RICL has been dishonest with the public

A March 6 Gazette editorial expressed some support for the Rock Island Clean Line (RICL) electric transmission line project. Unfortunately, it appears that support is based on misinformation.

First, let me be clear that Iowa needs more transmission to serve and promote our wind and solar energy resources.

But in order for transmission lines to make that energy available to all sources and all customers, those lines must be part of an integrated power grid. Only a selected group of energy sources in northwest Iowa will be able to put energy on the RICL.

Nobody in Iowa will be able to use the power transmitted on the line. Simply converting the line from direct current (DC) to alternating current (AC) would open those lines to the grid in Iowa and the surrounding states.

This does not mean that Iowa should not export its excess renewable energy to other states. Exporting energy can be done with AC lines. DC lines only benefit a company like RICL. There are other transmission projects being planned for Iowa, by MidAmerican, ITC Midwest, and others. Those are all AC lines and will serve Iowa and other states. There is no reason RICL cannot do the same.

The Gazette editorial listed several alleged benefits of the RICL project. Those alleged benefits need to be examined more closely:

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The RICL project would not spur $7 billion in new wind farm investment. Does RICL have any credible verification of that claim? Does RICL have any commitments from any entity that would build the wind farms? In any event, an AC line would spur just as much investment as a DC line.

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RICL promises 500 permanent operations jobs. What would the workers be doing? And at a public meeting in Linn County a couple of years ago, RICL said it would provide 3-5 permanent jobs in Iowa and 5-8 jobs in Illinois.

That makes sense. There is really nothing to operating a transmission line after it is constructed. And again, just as many jobs, no matter the number, would be created with an AC line.

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RICL would not generate property taxes that would, as The Gazette claims, go to local governments and schools. The landowner would pay the property taxes that are assessed on the property. RICL will pay a Replacement Tax under Chapter 437A of the Iowa Code assessed by the state at a significantly lower rate than the property tax.

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RICL would not bring any more competition to the market than an AC line would. In fact, because it would be a DC line going directly to Chicago and points east, it would not bring competition to the Iowa market.

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RICL will not use single pole towers that leave a smaller footprint. They did promise single poles early on, but at the most recent public meeting in Linn County, RICL said it was going to use lattice towers. So they have not kept their promise.

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Exporting wind and solar from Iowa to other states on a DC line going directly to Chicago will benefit very few Iowans.

As I said before, there is nothing wrong with exporting our excess wind and solar energy, but with this project the only beneficiaries are RICL and utilities in Illinois.

Iowa does not export its grain and livestock with no benefit to Iowans or with Iowans having no access to those commodities.

In short, RICL has not been honest in its representations to the public, and any benefit that new transmission would bring can be accomplished with an AC line, which would provide more and better service for renewable energy.

l Wallace Taylor is an environmental attorney in Cedar Rapids. Comments: wtaylor784@aol.com