Proposed Sun Valley to Morgan Transmission Line
Arizona Public Service (APS) has filed an application for a right-of-way grant on public lands managed by the BLM to construct an above-ground electric transmission system, consisting of a single series of tower structures holding two high voltage circuits – a single-circuit 500 kilovolt (kV) transmission line and a single-circuit 230 kV line.
The total project spans 38 miles and seeks to connect APS’s Sun Valley Substation near the northern reaches of the Town of Buckeye with the Morgan Substation near the City of Peoria. It would cross approximately 9 miles of Federal public lands in two separate locations. Management decisions for these Federal public lands are subject to the 2010 Bradshaw-Harquahala Resource Management Plan (RMP).
About 2 miles of the affected Federal land is northwest of the White Tank Mountain Regional Park in an area that is designated for utilities and consistent with the RMP. However, APS's request to use an additional 7 miles of Federal lands near Peoria along State Route 74 is deemed to be inconsistent and not allowed under the recently completed RMP. Therefore, the BLM has initiated a public process to make two separate decisions:
- Whether to amend its land use plan to create a utility corridor in the vicinity of SR 74;
- Whether to approve the APS application and any adjustments to the proposed transmission location or design.
Under the National Environmental Policy Act, these decisions are analyzed with public input in an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), and must include the assessment of multiple route alternatives.
On Nov. 9, 2012, the Environmental Protection Agency announced the release of the Draft EIS. That announcment kicked off a 90-day comment period. which ended on Feb. 8, 2013. The Draft EIS is available at the link on the top of this page.
For information or to comment on the Draft EIS use one of the following methods:
Call the Project Information Hotline: 1-800-578-4133.
Call or e-mail Joe Incardine, National Project Manager, at 801-539-4118 or jincardi@blm.gov.
BLM Phoenix District Office
Hassayampa Field Office
ATTN: Kathleen Depukat
APS Sun Valley to Morgan 500/230kV Transmission Line Project
21605 North 7th Avenue
Phoenix, AZ 85027
Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, be advised that your entire comment -- including your personal identifying information -- may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold from public review your personal identifying information, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
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