More Opposition to SunZia Transmission Line

The Cascabel Working Group recently issued this news release indicating that citizens concerned about the negative impacts of the proposed SunZia Southwest Transmission Line in Arizona asked the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to conduct a full hearing on the project’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement.

Attendees of a July 17 public meeting held by the BLM raised concerns about impacts of the overhead high voltage lines on viewsheds throughout the proposed routes, especially those traversing the San Pedro River Valley and the Aravaipa watershed. Landowners suggested the preferred route would not be compatible with many conservation investments in the valley. Others raised concerns about the negative impacts of the overhead lines on globally significant bird migration pathways, lush riparian areas and one-of-a-kind ecosystems along the proposed routes. (According to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, above-ground power lines kill about 174 million birds annually in the United States, primarily through collision with the lines and towers.)

See this earlier RETA blog for more on the proposed SunZia line.

~ by RETA on July 26, 2012.