Power line foes sue to stop construction

Public left out of process, U.S. approval wrongly usurps state regulators, suit says

Opponents of a power line that would transect the state have sued the U.S. Department of Energy in federal court to halt the project before construction begins.

The 40-page complaint, filed last week by two groups comprised of residents affected by the proposed Plains and Eastern Clean Line, claims the Energy Department overreached its statutory authority and failed to give the public adequate opportunity to comment and participate in the project’s planning process.

The company behind the 700-mile, direct-current transmission line, Clean Line Energy Partners of Houston, gained Energy Department approval in March to build the $2.5 billion power line under Section 1222 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005.

Federal approval came after the Arkansas Public Service Commission denied Clean Line’s request to operate as a public utility in Arkansas in January 2011.

Downwind LLC and Golden Bridge LLC, the two groups opposed to the power line, contend that the company usurped the state by approaching the Department of Energy.

“There’s an existing state-level review process through the Arkansas Public Service Commission,” said Jordan P. Wimpy, the attorney for the two groups. “That is the process that transmission projects, like this one with Clean Line, are routed to be approved.”

State regulators denied Clean Line’s earliest application because its business plan would not have served customers in Arkansas. The company then altered the plan presented to the Energy Department, adding a converter station in Pope County to provide 500 megawatts of energy to Arkansas consumers.

Wimpy wouldn’t speculate on the likelihood of state regulators approving Clean Line’s updated proposal but said the state should approve the project, not the Energy Department.

Clean Line countered, saying it trusted the multiyear approval process required by the Department of Energy.

“We are very confident in the validity of the Section 1222 statute passed as part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 with bipartisan support and signed by President George W. Bush, and in the extensive process undertaken by the U.S. Department of Energy in deciding to participate in the project under Section 1222,” the company said in a statement. “The Plains & Eastern Clean Line is a pro-jobs, pro-consumer, pro-environment public energy infrastructure project that will create a cleaner energy future for the country.”

The proposed power line, which would carry 4,000 megawatts of wind-farm energy from the Oklahoma Panhandle across Arkansas to west Tennessee, would enter the state north of Van Buren and exit just south of Wilson in Mississippi County.

Section 1222 gives the Department of Energy the land-seizing power of federal eminent domain, which has angered landowners who may lose property to accommodate the line.

The department’s approval also drew the displeasure of all six members of Arkansas’ congressional delegation. Before the federal approval of the power line, the delegation drafted legislation tailored to prevent federal use of eminent domain to modernize electricity transmission infrastructure without state approval.

The Assuring Private Property Rights Over Vast Access to Land (APPROVAL) Act passed the U.S. House of Representatives Natural Resources Committee in June.

Arkansas lawmakers and opponents have argued that the power line would harm agriculture and the patterns of migratory birds.

Before approving the project, the Energy Department drafted an environmental impact statement that “did not identify widespread significant impacts” that would result from the Plains and Eastern Clean Line’s construction, operations and maintenance.

The benefits far outweigh the costs, according to the company and environmental groups.

Part of $500 million in direct investments statewide, Clean Line expects to pay Arkansas landowners about $30 million for easements and infrastructure costs. Additionally, it estimates that it will pay about $5 million per year in voluntary property taxes.

Company officials also have pointed to an influx of construction and manufacturing jobs that the project will generate.

Construction is expected to begin next year, but Clean Line has already begun the process of acquiring right of way and conducting land surveys.

“This all came to a head when our clients started being contacted about land acquisition and permission to do land surveys,” Wimpy said.

The proposed power line would pass through portions of Crawford, Franklin, Johnson, Pope, Conway, Van Buren, Cleburne, White, Jackson, Poinsett, Cross and Mississippi counties.

Clean Line has four other power line projects in gestation throughout the country. Each project transports wind energy from the central United States outward.

“It’s no secret that the United States suffers from an infrastructure deficit and that we must push through gridlock to move the country forward,” the company’s statement said. “Unfortunately, it is not uncommon to see legal complaints filed against the most important infrastructure projects. In order to modernize the grid, enable the delivery of low-cost energy, create new jobs and enhance our energy security, the private and public sectors must come together to bring new infrastructure projects to fruition.”