SHEBANDOWAN — Environmental concerns regarding the route for proposed new high-voltage power lines between Shuniah, Atikokan and Dryden continue to flare as the project's proponent promises to "minimize" any impacts.
Some Shebandowan residents recently posted on social media their fears that Hydro One's Waasigan Transmission Line, if built as outlined, will "destroy" a wetland at the end of Shebandowan Lake's Three Mile Bay.
"Removing a 185-metre-long swath of trees along the waterline will have a devastating impact on the visual landscape at the end of Three Mile Bay, resulting in loss of forest habitat and runoff of nutrients into the lake," one resident posted this month.
The post added: "This does not have to be the case. We have repeatedly proposed that Hydro One utilize the former transmission line corridor on the other side of the existing transmission lines."
In an email on Friday, a Hydro One spokesman said measures based on public feedback "include an enhanced program to mitigate the risk of impact to lake trout habitat in water bodies, including Three Mile Bay and Shebandowan Lake."
"The natural environment and aesthetics of the landscape are important, and we will do what we can to minimize disruption and meet demand for electricity in the region," the spokesman added.
The Waasigan project is to be constructed in two phases.
The first phase, a double-circuit 230-kilovolt line between Shuniah and Atikokan, is to be in service by the end of 2025. Phase two, to involve a single-circuit 230-KV line between Atikokan and Dryden, is to be completed two years later.
Waasigan is a partnership between Hydro One and nine Northwestern Ontario First Nations.
A Hydro One spokeswoman said earlier that Waasigan's $1.2-billion price tag will add about 55 cents to monthly bills for the utility's residential customers, regardless of where they live in Ontario.
The province is expected to make a decision on Waasigan's environmental assessment document by the end of this year, according to a project timeline posted on the Waasigan project website.
Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal/Local Journalism Initiative
