Spier Falls-Rotterdam New 115kv Transmission Line Project: Answers to Some Common Questions PROPERTY QUESTIONS: Will National Grid be acquiring property and easements? Yes. In order to build and properly operate/maintain the new transmission line, National Grid will need to purchase property and to secure easements. ‘The transmission corridor will consist of three areas: 1 The transmission line right-of-way (ROW): The transmission line itself will be built on property owned by National Grid, For most of the route, National Grid already owns enough land for the construction of the new line, However, there are some areas where the ROW is too narrow and we will be looking to purchase property from agjacent landowners. 1 Vegetation Management Area: This area is adjacent to the transmission line and enables utltes to keep vegetation/trees a safe distance from power lines. National Grid will be seeking vegetation management rights as part of this project. National Grid would NOT own this property. Rights would be secured from the landowner through an easement and, in many cases, National Grid will provide a one-time payment to the landowner for these rights. | Beyond the Veostation Management Area: This section is similar to the vegetation management area in that National Grid will NOT own this property. Tree-trimming/removal rights, where not already acquired, would be Obtained from landowners at the same time the vegetation management easement is obtained. Only trees that pose a threat to the transmission line would be affected. The power of action’ ( : 5 J nationalgridoo Can National Grid acquire property or easements without landowner knowledge? No. If property rights are required from a landowner, National Grid will be in contact with the landowner to explain what rights are required for the construction or maintenance of the new facilities. If property acquisi- tion results from a negotiated agreement, the landowner will have participated in the negotiations and agreed to the price and other terms. if acquisition results from condemnation (eminent domain), the required legal process includes notification to the landowner. While public utlities can use eminent domain to acquire prop- erty, National Grid prefers, when possible, to negotiate acceptable agreements with individual landowners. Can National Grid use or cross my property without permission? No. And in areas where National Grid already has access rights, including where they will have been obtained in connection with this project, our crews will attempt to provide advanced notice to the property owner before work is performed, How will National Grid limit access to the ROW during the construction of this project? Would all-terrain vehicles be prohibited from entering it? National Grid prohibits all unauthorized use of its property and will take steps to limit access to the ROW, We will work with property owners and local authorities should specific problems need to be addressed, ‘Additional actions we might take could include the erection of signage, access gates, or fences, as well as the implementation of other measures. VEGETATION MANAGEMENT AREA QUESTIONS: What will occur on National Grid's property and within vegetation management easement areas? Within the transmission line ROW (owned by National Grid) and within all vegetation management areas, trees, saplings, and shrubs will be removed by clearing or mowing to provide unimpeded and safe access to proposed structure work sites. After the projact is completed, landowners will have full use oftheir property (on which National Grid has a vegetation management easement, but there will be some restrictions as to the ‘ype of vegetation that may be planted by the lanclowner in his/her vegetation management area. While some medium-growing species, woody shrubs, and low-growing species will be allowed to re-vegetate in vegeta- tion management areas, tall-growing species will not be permitted. National Grid will work with landowners to suggest appropriate vegetation choices Will anything happen to my trees? ‘As previously mentioned, trees and shrubs will be cleared to the full width of the property owned by National Grid, and further through the vegetation management easement areas. Beyond the vegetation management easement areas, trees that pose a particular threat to the transmission facilty will be selected for removal. ‘Where National Grid does not already have the necessary easements to remove such tees, National Grid wil 808k to acquire these rights. As trees fang into the lines present the greatest risk of tree-caused outages on transmission circuits, itis important to remove any tree that represents a threat or hazard to the normal oper- ation of the transmission line. Assessing whether a tree poses a particular danger to a conductor or other key \a nEnnRE RRR EERE ‘component of a transmission facilty typically is based on a combination of the tree's proximity (to the line ‘or other components) and its physical condition (.6., mortality, lean, decay, cavities, cracks, weak branch- ing, root iting, or other instabiity). After the initial clearing, National Grid foresters will assess the condi tion of the trees beyond the vegetation management easement. At that point, trees that have been assessed 25 posing a threat or hazard to the transmission facility will be marked for removal LINE CONSTRUCTION/DESIGN QUESTIONS: Did National Grid explore other construction/design options? In lieu of what is proposed by this project, some individuals have suggested that the new line should be placed on the existing structures, or that a new set of structures on which can be put both circuits should be constructed to replace the set of structures that currently is there. National Grid has examined these ‘options, Although each has some potential cost- and land-related advantages, from an electrical operat- ing perspective there are more significant and over-riding advantages resuiting from building the new line on a separate set of structures, as proposed, and keeping the current line where itis. The two most important of these are: (1) increased system relabilty and (2) more operational flexibilty. With separate structures supporting the parallel lines, a single contingency event, such as a lightning strike, is much less likely to interrupt power flow in the area. Also, separate structures would faciitate maintenance on either line without possibly requiring a planned outage on the other. Why can't the line be placed underground? In most cases, National Grid's preferred technology for new transmission lines is overhead construction because it allows for a cost-effective system that is relatively simple to operate and maintain. National Grid has installed underground transmission lines in limited cases, such as in urban areas where obtain- ing an overhead transmission line right-of-way would be impractical, and near airports, where an over- head transmission line would interfere with airport operations. Underground transmission lines are significantly more costly than equivalent overhead transmission lines; they are typically three to ten times as expensive. For this project, the overhead line is estimated to cost about $66 millon, whereas an equivalent underground system is estimated to cost more than $350 million -- over five times as much as the overhead line cost. This additional cost would be borne by National Grid customers, Underground transmission lines also create operational issues, one of the most significant of which is repair times. An overhead transmission line typically can be repaired in 48 hours or less, while the repair time for an underground transmission tine is typically two weeks to a month (and sometimes longer) ‘Transmission lines typicaly serve large areas (entire towns and cities). The longer repair times for under- ‘ground lines can inorease the possibilty of power outages in these areas. Underground transmission lines also have different electrical characteristics than overhead lines. This makes it more dificutt to keep volt- ages within acceptable limits, which potentially could result in damage to customer property. It also makes the transmission system more difficult to operate. continued on back nationalgrid The power of actiorcontinued from insidle Whereas this project as proposed requires no new substations, in reviewing an underground alternative, National Grid determined that two additional electrical substations would be necessary for an underground pian. These substations would be nesded to address the electrical issues associated with underground transmission lines. In addition, they would be needad to tap into the underground lines to supply the existing substations and their ‘associated distribution lines. Having considered both the significantly higher costs (almost $300 milion more) and the operational disadvan- tages associated with underground transmission lines, National Grid prefers an overhead transmission tne in this case. Will this line improve reliability? Yes. The new line will provide additional capacity and more robust contingency performance for the electric transmission system which serves the region. If you have any q or concerns that were not Coro\V(-1¢-10 anal cyan @10(co14 0] aIsino Answers” document, please contact National Grid at oo nationalgrid gy) The power of action’ comes NY 07.10