The second round of in-person open house meetings regarding the Joshua Falls-Yeat Transmission Project will begin next week.
Last month, representatives from Valley Link, a joint venture of which Dominion is included, released new maps, showing updated routes for the transmission project which would run approximately 115 miles of 765kV transmission lines from Campbell County to Culpeper County crossing nine localities including Orange County. At 765kV, the transmission lines are the highest voltage, highest capacity transmission line type available in the country and would include structures between 135 and 160 feet tall requiring approximately 200 feet of right-of-way.
The updated maps reflect comments and ongoing routing research conducted since the first maps were published in March. A round of open house meetings was held following the release of those maps. The new routes fluctuate from the originals, moving further west in some areas of Orange County. The routes can be viewed at https://vltransmission.com/joshua-falls-to-yeat/#resources. A second round of open house style meetings has been scheduled in each of the impacted counties, beginning with the Orange County meeting Monday, June 15, 3:30-7:30 p.m. at Orange County High School and the Spotsylvania County meeting, scheduled for the same date and time. A virtual meeting was held Wednesday.
Last week, Culpeper County Supervisors voted to send a letter to grid operator PJM Interconnection opposing the project, which is proposed to end at a substation in Richardsville. The Richardsville Coalition made a formal presentation during the board meeting, stating the substation was proposed for Culpeper after Fauquier recommended denying a plan to upgrade a substation there.
Meanwhile, Orange County Planning Commissioners and Supervisors are continuing work to strengthen the county’s comprehensive plan ahead of Valley Link’s plan to submit the Joshua Falls-Yeat project to the SCC for approval in September. That approval is expected to take a year. The comprehensive plan is one of the documents the SCC considers as part of the application process. County leaders hope to strengthen the document in relation to transmission lines. The planning commission is pursuing four main changes. These include recommending that all transmission lines adhere to the county’s application process and prioritize the use of existing corridors over new corridors with deviations from the comprehensive plan requiring a special use permit or rezoning. Transmission lines should also be clearly identified in terms of location and impacts with studies and site inspections with a clear specific timeline for completion. Commissioners also suggest requiring all lines to be located underground for new transmission line developments in historically significant areas and environmental planned overlays. All electric lines should also use existing power lines not to exceed 500kV.
The commission is planning to host a public hearing on the changes in early July.
