SB361: Getting the 'runaround' from Northern Pass

If we really needed to bring Canadian electricity to the southern New England market, you'd think Northeast Utilities and PSNH would jump at the chance to work with the state to secure the use of transportation rights-of-way to do so. Instead they have stonewalled explorations of any alternative to their Northern Pass overhead transmission line proposal, which just happens to include the idea of using 140 miles of PSNH distribution line right-of-way.

Reporter Annmarie Timmins reported in the Oct. 14 Concord Monitor on the frustrations of Sen. Jeanie Forrester, who is heading up the commission created via SB361 to study the possibility of burying transmission lines along existing transportation corridors.

According to Timmins' article companies and state agencies including Unitil, National Grid, the state Department of Transportation and state tax officials have responded to the commission's request for information.


But from Northern Pass, Forrester says, "We are getting a lot of runaround. We are not getting a lot of hard information."

To read minutes of the SB361 commission (aka the Commission to Study the Feasibility of Establishing Energy Infrastructure), visit Sen. Forrester's website here.