The State Corporation Commission Hearing Examiner has released her report on Dominion’s proposed Remington-Gordonsville 230-kV transmission line upgrade. In it, it states:
“In response to public concern and the testimony of the Commission Staff (“Staff’), the Company evaluated the potential use of shorter H-frame structures with an average height of 85 feet (“Shorter Structure Option”) where feasible along portions of the route. The Shorter Structure Option would require expansion of the right-of-way to 140 feet to accommodate the shorter structures. The Company concluded that it is technically feasible and may be reasonable to install the Shorter Structure Option for portions of the right-of-way where there are not constraints subject to four conditions. The Shorter Structure Option is feasible for 24.1 miles of the route.
I recommend the Commission grant a certificate of public convenience and necessity for the Remington-Gordonsville 230 kV Double Circuit Transmission Line; direct the Company to implement the Shorter Structure Option were feasible and provide the Company with the necessary flexibility to do so along the 24.1 miles of the 38.2 miles of the route identified by the Company as feasible with just compensation to the land owners for the additional right-of-way; and direct the Company to seek agency consent where applicable.”
If approved by the Commission, the project will result in taller towers than are currently in place. However, we are glad to see the Hearing Examiner recognize the importance of this highly protected, scenic and historic landscape and provide for an option that would reduce the visibility, and therefore the impact, of the new towers along much of the route. We await the Commission’s final ruling and will alert you when it is available.