Support of PATH Opposition

[list...@co.frederick.va.us]

Attn: Richard C. Shickle, Chairman
Frederick County Board of Supervisors

I am writing to express my support for the board's opposition to the
PATH project which would once again use Frederick County as a gateway
for high-voltage transmission from western producers to consumers in
the east.

At PATH open houses my husband, Buddy, and I were shown maps of the
proposed high-voltage lines. They would travel the length of this
Bicentennial Farm for a third time. Power lines already in place on
the property carry 138-kV and 500-kV. With the additional 765-kV,
exposure will be more than doubled.

In September 1976, as part of the nation's bicentennial celebration,
the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation recognized active farms which had
been owned and operated by the same family for 200 years or more. Mr.
and Mrs. E.W.
Adams, Jr., who received the award at that time, still live in the
farmhouse where he was born. As faithful stewards of the land, they
have worked throughout their lifetimes to preserve the values of
tradition and family.
Their son and I, as the sixth generation to live and work on this
farm, share these values as well.

We are genuinely troubled by the prospect of additional power towers
and 765-kV power lines which would greatly increase human and cattle
exposure to high-voltage electricity, raise safety issues regarding
farming operations, further destroy the pastoral views, and reduce
property value.

The right-of-way for the first proposed path would extend within our
home's yard fence. A line of trees would be destroyed which now hides
some of the view of the existing structures. A alternative second
route would impact critical pasture and hay fields in the lower
bottoms.

Significant safety and health risks, while not specifically cancer
related, have been well documented in the study, "Living and Working
Safely Around High-voltage Power Lines" published by California
Bonneville Power Administration. That booklet draws upon their more
than 70 years of experience with high-voltage lines ranging from 69 kV
to 500,000 kV.
http://www.bpa.gov/corporate/pubs/Public_Service/LivingAndWorking.pdf.
Isn't it likely that those known safety concerns at lesser voltages
would be even more applicable with the proposed 765-kilovolt PATH
lines?

Mark Nitowski, manager of external communications for Allegheny, was
quoted in The Star as saying, "PATH, like TrAIL, is designed to follow
existing rights of way as much as possible in an effort to limit the
impact of the proposed lines on properties." Where will that kind of
thinking ultimately
lead?

Big business promotes the opinion that in the name of progress "bigger
is better" and "more is a good and necessary thing," and mass public
opinion boils down to "as long as it is not built in my back yard."
The small landowner who is most personally involved can be lost in the
crowd. Under the pretext of 'progress,' power companies have already
bulldozed their way across this family's backyard two times - downing
trees, erecting towers, and stretching lines across the horizon. Will
the threat of repeated coercion and sacrifice be the legacy we hand
down to future generations?


I want to thank you, Gary Dove, the Board of Supervisors, and county
officials for taking a stand to protect the historical value, beauty,
open spaces, and future of Frederick County from the unbridled
proliferation of high-voltage power lines. Virginia agriculture and
families such as ourselves need to voice our support for your efforts.
The structure of PATH open houses prevented attendees from hearing
each other's common concerns and joining forces. Perhaps a locally
sponsored public forum could be helpful in presenting the county's
point of view, to give residents an opportunity to share their
concerns, and to foster strength in numbers.


Sincerely,

Ellen Adams