Massive power lines in front of Rocky Mountain National Park?

Hi all.

Hopefully if enough of us speak up, Western Area Power Administration will listen and not waste our tax dollars bulldozing the Estes Valley.

Take Action Here: responsiblelines.org/takeac…

In a public meeting on December 13th, the caretaker for the "Crocker Ranch" (Pew APC Crocker Ranch LLC, see map) confirmed that the re-route was most preferable to the owners, and that Western Area Power Administration (WAPA) had already negotiated the project siting with them up to a year prior to the public knowing anything about it.

Clear-cuts along the existing utility corridor. Instead of siting the project here, WAPA proposes new clear-cuts through Roosevelt National Forest where no utility corridor exists. This re-route costs more, is longer, and is more damaging to the scenic travel corridors leading into the Estes Valley, RMNP, and Roosevelt National Forest.

What's so egregious about this is that WAPA is a federal agency under the Department of Energy, re-building a federal publicly-owned transmission line, with federal tax-payer dollars. Yet somehow, they have allowed negotiations to go on in private with one influential land-owner. What started in 2010 as a $14M rebuild, has ballooned into a $19M re-route prior to any notice or consent from the public. Now they are pursuing a costly and unnecessary re-route that's longer, costs more, and does more damage to the Estes Valley in front of RMNP and Roosevelt National Forest, land owned by us, the American Public.

Views from Roosevelt National Forest next to the Pole Hill public access trailhead, looking across the Estes Valley into RMNP. WAPA plans clear-cut, 110' steel towers and lines right through here, unless enough of us stand up to oppose it.

I hope folks from all over the country read this post and write in over the next 24 hours and tell WAPA that as owners of our federal public lands, we can outnumber the political clout of one property owner any day of the week. Tell WAPA to use the USFS Designated Utility Corridor, to stay away from the foreground of Rocky Mountain National Park, away from scenic Highway 36, and away from the public access trailhead into Roosevelt National Forest, where no utility corridor or clear-cuts exist, so we can all keep coming to the Estes Valley to enjoy RMNP, Lumpy Ridge, and Roosevelt National Forest.

The comment period ends in 24 hours, January 31st, 2012, midnight.

Take Action Here: responsiblelines.org/takeac…

Thanks everybody. You're Awesome!

With so many climbers from colorado on here I can't understand why this isn't getting more replies. Hopefully people are sending letters and just not replying. It only takes 2 seconds to do...

Hagerman Pass.

letter sent. Literally took 2 seconds, DO IT!!!

Message sent, though I hope it (and many others) won't get disregarded as a "campaign"... that seems to be a tactic among politicos who don't like the public actually participating. Best of luck with this- it wouldn't be the first time the Estes Park area has been influenced by a short term private interest.

You can go to the site and send the statement as it is, or modify it to make it your own. Some folks sent in some really awesome letters from the website today. From the take action page, it's set up to get emailed decision-makers at all levels, not just for the public comment EA WAPA staff see, but to folks that may be able to step in and really do something.

RMNP sunset as seen from ARNF across the Estes Valley Estes Park, CO Winter 2012 (click to enlarge).
It helps to also mention where you're writing from: Ohio, West Virginia, Denver, California, New Jersey, everywhere. Over three million people come from all to Rocky Mountain National Park and Estes Park every year, and since this is a project that affects the National Forest and the foreground of RMNP, everyone has a say.

Take Action Here: responsiblelines.org/takeac…

@ Responsible Lines:

Was on your website and saw that under "Re-route Raises Questions" section, you set out a number of questions that you believe the public is entitled to. Your group seems quite organized, so I assume that you have already submitted a FOIA request. Yes?

While you may have attorneys already working on this, have you contacted the DU or CU law school environmental law clinics? May be good resources to get some man-hours drafting responses to the EA or any other aspects of the regulatory process.

Also, you refer to the Pew family as the owner of the ranch, as in Sunoco Oil and the Pew Family Charitable Trust? The Trust is a major donor to Colorado Public Radio/NPR. Given that CPR/NPR is a liberal leaning media source, it would stand to reason that it would be interested in such a story (but money is involved). Have any letters been sent to the local media?

BTW - submitted a custom letter the other day, and a letter to Senator Udall, who is on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

Whaaaat??!! This is happening under the Democrat's watch? Say it ain't so. . . say it aint so.

JoeP wrote:@ Responsible Lines: Was on your website and saw that under "Re-route Raises Questions" section, you set out a number of questions....

Hi JoeP. Thanks for the awesome suggestions. Although the public comment period ends tomorrow, this is just the first chapter of what promises to be a real challenge. WAPA has been working on this project for two years now, yet the first public meeting wasn’t until just two short months ago. If all goes through as sited, they may begin construction Spring of 2012. This leaves little time, but we’re doing everything we can to shed light on this to get WAPA to withdraw this EA or get the USFS to timely decline the special use permit application WAPA needs to move forward.

Take Action Here: responsiblelines.org/takeac…

Your suggestions wil be taken to heart...

Bump & submitted a letter

Umph! wrote:Whaaaat??!! This is happening under the Democrat's watch? Say it ain't so. . . say it aint so.

Yeah. Seriously. Whats up with that? Defend your beloved Democrats inaction on this, Dergay.
And, WTF is up w/ zero media coverage about this? Like everything else involving money, they'll wait until its set in stone before the wailing and gnashing of teeth so they can pretend to still be legitimate.

Letter sent. Today is the last day, people.

Letter signed.

Hi
I just wrote a personal email using the e-form from the link - took about 3 minutes. WARNING: we just had a VERY simialr "railroad the new electric lines through with little to no public input" event here in southwestern Fort Collins. By time the public caught wind of it, the power company said the comemnt period was closed, there was no more time, and the alternatives would have cost too much.. within a month, they were putting up new monstrous electrical towers - they have wrecked the viewscape for decades, and it is too late now.

According to WAPA documents, the draft EA will be completed by end of March then open to public comment in April through May 2012. Thus, today appears to be the close of the scoping period, where WAPA gathers information, comments, etc. for use in the EA.

See page 11 of the below link.

WADA Notice to Public

If those dates are no longer accurate, and the EA has already been prepared, I couldn't find it.

What I found interesting, is that the justification for use of the Hwy 36 corridor is ease of access, but the proposed reroute section south of Mount Pisgah and Crocker Ranch does not have any existing access roads, while the corridor through the Crocker Ranch has access roads within nearly the entire length of the corridor.

Map

JoeP wrote:What I found interesting, is that the justification for use of the Hwy 36 corridor is ease of access, but the proposed reroute section through south of Mount Pisgah (and Crocker Ranch) does not have any existing access roads, while the corridor through the Crocker Ranch has access roads within nearly the entire length of the corridor. Map

At the "public scoping" meeting on November, we were told that what we see on the ground doesn't exist, such as the clear cuts along the utility corridor. I stood at the map that showed a thick blue line covering the existing clear cuts. I pointed to it, and asked them why they didn't just use the existing line along the clear cuts (that can be seen for miles and even on Google earth). WAPA's Carey Ashton told me they didn't exist.

At both meetings, WAPA staff has completely omitted the fact that the USFS designated Utility Corridor even exists. They omitted the fact that they are actually seeking to establish another utility corridor. They've deliberately omitted critical information that the public needs to know.

As for the road along the utility corridor, it coincides with the original stage-coach road into Estes Park, dating back to 1877.
responsiblelines.org/estes-…

WAPA is seeking to disregard federal law and disregard the USFS Designated Utility Corridor along the old road cut, clear cuts, and the established Estes-Flatiron line, all while the public has been left in the dark as to critical facts.

12 hours left to tell WAPA to use the route they have for the good of the public. After all, they're needlessly seeking new clear cuts, towers and lines, on public land. We should have a say.

Take Action here: responsiblelines.org/takeac…

Jim Davidson wrote:WARNING: we just had a VERY simialr "railroad the new electric lines through with little to no public input" event here in southwestern Fort Collins. By time the public caught wind of it, the power company said the comemnt period was closed, there was no more time, and the alternatives would have cost too much.. within a month, they were putting up new monstrous electrical towers - they have wrecked the viewscape for decades, and it is too late now.

To date, WAPA has not held an actual "Public Meeting". The first "open house" was held at the Senior Center. It was set up like a real estate open house with billboards and sales pitches, with no forum for public questions. After public resistance to the "open house", WAPA agreed to a second, highly moderated meeting, five miles outside of town at a retreat center and bible school. Even in the second meeting, WAPA failed to answer basic questions such as, "when does the public comment period (for purposes of the official public record) start and end?". To date, they have not answered. To this day WAPA has made no public record of the meeting questions, answers, or content, other than that there were sign-in sheets and billboards.

Here's a webpage put together specifically to address some information which raises serious questions about this proposed re-route.
responsiblelines.org/the-pu…

To clarify: We wish no one harm, only that our public tax-payer dollars (Ben F's included) aren't needlessly wasted on a publicly damaging re-route.

These are public lands, tax-payer dollars, and the publicly owned Estes-Flatiron transmission lines. The project is being completed by a public agency under the DOE. We all have a right to say, the public will not sit idly by and watch WAPA accommodate private interests (see map) at the public's expense.

Time might not be on our side, but perhaps federal law and a few folks with a conscience will be. It’s been forums like this with real people writing in that make a difference.

Letter sent.

bump, had my wife sign and send also.