Local residents just learned about the new 70-mile, 500,000-volt transmission line that will cut through the heart of Carroll County — if built as proposed.
Understandably, the proposed line has created quite a stir in all three Maryland counties where it will be constructed.
The projected path begins in northern Baltimore County, runs southwest across the entirety of Carroll County, eventually ending at the Doubs substation south of Frederick.
The contract to build the line was awarded to a privately owned diversified energy company, Public Service Enterprise Group, Inc. (PSEG), headquartered in Newark, New Jersey.
Apparently few knew anything about the project. Elected officials, regulators, environmental activists and the public all say they were in the dark about what was being planned until just a few weeks ago.
The proposed line is likely to require the government to invoke its power of eminent domain to complete. That means property owners in the path of the new line will be forced either to sell their land, farms or houses outright or sell the rights of way necessary to allow the transmission towers to be built on their property.
Some have suggested the new line should follow the same path as the existing line, which could be dismantled and upgraded. According to the PSGE website, projects of this type are “typically” not done that way.
I suspect most critics of the proposed line would tell you they really don’t care what is typically done.
PSGE says dismantling the old line and rebuilding a new one in its place “may pose reliability concerns during peak periods of energy demand.”
I’m sure there are steps PSGE could take to mitigate that concern, and even if there isn’t a way, that is a temporary inconvenience that doesn’t justify the government doing something as drastic and oppressive as forcibly removing people from their homes and land.
According to PSGE, “the project will have some temporary and permanent impacts on the environment.” I appreciate the candor, but I’m not sure what that means.
I’d like to know, specifically, what environmental impact studies have been done? If the answer is none, why not? If there have been studies done, how can the public gain access to them?
What will the impact be on Carroll’s farmers, who already face an array of economic pressures threatening, not only their income, but their way of life?
How many farmers will be forced off their land, in whole or in part, as a result of the new line? What impact does a 500,000-volt transmission line crossing a farm have on its livestock?
Is living near a 500,000-volt transmission line safe for people? Studies exist that link these lines to higher rates of cancer, especially among children.
Dr. David O. Carpenter, director for the Institute for Health at The State University of New York (SUNY) and co-editor-in-chief of the academic journal Reviews on Environmental Health, has said he believes up to 15% of all childhood cancers come from exposure to high-voltage power lines.
The PSGE website simply references a 10-year-old World Health Organization study that says, “Based on a recent in-depth review of the scientific literature, [we conclude] that current evidence does not confirm the existence of any health consequences from exposure to low level electromagnetic fields.”
Does not confirm? That’s hardly reassuring.
I know I wouldn’t want to live or work near a 500,000-volt transmission line. Would you? Would you expose your children or grandchildren to the electromagnetic fields and radiation that emanate from these lines?
What will the new transmission line do to property values? I can’t imagine having a 500,000-volt power line near your home will cause its value to rise. Studies have shown just the opposite is likely to happen.
Finally, Carroll County taxpayers have made significant investments over many years to preserve the county’s farmland and maintain the countryside we all enjoy. That countryside is core to our quality of life and what makes Carroll County such a desirable place to live.
We have all seen these steel gray towers that can be up to 200-feet high. Imagine a 70-mile long procession of these towers, with all the accompanying wires they carry, scarring the countryside as it snakes its way, mile-after-mile, through the rolling hills of Carroll County.
It’s hard for me to fathom how we reached this point in the process — if there even was a process — without anyone knowing about it.
It is also hard for me to fathom how the ultimate decision whether to build such an objectionable structure through Carroll County is not up to the people who live here and who will be most affected by it.
If I understand correctly, unelected state bureaucrats will make that decision for us.
The planned transmission line is just further evidence the people of Carroll County are losing the right to govern themselves.
It’s time we do something about that.
“I believe there are more instances of the abridgement of freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments by those in power than by violent and sudden usurpation.” — James Madison
Chris Roemer is a retired banker and educator who resides in Finksburg. He can be contacted at chrisroemer1960@gmail.com
