Northern California Transmission Line, Transmission Agency of Northern California, Lassen County

STATUS: Killed
 
TYPE: Transmission Line
 
OPPOSITION: Landowners
 
PROSPECTS: Unlikely 
 

BACKGROUND: The transmission line was a $1.5 billion project that would have extended more than 600 miles, capable of delivering up to 4,000 megawatts of renewable energy to Sacramento and the Bay Area. California mandates that 20 percent of a utility company’s power delivery be from alternative sources. A project spokesperson commented that underground transmission or rooftop solar instead would not be sufficient and that a large-scale transmission plan is necessary for pushing toward California’s renewable energy goals. He also pointed out that “no major power lines have been installed in Northern California in 16 years, despite substantial growth and increasing demand for energy.” The existing transmission line in northern California is maxed out. Nonetheless, landowners fought the project to its death, opposed to transmission lines “encroaching” their land. Landowners were also frustrated that the project was “secretive” and that they could not influence the project. Local residents feared it would threaten their “way of life” and that property values would decline. The project’s construction would have created more than 500 jobs, and running the facilities would have created more than 100 permanent jobs.
 
LINKS: The Sacramento Bee http://www.sacbee.com/latest/story/2026793.html?mi_rss=Latest%20News; The Modesto Bee http://www.modbee.com/local/story/766023.html; Colusa County Sun Herald http://www.colusa-sun-herald.com/news/california-3133-northern-residents.html