Northern Pass Announces Amended Route

As reported by the Concord Monitor here, Northern Pass announced a revised route that largely follows the route predicted by the Forest Society's mapping based on land acquired by Northern Pass over time.

"It would appear that Northern Pass, having not been able to connect the dots via legal means, proposes to to use land owned by the Forest Society and others by using some form of eminent domain," said Jane Difley, president/forester. "Given the constitutional problems an elective transmission project would have in using eminent domain, it would appear that Northern Pass officials drew a crayon line on their map in order to announce a route."

The amended route proposes to bury 8 of 187 miles of transmission line in Clarksville and Stewartstown, NH, along state and local roads.

"It's a positive sign that Northern Pass has at long last discovered the shovel," said Jack Savage, vp of communications for the Forest Society. "However, 8 miles represents a mere 4 percent of the total, and it seems clear that the proposed burial is only a way to facilitate the bulk of the line overhead, including through the White Mountain National Forest."