IN THE NEWS
January 20, 2011
Panel approves power-line route
Residents of Hill Country protested plan
San Angelo Standard-Times - Michael Kelly
The route for a controversial set of electricity transmission lines through the Hill Country was approved Thursday by the Texas Public Utility Commission, according to a news release from the Lower Colorado River Authority. Read more here.
Power lines will parallel interstate
Kerr County officials disappointed by choice of I-10 route
San Antonio Express-news.net - Zeke MacCormack
Capping two years of study and debate on where to build a major new power line in the Hill Country, state regulators opted Thursday to run it largely beside Interstate 10. Read more here.
January 21, 2011
Public Utility Commission Rules on Placement of Transmission Lines Through Texas Hill Country
Texas Public Radio - Eileen Pace
The Texas Public Utility Commission has unanimously settled on a route for transmission lines to carry wind power through the Texas Hill Country. Texas Public Radio's Eileen Pace reports. Hear report here
Texas OKs New Wind Power Transmission Lines
The Texas Tribune - Kate Galbraith
Texas is in the midst of a wind-power boom, and at the heart of it lies a conundrum: While plenty of ranchers are eager to host wind turbines, few want the unsightly high-voltage transmission lines needed to carry the power to distant cities running through their property. Read more here.
Editorial: PUC Carefully deliberating fate of Hill Country
Mason County News - Clear View Alliance
At its regularly scheduled Open Meeting last week, the Public Utility Commission (PUC) began the last stage of the process that will result in the construction of a high-voltage Competitive Renewable Energy Zone (CREZ) transmission line stretching from near San Angelo to Comfort. The commissioners are evaluating evidence and considering intervenor-requested adjustments as they determine the final route for this controversial project. Read more here.
Public Utility Commission OK’s wind transmission line through Kendall County
Austin American Statesman (Salsa Verde blog) - Asher Price
The Public Utility Commission this week unanimously approved a transmission line to carry West Texas wind power from just south of San Angelo to Kendall County, traveling along Interstate 10 from west of Junction to near the end of the line just east of Kerrville. Read more here.
October 16, 2010
Shortest, cheapest transmission line route not bestby Bill Neiman, special to the San Antonio Express-News
When it comes to a big electric transmission line in the Texas Hill Country, the shortest and cheapest route is not necessarily the best. In some cases, such as the McCamey D to Kendall route proposed by the Lower Colorado River Authority, it can be one of the worst.. Read more here.
September 29, 2010
San Antonio Express NewsHill Country power line seen as only option
by Tracy Idell Hamilton
There is no cost-effective alternative to building a transmission line through the Hill Country, according to the state's electrical grid operator. Read more here.
September 28, 2010
Kerrville Daily TimesPUC could save more than $140 million on proposed lines
by Conor Harrison
Upgrading existing lines to bring wind energy from West Texas may be more cost effective than building proposed power lines through the HIll Country. Read more here.
September 2, 2010
Austin American Statesman - OpinionMason: Tension comes down to the wire
Tom Mason, Lower Colorado River Authority
A conflict is brewing in the Texas Hill Country. On its face, it pits transmission lines, which are needed to bring wind power from West Texas to the state's power grid, against communities of Central Texas. In reality, it's a conflict among several competing objectives, all of them important. Read more here.
July 27, 2010
State Sen. Jeff Wentworth (R-San Antonio) urges PUC to hold off on selecting route for power lineBy Candace Velvin - Boerne Star
As property rights advocates and landowner groups are hiring lawyers to fight the proposed route for a power transmission line through the Hill Country, State Sen. Jeff Wentworth (R-San Antonio) is urging the Public Utilities Commission to stop the contentious process and let the legislature address it in the upcoming session. Read article here
HOT NEWS! Update on high voltage transmission line options
by SOSHC, 6:30 pm, Nov. 16, Gillespie Co. Farm Bureau Bldg., 237 Equestrian Dr., Fredericksburg
Llano News
The update on CREZ transmission developments will be particularly timely, according to Robert Weatherford, President of SOSHCE, as the Public Utility Commission (PUC) of Texas is scheduled to address the utilization of alternatives to two of the possible Hill Country CREZ lines at a November 10 meeting.Read more here
HOT NEWS! Must Read Article on Wind and Money from Livestock Weekly
Renewable Energy Policies Greatest Issue Facing Texas
Read more here
November 16, 2010
Update on high voltage transmission line options
by SOSHC, 6:30 pm, Nov. 16, Gillespie Co. Farm Bureau Bldg., 237 Equestrian Dr., FredericksburgLlano News
The update on CREZ transmission developments will be particularly timely, according to Robert Weatherford, President of SOSHCE, as the Public Utility Commission (PUC) of Texas is scheduled to address the utilization of alternatives to two of the possible Hill Country CREZ lines at a November 10 meeting. Read more here
October 24, 2010
Wind power showdown set in AustinSan Antonio Express-News
by Tracy Idell Hamilton
Transmission routes hearings begin at the Convention Center in Austin - 1,000 people expected to attend. Read more here. Read more here.
October 20, 2010
Dallas Morning NewsEditorial: Texas needs to become more energy efficient
Eleven years ago, Texas became the first state to require electric utilities to produce power more efficiently. In recent years, however, our state's energy-conservation report card has grown decidedly more mixed. Read more here.
Shortest, cheapest transmission line route not best
by Bill Neiman, special to the San Antonio Express-News
When it comes to a big electric transmission line in the Texas Hill Country, the shortest and cheapest route is not necessarily the best. In some cases, such as the McCamey D to Kendall route proposed by the Lower Colorado River Authority, it can be one of the worst.. Read more here.
October 12, 2010
Electricity lost in transmission shows up in your billsby Jim Landers
If a business loses 6.5 percent of its product between the factory floor and the customer, that business has a serious efficiency problem. But if the business is electricity, where 6.5 percent of the power generated in Texas is lost in transmitting it to the customer, it is the customer who has an efficiency problem. Because that's who pays for it.
Read more here.
September 29, 2010
San Antonio Express NewsHill Country power line seen as only option
by Tracy Idell Hamilton
There is no cost-effective alternative to building a transmission line through the Hill Country, according to the state's electrical grid operator. Read more here.
September 28, 2010
Kerrville Daily TimesPUC could save more than $140 million on proposed lines
by Conor Harrison
Upgrading existing lines to bring wind energy from West Texas may be more cost effective than building proposed power lines through the HIll Country. Read more here.
September 2, 2010
Austin American Statesman - OpinionMason: Tension comes down to the wire
Tom Mason, Lower Colorado River Authority
A conflict is brewing in the Texas Hill Country. On its face, it pits transmission lines, which are needed to bring wind power from West Texas to the state's power grid, against communities of Central Texas. In reality, it's a conflict among several competing objectives, all of them important. Read more here.
August 31, 2010
Wind transmission lines across Hill Country face holdup at Public Utility CommissionAustin American Statesman
By Asher Price
Central to lines' fate is commission Chairman Barry Smitherman. Read more here
August 31, 2010
Group seeks to head off power line - Members want county to oppose proposed route though GreenbeltThe Dallas Morning News
By Peggy Heinkel-Wolfe / Staff Writer
A group of residents has asked the Denton County Commissioners Court to support a resolution opposing Oncor’s proposed route for a new power line through the Greenbelt Corridor. Read more here
August 30, 2010
Landowners are briefed on transmission line rightsSan Angelo Standard Times
By Matthew Waller
Having firefighting crews handy during construction, establishing guidelines for who can come on the property and even avoiding the spread of tree diseases are all among the issues that landowners may address as they negotiate rights of way for transmission lines to carry wind-generated electricity. Read more here
August 26, 2010
PUC power line deadline approachingKerrville Daily Times
By Conor Harrison
The deadline to become an intervener for the Texas Public Utility Corporation upcoming decision on where to place a 345-kilovolt power line through the Hill Country is Friday. Read more here
August 26, 2010
Electric Reliability Council says LCRA Gillespie-Newton transmission line not neededThe Boerne Star
By Candace Velvin, Managing Editor
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) told the Public Utility Commission at its August meeting that at least one leg of a controversial plan to transmit West Texas-generated wind 2,400 miles across the state to urban areas is not needed, suggesting existing lines could be modified and used. Read more here
August 25, 2010
Power Line Key Dates This WeekFredericksburg Standard Radio Post online
Two significant deadlines are ahead for opponents of wind energy transmission lines in the Hill Country, and spokesmen are “cautiously optimistic” about the direction of recent Public Utilities Commission decisions in the matter. Read more here
August 24, 2010
TRANSMISSION LINES: Making the connectionsDeadline is Friday to file to be intervenor
By Matthew Waller
Even after reaching a milestone for putting transmission lines across the Hill Country — the submission of a 2,000-page document from the Lower Colorado River Authority Transmission Corp. that will build the lines — the process has just begun. Read more here
August 17, 2010
Hill Country power line may not be needed, state grid operator says ERCOT says upgrading existing lines would be cheaper, though new line would be better for long term.By Asher Price
A controversial power line proposed to cross the Hill Country to transmit wind power from West Texas may not have to get built after all, according to a letter Tuesday from the agency operating the state's electricity grid.
August 10, 2010
Land of the Giants New look for transmission lines from 2010 Unbuilt Architecture Awards (just for fun)Brookline, MA-based Jin Choi & Thomas Shine of Choi+Shine recently received the 2010 Boston Society of Architects Unbuilt Architecture Award for their "Land of Giants" project. The project was originally submitted for an Icelandic pylon competition, where it received an honorable mention. The competition was to find a new typology for Iceland's high voltage power lines and pylons. Read more here
July 27, 2010
State Sen. Jeff Wentworth (R-San Antonio) urges PUC to hold off on selecting route for power lineBy Candace Velvin - Boerne Star
As property rights advocates and landowner groups are hiring lawyers to fight the proposed route for a power transmission line through the Hill Country, State Sen. Jeff Wentworth (R-San Antonio) is urging the Public Utilities Commission to stop the contentious process and let the legislature address it in the upcoming session. Read article here
July 27, 2010
Bill Neiman interview on KVHC TV regarding CREZ lines to be built by LCRA TSCLive Now on KVHC TV
Bill's interview starts at minute 16 on the show, so you can use slider to go to start of the interview. Watch broadcast here
July 22, 2010
Wind Transmission Lines - Slow DownAired on Texas Public Radio - Sponsored by Hill Country Alliance
Written and Produced by Vicki Wolf
High-power Controversy
Listen to 90 second radio feature here
July 22, 2010
Wind Plants and LandAired on Texas Public Radio - Sponsored by Hill Country Alliance
Written and Produced by Vicki Wolf
High-power Controversy
Listen to 90 second radio feature here
June 21, 2010
LCRA to propose routes for Kendall transmission lines to PUC July 28Boerne Star
With a Twin Buttes to McCamey D route approved earlier this month, LCRA Transmission Services Corporation will present proposed routes for the McCamey D-to-Kendall-to-Gillespie transmission line project to the Public Utilities Commission on July 28. Read article here
June 21, 2010
Fayette, Don't Spray ItBy Nora Ankrum - Austin Chronicle
Three environmental groups announced last week their "intent to sue" the Lower Colorado River Authority over alleged violations of the Clean Air Act at the coal-powered Fayette Power Project in La Grange. Read article here
June 21, 2010
Destruction by transmission linesBy Brent Hinckley - San Angelo Standard Times
We had to quickly organize to defend ourselves when the LCRA and the PUC decided to stall the process and include our county as an alternative to one of their CREZ lines. In addition to forming the Texas Hill Country Heritage Association, the city of Mason and Mason County formed a legal unit of government under Section 391 of the Texas Local Government Code that requires the LCRA, the PUC and, by federal statute, U.S. Fish and Wildlife, to “coordinate” their plans and policies with ours. Read article here
June 18, 2010
Power line proposal sparks PUC reviewBy Zeke MacCormack - My San Antonio Express-News
High-power Controversy
PUC orders review of proposed high-voltage line between Gillespie and Lampasas counties. Read article here
June 17, 2010
Power line request goes forwardAmarillo Globe-News - Online
Proposed routes face opposition no matter which place they go.
The conversation about where to put power lines on 14-story towers moved to Austin on Wednesday when Sharyland Utilities filed its request to proceed with its wind energy transmission project.
The segment it is working on will run from southern Carson County to southeast Deaf Smith County. At issue is exactly where the line will run. Read article here
June 16, 2010
Wind Power Transmission Update Newsletter - LCRA Transmission Services CorporationLCRA TSC suspends further development of Gillespie-to-Newton transmission line
LCRA Transmission Services Corporation (LCRA TSC) has put on hold further development of an 85-mile transmission line in the Texas Hill Country awaiting further guidance from the state on whether the project still is needed.
The action affects planning for the Gillespie-to-Newton transmission line project that is part of the statewide wind-power initiative called Competitive Renewable Energy Zones (CREZ).
In April, the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC) denied an LCRA TSC application for a Certificate of Convenience and Necessity (CCN) for the Gillespie-to-Newton transmission line project, the planned construction of a new 345-kilovolt power line in Llano, Gillespie, San Saba, Lampasas and Burnet counties. On June 11, the PUC denied four motions for rehearing of its decision, including LCRA TSC's, and requested the state's transmission planning organization to reconsider whether the line still is needed.
"The action is helpful," said Tom Mason, LCRA general manager. "We are here to serve the state's power transmission needs, as it defines them. Now that the PUC has determined that our original route proposals were inadequate and has asked the Electric Reliability Council of Texas to reconsider the fundamental need for the line in light of changed conditions, our best course of action on this project is to await the PUC's review of ERCOT's recommendation."
The PUC has requested from ERCOT a re-evaluation of the need for the project, which ERCOT has termed a "priority project." The PUC is asking ERCOT if it is needed at all. ERCOT oversees the electric grid for about 85 percent of the state.
The transmission lines developed through CREZ are intended to increase reliability of the ERCOT grid and increase the transfer of wind and other power into various parts of the state. Several other transmission service providers also will build CREZ lines totaling about 2,400 miles.
For more information about CREZ-related projects, see http://www.lcra.org/crez.
June 16, 2010
County weighs in on LCRA power linesDailyTimes.com
By Mark Armstrong
Kerr County officials say the proposed LCRA power transmission lines from Schleicher County to western Kendall County should be built through Menard and Mason counties along existing easements. Read article here
June 14, 2010
Is Texas backing away from a Hill Country wind transmission line?Statesman.com - Salsa Verde
By Asher Price
The state has invested in building electric lines to carry wind power from West Texas to the cities in the central part of the state. Now it may be shifting away from one of the more controversial segments, one that would go from the Fredericksburg area to Lampasas County. Read article here
June 8, 2010
Transmission lines need questioned by PUC chairmanHighland Lakes Newspaper
By James Walker
The chairman of the Public Utility Commission of Texas is continuing to press the operator of the state’s vast electric grid to reconsider the need for a new and potentially intrusive transmission line through Burnet and Llano counties. Read article here
June 8, 2010
NBC-DFW News/Local BeatWorkers Followed Procedure Before Blast: Company
By Angela Brown
"A 23-member crew that had been working in the area for several months was drilling a hole Monday for an 80- to 120-foot utility pole when the gas line was struck and ruptured." Read article here
June 6, 2010
Texas Government InsiderDOE awards Texas Tech natural resources department $223K grant
The U.S Department of Energy (DOE) has awarded Texas Tech University's Department of Natural Resources $223,322 to study the response of grassland avian species to wind farm construction in the Texas Panhandle. The funds arrive as part of a $3 million grant to advance the work of 16 institutions conducting wind-power research.
Matthew Butler, a research assistant professor, and professor Warren Ballard will serve as investigators on the project.
The research will identify important habitat conditions for grassland birds and provide wind energy developers with information needed for responsible siting, Butler said.
June 5, 2010
Possible I-10 power line draws concernDailyTimes.com
By Conor Harrison
The battle over possible power lines down the Interstate 10 corridor is heating up, as lawmakers, residents and officials attempt to get their voices heard before a July 28 deadline for LCRA Transmission Services Corporation to present their preferred routes to the Public Utility Commission of Texas. Read article here
June 3, 2010
Wind Power Transmission Update Newsletter - LCRA Transmission Services CorporationMcCamey D-to-Kendall-to-Gillespie project gets new deadline
The Public Utility Commission of Texas last week changed the schedule for some June and July filing dates associated with CREZ projects, including LCRA TSC's McCamey D-to-Kendall-to-Gillespie project. The filing deadline for that project was moved from July 6 to July 28.
The PUC has 180 days from the filing date to make a decision on the route for the new 345-kilovolt transmission line.
In addition, landowners and others desiring to intervene will have 30 days from the filing date in which to request intervention.
June 1, 2010
Wind power losing its punchdallasnews.com - The Dallas Morning News
By Eric Torbenson
It's the renewable energy source that's surprisingly losing its tailwind: wind. Read article here
May 26, 2010
Power lines could have $550M impact on cityDailyTimes.com
By Mark Armstrong
City staff say a 345 kV transmission line built through Kerrville could have a $550 million impact on future developments along Interstate 10. “We need to marshal whatever resources we have to fight this going through our city on I-10,” said Mayor David Wampler in his first full council meeting since the election. “This is a devastating blow to future development and tax base diversification.” Read article here
May 25, 2010
Texas is lauded for leadership in wind power generationdallasnew.com - The Dallas Morning News
By Eric Torbenson
Iowa wants what Texas has: brisk job growth linked to fast-growing wind generation. Read article here
April 24, 2010
Utility commission rejects route of line to bring wind power from West TexasLCRA ordered to come up with new options.
by Asher Price
A final decision on the route of an electric line intended to carry wind power from West Texas through the Hill Country took a tumble Friday after the state agency nixed the options before it. Read article here
April 21, 2010
Future of Austin likely to take a greener turnUnclear cost of renewable energy plan continues to stir debate
By Marty Toohey, AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF, Published: 9:57 p.m. Wednesday, April 21, 2010
The Austin City Council is expected to adopt today one of the nation's most ambitious plans for using wind, solar and other sources of electricity that do not emit greenhouse gases. Read article here
April 14, 2010
VIEWPOINTS: LCRA may be the fox guarding the henhouseby Bill Neiman, Wednesday, April 14, 2010, Go San Angelo Standard Times
SAN ANGELO, Texas — Common sense tells us that clear-cutting a path through the Hill Country’s heart and erecting 18-story towers to hold high-voltage transmission lines will have environmental impacts. Even the Lower Colorado River Authority, the utility power player, isn’t disputing that. In fact, because LCRA knows that the damage is unavoidable, it has been working to find a way around the requirement to protect endangered species: It is trying to obtain an “incidental take permit” from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service by developing a habitat conservation plan. Read article here
March 28, 2010
Power line plans jolt Hill CountryBy Zeke MacCormack - Express-News, Web posted: 3/28/2010
A sense of bitter resignation permeates the Hill Country over proposals for new electric transmission lines now advancing through state and federal regulatory processes. “There's a lot of angry people,” said Dave Campbell of Settler's Ridge, an upscale subdivision near Fredericksburg that could host two 345-kilovolt lines. Read article here
March 15, 2010
Political Juice Amped Up $5 Billion Power-Grid ContractsLobby Watch - CREZ Lobby Contributions
Texas emerged from the ashes of the state’s disastrous electricity-deregulation experiment as a wind-power leader. To advance, the state must invest in transmission lines that require skill and money. So it’s not surprising that the PUC awarded almost $5 billion in grid contracts to politically powerful energy giants. Yet the process has been unsettling. Read the article here
March 12, 2010
Development of Transmission Lines Important, Difficult Speakers SayXcel Tests Energy Storage to Make Wind Use More Stable
Garland, South Texas Co-op Team Up On CREZ, Texas Energy Report - blog entry posted March 12, 2010
The Public Utility Commission today laid the groundwork for awarding the city of Garland’s publicly owned electric company a share of the transmission lines that will carry West Texas wind power to the rest the state. Read the article here
March 3, 2010
Group Calls for Environmental Impact Statementby Bill Neiman, Published in the Junction Eagle, March 3, 2010
JUNCTION, TX – Organizations across the Hill Country are asking state and federal agencies to ensure that protecting the Hill Country environment is a primary consideration as sites are selected for the high-voltage transmission lines soon to be built throughout the region. Read opinion here
March 2, 2010
Clear View Alliance Makes Front Page NewsExhibit of Model Lattice Tower successful in raising public awareness
Clear View Alliance continues to be in the forefront of creating public awareness around the LCRA's critical decision regarding transmission lines routes and the type of infrastructure used for the installation of these lines. Innovative members volunteered to build a quarter-scale model tower and residence to show the impact of the monstrous lattice towers. They gave $7,000 and almost 500 hours of work to build the tower, drive the tower to open houses, create informational brochures, as well as greet people and give them the information at the open houses. If you would like to see this kind of publicity continue, you can help by donating money to recover cost of building the model tower and/or get involved in spreading the information. Read the full press release about the tower here
February 24, 2010
MSRPC Calls for Full EIS StudyMason Sub-Regional Planning Commission - February 24, 2010
Mason, Texas – The Mason Sub-Regional Planning Commission (MSRPC) made it clear last Wednesday in a meeting with Clayton Napier of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) that they fully expect LCRA TSC to perform a complete environmental impact statement if they intend to construct the 345-kv transmission line through Mason County. Read the article here
January 28, 2010
Green Economy or Miles of Eyesore?by Bill Bishop in the Daily Yonder
To get green energy from the windy Plains to the cities requires the construction of new transmission lines — and the disruption of land over thousands of miles. Read article here
January 27, 2010
Laydown yards store transmission line construction materialsOn a crisp winter morning, a truck driver delivers a load of steel to a storage area on Hwy 16 across from Llano High School. It’s one of many trucks that will deliver a total of about 6,000 tons of steel to a handful of transmission material storage sites leased by LCRA Transmission Services Corporation (LCRA TSC). Read article here
January 17, 2010
Transmission line faces state approvalby Jackie Stone, Killeen Daily Herald
The state utilities commission will decide on the final route of a 345-kilovolt transmission line that passes through Lampasas County this spring, but first it must review the project and objections at a hearing next month. Read article here
December 31, 2009
No More Power Lines?by Mark Clayton, Christian Science Monitor
Today, the nation’s power grid is in three disconnected pieces – Eastern, Western, and Texas. Harris’s project, called Tres Amigas, would use superconducting cable to provide the first large-scale commercial trading link between those big grids – opening up new markets for renewable wind and solar power in the American East and West. Read article here
September 24, 2009
LCRA gets more time to study power line routesby Zeke MacCormack, San Antonio Express News
The LCRA’s Transmission Services Corp. will look at possible routes in existing rights-of-way along highways and other power lines to minimize damage to scenic rural areas. Read article here
PUC grants river authority more time to look at alternative wind power routes
by Asher Price, Austin American Statesman
“By any measure, today’s ruling by the PUC is a victory for the future of this fragile, beautiful region,” said Bill Neiman, president of Clear View Alliance, a group of landowners and organizations. Read article here
September 9, 2009
Wind Energy is Green - Transmission Lines are notby Vicki Wolf on 90.1 Texas Public Radio, September 5, 2009 for Hill Country Alliance
. . .the LCRA will clear cut a 200-foot wide easement through virgin ranchland to site 18-story metal lattice towers that hold massive lines each carrying 345,000 volts of electricity. It’s ugly. And it will damage wildlife habitat, water sources and the scenic beauty so important to the region’s tourist industry. Listen to 90 second radio feature here
August 5, 2009
USFWS may slow transmission line projectby Tyson Broad, The Llano News
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) expressed apprehension last Wednesday that the “fast track” process for siting transmission lines across the Hill Country is not giving that federal agency adequate time to determine potential impacts to endangered species. Read article here
June 12, 2009
Texas High Wires: A Balancing Act for Private Landownersby Lorie Woodward Cantu, Texas Wildlife Association Magazine
Today, because of a confluence of factors, more landowners are finding themselves in the path of electrical transmission lines than ever before. Like most issues affecting private property rights, land use, and the law, it is important to be informed. Read article here
July 30, 2009
Wind turbines and transmission lines carry anxiety across Hill Countryby Vicki Wolf, special to the Lake Travis View
Concern and anxiety are wafting across the Hill Country as a storm brews over the potentila placement of massive wind turbines and tall towers carrying high voltage transmission lines. Read article here
July 18, 2009
Windmill: Plan to relay wind energy via lattice towers at issueby Jerry Lackey, San Angelo Standard Times
The Lower Colorado River Authority-Transmission Services Corp. proposes to construct three new, double-circuit, bundled conductor, 345-kilovolt transmission lines, primarily on double-circuit-capable lattice structures. Read article here
Power line proposals causing tension
by Zeke MacCormak, San Antonio Express News
A sense of foreboding has engulfed this rural town since word spread that huge towers carrying power lines soon may punctuate its ruggedly beautiful landscape. Read article here
Opinions and Editorials
October 7, 2009
Stepping up to Solve Problemsby Bill Neiman, Mason County News
Friends and Neighbors of Mason and Menard,
I want you to know the truth about Clear View Alliance (CVA) and share with you some important information regarding the Lower Colorado River Authority / American Electric Power (LCRA / AEP) 345 kV transmission lines. Read opinion here
Sept. 24, 2009
Neiman: No do-overs for Hill Countryby Bill Neiman, Statesman.com
Residents, nonprofit organizations and local and county governments have spoken with a collective voice urging the public utility to put the needs of the Hill Country ahead of the demands of an arbitrary government timeline. It is a powerful voice of reason. Read opinion here
July 2009
Flournoy: Green power shouldn't be destructiveby Ruth E. Flournoy, Statesman.com
Wind energy might not leave a huge carbon footprint, but it is leaving a deep, industrial footprint on the Texas Hill Country. Read the opinion here
Pfluger: Transmission lines threat to ecology
by Water Pfluger, Statesman.com
. . .as an entity Clear View Alliance neither opposes wind energy nor intends to pursue unique NIMBY arguments raised by individual members. We do, however, oppose "greenwashing", that being the spin placed on irresponsible environmental actions in the pursuit of renewable energy. Read the opinion here
Transmission lines may be landowners headache
by Jim Chionsini, San Angelo Standard Times
If owners don’t begin working together now, they could wake up one morning in the not-too-distant future with a four-legged, 180-foot tower in their front yard and a 160- to 200-foot easement going through the middle of their ranch. Read the opinion here
