Sébastien Kraft for InsideNoVa
A new 6.5-mile Dominion Energy transmission line in western Prince William County connecting an existing substation in Nokesville to the future Bristow switching station is sparking citizen outcry over its presumed link to increased grid demand resulting from local data centers.
The 230-kilovolt transmission line was front and center at a Nov. 5 rally and protest at George Mason University’s Beacon Hall in Manassas prior to a Dominion Energy open house on the issue at the same venue, part of the Innovation Park hub.
Members of the Coalition to Protect Prince William County and the Civic Association of Brentsville and Surrounding Areas attended the event alongside several state and local officials, including state Sen. Danica Roem, Deshundra Jefferson, Prince William Board of County Supervisors chair, and George Stewart, Gainesville supervisor-elect.
In a statement to InsideNoVa, Jefferson lamented the current status quo with regard to power line locations.
“Dominion has talked about grid stability, grid reliability,” Jefferson said. “But why is that? What is draining our power grid so much that we have to talk about putting transmission lines in people’s backyards?”
Jefferson also referenced Braemar, a dense residential community in Bristow at the forefront of the transmission line debate.
“Transmission lines and the growing need for power are harmful side effects of data center development,” Jefferson said in her statement, “and some Braemar residents are fed up because it has a direct impact on them.”
Not a typical transmission line
In a phone interview, Vida Carroll, one of the civic association’s co-leaders, told InsideNoVa that this project is unique. She said the Nov. 5 rally had a turnout of 250-300.
“This power line project is different from some of the other power line projects we’ve seen in the area recently,” Carroll said. “Because first off, it doesn’t expand an existing right of way. It is a totally brand new line. And then secondly, it’s a power line that doesn’t just stay within the confines of an industrial area or a retail area or along a major road. This power line – all three routes go through rural and residential space and impact private landholders.”
Dominion’s three routes include one through Nokesville and along local railroad tracks to the Bristow switching station; a second proposal runs through rural Nokesville, along Kettle Run and through Burnside Farms all the way to Bristow; and a third option stretches along the gas utility easement behind Patriot High School, across Braemar and then along Broad Run to Bristow.
In an email to InsideNoVa, Aisha Khan, a Northern Virginia spokeswoman for Dominion Energy, indicated buried lines – an option favored by some residents, including Carroll – are not in store for the project.
“The routes currently shown are those we believe to be the most feasible and least impactful based on early cultural and environmental studies,” Khan said in an email. “We also explored a hybrid route with both overhead and underground segments, but due to space constraints in the Nokesville area, undergrounding isn’t a practical or reliable option for this project.”
Khan said all routes are “still conceptual” and added Dominion doesn’t yet have a “preferred or proposed route.”
“That’s exactly why we hold community open houses,” Khan said, “as public input helps us refine and narrow down the options before submitting a proposed and alternate route to the State Corporation Commission for review.”
Khan spoke to the “important role” of community engagement and said Dominion has received “a lot of valuable feedback” thus far.
Community members who could not attend the Nov. 5 event are encouraged to submit comments through the project website at dominionenergy.com/nokesville.
Keywords
Dominion Energy,
transition lines,
power lines,
blue line,
Bristow,
Braemar,
Nokesville,
Prince William County,
rally,
protest,
Protect Prince William County,
Brentsville,
Sen. Danica Roem,
Deshundra Jefferson,
Prince William Board of County Supervisors chair,
George Stewart,
Gainesville supervisor-elect,
electrical grid,
Kettle Run,
Burnside Farms,
Broad Run
