Powering up LANL: Project needs explaining
Keeping Los Alamos National Laboratory supplied with adequate power to fuel its many operations — including increased production of plutonium pits that trigger nuclear weapons — is a matter of national security.
That doesn’t mean a proposal to build a high-voltage power line to ensure the power supply can go without scrutiny. A 12.5-mile transmission line, costing as much as $300 million, is being touted as necessary to augment the lab’s power supply. Two current power lines are thought to be reaching capacity, one this summer and the second by 2026.
Before a third line can be built, many concerns need to be addressed.
First, the environmental assessment will be conducted — it’s required by law for the Department of Energy to obtain the necessary permit to install the power line on public land. That study will gauge the effects of the line, including the impact of new transmission towers along its path. The line would stretch across White Rock Canyon, south through the Caja del Rio area and then east through the Santa Fe National Forest before arriving at a substation.
As the environmental assessment takes place, it became clear that environmental impact isn’t all those federal agencies must consider.
The U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration promised to work with federal land managers in weighing the project’s environmental impact — but to date, tribal officials say they are not being consulted. That’s a problem, considering the presence of sacred sites in the area.
The All Pueblo Council of Governors, representing 20 pueblos in New Mexico and Texas, has adopted a resolution to support preserving the Caja del Rio. There, Pueblo people point to petroglyphs, ancestral homes, ceremonial kivas, irrigation structures and other cultural resources.
A new transmission line would be one more burden on an already overwhelmed area. Tribes believe past mismanagement by federal agencies has led to desecration of sacred sites.
That’s easy to witness in person when driving or walking through the Caja. Portions of the area are used for shooting practice by gun enthusiasts — many of whom do not pick up after themselves — and it’s also a popular spot for people seeking to dump trash without paying a dump fee.
Pueblo leaders sent a letter to the Santa Fe National Forest last month to ask that forest officials consult with tribes. That is not too much to ask.
Beyond the potential impact on sacred sites and the ongoing effort to preserve Caja del Rio, federal officials need to talk more about why other alternatives are impossible. Two transmission lines up to LANL already exist — using those corridors seem a natural fit for a new line, rather than cutting through forest land for any part of the line.
What’s more, considering LANL’s expertise in renewable energy, placing solar or wind power generators near the laboratory to supplement power seems worthy of consideration. If it was considered and abandoned, tell people why.
Instead, federal officials presented one option for providing additional power. As they develop their plans and consider impacts, they aren’t necessarily taking the viewpoints of tribal officials and others into account. As is so often the case, not enough information is being shared.
Keeping Los Alamos National Laboratory powered up matters to New Mexico and the nation. But a new transmission line should not be the only option.