County meets with landowners along B2H power line route

Jul. 15—About 20 Baker County property owners whose land is along the proposed route for the Boardman-to-Hemingway power transmission line attended a meeting this week to discuss their options in dealing with Idaho Power Company regarding payments for permanent easements.

County Commissioner Mark Bennett set up the meeting the evening of Wednesday, July 13 at the Courthouse.

Andrew Martin, an attorney with Intermountain Law in Baker City, the firm the county has enlisted, also

attended.

Bennett said county officials offered many years ago to help affected property owners navigate the potentially complicated process.

Idaho Power, the Boise company that has been leading the Boardman-to-Hemingway project since it was first proposed in 2007, would own 45% of the line, and PacifiCorp of Portland would own 55%.

The Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), a federal agency, was also involved in the project, but early this year the BPA transferred its ownership interest to Idaho Power.

"Over the years we discussed what would we do when we got to this point," Bennett said during Wednesday's meeting, noting that the proposed route covers more than 70 miles in Baker County and affects about 30 separate landowners, making it a challenge to get most or all to gather.

About 20 landowners attended, some by Zoom.

"I want to make this clear, we're not pushing anything specific, but we do think it's important that you hear from a confident land use law attorney," Bennett said, referring to Martin. "We think it's important that information gets out."

"I think it's a certainty that the line's going to happen, and they're nearing the stage that they're now approaching landowners," Martin said.

"The work that has been done has largely been the permitting aspect, getting the government permits that they need to construct that line."

The federal government has approved the 293-mile route, which runs from near Boardman, in Morrow County west of Pendleton, and the Hemingway substation near Murphy, Idaho. The Oregon Energy Facility Siting Council, part of the state Department of Energy, is reviewing the proposed 500-kilovolt transmission line, which would cross parts of Baker, Malheur, Union, Umatilla and Morrow counties.

The proposed route through Baker County would run south of Interstate 84 from near Huntington to the Durkee Valley, cross the freeway near Pleasant Valley, then follow the route of an existing 230-kilovolt line (which it would replace) along the north side of the freeway to near Baker City, then head north along the east side of Baker Valley between the freeway and the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center.

Martin said he has been in touch with Idaho Power officials, who expect to complete the state permitting process later this year, although he said "that timeline may get pushed out a little bit further."

Idaho Power anticipates the transmission line could be finished as early as 2026.

A regional organization, Stop B2H, has been working for several years to block the project, claiming it is not needed and would harm the environment, increase the risk of wildfire, and intrude on private property.

Idaho Power is required to survey sites along the route, including private property, for wildlife and plants, among other things.

In late 2021 and early 2022, attorneys representing the company filed 10 lawsuits against Baker County landowners — and similar complaints against other property owners elsewhere in Eastern Oregon — seeking access to their properties for surveys.

Idaho Power dismissed all the Baker County suits this spring after all the affected landowners granted the company permission to do surveys.

Easement payments

A focus of Wednesday's meeting was the one-time payments Idaho Power will offer to property owners for easements across their land.

"They have individuals that work with Idaho Power approaching landowners and presenting packages of documents to folks," said Martin, who called for a show of hands from property owners who'd already received the documents.

Nearly every landowner attending has received initial offers from Idaho Power.

Martin said landowners should have an attorney review the forms before signing.

"If you notice, they're full of blanks, so those are pretty generic forms," he said. "For most of you, unless you have an attorney look at it, it's a lot of legalese and lawyer jargon."

Martin said the packages are in effect the first step in the negotiating process. In most cases Idaho Power is seeking a 160-meter wide easement, although the dimensions vary depending on the property.

He said landowners would be able to continue using the easement for purposes such as cattle grazing.

Martin said that if Idaho Power can't negotiate an easement, the next step would be a "condemnation lawsuit."

Also known as eminent domain, that's a legal process that forces a private landowner to give up a portion of property for a public project, such as a highway or power line. The property owner would receive a payment, but it would be determined by the court rather than in a negotiation between the parties.

"You're probably all aware of that aspect," Martin said. "Idaho Power would file a lawsuit against you to obtain a right of way through your property. So, that process is fairly involved."

He said Idaho Power would prefer to avoid condemnation lawsuits, given the cost of litigation.

In response to a question from a landowner about where transmission towers would be built, Martin said Idaho Power would have some flexibility, but that towers and any other structures would have to be within the easement.

At the end of Wednesday's meeting, Bennett said property owners can contact him by email at mbennett@bakercounty.org for more information.