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Welcome to the third installment of Transmission e-dition. We’ll use this electronic newsletter to keep you up to date as we work to our mission to help keep the lights on, business running and communities strong.
IIf you’d like to submit a story idea or have a question, send us a note at info@atcllc.com.
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The Blanding’s turtle is unique in that, as a semi-aquatic species, it can swallow food in and out of the water. But fragmented and shrinking habitat has put the Blanding’s turtle on Wisconsin’s endangered species list. Maintaining aquatic and terrestrial habitat is key to the survival of this timid species. Here, a Blanding’s turtle is making itself at home in the restored wetland along a recently re-built ATC transmission line in Portage County. |
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What’s new in our transmission portfolio?
Wausau-area upgrades are complete and in-service, including a new circuit and one rebuilt circuit between the Gardner Park and Hilltop substations. An existing line between Wausau and Stevens Point was rebuilt in phases during the last year and will provide an added measure of reliability in the central part of Wisconsin.
The Venus-Metonga line between Monico and Crandon is scheduled to be energized in mid-June.
Construction will begin on the second segment of the Gardner Park-Central Wisconsin project from Wausau to Wittenberg in Shawano County and the Company will host a preconstruction open house on July 11 in the Town of Reid. The first segment of Caroline to Belle Plaine is currently under construction.
Construction on the 16-mile, 138 kV line from Cranberry-Conover in Oneida and Vilas Counties will begin in August.
We recently filed comments with the Michigan Public Service Commission regarding transmission capacity between northeastern Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Our Northern Umbrella Plan is a series of nine major construction and upgrade projects to strengthen the transmission system in the area. Capacity in the corridor between Green Bay into the U.P. was about 220 MW in 2006; capacity should be increased to 310 MW by the end of this year, with the goal to increase capacity to 500 MW by mid-2010. To learn more about our plans in the UP, go to the Zone 2 discussion in our 10-Year Transmission System Assessment.
In southern Wisconsin, we filed a construction application with the PSC for Paddock-Rockdale the first transmission line project in the midwest that is justified on economics. We propose to place a new 345-kV transmission line on existing rights of way between the Rockdale Substation in Dane County and the Paddock Substation in the Town of Beloit in Rock County. The line will complete a connection to Illinois and while the project improves system reliability, its primary purpose is to help local utilities access less expensive power in the region.
In Dane County, by request we completed an underground construction study for the Rockdale-West Middleton project, a proposal for a new 345-kV transmission line in southern Dane County. The study concluded that Madison’s Beltline highway is not a suitable location for underground facilities. ATC conducted the underground study along the Beltline—the first to be conducted by the company for a 345-kV line—in response to requests from the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin and several local governments to evaluate options for undergrounding the proposed transmission line. ATC will not be recommending underground construction because of operational and cost concerns. Wisconsin currently doesn’t have any power lines of this voltage underground. The company expects to announce its final overhead routes for the transmission line project in late July of this year and file for the necessary approvals from state regulators in October.
IIn other Dane County news, ATC expects to receive a decision this month on the North Madison-Waunakee project, a proposal for a new 11-mile, 138-kilovolt transmission line in northern Dane County, and the PSC review continues on the Fitchburg-Verona project, a proposal for a new 6-mile,138-kilovolt line in southern Dane County. Both are needed to support local growth and strengthen the network.
Visit our Website for more information on all our active projects.
In the Community
ATC is the proud sponsor of Prairie Jewel, a realistic, if somewhat enlarged, version of the Karner blue butterfly. Prairie Jewel, created by Manitowoc artist Ruth Nielsen, is part of the “Butterflies and Friends on Parade,” a public art fund-raiser for the Einstein Project in Green Bay. Although the tiny Karner is rare nationwide, the species is recovering well in Wisconsin, thanks to a coordinated effort to maintain the butterfly’s habitat. The main food source for the Karner caterpillar is wild lupine, which flourishes in mowed transmission line corridors. Prairie Jewel is on display in Jackson Square Park in downtown Green Bay. A representation of the artwork is shown below.
ATC employees participated in the recently completed United Performing Arts Campaign. Employees in the Pewaukee Headquarters were entertained by a violin, flute and cello trio from the Festival City Orchestra and by performer Chris Flieller from In Tandem, who prepared a skit specially tailored to ATC. Employees raised more than $4,000, which was matched by ATC to support Milwaukee-area arts.
Madison employees participated in the Susan Komen Race for the Cure to support breast cancer research the first weekend in June, and other ATC employees volunteered to staff an exhibit on environmental stewardship at the Milwaukee County Zoo the same weekend. ATC was the lead sponsor of the Zoo’s annual Conservation Weekend.
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