Enviornmental report summary

This majority of the information provided in the report is posted on this site. The report was conducted by Resource Strategies, Inc., under direction by the various member utilities of the WRAO. Input on the report was also provided by PSCW, MEQB and Iowa Utilities Board staff.

Please note that due to the amount of details contained in the map and the need to keep the file sizes small for web viewing, the map quality may not be as good as the hard copy maps.

The Wisconsin Reliability Assessment Organization (WRAO) was formed in early 1998 to coordinate activities relating to generation and transmission reliability issues in Wisconsin. Its members include all of the state’s investor owned utilities, members of the PSCW Staff, several municipal utilities and coops, and utilities from surrounding states. Activities of the WRAO include reliability policy development, performance evaluations of its members with respect to the adequacy of their supplies, and sponsorship of regional transmission planning studies.

Under the direction of the WRAO, the Wisconsin Interface Reliability Enhancement Study (WIRES) group is conducting a study which examines numerous options for improving the reliability of the state’s electric system by strengthening its connections with the interstate transmission grid. The WIRES group includes transmission planners from WRAO members as well as planning and regulatory staff from throughout the region. The WIRES group produced a report from the first phase of its current study which became the basis for the PSCW’s Report to the Wisconsin Legislature on the Regional Electric Transmission System.

The WRAO will combine the WIRES group’s assessment of the various options’ strengths and weaknesses with the results of the environmental screening process described in this report and other relevant information to recommend a preferred expansion plan and two alternatives to the PSCW. Filing for the required Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) is planned for the third quarter of 1999.

The intent of this report is to provide a reconnaissance-level environmental analysis and description of potential transmission line study areas that would provide for the bulk transfer of electric energy between the state of Wisconsin and areas west of Wisconsin. The utilities that support and are involved with this project will combine the environmental analysis described in this report with engineering studies to select a primary study area and system solution and one or two alternative solutions. Within each of these study areas, more specific routes for a transmission line potentially exist.

The goal of this report is two-fold. First of all this report aims to provide utility planning engineers with a reconnaissance level landscape analysis highlighting those factors that would influence the siting and economic feasibility of each of the potential transmission line options. This report does not list and describe every potential concern that may be raised regarding transmission line position or impact on the landscape. Secondly, this report provides regulators, utility personnel and the public with a first glance of the potential study area the proposed system solution would occupy and primary environmental considerations within that study area that are most likely to influence a particular options’ overall economic and siting feasibility.

Important: It should be assumed that the study areas described in this report do not represent specific transmission line routes. Within each study area there may be several opportunities for transmission line placement. It should also be assumed that alternative study areas might exist for each of these options which may have equal economic and environmental feasibility. This analysis does not represent a comprehensive study of all possible transmission line study area possibilities.

An overall description of the option study area is contained at the front of each option section with a short list of option opportunities and primary environmental considerations for that option. For ease of review, each transmission line option was segregated into its component parts at the midpoints. Analysis was performed and is described for each segment. Following the tabular analysis and written description, a GIS map describes the same material in pictorial fashion. An effort was made to maintain a consistent scale for each map. There may be some slight variation, however. You can see this information by going to the links for the various options located at the bottom of this page.

A compiled summary listing of all of the study area options and their attendant opportunities and primary environmental considerations is contained at the front of the report. This summary listing is posted below.

The following table provides a summary of environmental considerations, opportunities and percentages of public land for each of the option segments. The percentage provided for corridor sharing with existing transmission assumes corridor sharing could be accomplished using either side by side construction or double circuit construction, unless other wise noted.

Option	Length (Miles)	Public Lands	Considerations	Opportunities
1C Salem-Fitchburg (1)	77	2%	Upper Mississippi River crossing Urban and suburban Madison, WI Hilly Topography of SW Wisconsin	Corridor sharing with railroad, interstate highway, existing transmission—all intermittent. Corridor sharing with existing transmission: 10%
Salem-Fitchburg (2)	118	3%	Upper Mississippi River crossing Urban and suburban Madison, WI Hilly topography of SW Wisconsin	Corridor sharing of river crossing with existing transmission. Corridor sharing with existing transmission in Wisconsin and Iowa. Corridor sharing with state highway in Wisconsin. Total approximate and potential corridor sharing with existing transmission: 50%
Fitchburg-Rockdale	21	2%	Urban and suburban Madison, WI	Corridor sharing with existing transmission (side by side only) 100%
Fitchburg-N. Madison	25	3%	Urban and suburban Madison, WI	Corridor sharing with existing transmission: 100%
2E Prairie Island-La Crosse 1	94	18%	Upper Mississippi River crossing Numerous wildlife refuges associated with the Mississippi River Urban and suburban La Crosse, WI	Corridor sharing with existing transmission, including river crossing. Corridor sharing with railroad. Total approximate and potential corridor sharing with existing transmission: 70%
Prairie Island - La Crosse 2	104	16%	Upper Mississippi River crossing Numerous wildlife refuges associated with the Mississippi River Urban and suburban La Crosse, WI	Corridor sharing with existing transmission and railroad. Total approximate and potential corridor sharing with existing transmission: 80%
La Crosse - Columbia	101	5%	Wisconsin River crossing Tourist and natural area attractions associated with Wisconsin Dells	Corridor sharing with existing transmission and Interstate Highway. Total approximate and potential corridor sharing with existing transmission: 20%
3J Arrowhead-Ladysmith	109	9%	Lac Courte Oreilles Reservation St. Croix National Scenic Riverway crossing (Namekagon River)	Corridor sharing with existing transmission, railroad and pipeline. Total approximate and potential corridor sharing with existing transmission: 60%
Ladysmith-Weston 1	119	1%	Urban and suburban Ladysmith, WI	Corridor sharing with existing transmission and state highway. Total approximate and potential corridor sharing with existing transmission: 50%
Ladysmith – Weston 2	92	4%	Urban and suburban Ladysmith, WI	Corridor sharing with existing transmission, pipeline and state highway. Total approximate and potential corridor sharing with existing transmission: 50%
5A & B Chisago – Apple River	36	4.4%	St. Croix National Scenic Riverway (St. Croix River)	Corridor sharing with pipeline and with existing transmission. Total approximate and potential corridor sharing with existing transmission: 40%*
Apple River - Ladysmith	59	2%	Urban and suburban Ladysmith, WI	Corridor sharing with existing transmission and state highway. Total approximate and potential corridor sharing with existing transmission: 40%
Ladysmith-Weston 1	119	1%	Urban and suburban Ladysmith, WI	Corridor sharing with existing transmission and state highway. Total approximate and potential corridor sharing with existing transmission: 50%
Ladysmith – Weston 2	92	4%	Urban and suburban Ladysmith, WI	Corridor sharing with existing transmission, pipeline and state highway. Total approximate and potential corridor sharing with existing transmission: 50%
9B Lakefield - Adams	125	4%		Corridor sharing with highway and existing transmission. Total approximate and potential corridor sharing with existing transmission: 100%
Adams – Genoa	75	1%	Upper Mississippi River crossing	Corridor sharing with existing transmission: 100%
Genoa - Columbia	92	4%	Baraboo & Wisconsin Dells tourist attractions and natural areas Hilly topography of SW Wisconsin Wisconsin River crossing	Corridor sharing with existing transmission and interstate highway. Total approximate and potential corridor sharing with existing transmission: <5%
10 King-Eau Claire10 (1)	65	7%	Lower St. Croix National Scenic Riverway crossing (St. Croix River)	Corridor sharing with highway and existing transmission. Total approximate and potential corridor sharing with existing transmission: 10%
King-Eau Claire (2)	69	9%	Lower St. Croix National Scenic Riverway Crossing (St. Croix River)	Corridor sharing with highway and existing transmission. Total approximate and potential corridor sharing with existing transmission: 100%
Eau Claire - Weston	91	1%	Urban and suburban Eau Claire, WI	Corridor sharing with highway and existing transmission. Total approximate and potential corridor sharing with existing transmission: 95%

Each of the study areas was positioned using (1) the most efficient routing from substation to substation and (2) primary corridor sharing opportunities with existing transportation or energy corridors. When primary topographical or environmental considerations were noted, if possible, the study area was positioned to avoid them. In most cases, however the 5-mile study area buffer provided enough options within the study area to easily avoid primary environmental considerations. In some cases the study area was widened at intervals to accommodate an increased variety of water-body crossings or to accommodate large urban areas. After the study area was positioned, listing of geographical and topographical features was accomplished using the resources listed in the bibliography.

Each option segment is summarized in a table containing information that describes the study areas’ length, land use, public lands, cultural resources and sensitive resources. This data provides a general representation of the landscape within the study area.

Several discussions with Wisconsin State Historical Society Staff revealed that a possible way to describe cultural resources would be to designate areas of high concentrations of archeological sites on our maps. These concentrations would be determined from a literature review of existing State Historical Society topographical maps and bibliography. A sample run was made using the King-Weston option to determine the feasibility of this approach. Even in areas of reasonably high concentrations (near rivers and lakes) of archeological sites, it was determined that a transmission line could be routed through these areas, avoiding impact to them. For the purposes of this reconnaissance-level analysis RSI staff determined that the resource "Cultural Map of Wisconsin" combined with resources indicated in the DeLorme maps was the most appropriate resource for this information. Therefore cultural resources are primarily identified as those that would contribute to the siting or economic feasibility of a transmission line, e.g. airports, historic districts, reservations, and communication towers.

Sensitive resources include those described in the original Request-for-Proposal (RFP). In the original RFP, it was requested that major rivers (not small streams) be identified, and significant topographic features. In addition lakes and wetland areas have also been identified where they exist as significant landscape features. Natural areas are listed under the Public Land category.

Minnesota Atlas and Gazetteer, Second Edition, DeLorme, 1994
Iowa Atlas and Gazetteer, First Edition, DeLorme, 1998
Wisconsin Atlas and Gazetteer, Fifth Edition, DeLorme, 1998
Street Atlas, USA, V. 6.0, DeLorme
Cultural Map of Wisconsin: A Cartographic Portrait of the State, University of Wisconsin Press
Personal knowledge of Wisconsin geography and topography
Sources for GIS Map data are listed on individual maps

Please note that due to the amount of details contained in the map
and the need to keep the file sizes small for web viewing,
the map quality may not be as good as hard copy maps.