The issue of how new high voltage overhead lines (OHLs) are routed, and how closely they come to existing homes or built development, are concerns not only for communities and citizens but also for electricity utilities themselves. A similar issue is how new OHL proposals are treated in or near to precious landscapes and natural areas. A related issue is how new homes or other built developments are planned or sited near to existing OHLs.

1. These issues can be contentious, with many cases
of citizens, environmental organisations and building
developers lobbying electricity utilities municipalities
and politicians, to seek to have OHLs located as far
as possible away from buildings. Their motives may
be fear of electric and magnetic fields (EMF), belief
that visual quality will be negatively affected, or loss
of monetary value of buildings or land proposed for
building development. Similarly, many countries •••
The issue of how new high voltage overhead lines
(OHLs) are routed, and how closely they come to
existing homes or built development, are concerns
not only for communities and citizens but also for
electricity utilities themselves. A similar issue is how
new OHL proposals are treated in or near to precious
landscapes and natural areas. A related issue is how
new homes or other built developments are planned
or sited near to existing OHLs.
Members
H. PEARSON, Convenor (UK), N. DEXTER, Secretary (UK), J. DOYLE (IE),
T. DE GRAUW (AU), K. HORENK (DE), A. KREGAR (SI), H. LUGSCHITZ (AT),
L. MOIANA (IT), C. Ó LUAIN (IE), S. SWINGLER (UK), S. H. PIRES (BR),
K. REICH (AT), H. SANDERS (NL)
Corresponding member
M.PASHA (US)
Environmental issues of high
voltage transmission lines
in urban and rural areas
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2. overhead lines underground, and with requests
to relocate (or place underground) existing lines
when residential or commercial development is
planned, or is newly built, near existing lines?
Scenarios were prepared, and survey questions
related to responses to the scenarios.
The work has been wide-ranging in its scope
and ambition – perhaps too wide-ranging – but
nevertheless has revealed some interesting
conclusions.
The work found that most countries do not have laws
or government policy on whether new overhead lines
can be routed near built development. Restrictions
tend to relate only to electrical and mechanical safety.
Many countries cite health (associated with EMF) as
being the main concern of the public in relation to
overhead lines. In countries where health is a key
influencer of line routeing, principles are very different
between countries and the differences between
health-related regulations are very wide. This is
probably explained by different social concerns and
expectations rather than the differences between the
characteristics of the overhead lines. While health
criteria may be used to define new overhead line
corridor widths in some countries, all such criteria
include significant margins of precaution above levels
defined by the World Health Organisation. Countries
that do not cite EMF as being the main concern, in
relation to line routeing, tend to name visual impact
as being the main concern.
Visual impact is regarded as an important
consideration in routeing new overhead lines, yet
there are very few policies or regulations about visual
impact around the world. Noise was not regarded as
a key aspect in routeing new overhead lines.
Planning and permitting regulations play a role in
how new lines are routed near existing development.
There are fewer examples of laws and policies in
routeing new overhead lines in rural areas. Most
countries rely on environmental impact assessment
as a tool for routeing new lines.
Awareness by the public of the importance of
protecting nature and of biodiversity has increased
and is expected to increase further. There are many
legal protections for specific species and habitats and
there are many examples of electricity companies
going further than legally required. This area in
particular shows electricity companies working with
other organisations to achieve joint outcomes.
Undergrounding as a way of mitigating visual •••
have national parks or other areas they wish to
preserve for reasons of landscape beauty, historical
importance or nature conservation. How new OHLs
are routed through or near them can be challenging
for the electricity utilities, the permitting authorities,
and to citizens themselves.
The TB examines these issues. It seeks to produce
information relating to electricity utilities’ policies and
practices worldwide, and to provide an indication of
the government controls within which they operate. It
is hoped that the report will have a wider readership
than just the electricity utilities themselves, and so
is aimed at a non-technical audience. Because of
the wide scope of the report, it is not possible to
explain accurately and completely the situation in
each country, so the report should be regarded as
an introductory guide to the topic, and readers are
invited to follow up and make further enquiries for
themselves.
The TB has been prepared by a Joint Working Group
from the three CIGRE Study Committees which are
concerned with underground cables, overhead lines
and the environment (Study Committees B1, B2 and
C3 respectively). The information comes from survey
information received from 27 countries, from research
of publicly available data undertaken by members of
the Joint Working Group, and from the knowledge
and experience of the Working Group members
themselves. Of the countries that responded to the
survey, 18 were from Europe, with nine responses
coming from the Americas, Africa and Asia.
The report builds on two previous CIGRE Technical
Brochures in particular: TB 147 of 1999 (High voltage
overhead lines, environmental concerns, procedures,
impacts and mitigations); and TB 548 of 2013
(Stakeholder engagement strategies in sustainable
development – electricity industry overview).
The work primarily concerns overhead transmission
lines. These are normally lines of 110 kV and above.
The main topics considered in the work were: visual
impact, EMF, audible noise, planning and permitting
regulations, rights of way and clearances, natural
protected areas, and undergrounding.
The report considered how these topics were taken
into account in the following two themes:
1. How do electricity companies and organisations
plan the routes of new lines and design the lines
to reduce environmental and visual impact in
rural areas and near residential and commercial
buildings?
2. How do electricity companies and organisations
deal with requests to place proposed new
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3. the electricity company controls the corridor; in
others the right of the electricity company in the
corridor is less secure and is by agreement. Again,
the approach taken to control the land below and
adjacent to overhead lines varies widely between
countries. This may be explained by differing legal
systems, the rights of the electricity company
and attitudes to property ownership. Similar to the
routeing of new overhead lines, EMF limit values are
criteria for defining building-free corridors in some
countries. Again, all such criteria include significant
margins of precaution above safe levels above levels
defined internationally.
The Joint Working Group hopes that the Technical
Brochure provides information which will be helpful
not only to the electricity industry but also to citizens,
non-government organisations and others who may
be interested. 
impact, and sometimes health-related issues, is a
solution proposed by citizen groups and politicians,
especially in Europe. In some cases governments have
responded by requiring companies to include partial
undergrounding proposals for new lines. In others,
companies have voluntarily included undergrounding
proposals in order to progress permits for new lines.
There are only two examples of retrospective or
proposed retrospective undergrounding of existing high
voltage overhead lines for visual impact reasons.
With regard to the relationship between new
buildings and existing overhead lines, there was less
information available from the survey responses.
Countries that responded said that planning and
permitting regulations play a role in how new
buildings and proposed built development are sited
near existing overhead lines. Approaches to rights of
way vary greatly across the world: in some countries
748JWG C3/B1/B2.13
technical brochure
BROCHURE N° 748
(en anglais seulement)
(in English only)
Disponible sur / Available on:
www.e-cigre.org
Prix non-Membres / Non-Member Price:
240 €
Purchase (non-members)
Free download (members)
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