US District Court Allow PPL to Proceed to Destroy Delaware Water Gap

For more information, contact
Don Miles, Chair, Sierra Club PA Chapter Transmission Committee 
610-730-2514
donmiles@rcn.com

Last week the US District Court issued a decision allowing PPL Electric Utilities Corporation to begin construction of the  Susquehanna to Roseland Transmission Line (“S-R Line”)through three national park areas -- the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, the Middle Delaware National Scenic and Recreational River, and the Appalachian National Scenic Trail. The Pennsylvania Sierra Club is extremely disappointed that the court did not halt the PPL’s construction of the high-voltage Susquehanna Roseland power line through these natural areas.

“This is a crushing blow for one of the nation’s most treasured natural places”, Transmission Committee Chair Don Miles said. “This construction will forever change the landscape of this spectacular vista that welcomes five million visitors annually, including those traveling along the Appalachian Trail. It is a loss for nature, for Pennsylvanians and for all who treasure this special place.”

The Sierra Club and nine other environmental groups was seeking an injunction to halt PPL’s construction of the 500kv, 200-ft towers, which was to begin the first week of September. The US District Court of D.C. not only ruled against the injunction but also against the basis for the appeal, clearing the way for PPL to begin construction.

The 145-mile, high-voltage power line will cut through the heart of the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, the Delaware "Wild & Scenic" River, and the Appalachian Trail.  Although the power line will use parts of  existing rights of way, the construction will expand these corridors, impacting wildlife, tourism and recreation.

The environmental groups filed the appeal, arguing that the power line would cause significant harm to the natural integrity of the park and disfigure the region.  The groups asserted that the "no-build" option was not properly considered by the National Parks Service.

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Motion Filed to Halt Construction on Susquehanna-Roseland Transmission Line

In the federal lawsuit now pending before Chief Judge Richard W. Roberts of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia (National Parks Conservation Association et al. v. S.M.R. Jewell et al., No. 1:12-cv-01690-RWR), the ten plaintiff environmental organizations today filed a motion with the Court for a preliminary injunction to halt the initial construction, planned for September 3, 2013, of utilities PPL/PSEG's "Susquehanna-Roseland" 500kv electric transmission line (with two lines of 190 ft. towers) through the heart of the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. 

Plaintiffs' motion argues that "the start of tree clearing and road building in the [DWGNRA] in two week's time will inflict irreparable harm on the parks" and  that "if that construction is allowed to begin and continue, [the] Court's review and Plaintiffs' efforts to protect the parks from the consequences of unlawful agency action would be fruitless." The irreparable harm that would be caused by the construction includes damage that the National Park Service has already admitted will occur: irreversible harm to multiple resources in the park -- clear-cutting of acres of trees, roads crossing fragile wetlands, damage to stormwater flows, and fragmenting of wildlife habitats -- degradation of the scenic landscape, and appreciable diminishment of key aspects of the park that visitors come to enjoy.

Defendants (U.S. Dept. of the Interior and National Parks Service and intervenors PPL and PSEG) have 7 days to file a response. 

A court hearing on the motion has been requested but not yet scheduled. 

The plaintiff environmental organizations seeking to halt the construction include: Appalachian Mountain Club, Appalachian Trail Conservancy, Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions, Delaware Riverkeeper Network, National Parks Conservation Association, New Jersey Highlands Coalition, New York–New Jersey Trail Conference, Rock the Earth, Sierra Club, and Stop the Lines.

For more info. contact:

Hannah Chang, Esquire

co-counsel for plaintiffs

Earth Justice

156 William Street - Suite 800

New York, NY 10038

tel: 212-791-1881

email: hchang@earthjustice.org