1. Paralleling Existing Rights-of-Way for
Congested Areas
Jack Halpern
Power Sector Leader-Environmental Services
19th Annual Transmission Summit 2016
March 31, 2016
2. Preference Approach for Siting in Congested
Areas
1. Upgrade or double
circuit an existing line
2. Parallel an existing
line
3. Parallel roads,
railroads and pipelines
4. Green field solutions
3. Paralleling Situations
• Entirely on existing ROW
• Existing ROW /
overhanging adjacent
land
• Adjacent existing ROW /
overhang existing ROW
• Entirely adjacent land
abutting existing ROW
5. Parallel Transmission Lines- Negatives
• Induced voltage in a transmission line due to its
proximity to another transmission line can occur
• Reduced reliability - Tornados, aircraft, fires,
sabotage, wind gust, and wet snow
• Possible increase in impacts to agricultural
operations.
• New double-circuited structures may be taller
• Transmission lines in close proximity and parallel
to a distribution line can contribute to stray
voltage issues.
6.
7. Parallel Transmission Lines- Positives
• Reduced right of way costs
• Reduced environmental impacts
• Simplified permitting
• Reduced opposition by adjacent landowners
• Existing access roads
8. Parallel Existing Roads- Issues
• Interstate highways, primary roads & local roads
• Overhead and underground
• Bridges, tunnels and cut/fills
• Adjacent Lands Development
o Bill boards
o Cell Towers
• Accessibility Issues
• ROW Acquisition Issues
• Construction issues
9. Some State Actions
• Minnesota. Stat. §216E.03, subdivision 7: The commission
must make specific findings that it has considered locating
a route for a high-voltage transmission line on an existing
high-voltage transmission route and the use of parallel
existing highway right-of-way and, to the extent those are
not used for the route, the commission must state the
reasons
• Maine’s Energy Infrastructure Interagency Review Panel
(IRP) is accepting letters of intent for the possible use of
state-owned I-95 and I-295 as corridors for electric
transmission, according to an Oct. 9 2012 statement from
Gov. Paul LePage
11. • Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Illinois:
o Longitudinal occupation of limited access
highways not permitted
o Perpendicular crossings and some very limited
conditions for longitudinal occupancy are
sanctioned under very specific criteria
Some State Actions
12. Utilities have right by law to occupy highway ROW. Public utilities
considered for permission to longitudinally occupy limited access
highway ROW when demonstrated extreme cases need exist, shown
best public interest and safety criteria can be met:
Accommodation not adversely affect the design, construction, operation,
maintenance, or stability of the limited access highways
A utility demonstrate alternate locations not available or cannot be
implemented at reasonable cost
Not interfere with or impair the present use or future expansion of limited
access highways
The public utility facility shall be placed underground;
The public utility facility shall present no hazard to life, health or property, if it
fails to function properly, is severed, or otherwise damaged; and
After the public utility facility is installed, it will be virtually maintenance free.
Some State Actions – New Jersey
13. Parallel Railroads - Issues
• Mainlines, secondary lines
• Unused or recently abandoned right-of-way
• Signaling and train control facilities
• Sidings, branches and yards
• Fiber optic lines
• Bridges, tunnels, cuts/fills
• Adjacent Lands Development
• Accessibility Issues
• ROW Acquisition Issues
• Construction issues
14.
15. Parallel Railroads – Negatives
• Some RR ROWs have long distances between road
crossings and additional access roads would be needed
• Railroad corridors that pass through wetlands are
generally berms that too narrow to support transmission
structures, resulting in additional impacts to wetlands.
• Communication signals used by railroads can be affected
by electromagnetic fields
• Electrical induction in rails can interfere with proper
operation grade crossing control equipment/track-
connected signal equipment.
• Foundation vibrations
16.
17. Parallel Pipelines - Issues
• Mainlines, secondary lines
• Valves, cleanouts and compressor stations
• Ownership issues
• Adjacent Lands Development
• Accessibility Issues
• Electric cathodic protection
• ROW Size/Acquisition Issues
• Construction issues
18.
19. Parallel Pipelines - Negatives
• Pipeline ROWs often run cross-country with little
or no visual or agricultural effects
• Transmission lines constructed cross-country can
interfere with farm operations and produce a
negative visual impact
• For reasons of safety gas pipelines often require
transmission line ROW to parallel the pipeline
ROW with no or very minimal overlap-minimizes
any potential benefits of corridor sharing
20. • Separation Distance-Severity Ranking of HVAC
Interference
o Distance less than 100 feet- High
o 100 to 500 feet- Medium
o 500 to 1,000 feet- Low
o 1,000 to 2,500 feet- Very Low
• Collocation Length- Relative Severity
o Length greater than 5,000 feet- High
o 1,000 to 5,000 feet- Medium
o Less than 1,000 feet- Low
INGAA – Criteria for Pipelines Co-Existing
with Electric Power Lines *
*October 2015
21. CONCLUSIONS ON PARALLELING LINEAR
FEATURES
• THERE IS NO STANDARD CONCLUSION
• INDEPENDENT OF SITING MODEL USED
• EACH PARALLEL CASE MUST BE REVIEWED
SEPARATELY AS TO ITS OVER- ALL IMPACT ON:
o Human Environment
o Natural Environment
o Reliability of the Grid
o Engineering Variances
o Project Costs
22. Jack Halpern
Power Sector Leader-Environmental Services
Stantec Consulting Services
jack.halpern@stantec.com
561.212.2282
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