Citizen’s group presses Hydro for more information

By Matthew Elder

A citizens’ lobby group opposed to Hydro-Québec’s plans to upgrade infrastructure in the area around Cowansville, Sutton, Lac Brome and Eastman is now pressuring the electricity utility to adopt one of its four proposed routes for new 120-kilovolt power lines.

Rejected Proposal and New Push for Route D

This summer, Hydro rejected a proposal by Sutton mayor Robert Benoit and Groupe Exigeons plus de Hydro-Québec (Ask More from Hydro-Québec) that would scale down the project by using lower-voltage cables atop lower towers and choosing existing power-line corridors instead of creating new rights of way through mostly forested and agricultural land.

Groupe Exigeons is now pressuring Hydro to set aside three of its four proposed power-line routes in favour of “Route D”, which would follow an existing corridor along Route 139 from Cowansville to Sutton.

While Route D would run a 120kV over 45-metre towers (considerably taller than the area’s existing 69kV pylons), Groupe Exigeons said in a press release issued September 3 that the Route D option “would significantly reduce impacts on agricultural and forest lands while building on existing infrastructure.” It said Hydro has confirmed this route is currently under review.

Citizen Committee Calls for Representation

To promote this compromise solution, the group has created the Brome-Missisquoi Citizens Committee / Demand More from Hydro-Québec. The goal is to have Hydro include the representative(s) of the committee in its working groups “to ensure fair and transparent citizen representation throughout the process.” It maintains the utility has provided little in the way of quantifiable information” as to why they are insisting on sticking with the 120kV plan.

What’s Next for the Project?

Hydro is to create a number of new power-line corridors with 120 kilovolts of electricity carried over towers as high as 45 meters. Central to the plan will be a large new substation to be constructed in the vicinity of Sutton Junction, one of five similar new installations proposed. A number of existing substations would be dismantled, including the one in Knowlton.

Hydro is to make public final details of the project sometime this fall.