Albert has honoured Elke Blodgett for her tireless environmental advocacy in the Big Lake area. It is unfortunate that AltaLink is not willing to fund the entire costs of burying a very short section of their high voltage power line that kills hundreds of birds annually, especially because this line runs right along the edge of Lois Hole Centennial Provincial Park and Big Lake, one of the most important migratory bird areas in the Capital Region. See Edmonton Journal article and St. Albert News Release .

Dec. 28, 2010

Heartland Line For Export?

In this letter to the Sherwood Park-Strathcona County News, a resident of Sherwood Park asks for proof from the Alberta Government that the Heartland Line will not be used to export electricity from Alberta to the U.S. Dec. 23, 2010

Alberta Electricity Plan Unaffordable

See this CHED News clip of an interview with RETA President Bruce Johnson who spoke about the letter leaked to RETA by a member of Premier Stelmach’s Inner Circle. The October 26, 2010 letter sent to members of Alberta’s P.C. Caucus by Alberta Direct Connect and Industrial Power Consumers Association of Alberta indicates that Alberta’s electricity transmission plan is not affordable and if implemented will drive industry and businesses out of the province. The matter was also discussed at length by RETA and Dave Rutherford on the December 23 Rutherford Show.

Dec. 21, 2010

Total Upgrader in the Heartland Scrapped

This Edmonton Journal article and Sherwood Park-Strathcona County News article report on Total recently scrapping its plans to build a bitumen upgrader in the Industrial Heartland, thereby even further diminishing the need for the proposed Heartland Transmission Line from Wabamun to the Industrial Heartland.

Dec. 21, 2010

Premier Says Power Lines Needed

Even though Alberta Direct Connect, Industrial Power Consumers Association of Alberta, Enmax, the ex-Utilities Consumer Advocate, academic reports and many others have provided data to show that many of the Alberta Government’s new planned power lines are not needed, Premier Stelmach recently told the Sherwood Park Chamber of Commerce that they are needed or the lights will go out. He also denied that any of the lines to be paid for by Alberta ratepayers will export electricity to the U.S., even though there are numerous sites on the internet that outline detailed plans and routes for Alberta electricity to be transmitted from the Industrial Heartland to the United States. See Sherwood Park-Strathcona County News coverage.

Dec. 16, 2010

Positive Court Decision on MATL Power Line

A Montana judge has ruled that the Montana Alberta Tie Line (MATL), a private transmission developer, has no legal authority to take private property to construct a high voltage power line from Lethbridge to Great Falls, Montana. The Lavesta Area Group has increased its financial support to Alberta landowners fighting this line. See this news release by the Lavesta Area Group.

Dec. 15, 2010

AESO at Odds with Industry

This letter to the St. Albert Gazette indicates that the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) is at odds with industry. The AESO says we need billions of dollars in new transmission infrastructure so industry in Alberta can stay competitive. Industry says the new transmission lines will significantly increase industrial electricity costs and make Alberta industries unable to compete with those elsewhere in North America. The letter suggests that industry knows best.

Dec. 13, 2010

MLA Rob Anderson Critical of Power Line Contracts

Rob Anderson blasts the government process for awarding billion dollar power line projects to select companies with no competitive bidding process.  Furthermore, he notes that the government with the passing of Bill 50 took away any responsibility for the AESO or the transmission companies to prove these massive projects are even needed. For the full article in the Calgary Beacon click here.

Dec. 10, 2010

Industry Says No to New Power Lines

The Alberta Direct Connect Consumer Association (ADC), representing many industries, says in this letter to the editor that the Alberta Government’s electricity transmission plan is not affordable and will drive industry out of Alberta. The ADC challenges the Alberta Government, the AESO and the Alberta Chambers of Commerce head, Ken Kobly, to look at the facts before fearmongering about the “lights going out” if we don’t immediately build billions of dollars of new overhead high voltage power lines all over the province. Another letter also discusses the inflated costs to build new electricity infrastructure and asks who is going to pay for it.

Dec. 9, 2010

AltaLink Announces West 500kV Power Line

The preferred and alternate routes for the 365-kilometre long 500kV direct current power line from Genesee to Langdon were announced by Leigh Clarke, Senior VP of AltaLink, who is also VP of Calgary Region, Alberta Progressive Conservative Party. Landowners such as the Lavesta Area Group, the Town of Crossfield, Enmax and many others say the line is not needed or that the project as proposed far outstrips the need. This article points out the controversy surrounding the line. Alberta Energy Minister Ron Liepert fearmongered by suggesting that it is urgent to start construction on these new lines to avoid outages.

Dec. 2 & 3, 2010

Exporting Alberta Power

Strathcona County residents listened to presentations on how much of the critical transmission infrastructure identified by the Alberta Government is for exporting electricity to the U.S.  The most unfair part of this export is that Alberta rate payers will be footing the bill for construction of this infrastructure while the transmission companies reap the profits. The  need for all of these new lines, in terms of benefiting Alberta residents and industry, was seriously questioned. In this article, RETA indicated that questioning the need for these lines, promoting burying of the lines if they are built, and compensating residents and businesses on the basis of replacement value if the lines aren’t buried, all need to be argued.

Dec. 1, 2010

Property Devaluation Compensation

This article describes how homes and properties in France could lose one-half to two-thirds of their value if a new overhead high voltage power line is built near their homes. The national electricity distribution firm RTE has offered to buy these homes. (On the other hand, AltaLink and EPCOR say they will not compensate homeowners for such losses associated with an overhead Heartland Line because the Alberta Government has no legislation forcing them to do so.)

Nov. 17, 2010

Power Line to be Buried in Nova Scotia

This CBC News report indicates that Newfoundland, Labrador and Nova Scotia will be burying a high voltage power line as part of increasing generation and transmission efficiency. Why are AltaLink, EPCOR, ATCO Electric, the AESO and Alberta Energy so reluctant to bury power lines here in Alberta?

Nov. 16 & 24, 2010

No Good Reason to Carry on with Project

A St. Albert resident expresses his frustration with the Heartland Transmission Project in this letter to the Edmonton Journal. More opposition to the Heartland project expressed in this letter to the editor from a Villeneuve resident. Heartland Project is Bad for business says this letter to the editor in the Morinville News.

Nov. 16, 2010

Solar Storm Risks to Overhead Power Lines

This New York Times article suggests a major geomagnetic storm could be the largest natural disaster the U.S. could face because such a storm could cause region-wide or national power blackouts potentially for months and affect high voltage grids on other continents as well. Such a storm in 1989 , on a much smaller scale, resulted in 6 million Quebecers to be without electricity for 9 hours (see RETA Fact Sheet #15). If high voltage power lines were buried, these geomagnetic storms would not be able to cripple electric power grids.

Nov. 12, 2010

Several Arguments Needed Against Line

RETA made it clear in this article that several arguments are required to fight the proposed Heartland power line. Even though the line isn’t needed, based on the facts including EPCOR’s and AltaLink’s own data, the Alberta Government has said it is needed and passed legislation (Bill 50) last November saying so. As a result, the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) has said it will not hear arguments on the need for the line during upcoming hearings in April 2011. Therefore, if the line is going to get built, other arguments are required to make sure the line is not overbuilt and that the safest technologies are used to build the line. Burying the line would eliminate or mitigate almost all of the negative health, safety, property value, aesthetic and environmental impacts of an overhead line, and would not cost any more than an overhead line.

Nov. 9 & 10, 2010

Heartland AUC Hearing Date Set

Articles in the Edmonton Journal and St. Albert Gazette indicate that the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) has set April 11, 2011 as the start date for the public hearing on the Heartland power line. The AUC will accept arguments on: underground construction/operation, route selection, human and animal health and safety, property value, environmental impacts (wildlife, habitat), social and economic impacts, visual impacts and land use classification. At a hearing process meeting, RETA argued the above ground line would have negative property value and health impacts, and that burying the line would mitigate these.

Nov. 6, 2010

Heartland Power Line Costs Skyrocketing

As reported in this article, the Industrial Power Consumers Association of Alberta is asking why the estimated Heartland power line project costs have skyrocketed in the past year. Industry, businesses and the general public have become very skeptical of the guesswork involved by EPCOR and AltaLink in generating these cost estimates.

Nov. 5, 2010

Leaked Document a Power Line Bombshell!!

On Nov 4th a leaked 26-page document endorsed by a coalition of consumer groups including the Industrial Power Consumers Association of Alberta (IPCAA) hit newsrooms throughout the Province.  The document was extremely critical of the large-scale transmission upgrades planned for Alberta and  expressed that the upgrades are clearly unneeded and will only in the end raise electricity rates and therefore hurt consumers.  The report concludes that the cost of paying for such large-scale upgrades would inevitably raise rates and cost Alberta’s industries crucial competitiveness. For reactions to the report please read this article in the Red Deer Advocate. To read the full report please click here (may take a few minutes to connect).

Nov. 3 & 4, 2010

Strathcona County Wants Power Line Buried

At the upcoming Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) hearings on the proposed Heartland power line, Strathcona County Council has made it clear to the AUC that it will be pushing for the line to be buried to address environmental and health concerns of Strathcona County residents. Residents can support burying the Heartland line by signing a petition at either Millennium Place or County Hall in Sherwood Park. Details are provided here, here and here.

Nov. 3, 2010

Heartland Power Line Bad for Business

Numerous interveners in the Heartland power line hearings planned for April 2011 told the Alberta Utilities Commission the line would interfere with their businesses and make Alberta less competitive. This could well result in some businesses leaving Alberta due to the higher costs of electricity here. See St. Albert Gazette coverage.

Oct. 29, 2010

Capital Power Asks for Lifting of Restrictions

Capital Power, which will be generating the electricity at its Keephills coal-fired power plant to be transmitted through the proposed Heartland power line, is asking the Alberta Utilities Commission if it can break its promise to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at its Genesee coal-fired power plant. The rest of Canada is decommissioning coal-fired power plants in response to the federal Environment Minister’s recent statement that coal-fired generation must be replaced with more environmentally-friendly generation. On the other hand, here in Alberta, dirty coal-fired generation is steadily increasing. See details in this Edmonton Journal article.

Oct. 27, 2010

AUC Officials Met with Raucous Welcome!

Over 130 citizens packed the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) information session held on Monday Oct 25th to learn about the upcoming AUC hearing process but also to clearly express their frustration with the entire process itself.  Residents voiced their concern that under the 2009 Electric Statutes Amendment Act (Bill 50) the government shifted the responsibility of determining the need of “Critical Transmission Infrastructure” from the AUC hearing floor to the political backrooms.  AUC spokesperson Jim Law stated, “In the end, it was a political decision to proceed with legislation that identified four projects as critical infrastructure and exempted the [AUC] from any ability to consider need as part of the process”.  It was clear that the residents felt that Bill 50 was undermining the democratic process by eliminating any process or mechanism requiring the government to prove the need of the Heartland line.  Law stated that the AUC will look at whether or not the application for routing is in the public interest but one must wonder how you can clearly and fully evaluate the public interest without the ability to analyze the need of the line? For full coverage read this article in the Edmonton Journal.

Oct. 26, 2010

Sturgeon County Takes NIMBY Approach

The County of Sturgeon has decided to take the NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) approach to its intervention in the Heartland power line Alberta Utilities Commission hearings by pressing for approval of AltaLink’s and EPCOR’s preferred route through Ellerslie and the Sherwood Park Greenbelt. The irony with this approach is that it might address concerns by some Sturgeon County residents who live along the western alternate route, but residents of east Sturgeon County who live along the preferred route are wondering why their Council is trying to stick the line in their back yard. The “Sturgeon Blueline Group” says it’s not about which route gets selected; rather, it’s about whether the line is even needed. See story here.

Oct. 25-29 & Nov. 3, 2010

Residents Along Proposed Power Line Angry

Residents along the proposed 500kV Heartland Transmission Line are angry about the way the Alberta Government has taken away the opportunity for the public and industry to provide input on the need for specific new high voltage power lines, and the way transmission companies were awarded contracts, without competitive bidding, to build the new Heartland line and 500kV lines between Edmonton and Calgary and between Gibbons and Brooks. See coverage here, here, here, here and here.

Oct. 25-27, 2010

Successful Lobbying to Bury Lines

Scottish residents are successfully lobbying their elected representatives to bury high voltage power lines to eliminate the negative visual impacts of above ground lines. Aerial high voltage power lines and towers (pylons) are ugly and ruin the landscape. Details reported here and here.

Oct. 24, 2010

Alternatives to Heartland Power Line

This letter points out there are so many better alternatives to the proposed 500kV Heartland power line that would not involve transmitting dirty electricity generated from coal-fired generators at Wabamun. Coal-fired generators have only about a 16% efficiency rate of producing electricity, and this antiquated technology is being phased out across North America.  Other technologies such as solar and wind power, combined heat and power (cogeneration) and Energy Server avoid or significantly reduce the need for aerial high voltage power lines which have so many negative health implications.

Oct. 23-24, 2010

Environmental Concerns about Line to U.S.

Residents in Montana are concerned about the environmental impacts on all of the wetlands of the merchant high voltage power line under construction from Lethbridge, Alberta to Great Falls, Montana. Stories here and here.

Oct. 20, 2010

RETA Preparing for Heartland AUC Hearings

RETA (Responsible Electricity Transmission for Albertans) is preparing for the upcoming Alberta Utilities Commission hearings on the Heartland Transmission Line scheduled for April 2011. They will be including experts on everything from health to property values. See coverage here.

Oct. 19, 2010

County Election Results Tied to Power Line

Newly-elected Strathcona County Mayor Linda Osinchuk said she believes she hooked into a groundswell of public discontent stemming from controversy over plans to run overhead transmission lines (the Heartland line) through Sherwood Park. Osinchuk had spear-headed a petition to get the Heartland line buried. See stories here, here and here.

Oct. 15, 2010

More Criticism of Alberta Power Line Law

The Canadian Association of Energy and Pipeline Landowner Associations (CAEPLA) strongly criticizes the Stelmach Government in this article for passing Bills 36 and 50, particularly Bill 50, which denies the public and the AUC any say in whether or not high voltage power lines are needed. Regarding land use and electricity transmission matters, CAEPLA compares the Stelmach Government to the centralist federal government under Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.

Oct. 13, 2010

Power Lines Will be Buried in Colorado

This article reports how residents have successfully lobbied to get high voltage power lines buried in Colorado in response to concerns about negative health, property value and aesthetic impacts.

Oct. 6, 2010

AESO Argues for Lower Voltage Line

Even the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) is now arguing that a lower voltage Heartland power line would be sufficient because of the cancellation of bitumen upgraders planned in the Heartland Industrial area. See coverage here.

Oct. 3, 2010

Needs Assessment Skipped – Wildrose

Recently, Danielle Smith the Leader of the Wildrose Alliance visited Sturgeon County as part of a three-county tour.  Smith was concerned about the local impacts of the proposed Heartland Transmission line and was very clear that the need for the project has never been demonstrated by the government.  For a full account read this article in the Morinville News.

Sept. 29, 2010

EPCOR & AltaLink Say No to Burying Line

EPCOR and AltaLink submitted their facility application to the Alberta Utilities Commission September 28, indicating that the health, safety, environmental, aesthetic and property value concerns raised by residents for 3 years will not be addressed because the transmission companies argue the cost of burying the line just isn’t worth it. (The fact is, the capital cost of burying the Heartland line would cost the average Alberta consumer no more than a cup of coffee a year. If you add in the reduced maintenance, transmission loss, property devaluation and health costs of buried lines, they are far cheaper than aerial lines over the life of a line.)  In addition, the vast majority of Albertans continue to argue that the line isn’t even needed, based on the Alberta Government’s and AESO’s own data. See news stories here and here.

Sept. 27, 2010

Citizens Concerned about Heartland Line

On Tuesday, September 21 over a hundred citizens attended a public information meeting in Villeneuve to discuss the proposed alternative route for the Heartland Transmission Line.  The information presented clearly demonstrated the anti-democratic features of Bills 50, 36, & 19 with regards to landowner rights and furthermore, effectively rebuked the argument that the Heartland project is critically needed.  Read this Morinville News article written by Division 4 council candidate Al Homeniuk for a first-hand account of the evening. The St. Albert Gazette also provided this article on the event.

Sept. 2, 2010

Rimbey Residents Meet with AltaLink

The AltaLink propaganda machine continues to try to convince land owners that the $14.5B in infrastructure projects being handed out are actually needed.  Read the full article in the Red Deer Advocate.

Aug. 27, 2010

Petition to Bury Line – No to Towers

A petition is circulating to get the Heartland power line buried. At recent information sessions, EPCOR and AltaLink tried to fool people into focusing on type of tower to be used for the Heartland line, rather than recommending to the AUC what residents have been telling them for months…..either the line is not needed, or if it is built, bury it. See this article.

Aug. 26, 2010

Premier Skips Power Line Meeting

Even though Premier Stelmach was in Vegreville, he decided not to attend a meeting of over 500 Vegreville and area residents who are upset about a 500kV HVDC power line approved last year by the Alberta Government under Bill 50.  Leaders of the major provincial political parties were invited to attend to answer questions about why the line was approved and why ATCO Electric was awarded the project without any competitive bidding. Leaders of the Liberal, Wildrose Alliance and NDP parties did show up to answer questions. Attendees were particularly upset that Premier Stelmach did not attend because he is the MLA for the Vegreville area. For details click here, here and here . For a related article in the Vegreville News Advertiser please click here. Complete transcripts of the evening are now available at the following link.

Aug. 19, 2010

Heartland Information Sessions Futile

This news coverage indicates information sessions hosted by EPCOR and AltaLink on the proposed Heartland power line have attracted very low turnouts. The primary reason for such low turnouts is that residents say they are not being listened to by EPCOR, AltaLink and their MLAs. This most recent series of information sessions by the power companies focused on tower design. Almost all people who have attended the sessions say they don’t want any kind of towers….they want the 500kV power line buried.

Aug. 16, 2010

Vegreville Residents Organize to Fight Line

The Vegreville Area Landowners Transmission Line Opposition Association (VALTOA) has recently been formed to fight the 500kV ATCO Electric HVDC power line proposed to run from Gibbons to Brooks. VALTOA is hosting a meeting August 25, 2010 in Vegreville to which they have invited the Leaders of all provincial political parties. For details see the following ad and link: VALTOA News Release

August 3, 2010

Weather Can’t Damage Buried Power Lines

This reader writes that ice storms, tornadoes and high winds damage above ground high voltage power lines. Buried lines are not vulnerable to weather hazards, and thereby save millions of dollars in maintenance and repair costs.

July 30, 2010

Heartland Team Wants Taller Towers

In a strange twist of logic, the Heartland Project Team (HPT) recently sent information around to stakeholders indicating they would be recommending to the AUC power line towers that are up to 13m taller than those previously planned. Although the new towers would not be as wide, they would be taller, thereby creating more of a health hazard with respect to the corona effect. Taller towers will mean that carcinogenic aerial pollutants positively charged by corona ions given off by the power lines will be able to drift further downwind than would shorter towers.  (See RETA Fact Sheet #24.) Also, the HPT has confirmed they will be recommending that the full length of the line be built above ground. At most, they will let the AUC know that the public, which has been consulted, has requested that the line be buried. Councillor Bidzinski says that MLAs Dave Quest and Hon. Iris Evans need to press their elected colleagues to get the line buried. RETA President, Bruce Johnson, says that burying the line will address the 3 top concerns expressed by residents, namely, health, property values and visual pollution. Read Sherwood Park News coverage here.

July 27, 2010

Bidzinski Ready to Fight Power Line

This article reports that Ward 1 Councillor Vic Bidzinski is ready to continue battling against the proposed Heartland power line for another term. He will be seeking re-election this Fall. Bidzinski thinks the line isn’t needed. Strathcona County Council’s position has consistently been that if the line is built in the County, it must be buried.

July 16, 2010

Power Line Threatens Rugby

Strathcona County Councillor Linda Osinchuk rightfully points out that if the 500kV Heartland power line gets built above ground in the Sherwood Park Greenbelt, it would run right over the local rugby fields and clubhouse. This would most certainly not be a healthy situation for all of the athletes and spectators who use these facilities. Councillor Osinchuk encourages residents to contact the Premier and their MLAs and tell them they want the power line buried. See story here.

July13, 2010

Espionage in the Power Line Industry

Rather than focusing on espionage issues recently raised by CSIS, this letter to the Edmonton Journal suggests Premier Stelmach should have paid more attention to espionage taking place in 2007 when Albertans opposed to a high voltage power line between Edmonton and Calgary were spied on by a private investigator.

July 6, 2010

Council Blasts EPCOR’s Presentation

The Strathcona County Mayor and Councillors blasted EPCOR on June 22 following EPCOR’s update to Council on the Heartland power line project. EPCOR clearly stated that they would not recommend to the AUC burying any portion of the proposed 500kV line. The Mayor and Councillors made it clear the only way they could accept the line running through the County is if it is buried. See Sherwood Park News coverage here.

June 28, 2010

Heartland Power Line Update – EFCL

The most recent issue of the Edmonton Federation of Community Leagues newsletter included an update of the Heartland Transmission Project, and the progress made by RETA to get this line buried: http://www.efcl.org/NEWS/CommunityClassifieds/tabid/76/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/517/Default.aspx

June 22, 2010

Premier & MLAs Need to Support Residents

Strathcona County Council has been supportive of residents’ health, safety and security  concerns about the proposed Heartland  power line. This letter to the Sherwood Park News suggests that it’s time for the Premier, Hon. Iris Evans and MLA Dave Quest to also support these concerns.

June 18, 2010

Premier’s Constituents Angry About Line

CBC and CTV reported that hundreds of residents and landowners attended an ATCO Electric open house in Lamont to voice their concerns about a proposed 500kV power line running over their homes and properties, and are demanding that the line be buried. Residents want to know what their MLA, Premier Stelmach, has to say especially considering that one of the proposed power line routes runs very close to the Premier’s homestead. See this June 17, 2010 RETA News Release for details.

June 18, 2010

Partisan Politics in Power Line Contracts

Rob Anderson, Wildrose Alliance MLA, suggests in this article that partisan politics has been at play in the awarding of billions in untendered electricity transmission contracts to the largest donors to the Alberta P.C. Party via Bill 50. He points out that one of AltaLink’s VPs (Leigh Clarke) is also a VP of the Alberta P.C. Party.

June 8, 2010

Power Line Questions for Alberta Cabinet

About half of the public attending a provincial Cabinet Tour question-and-answer session on May 31 had concerns about the proposed overhead Heartland power line running through their communities in the Sherwood Park and Strathcona provincial constituencies. Questions were asked about developing a provincial policy regarding burying high voltage power lines near residential areas, and the hazards associated with above ground power lines and buried pipelines in the Sherwood Park Greenbelt. Unfortunately, Alberta’s Energy Minister who is responsible for electricity transmission was too busy to attend. Local MLAs Dave Quest and Honourable Iris Evans continue to erroneously suggest that the Alberta government has no role to play in siting the Heartland line or in the technology to be used. See this article.

May 26, 2010

Burying Lines Would Avoid Damage

AltaLink indicated recently in newspaper ads that severe weather this spring damaged above ground high voltage power lines throughout central and southern Alberta, disrupting power to thousands of Albertans. This letter to the Edmonton Journal indicates that these lines would not have been damaged if they had been buried, and would have saved millions of dollars in repair.

May 25, 2010

Student Asks Premier to Bury Power Line

In this letter, a Sherwood Park junior high school student asks Premier Stelmach to bury the Heartland power line due to the health risks of above ground high voltage power lines.

May 15, 2010

More on Heartland Delay

It appears that more technical considerations and studies are required before the Heartland facility application will be submitted to the Alberta Utilities Commission.  The underground feasibility study commissioned by the AESO and the possibility of a DC rather than an AC line are apparently among the considerations. In this article RETA indicates that if this line gets built at all, it will be “The Line From Nowhere To Nowhere” because of the inability to fill the 500kV double circuit line to capacity at the upstream end (Wabamun) and due to scrapped upgrader development at the downstream end (Industrial Heartland).

May 15, 2010

$35M to AESO and AltaLink Approved

Further on this story, the AUC has actually tentatively approved a $35M payment to the AESO to compensate AltaLink for their “expenses” on the Edmonton-Calgary power line that was scrapped due to a spying scandal. The Opposition and the Lavesta Area Group challenge this decision.

May 11, 2010

Iris Evans Asked to Help with Power Line

Constituents ask MLA Iris Evans to represent them in their fight to keep the proposed 500 kilovolt overhead Heartland transmission line out of the Sherwood Park constituency. To date, Evans has been relatively silent on the topic. See this letter in the Sherwood Park News.

May 8 & 13, 2010

Albertans to Pay for Power Line Spy Scandal

The Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) was directed last fall by the Alberta Utilities Commission to pay AltaLink $35 million for the preparatory work on a controversial 500kV Edmonton-Calgary power line. The line was scrapped in 2007 after it was discovered that the Alberta Energy & Utilities Board  hired private investigators to spy on landowners opposed to the project. AESO now hopes to recoup the $35M this year through tariffs on consumer bills. The Lavesta Area Group has asked for a full independent judicial inquiry. See this article and these letters of concern in the Edmonton Journal.

May 7, 2010

TransAlta & Capital Power Lone Hold-Outs?

ATCO Power’s announcement in this article indicates they understand the heavy carbon footprint left by burning coal to produce power has got to stop. TransAlta and Capital Power (part of EPCOR), that operate the Wabamun power generation facilities, appear to be among the last hold-outs in recognizing that coal-fired power generation needs to stop. (The proposed Heartland power line would transmit power from the dirty coal-fired generation at Wabamun to the Industrial Heartland.)

May 4, 2010

Heartland Facility Application Delayed

EPCOR and AltaLink have decided to postpone submission of their Heartland Transmission Project facility application to the AUC until fall 2010. They were to have submitted it this spring. The delay will give RETA time to raise funds for its legal battle against the overhead line, and hopefully give the Alberta Government time to re-evaluate whether the line is even needed. See this Edmonton Journal article.

April 30, 2010

Power Line Video No Laughing Matter

RETA releases YouTube video on the impacts of the proposed Heartland power line. See this Sherwood Park News column.

April 28, 2010

Alberta Second Class – TransAlta

TransAlta is willing to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions in Washington by replacing its coal-fired power generation. However, here in Alberta, TransAlta wants to continue its coal-fired generation at Lake Wabamun and its excessive greenhouse gas output. This is the dirty power that would be transmitted from Wabamun through the proposed Heartland power line. See this article.

April 25 & June 23, 2010

Coal-Fired Power Producers to Shut Down

The federal Environment Minister has told Canada’s electricity producers to retire their coal-fired plants and replace them with cleaner sources of power, as part of the government’s attempt to curtail Canada’s greenhouse gases. This is further indication that the Heartland Transmission Line should not be built, pursuant to Bill 50, to transmit electricity generated from dirty coal burning at Wabamun to the Industrial Heartland. See Globe and Mail and Calgary Herald articles.

April 23, 2010

No Response Yet from Premier

Premier Stelmach has still not responded to an April 1, 2010 letter from RETA asking that the need for the Heartland line be re-evaluated in light of reduced upgrader development in the Industrial Heartland. RETA indicated that co-generation right at the Industrial Heartland would be cleaner, cheaper, more efficient and requires little or no transmission lines, compared to using electricity produced by burning dirty coal at Wabamun and transmitted by the proposed 500kV double circuit Heartland power line. See Sherwood Park News coverage.

April 22 & May 6, 2010

No Need For Heartland Power Line

Another pipeline has been approved to carry raw bitumen from Fort McMurray to the U.S.  And, Enbridge has plans to move raw bitumen by pipeline to the west coast to be shipped to China.  All of this bitumen was to have been refined in the Industrial Heartland.  These are additional examples of the proposed Heartland power line not being needed anymore. See this letter to the Fort Saskatchewan Record and this article in the Edmonton Journal.

April 9, 2010

Health Canada Should Warn Canadians

The siting of overhead high voltage power lines near homes, schools and daycares is not only a provincial issue. This letter to the Sherwood Park News points out that the federal government through Health Canada should be warning Canadians about the risks of high voltage line electromagnetic fields and pollutant-laden corona ions on health; however, they have not done so and are being criticized for being out-of-touch.

April 5-9, 2010

RETA Writes Premier -  Line Not Needed

RETA sent a letter to Premier Stelmach requesting a review of the need for the proposed 500kV dual circuit Heartland Transmission Line in light of the significantly reduced development of the Industrial Heartland. The requested review is compared to the oil and gas royalty review just conducted by the Alberta Government due to changing economic realities. See Sherwood Park News article, Edmonton Journal article and Saint City News article.

April 2, 2010

Quest Not Positive About Burying Prospects

In this column, Strathcona MLA David Quest is not very positive about the prospects that any portion of the Heartland transmission line will actually get buried, and erroneously suggests that the AUC will make the final decision on the Heartland line siting. (The fact is, if the line gets built in the Sherwood Park Greenbelt, it will be the Alberta Government, specifically the Minister of Infrastructure, that makes the final decision, based on 1974 legislation.)

March 31, 2010

Sturgeon’s Choice – Sherwood Pk. Greenbelt

Based on this article, Sturgeon County appears to be pushing to get the Heartland power line built in AltaLink’s and EPCOR’s “preferred” route, which runs through Sturgeon County, Strathcona County and Edmonton. Sturgeon County residents who live along AltaLink’s and EPCOR’s “preferred” route are wondering why their Council is not supporting them.

March 29, 2010

Political Fallout of Transmission Laws

Two electricity transmission laws passed in 2009 (Bill 19 and Bill 50) are cited as reasons for the Highwood PC Constituency Association writing this scathing letter to Premier Stelmach about the Alberta PC Party “nearing the precipice of moral insolvency to govern”.

March 28, 2010

Homes Near Power Line Don’t Sell

104 homes near a recently built overhead high voltage power line and purchased by B.C. Hydro in a $62 million compensation deal, continue not to sell due to health, safety and property value concerns.  Follow this story from March 18, 2008 to April 1, 2010 at the following links. It would have been far cheaper for B.C. Hydro to have buried the lines, as initially demanded by homeowners. (See RETA Fact Sheet #28 for additional lawsuit and other compensation settlements):

http://www.pacificfreepress.com/news/1/5932-tsawwassen-power-line-boondoggle.html

http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20100328/bc_tsawwassen_homes_100328/20100328?hub=BritishColumbiaHome

http://www.theprovince.com/news/Print+extra+Tsawwassen+taxpayer+funded+ghost+town/2735252/story.html

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2009/09/13/bc-tsawwassen-power-lines-homes-sale.html

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2008/03/18/bc-tsawwassen-line-approved.html

March 26, 2010

Edmonton – Calgary DC Line Underground?

AltaLink has informed Parkland County Council that they have not ruled out burying the proposed DC power line from Parkland County to Calgary. AltaLink also indicated that some landowners want smaller towers because of the impact of overhead power lines and towers on their property values: http://www.stonyplainreporter.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2510012

March 19, 2010

County Councillor Questions Need for Line

Strathcona County Councillor Vic Bidzinski continues to question the need for the Heartland line in this column, considering the reduced development of the Industrial Heartland. If the line is to be built, it must be buried adjacent to any population density.

March 19, 2010

AUC Explains Heartland Hearing Process

The AUC provided details to concerned Sherwood Park residents about the enhanced hearing process for the proposed Heartland line. Meeting participants were unhappy about the provincial government circumventing the needs assessment part of the process by rushing through Bill 50 legislation in late 2009: http://www.sherwoodparknews.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2498039

March 17 & 18, 2010

Proposal to Bury 570-km Power Line

A Toronto company is proposing to bury underwater and underground  570km of high voltage power lines from Quebec to New York City. The President of Transmission Developers said, “if you can’t get overhead power lines built because the communities you want to serve don’t want them, then in our opinion they are infinitely expensive”:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/17/business/energy-environment/17power.html?scp=1&sq=toronto%20firm%20behind%20big%20underwater%20power%20transmission%20project&st=cse

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/industry-news/energy-and-resources/underwater-line-would-take-power-to-new-york/article1504170/

March 16, 2010

Students Express Concerns to the AUC

Colchester Elementary School students have written letters to the AUC expressing concerns about the proposed overhead Heartland line running right next to their school. Colchester students and parents successfully opposed a 240kV line next to their school in 1988.  Young children are particularly susceptible to the negative health effects of EMFs and corona ions emitted by overhead high voltage lines because their immune systems are not yet fully developed: http://www.sherwoodparknews.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2492405

March 12, 2010

County Asks Premier to Bury Line

Strathcona County Mayor Cathy Olesen has sent a letter to Premier Stelmach, asking that the Heartland line be put underground. The County has consistently indicated that they will only accept high voltage power lines through Strathcona County if they are buried: http://www.sherwoodparknews.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2487861

Feb. 24 to March 5, 2010

Burying Heartland Line is Feasible

Although a study conducted by a consultant for the AESO indicates that burying part of the Heartland line is technically and financially feasible and that the buried line would be reliable, the AESO, EPCOR and AltaLink refuse to recommend the partial underground option to the public and the AUC.  As well, Alberta Energy continues to refuse to support burial or partial burial of the line:

Burying Line is Feasible and Affordable

http://edmonton.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20100224/edm_aeso_100224/20100224/?hub=EdmontonHome

http://www.sherwoodparknews.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2471846

http://www.stonyplainreporter.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2479209

Feb. 9, 2010

No Need for Power Lines

A local company, Lancaster Wind Systems, is working on turning wind energy into hydraulic power, which could help make high voltage power lines obsolete. The company’s CEO says electricity transmission lines will one day be a memory: http://www2.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/business/story.html?id=a53d688f-8863-413d-bf18-d0762f2ef3f4&p=1

Feb. 3, 2010

Toyota Recalls Due to Overhead Lines?

The U.S. Transportation Secretary is quoted as saying that several lawsuits filed against Toyota claim electromagnetic interference from overhead high voltage power lines could affect the computerized systems that control modern vehicle movements. Montreal Gazette Article Feb 3 2010

Jan. 29, 2010

EPCOR Misinformation

EPCOR is still digging into why they sent the wrong information to stakeholders on their preferred and alternate routes saying that their route had been eliminated.  RETA members continue to express their concern that if EPCOR can’t even get this right, perhaps the whole “public consultation process” was flawed: http://www.sprucegroveexaminer.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2283898

Jan. 27, 2010

AUC Enhanced Process

More information about the positive move by the AUC to enhance the Heartland hearing process in light of the exceptionally high level of concern expressed by Albertans about overhead high voltage power lines: http://www.stalbertgazette.com/article/20100127/SAG0803/301279972

Jan. 22, 2010

Alberta Government Caught Spying?

It seems as if Assistant Deputy Minister Tim Grant (ADM for Electricity and Alternative Energy at the Department of Alberta Energy) attended a Heartland Transmission Project open house espousing his views but refusing to identify himself.   Follow this link for more details: http://www.albertawest.info/2010/01/alberta-government-caught-spying-again.html

Jan. 22, 2010

Good News from the AUC

The Alberta Utilities Commission just announced an enhanced Heartland power line hearing process that gives anyone who lives or owns property within 800m of the proposed Heartland power line right-of-way the automatic opportunity to participate in the hearing process. This applies to both EPCOR’s and AltaLink’s preferred and alternate routes: Edmonton Journal Article Jan 22 2010

Jan. 21 & 22, 2010

Wrong Letters Sent to Residents

Residents in many postal code areas living along EPCOR’s and AltaLink’s preferred and alternate routes for the Heartland power line were sent erroneous notices that their routes had been eliminated:

Edmonton Journal Article Jan 21 2010

Sherwood Park News Article Jan 22 2010

Jan. 8, 2010

No Surprise Greenbelt Selected

Strathcona County is not surprised EPCOR and AltaLink selected the Sherwood Park Greenbelt as their preferred route. Long before the Heartland public consultation process began, the power companies, the AESO and the Alberta Government had indicated that was their preferred route. Now, many residents wonder why public consultation was even conducted: Sherwood Park Greenbelt Selected

Jan. 7-15, 2010

Preferred and Alternate Routes Selected

EPCOR and AltaLink selected the Sherwood Park Greenbelt as their preferred route and the far west rural route as their alternate route for the Heartland line. Residents and municipal politicians continue to push for the line to be buried and question whether the line is even needed:

http://edmonton.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20100106/edm_powerline_100106/20100107/?hub=EdmontonHome

Edmonton Journal Article Jan 7 2010 (1)

Edmonton Journal Article Jan 7 2010 (2)

http://www.sprucegroveexaminer.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2263507

http://www.edmontonsun.com/news/edmonton/2010/01/07/12375186-sun.html

http://www.sherwoodparknews.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2251647

http://www.stalbertgazette.com/article/20100113/SAG0801/301139997

Dec. 23, 2009

B.C. Hydro Compensates Home Owners

More on the story about B.C. Hydro buying 104 homes for $62 million to compensate homeowners who were concerned about living next to an overhead high voltage power line: The Province Article Dec 23 2009

Dec. 13, 2009

Collusion in the Power Industry?

Allegations have been made of collusion in Alberta’s 10-year electricity transmission plan. Deregulation and Bill 50 have also angered Albertans: Edmonton Journal Article Dec 13 2009

Nov. 30, 2009

TUC Not Meant for High Voltage Power Lines

When landowners sold their land to the Alberta Government in the 1970′s, they were told it was for a buffer zone between sprawling Edmonton and the surrounding farmland. That’s why it was called a greenbelt.  1974 legislation spoke of protecting the land for agricultural purposes and conservation of the environment…..not overhead 500kV power lines: Sherwood Park Greenbelt Not a TUC

Nov. 25-28, 2009

4,000 at Rexall Place Push to Bury Line

A huge crowd showed up at Rexall Place to voice concerns about an overhead line and listen to experts discuss health, property value and environmental impacts of overhead high voltage power lines. (See RETA Fact Sheets #11 and #19 for environmental impacts.):

http://www.sherwoodparknews.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2195017 St. Albert Gazette Article Nov 28 2009

http://www.stonyplainreporter.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2196866

Edmonton Journal article – Nov. 25, 2009

Nov. 4 & 6, 2009

Albertans Want Lines Buried

A Leger Marketing public opinion survey indicates that Albertans, province-wide, are concerned about overhead high voltage power lines, and are willing to pay to get them buried (see “Public Opinion Surveys” link for actual survey):

http://www.edmontonjournal.com/business/Edmonton+growing+debt+could+cause+lower+credit+rating/2413329/Survey+finds+burying+power+lines+good+idea/2179067/story.html?id=2179067

http://www.sherwoodparknews.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2163360

Oct. 18, 2009

Residents Worried about Health

Residents along the proposed Heartland line, especially those with children, are very concerned about the health effects of magnetic fields from overhead high voltage power lines. (See RETA Fact Sheets on health impacts.): Edmonton Journal Article Oct 18, 2009

Oct. 1, 2009

Health Risks of Overhead Lines Very Real

Research conducted by RETA of the scientific and medical peer-reviewed literature clearly indicates there are very real health risks of overhead high voltage power lines to humans, livestock, pets and wildlife. See information here.

Oct. 1 & July 30, 2009

Compelling Evidence of EMF Health Risks

Health Canada and the World Health Organization (WHO), both of which EPCOR and AltaLink like to reference, have a long history of negotiating in favour of industry. On the other hand, reputable science indicates strong links between overhead high voltage power line EMFs, cancer and many other health problems. (See RETA Fact Sheets #5a, #5b and #5c for EMF effects on cancer; and RETA Fact Sheets #21 and #27 for Health Canada and WHO biases and corruption.):

http://www.vueweekly.com/article.php?id=13249

http://www.vueweekly.com/article.php?id=12548

Sept. 22, 2009

Another Big Town Hall Meeting

Over 1,300 Capital Region residents filled a west end church to hear concerns about documented health, safety, environmental and property value impacts of overhead high voltage power lines. Attendees pressed EPCOR, AltaLink and the AESO to bury the line. (See RETA Fact Sheet #9 for impacts on property value.): Power Line Creates Big Buzz

Sept. 13, 2009

B.C. Hydro Buys 105 Homes

B.C. Hydro bought 105 homes for $62 million from residents who won a battle over controversial power lines built above ground near their homes. Residents cited evidence they cause cancer, and had demanded that they be buried.  It would have been cheaper to bury the lines:

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2009/09/13/bc-tsawwassen-power-lines-homes-sale.html

http://www.vancouversun.com/Hydro%2Bspends%2Bmillion%2Bhomes%2Bnear%2Bhigh%2Bvoltage%2Bpower%2Blines/1633239/story.html

Sept. 4, 2009

Parkland County Supports Burying Line

After presenters cited research showing negative effects of overhead power lines on property values, dairy cow milk production and human health, Parkland County voted to get the Heartland line buried. (See RETA Fact Sheet #20 for impacts on livestock.): http://www.sprucegroveexaminer.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=1730810

Sept. 3, 2009

Mother of All Power Lines

Edmonton City Council backs residents in push to bury the Heartland 500kV power line: http://www.edmontonjournal.com/business/Edmonton+wants+power+line+built+underground/1956203/story.html

Aug. 16, 2009

Buried Power Lines Not Too Costly

Although there are some (e.g., AltaLink, EPCOR, Alberta Energy) who suggest that buried high voltage power lines cost too much, when you do the calculations, buried lines can be cheaper than aerial lines when you factor in all of the costs associated with health, property value and reliability impacts. See information here.

June 19, 2009

Strathcona Residents Fight Power Line

1,500-2,000 people attended a meeting to listen to experts and voice their concerns about an overhead Heartland power line. Experts from Europacable, based in Belgium, told the  crowd that underground lines are safer, are maintenance free, emit no electric fields above ground, emit reduced magnetic fields, and are very cost effective when compared to overhead lines: http://www.sherwoodparknews.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=1619641

June 5, 2009

County to Oppose Overhead Line at AUC

Strathcona County will spend $250,000 on an intervention submission to the AUC hearings, opposing an overhead Heartland line through the County: http://www.sherwoodparknews.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=1600225

May 26, 2009

School Tells Premier “No” to Power Line

Colchester Elementary School students wrote letters to Premier Stelmach opposing a 500kV power line by their school.  On May 20, 2009, the Premier told the Sherwood Park Chamber of Commerce that burying the line could save energy. (See RETA Fact Sheet #7 for details on 1988 power line battle by Colchester School.): http://www.sherwoodparknews.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=1582999

May 21, 2009

Stelmach Looks to Burying Power Lines

Premier Stelmach told the Sherwood Park Chamber of Commerce that buried transmission lines and investments in new technology could one day help Alberta deliver environmentally-efficient electricity: Premier Supports Burying Power Lines

April 14, 2009

MLA Dave Quest Gets Power Line Support

Strathcona MLA Dave Quest’s Private Member’s Motion urging the Alberta Government to investigate underground power lines received unanimous support from the Legislature: http://www.sherwoodparknews.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=1521507

March 13, 2009

AESO Misleads Public & Doesn’t Follow Rules

This letter to the editor points out the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) misleads the public about its independence, and this letter to the editor indicates that the AESO does not follow AUC rules by announcing that the Heartland line should be run through the Edmonton and Sherwood Park Greenbelts, before AltaLink’s and EPCOR’s public consultation process has even begun.

March 10, 2009

Crowd of 1,000 Opposes Power Line

About 1,000 angry Strathcona County residents packed Festival Place to show their opposition to a proposed 500kV overhead power line near their homes and schools along the Sherwood Park Greenbelt. They demanded that the line be buried to eliminate the negative impacts of an overhead line. See Sherwood Park News article.

March 6, 2009

County Passes Power Line Motion

Strathcona County Council unanimously passed a motion that they don’t want any high voltage power lines in the County unless they are buried. (See RETA Fact Sheet #8 for benefits of underground lines.). See this Sherwood Park News article and column.