Communities in Frederick County, Clarke County and Western Loudoun County, Virginia are facing two proposed HVAC overhead transmission lines to bring electricity from West Virginia into Eastern Loudoun County's Data Center Alley to support new and expanding data centers. Both of these transmission line projects were proposed to be developed by First Energy.
The MARL/Gore-Doubs-GooseCreek (500kV) line is proposed to use mono-poles of an average height of 185' with an underbuilt 138kV across Western Loudoun County and Clarke County but will take additional 200' easements for multiple segments through Frederick County, Virginia.
The Valley Link (765kV) line is proposed to use v-structures with guyed wires. This structure type severely restricts property usage. These structures could be as tall as 230'. This transmission line would take an additional 200' easement for its entire length through all three counties.
If both projects are approved these communities will be living with two 500kV transmission lines plus a 765kV line in close proximity. This would be the largest transmission corridor in Virginia.
We oppose both the MARL/Gore-Doubs-Goose Creek (500kV) and the Valley Link (765kV) over head HVAC transmission lines.
These projects would not only de-value property by destroying the view sheds, they threaten to seize more than 365 acres of private residential, agricultural, and commercial property. This will upend the lives of homeowners, families, local farmers, and business owners. These projects threaten the generational wealth of these private property owners, restrict the by-right use of their property and will gut the environments the owners have nurtured and preserved. It will severely impact the quality of life of the people living in these communities. The Electromagnetic Fields of these projects also pose a health risk to nearby residences.
Additionally, both lines impact the Appalachian National Scenic Trail, Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park, Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail and would run parallel down the view shed of the Potomac River.
This is about defending our property rights and our homes, preserving our environment, and ensuring our quality of life and the future of our families and communities. It is not fair to subject these communities to the very personal financial and physical sacrifice of their property to this extent, for the purpose of hosting electrical infrastructure to accommodate data center energy demands.
The only viable alternative to these two overhead HVAC transmission lines that would preserve the value of private property, conservation easements and national and state parks would be underground high-voltage direct current (HVDC) within the existing easements or along an alternative route along highway easements.
In 2009 the engineering firm Black & Veatch did a study for underground HVDC for the PATH 765kV transmission line along the same right-of way as Gore-Doubs-Goose Creek and Valley Link are proposed to be located (along the Mt. Storm-Doubs lines). That study proved an underground HVDC solution was feasible for this area. The study was called "PJM Interconnection Potomac-Appalachian Transmission Highline (PATH) Project, HVDC Conceptual Study, B&V Project No.164996, B&V File 42.2004 , FINAL November 17, 2009 This was entered into the record as part of the Virginia SCC Case PUE 2009-00043 Application of PATH Allegheny Virginia Transmission Corporation.
The cost for Underground HVDC has come down significantly since then and the installation space needed is even smaller. It can be installed underground along existing transmission easements or highway easements and has been used in multiple projects in the US.
The mitigation costs of undergrounding these projects using HVDC could be paid for by data center taxes, data center impact fees or through new rate structures for large energy users such as data centers.
Loudoun County has filed as a respondent in both the Aspen/Golden (500kV) transmission Case and the Golden/Mars (500kV) transmission line case and proposed underground alternatives for both. The impacts to our communities from the MARL/Gore-Doubs-Goose Creek and Valley Link Transmission lines is much greater and requires far more property.
Therefore we request:
1) Loudoun County to contract with Black & Vetch to develop one underground HVDC solution through Virginia for both transmission lines and intervene at the Virginia SCC on behalf of the property owners in Western Loudoun to propose it as a an alternative solution to both overhead HVAC lines.
2) Frederick County to intervene at the Virginia SCC on behalf of the property owners in Frederick County to support an underground HVDC alternative to the proposed overhead HVAC transmission lines.
3) Clarke County to intervene at the Virginia SCC on behalf of the property owners in Clarke County to support the underground HVDC alternative to the proposed overhead HVAC transmission lines.
4) The Virginia SCC to consider an underground HVDC solution to mitigate the environmental and economic harms to the community that would result from these two overhead HVAC projects. And to consider that these communities would be bearing the brunt of the impacts - both the financial and physical loss of their property and its use to the benefit of one specific set of property owners for the development of a single private industry - data centers.