Other applicants are described as ‘interested persons.’
Photo from MPRP Website
Baltimore, Md (KM) The Maryland Public Service Commission has granted 127 petitioners the right to intervene in the Maryland Piedmont Reliability Project. That comes out of 176 petitions that have been filed. . Those with intervention status include landowners whose properties are on or adjacent to the proposed 67-mile, 500-kilovolt power line which is expected to pass over northern Baltimore County, central Carroll County and southern Frederick County, ending at the Doubs substation in Adamstown.
It also includes local governments and public interest groups. Frederick County has filed a petition to intervene.
The Commission says the 116 petitions for intervention were filed by landowners who properties are affected by the proposed power line. They also include petitions filed by Baltimore, Carroll and Frederick Counties; State Delegate Nino Mangione; the Potomac Edison Company; STOP MRPR; the land Preservation Trust; the Maryland Farm Bureau; the Sierra Club; the Gunpowder Riverkeeper and the Potomac Riverkeeper Network. The Valley Planning Council had originally filed to intervene, but withdrew its petition, and accepted the status as an interested person.
The PSC says another 48 landowners who filed petitions to intervene but whose properties are not on or adjacent to the power line’s proposed right of way have been designated at “interested parties” for the purposes of this these proceedings and not party-interveners. Officials say they are not subject to discovery by party-intervenors, and are not required to file testimony, exhibits or other briefs in that case. But they can express concerns about the project during the public comment process at upcoming public hearings.
These interested persons can be re-designated as party intervenors if they request a change in status within 20 days after the pre-hearing conference. No date has been set for that process.. the PSC says.
The Commission says the designation of non-adjacent landowners as “interested persons” is without prejudice, and does not interfere with their ability to take part in the upcoming public hearings on MPRP.
On December 31st, 2024, , the Public Service Enterprise Group filed an application for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity. If granted, PSEG would be given the authority to construct the power line. The electricity carried by the line is expected to serve data centers in Northern Virginia.
Since it was first made know, the Maryland Piedmont Reliability Project has generated strong opposition in the three counties from property owners, particularly farmers. They says the line crossing their lands interferes with the private property rights, and makes the land difficult to farm. In addition, the landowners are concerned about PSEG possibly using eminent domain to enter their properties and do environmental assessments.
By Kevin McManus