MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — The state Public Service Commission has testimony from four public hearings to consider as part of the application from developers of the MARL transmission line.
The public hearings were held during the last two weeks in Keyser, Romney, Morgantown and Kingwood. The majority of speakers spoke against the project.
NextEra Energy Senior Project Manager Kaitlin McCormick addressed some of those concerns during an appearance on WAJR Radio.
“MidAtlantic Resiliency Link is what’s called a reliability project,” McCormick said Friday on “Talk of the Town.” “PJM, as the regional grid operator, identified that to help address overloads, congestion, and challenges on the grid. And this project is going to help give more lanes on the electricity highway.”
According to McCormick, the MARL project, a proposed 107.5-mile, 500-kilovolt transmission line aims to support infrastructure improvements directly around the electrical grid that supports the Appalachian region. While the work itself would contribute over $133 million in tax revenue to West Virginia while also contributing over $35 million in payroll to support over 200 union labor construction jobs that would be used to build the portions of the line that would be located in the state. To support future development around the North Central West Virginia region, McCormick said that the line would create both immediate and long-term benefits for the state with .
“There will be skilled construction jobs that will be just for the West Virginia portion of the project, over the two-year construction timeline for the project,” said McCormick. “That’s going to be skilled trades, $37 million in payroll over that construction period here in West Virginia.”
Some of those commenting at the public hearings said they were concerned about losing generational land.
“My wife and I stand to lose 10 more acres of our farm if this thing goes through,” said West Virginians Against Transmission Line Injustice and Hampshire County land owner Lantz Evans told the PSC. “So I can understand the frustration of the people for nothing, a little bit of tax revenue over 40 years, which isn’t going to make a hill of beans to crap.”
The negative sentiment was also seen by state and local public officials, who stated that they intend to take any action possible if the MARL project is approved by the State PSC.
On the legislative level, state senators Chris Rose, R-Monongalia, and Joey Garcia, D-Marion, each expressed opposition to the measure. Monongalia County Commission President Tom Bloom also testified.
“When we started investigating, we first were told, well, you don’t have to worry. It’s only 200 feet from where the line is. Now, when investigating, it’s up to 600 feet on either side,” Bloom said in the Morgantown hearing. “You can’t have animals and you can’t have farms.”
For NextEra Energy officials involved with the MARL project, the plan is to continue with their public outreach campaign as evidentiary hearings begin through the State PSC. This includes attending public meetings when they are hosted in Mon, Preston, Mineral or Hampshire counties as well as taking part in ongoing discussions with property owners who would be affected by the line. With no decision expected to be made by the State PSC by at least the end of the year, McCormick and her team plan to continue to show the potential the MidAtlantic Resiliency Link may have on the Northeastern West Virginia region.
“We’ve worked to do market studies and we’re working with landowners at or above market price to work with them on a voluntary easement on their property,” McCormick said. “We are committed to working with them and listening to their feedback.”
The PSC has set aside several days for an evidentiary hearing beginning Oct. 26 in Charleston.