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Vantage to Pomona Heights Chapter 2
<br />230 kV Transmission Line Project FEIS Proposed Action and Alternatives
<br /> PAGE 2-73
<br />2.4.2.9 Alternative E
<br />Alternative E consists of Route Segments 1a/NNR-1, 1c, 2a, 2b, 2d, 3a, and 3c. This alternative is 61.6
<br />miles in length, would cross JBLM YTC on its east side, would follow a railroad corridor and cross
<br />BLM-administered land on the west side of the Columbia River and would be located primarily on private
<br />lands. This alternative also crosses land managed by Reclamation, DNR, and Grant County PUD and is
<br />located in Yakima, Kittitas, Benton, and Grant counties. SR-243 would be crossed in one location west of
<br />the Vernita Bridge.
<br />2.4.2.10 Alternative F
<br />Alternative F consists of Route Segments 1a/NNR-1, 1c, 2a, 2b, 2d, 3a, and 3c. This alternative is
<br />65.1miles in length, would avoid JBLM YTC, and would cross the Wahluke Slope and BLM-
<br />administered land in the Saddle Mountains Management Area and would be located primarily on private
<br />lands. This alternative also crosses land managed by Reclamation and DNR and is located in Yakima,
<br />Benton, and Grant counties. SR-243 would be crossed in one location west of the Vernita Bridge.
<br />2.4.2.11 Alternative G
<br />Alternative G consists of Route Segments 1a/NNR-1, 1c, 2a, 2c, 2d, 3a, and 3b. This alternative is 63.4
<br />miles in length, would cross JBLM YTC on its east side, would follow a railroad corridor and cross
<br />BLM-administered land on the west side of the Columbia River, and would be located primarily on
<br />private lands. This alternative also crosses land managed by Reclamation, DNR, and Grant County PUD
<br />and is located in Yakima, Kittitas, Benton, and Grant counties. SR-243 would be crossed in one location
<br />west of the Vernita Bridge.
<br />2.4.2.12 Alternative H
<br />Alternative H consists of Route Segments 1a/NNR-1, 1c, 2a, 2c, 2d, 3a, and 3c. This alternative is 66.9
<br />miles in length, would cross JBLM YTC on its southwest side, would cross the Wahluke Slope and BLM-
<br />administered land in the Saddle Mountains Management Area and would be located primarily on private
<br />lands. This alternative also crosses land managed by Reclamation and DNR and is located in Yakima,
<br />Benton, and Grant counties. SR-243 would be crossed in one location west of the Vernita Bridge.
<br />2.5 ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED BUT ELIMINATED
<br />The BLM, Cooperating Agencies, and Pacific Power considered several alternatives to the proposed
<br />Project. Some alternatives were eliminated from further consideration because they were technically or
<br />economically infeasible, would violate reliability criteria and standards, or because their successful
<br />implementation was determined by the BLM, Cooperating Agencies, and Pacific Power to be remote or
<br />speculative.
<br />2.5.1 Transmission Alternatives
<br />2.5.1.1 Double Circuit Existing Pomona-Wanapum 230 kV Transmission Line
<br />This alternative was considered to determine whether it would be feasible to replacePacific Power’s
<br />existing Pomona-Wanapum single-circuit 230 kV Transmission Line with a new double-circuit
<br />transmission line on a single set of structures in Pacific Power’s existing ROW corridor, thereby meeting
<br />Pacific Power’s objectives without having to increase the ROW corridor size and creating new impacts to
<br />the surrounding environment. This alternative was determined to be infeasible and was eliminated from
<br />further consideration because it would violate mandatory NERC and WECC standards of reliability and
<br />approved criteria for line separation as discussed below.
<br />The last transmission line built by Pacific Power to serve the electrical loads and its customers in the
<br />Yakima Valley was the Pomona-Wanapum 230 kV Transmission Line which was constructed in the mid-
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