BLM NEWS RELEASE
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Western Area Power Administration (Western) are holding open house meetings to seek public comment on an environmental impact statement (EIS) that will evaluate the potential impacts of constructing the TransWest Express 600-kilovolt (kV) direct current (DC) transmission line project, which is proposed to cross portions of Colorado, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming. Nevada meetings will be held in Caliente, Overton, Henderson and Las Vegas. The time for all of the meetings is 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
- Caliente: Mon., Feb. 28, Caliente Elementary School, 300 Lincoln Street
- Overton: Tues., March 1, Clark County Community Center, 320 N. Moapa Valley Blvd.
- Henderson: Wed., March 2, Heritage Park Senior Facility, 300 S. Racetrack Road,
- Las Vegas (Spring Valley): Thur., March 3, Desert Breeze Community Center, 8275 Spring Mountain
The project is proposed by TransWest Express, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Anschutz Corporation. The BLM and Western are jointly leading the project. The announcement was published in the Federal Register on Jan. 4, and initiates a 90-day public scoping period which closes on April 4.
The open-house meetings will provide the public an opportunity to review the proposal, provide project information and collect public comment. Staff and project proponents will be available to explain project details and gather information from interested individuals or groups. BLM and Western expect to gather public input on resources and issues that should be addressed in the EIS, including route alternatives that should be analyzed in detail and sources of information that may be used in the environmental analysis. The USFS and other cooperating agencies are expected to participate in the public meetings.
TransWest Express, LLC, proposes to construct an extra-high-voltage overhead transmission line from south-central Wyoming through northwestern Colorado and Utah terminating at the Marketplace Hub in southern Nevada – a distance of about 725 miles. The project would also include two AC/DC converter stations, a fiber optic network communications system, and two ground electrode facilities. The proposed line would transmit up to 3,000 megawatts per year of electricity generated primarily from planned renewable energy facilities in Wyoming to respond to anticipated load growth in the southwestern United States. Alternative routes would affect federal, state, and private lands.
Comments may submitted during the open house meetings, via the project e-mail address ([email protected]) or in writing to Bureau of Land Management, Attention Sharon Knowlton, Project Manager, TransWest Express Project, P.O. Box 20678, 5353 Yellowstone Road, Cheyenne, Wyoming 82003. Facsimile comments will not be accepted. For further information or to have your name added to the mailing list, contact Knowlton at (307) 775-6124 or through the email address listed above.
Project information and documents will be available on the project Web site: http://www.blm.gov/wy/st/en/info/NEPA/documents/hdd/transwest.html.
