by Dennis Dalman
Plans are underway for a new electrical transmission line in St. Joseph that could boost by almost one-third the power available to the area. If approved, the line construction would be done in the summer of 2024.
Information about the project was made available during a Feb. 17 meeting at the St. Joseph Fire Department.
Great River Energy, based in Maple Grove, is proposing the upgrade. GRE is the wholesale electrical supplier to Stearns Electric Association.
The project actually began during the last decade. This latest phase will complete the process. It involves constructing 3.2 miles of a 115-kV transmission line (115 kilovolts, which is 115,000 volts). The current line carries 69-kV (69,000 volts).
Another part of the project is upgrading two power stations to accommodate the increased electrical load.
The new power lines, held by tall wooden poles, would follow this route: It would begin at GRE’s west St. Cloud substation, then go east along Ridgewood Road, then to the Westwood substation. The line would run east for 1,100 feet and turn north for 1.4 miles to Mullen Road, then west along Mullen Road to a new switch pole on the west side of Hwy. 133.
Line construction cannot begin until the route permit is approved by the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission. Preparations also include an environmental assessment, as well as public meetings to allow for public comments from city and area residents and from regulatory agencies.
Also needed are easements of 35 feet on each side of the power lines. The wooden-pole structures, each from 75- to 80-feet tall, would be installed every 350 to 400 feet along the route.
Trees would have to be removed or pruned periodically within the 70-foot easement for quick and safe access to maintain and/or repair the power lines. Herbicides would be applied periodically by licensed applicators to squelch the growth of trees and brush. Any planting in the easement zone would require prior permission from GRE. The growth of native habitat plants is not only allowed but encouraged.
GRE is a not-for-profit wholesale electrical cooperative that provides power to 28 member-owned distribution cooperatives. The co-ops deliver electricity to two-thirds of Minnesota and parts of western Wisconsin. All told, those areas include 700,000 families, farms and businesses.
Why is there a need for new power lines? According to information provided by GRE, the current lower-voltage lines can create a variety of problems. They include disruptions to industrial and manufacturing companies as well as damage to motors in such in-home appliances like air conditioners. Such appliances compensate for low-power fluctuations by drawing in more and more electricity, which can cause others to heat up and burn out.
In addition, GRE noted-= that area power outages can happen during times of heavy electrical usage when overloaded lower-power lines sometimes shut down.
Another major factor for the new power line, according to GRE, is that an increasing amount of electricity is being used – more than ever before in cities and rural areas throughout the United States. GRE is on record as promoting conservation efforts for electrical usage, but a company statement says that as long as new businesses, new houses and other new uses for electricity continue into the future, new power-line projects will be needed to provide the distribution of reliable electricity.
