An Environmental Strategic Siting Study and Public Process for a 500 kV Transmission Line Project in the Desert Southwest

Abstract

The Salt River Project Agricultural Improvement and Power District (SRP), with participation of other utilities, has proposed two separate projects involving the siting of electrical utility components: the Palo Verde to Pinal West (PV-PW) Project, which includes two parallel single circuit 500 kilovolt (kV) transmission lines, and a 500/345/69 kV substation and the Pinal West to Southeast Valley/Browning (PW-SEV/Browning) Project, which is a single circuit 500 kV line, portions of which would be double circuit 500/230 kV, and up to four associated substations. These projects are located in central Arizona. The cumulative study area encompasses over 2000 square miles and includes municipalities with some of the highest growth rates in the United States. As part of the overall process, an extensive environmental siting study and Public Process was implemented in three distinct phases. Each phase focused on engaging the public and other interested stakeholders in the study area to assist in strategic planning, the identification and categorization of the environmental siting criteria, and the analysis of potential routing alternatives as associated with the overall siting study. An interactive geographic information system (GIS) database was also utilized in the Public Process. This chapter presents the strategic approach and methodology of successfully siting and implementing a high-voltage transmission line project in a major growth area with diverse and significant continuous changes in land use and jurisdictional boundaries.