Almanac
December 3, 2003
 
New PG&E power lines may go underground
Public meetings set for Dec. 8 and 9

By Marion Softky

When PG&E installs new 230 kV transmission lines to meet future power needs for San Francisco and North San Mateo County, a big question remains:
Will the 27-mile power line, from Woodside to Brisbane, travel underground along Canada Road and other streets; or will wires be strung on even higher towers than those already crossing Edgewood County Park and the San Francisco Watershed?

Local environmentalists are campaigning hard against more and higher towers that will impair scenic views and damage the rare plants and butterflies that Edgewood Park was created to preserve.

"Undergrounding the line is by far the most desirable alternative. It wouldn't affect the view and the ecosystem," said Kathy Korbholz of Woodside, president of Friends of Edgewood County Park and Natural Preserve.

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), which is reviewing plans for the $180 million project , will hold two public hearings next week to take comments on the final environmental impact report (EIR), which was issued November 13.

In September 2002, PG&E applied for permission to install new transmission lines from the Jefferson substation, on Canada Road adjacent to Edgewood Park, to the Martin substation in Brisbane. The new lines will serve Burlingame, Millbrae, San Bruno, South San Francisco, Brisbane, Colma, Daly City and San Francisco.

The proposed Jefferson-Martin line would consist of two segments. The southern 14.7 miles would follow the existing 60 kV line, which crosses Edgewood Park, Pulgas Open Space Preserve, and watershed lands. The northern 12.4-mile section would be constructed underground.

The final EIR recommends undergrounding the entire line by paved roads as "environmentally superior." The 2,700-page document is the result of a year's worth of study and public comment. It analyzes the environmental effects of more than 38 alternatives.

Among the alternatives are rebuilding the existing 60 kV line with higher towers, and expanding the right-of-way from 50 to 100 feet. Another alternative would involve a new set of towers that would cross the "Triangle," a much-valued tract of prime wildflower land that is bounded by Interstate 280, Edgewood, and Canada roads.

Why underground?
Every spring, Edgewood Park and the adjacent Triangle provide hikers, and commuters along I-280 with striking views of California native wildflowers -- the way they looked before the Spanish introduced cattle and European grasses. The Bay checkerspot butterfly and several rare and endangered plants grow only on the park's special serpentine soils.

Ms. Korbholz and other environmentalists are concerned that building towers in these sensitive lands would bring in trucks, crews and equipment that would disturb the natural soils and invite weeds that could displace native habitat. "Whatever disturbs the soil invites weeds to come in," she said. "We have asked them to remove the towers by helicopter."

Lennie Roberts of the Committee for Green Foothills noted an additional benefit of undergrounding the new transmission lines along existing roads. "This proposal would increase safety from terrorism and vandalism, reduce impacts to neighboring communities from electromagnetic fields, and improve operational reliability," she wrote in the fall edition of Green Footnotes.

The CPUC is expected to make its final decision on the Jefferson-Martin lines next May.

Information
The public hearings for the Jefferson-Martin 230 kV Transmission Line Project will be held at 7 p.m. on two nights:

Monday, December 8, in the San Mateo City Council Chambers, 330 West 20th Ave.; and

Tuesday, December 9, in San Bruno in the War Memorial Building of the San Bruno Recreation Center, Crystal Springs Avenue at Oak Avenue.

For information, call the California Public Utilities Commission's public adviser at 415-703-2074, or toll-free at 866-849-8390. Or log on at: www.cpuc.ca.gov/environment/info/aspen/jefferson_martin.