NEMA roadmap details the convoluted path to approval for transmission corridors

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Getting administrative approval for transmission line corridors is an expensive and time-consuming process that can take years to negotiate successfully. As a way to call attention to the problems and challenges related to transmission corridor siting, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), has published Siting Transmission Corridors which it describes as a roadmap of the administrative procedures and agencies involved. The roadmap, presented in the style of Hasbro's board game Chutes and Ladders, addresses the jumble of regulatory layers, the variety of stakeholders (like legislatures, transmission developers and utilities), traditional and renewable energy transmission and an exploration of why the process takes so excruciatingly long. Environmental impact statements alone, the roadmap notes, can stall a transmission project for years. NEMA fervently supports a national siting policy and legislation that would establish the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) as the lead agency for environmental reviews.

Quick Take: If you're unfamiliar with the trials and tribulations of getting a transmission corridor approved, you'll want to read NEMA's roadmap. It's a clear explanation of the twists and turns of the approval process.

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