State Officials To Hold Hearings In SoCal (KFWB) --

California state officials are expected in Southern California this week for hearings on a proposed high voltage transmission line.

The 500,000-volt line would connect San Diego Gas & Electric Co.'s grid to Southern California Edison's. It would help link the Southland with power plants being built in the Southwest and Mexico.

The Public Utilities Commission is holding hearings on the idea today through Wednesday.

The lines would go across the Temecula area and would cut through vineyards. The state's Independent System Operator (ISO), the keeper of the power grid, has agreed to the project.

The power line could force some property owners to give up their land. Activists claim the line may be unnecessary after new power plants begin operating in San Diego County by 2004.

-- PHO (owennos@bigfoot.com), June 18, 2001

Answers

"Activists claim the line may be unnecessary . . ."

Read: "Activists" = NIMBY's

-- PHO (owennos@bigfoot.com), June 18, 2001.

The money California is spending to buy some of the grid's wires (or the money they've given to Enron, et al) could have solarized a significant percentage of the homes in the state, eliminating the threat of blackouts and the need for new super high voltage lines.

-- mark (mrobinowitz@igc.org), June 19, 2001.