HECO plan calls for underground power line
By James Gonser
Advertiser Urban Honolulu Writer
Blocked from placing new power lines on scenic Wa'ahila Ridge, Hawaiian Electric Co. says it still needs a backup power system and yesterday unveiled a plan that calls for an underground transmission line through one or more of three areas: Date Street to Palolo; Kapi'olani/McCully; and Ward/McCully.
• Public meetings to discuss HECO's plans for new power transmission lines will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. on: • June 23 in the Filipino Community Center's Ballroom A, at 94-428 Mokuola St. in Waipahu. • June 24 at the Dole Cannery Ballroom, 650 Iwilei Road. • June 25 in Room 101 on the Hawai'i Loa campus of Hawai'i Pacific University, 45-045 Kamehameha Highway, Kane'ohe. • Hawaiian Electric Co. has hired an independent company to lead the meetings and report community reaction to the Public Utilities Commission, the state Office of Consumer Advocate and HECO. Representatives of HECO will field questions at the meetings. • Separate meetings for a community advisory committee comprising neighborhood boards and other organizations in the affected areas will be held June 26 and July 17 at a time and place yet to be selected.
The utility says its East O'ahu transmission project is needed to make electric service more reliable from downtown to Hawai'i Kai and from Kahuku to Makapu'u Point. But the main opponents of the Wa'ahila line say the new project is not needed and they will also oppose the new proposals.
Community meetings
"I think it was made really clear through the contested-case process that (another) line is not needed," said Mary Steiner, The Outdoor Circle's chief executive officer. "Whether it's above ground, under ground, on the ridge, off the ridge, there is no need to spend the public's money to build this."
Last year, HECO lost a seven-year battle for a $31 million power-line project on Wa'ahila Ridge after the state Board of Land and Natural Resources voted down the utility's application for conservation land use.
"We cannot go up there, we are not going up there, we're not going to make any attempt to permit anything on Wa'ahila Ridge," said Robbie Alm, HECO senior vice president. "We got into a battle on scenic, cultural and other issues and the transmission part of it got lost in there."
But "there is still is a transmission issue," Alm said, and "we need to focus now" on that again.
The alternatives include:
- A 3.6-mile, 138,000-volt underground transmission line from the Kamoku subdivision on Date Street to the back of Palolo Valley.
- A 1-mile, 46,000-volt underground transmission line from the Makaloa substation to the McCully substation.
- A 1.9-mile, 46,000-volt underground transmission line from the Archer Lane substation, near Blaisdell Concert Hall, to McCully Street, which would be used in conjunction with the second alternative. A transformer at the Archer substation would also be required.
Alm would not discuss costs, but HECO has estimated the cost of a line through Palolo at $46 million.
HECO plans a series of community meeting to collect public opinion before selecting one plan, Alm said, but any of the three will do the job.
"They all satisfy (our needs) in different degrees," Alm said. "We want the public to help us wrestle with the pros and cons of each of these alternatives."
Alm said the company learned a tough lesson from the Wa'ahila battle and other power-line routing issues: to seek out public opinion before making a major decision. HECO spent an estimated $13 million to promote the Wa'ahila project.
"This is a really new process for us," he said. "It is important to listen to the public and bring them in as early into the process as we can."
Steiner said HECO deserves kudos for involving the public, but her group will oppose the new proposals just the same.
Steiner said the residents of Palolo Valley have made it clear they don't want a transmission line running through their community.
Henry Curtis, executive director of Life of the Land, one of three environmental and community groups that opposed HECO's application to build on Wa'ahila Ridge, said he will oppose the new project.
"We will continue to suggest alternatives to Hawaiian Electric, but we strongly believe there is no need for this line," said Curtis, who also warned that placing a line in Palolo would likely disturb Hawaiian cultural sites.
Alm said the project will address critical electric power reliability concerns for 56 percent of the power demand on O'ahu.
"The current lines are reliable. The challenge is always when you are maintaining lines, which you have to do on a routine basis, you take lines out of service," Alm said. "You have to configure your system such that there is sufficient backup to protect the loads should anything happen.."
Alm hopes to complete public meetings this summer and apply for the necessary permits for the alternative selected by the end of the year.
Reach James Gonser at jgonser@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2431.
