Fiscal Note
City staff will work with other interested parties and intervene in PSC proceedings, if necessary, as part of their normal workload.
Title
Requesting the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin provide for a comprehensive, independent study of the proposed transmission lines and directing the City Attorney to intervene in any PSC proceedings involving transmission lines that impact the City of Madison.
Body
WHEREAS, the American Transmission Company (ATC) is proposing the construction of several transmission lines in Dane County in the next decade; and
WHEREAS, the proposed lines include a 345 kV line from Rockdale substation to the West Middleton substation, a 345 kV line from West Middleton substation to the North Madison substation, and a 138 kV line from West Middleton to the Blount Street substation; and
WHEREAS, these proposed lines could have significant impacts on neighborhoods and the environment in the City of Madison and elsewhere in the County; and
WHEREAS, the initial study to determine the need for these lines was funded by ATC, a fact not included in the report issued on the need for the lines; and
WHEREAS, there has been no comprehensive, independent study of the need for and cumulative impacts of the proposed transmission lines; and
WHEREAS, one proposed route for the Rockdale-West Middleton 345 kV line would follow the Beltline, placing poles of 100 feet or greater in the highway right-of-way near the Arboretum and wetlands, potentially restricting future Beltline expansion for transportation purposes, and having potentially deleterious impacts on redevelopment proposals on Madison neighborhoods;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the City of Madison calls upon the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSC) to provide for a comprehensive, independent study of the need for and cumulative impacts of the proposed transmission lines, and not a piece-meal consideration of single lines; and
BE IT FURTHE...
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