Power Line Upgrade Sparks Questions

Utility Holds Event To Address Concerns

Michael Donohoe and his wife slowly made their way around several booths at an open house to learn more about plans to upgrade a high-voltage transmission line in their community.

Dominion Virginia Power, which hosted the open house Tuesday at the Dulles South Multipurpose Center in South Riding, plans to remove a 115,000-volt line and replace it with a double-circuit 230,000-volt line.

Donohoe, of Middleburg, said he is concerned about the new power line's potential effect on the rural landscape and wildlife and about the height of its towers, which would nearly double to an average of 110 feet.

"I'm sure [Dominion is] going to have to cut down a lot of trees," he said. "It would take the look off of the area."

The line's 9.3-mile route would begin at a Loudoun substation near Arcola and run 2.2 miles through Fauquier County and 1.4 miles through Prince William County before ending at a substation in Middleburg.

The project requires approval from the State Corporation Commission.

The new line would continue to serve about 20,500 utility customers, 40 percent of whom are served by Dominion. The rest of the customers get their power through two delivery points in the Cedar Grove and Arcola areas that are used by NOVEC, a nonprofit corporation that distributes electricity.

The delivery point in Arcola connects to a nearby substation that serves Loudoun residents. The one in Cedar Grove connects to two substations along the Loudoun County and Prince William line and serves mostly Prince William residents

Dominion officials say the project is needed by 2012 to avoid power outages in Loudoun.

Although NOVEC customers have not had any power outages, company officials have said the existing transmission line is at capacity. They said an upgraded line would help NOVEC prepare for projected customer growth, estimated at 2 to 5 percent annually over the next three years

But the Piedmont Environmental Council, which has opposed Dominion's power line projects in the area, questioned the need for the transmission line upgrade.

Bri West, who attended Dominion's open house, pointed to data showing a decrease in electricity use throughout the metro region. Area households and businesses used about 2 percent less electricity in the first nine months of last year compared with the same period in 2007, according to a recent Washington Post article and analysis. The total consumption of electricity nationwide also is projected to fall by 2 percent this year, according to data from the Department of Energy.