Rocky Mountain Power and Idaho Power are working together to build approximately 1,000 miles of high voltage transmission lines across Wyoming and Idaho needed to supply customer power needs now and into the future. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is the lead agency for the NEPA process for Gateway West a project the Obama Administration identified as a national priority transmission project.
Both companies aim for the public involvement process to be accessible and effective for their customers, and siting that many miles of transmission lines means crossing remote areas that people can’t just drive out to see. So if you can’t bring the public to the project, bring the project to the people!
As part of the environmental review process and implementation of the strategic outreach plan, EnviroIssues developed and maintains an interactive mapping tool that allows people to see where the lines will go and how the various siting configurations would work. Following nearly six years of active public engagement, tracking public comments and developing outreach materials, the project received a record of decision (ROD) from the Bureau of Land Management, the final step in the federal environmental review process!