Surveyors for controversial Maryland electrical grid project want access to residents' properties
The developer behind the Maryland Piedmont Reliability Project (MPRP) filed for court-ordered access to these properties.
This means the courts will now decide whether or not they will be able to move forward with this part of the MPRP project.
The Maryland Piedmont Reliability Project (MPRP) has become controversial
among many Maryland residents
.
"The trees we see here, the trees that are under threat, are the trees that my great-grandfather planted here," said Joanne Frederick, president of STOP MPRP and a Maryland landowner. "This farm is also protected by conservation, and this farm is also protected by conservation and preservation easements and all to keep the legacy and protect the environment."
PSEG Renewable Transmission, a New Jersey-based company, applied for a permit to begin the construction of 70 miles of overhead 500,000-volt power lines connecting an existing transmission line through parts of
Baltimore, Carroll, and Frederick counties
.
"This is certainly a David versus Goliath situation," Frederick said.
On Tuesday, PSEG filed a court order for Temporary Right to Entry to take environmental surveys of 91 (parcels) properties for the project.
This controversial task would run high-voltage lines through Frederick, Carroll, and Baltimore counties on land owned by people like Frederick. However, before the project can move forward, the company explained that they must finish environmental surveys on landowners' properties.
In order to do this, they have to receive temporary right of entry from landowners.
"If the judge rules in PSEG's favor, we'll be standing on edge even more for months and months and months, never knowing really if today's the day that someone's going to knock on your door," Frederick said.
Frederick explained that the project would destroy several acres of her property and her neighbors.
In November 2024
, WJZ reported that the Chesapeake Bay Foundation said the project posed several risks to Maryland's habitat and water quality, damaging protected forests, nutrient-rich wetlands, and sources of clean water.
"It's certainly an escalation, and it feels like a threat. It feels like a threat to people's safety and security and enjoyment of their homes," Frederick said.
A spokesperson for PSEG said that the project is essential to support Maryland's growing electric needs and that the current electrical system is overloaded.
According to PSEG, the Maryland Piedmont Reliability Project is a needed infrastructure project that will both help maintain the reliability of the electric system in Maryland and put downward pressure on the cost of electricity by increasing the supply entering the state.
The company explained that Maryland currently imports 40% of the energy it consumes from elsewhere. This means electricity must be brought in via transmission lines that move power from other states.
PSEG did issue a statement a week before the court filing, stating that they would seek court orders to allow surveyors the right of entry to certain properties where property owners have not voluntarily allowed access.
"PSEG is also willing to have discussions with landowners regarding compensation for the Right of Entry. To reiterate, this is not an easement and does not grant permanent property rights or construction rights or obligate the landowner to grant an easement," a PSEG spokesperson wrote in a statement to WJZ.
The statement continued, "Because we would prefer to avoid having to take court action, we have decided to make one more public effort to request property owners to allow MPRP to conduct surveys on their property. PSEG is also willing to have discussions with landowners regarding compensation for the Right of Entry. To reiterate, this is not an easement and does not grant permanent property rights or construction rights or obligate the landowner to grant an easement."
According to PSEG, to date, the current filing impacts 91 parcels in the initial filing, and there will be additional filings over the next few months.
"This should not only be PSEG's narrative or and it should not only be PJM's narrative," said Frederick. "This line is not needed. Virginia may need more power for the data centers that they choose to build in Virginia, but that is not Maryland's problem, and we shouldn't be forced to pay the price."
Frederick said the individual landowners listed on the filing are meeting with attorneys to support those listed and the others are expected to come.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Stunning N.J. middle school set to make colorful debut. Here's a sneak peak inside.
Walking around their newly constructed middle school a full three weeks before classes start, Rihanna Amaya and Victoria Rodriguez-Clavel were already picturing their seventh grade school year. Their new school, which opens Sept. 2, is splashed with color. Like many new schools, segments of the building are unified by bright hues. But the newly-constructed South Hunterdon Regional Middle School in Lambertville takes the design element to a new level by adding color to hallway ceilings to create a mood lighting effect. Each grade level is represented by one bold color and in shared spaces, including the cafeteria, all of the colors are visible. 'I like the lockers and with the colored hallways. It's going to be easier to navigate,' Rihanna said. The new school also brings new options for the seventh graders. Victoria said she is going to take choir this year, an option she didn't have last year in the much smaller school building that housed the fifth and sixth grades. 'I noticed there's a softball field,' said Victoria, who also hopes to join the team this fall. The girls were among the first to tour New Jersey's newest middle school earlier this week. Some of the people visiting the building — which will serve 220 fifth through eighth graders this year — fought a difficult battle to pass a $33 million referendum to fund not only the construction of the new school but also a renovation and expansion of South Hunterdon Regional Elementary School. The district, established 11 years ago, combined three small school districts: Lambertville, West Amwell and Stockton in Hunterdon County. In 2021, the referendum for the construction projects won by a two-vote margin. A lawsuit challenging the school board's handling of the referendum was dismissed in 2023. Then, the case was dismissed again in March after the decision was appealed. MORE: N.J. opened one of its most massive high schools ever. Here's a sneak peek inside. The new middle school, located near the district's high school, was designed as a learning hub for tweens and teens. Students in fifth and sixth grade previously went to one school while seventh and eighth graders went to another located in a wing of the district's high school. Carrie Zegarski, an architect and project manager with USA Architects, helped design the school. She said some spaces have sound baffles, like the cafeteria and music rooms, to make it easier for students to hear each other. The firm met with science teachers and nursing staff before the designs for the science labs and nurse's office were complete, she said. Students touring the new school this week expressed plenty of excitement about the new school year. Their enthusiasm for the new space aligns with what public policy experts have found— new school buildings can improve student outcomes. In a 2018 study, researchers Julien Lafortune and David Schonholzer found attending school in a new facility can 'lead to modest, gradual improvements in student test scores, large immediate improvements in student attendance, and significant improvements in student effort.' The state chipped in a little over $6.7 million for South Hunterdon Regional's construction projects, including the new middle school. Local taxpayers are still paying off a $26 million bond issued in 2021. Because of the extra tax cost of the referendum, the school board has tried to keep school tax increases as close to 2% as possible each year, South Hunterdon Regional Superintendent Anthony Suozzo said. Janet Nocar, a former school nurse and local taxpayer who worked at the elementary school before the renovation, came to tour the new middle school to see her tax dollars at work. 'Does a building matter? I don't know,' Nocar said. 'But I like the fact that our kids are having a new building that hopefully is safe environmentally with no mold,' she said. Suozzo, who joined the district as superintendent after the bond referendum had already passed, is a fan of several parts of the new middle school. But the water treatment room, with its giant black water tanks, is a space he's especially excited about. Recently some wells in the surrounding area were found to contain high levels of polyfluoroalkyl substances or PFAS, also known as 'forever chemicals.' The state is investigating where the contamination may have come from. PFAS can reduce fertility and increase risks of high blood pressure in pregnant women and may cause some cancers, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 'We are always monitoring, but a lot of time and effort went into the design of this room — and money,' he said of the school's water treatment space. The two rooms with the building's best views look out onto miles of rolling farmland. They will serve special education and English Language Learner students, Suozzo said. Often rooms used to work with these student groups are in makeshift spaces, like closets or in a building's basement. 'We thought it was really important to send that message of how important those students are for us,' the superintendent said. One classroom in the school also has a kitchen area. Special education students who are in a self-contained class will use the space for hands-on learning, including running a coffee and tea service for teachers. In a similar program in the high school, students learn practical skills, including how to add up orders and what to say when making a delivery. 'Teachers would coach them about how to have conversations,' Suozzo said. After a while, some special education students who struggle with social cues started asking Suozzo if he had any plans for the weekend when they delivered his coffee on Fridays, he said. The school's science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics — or STEAM — makers' space is unique in the building because its ceiling was left open. It reveals all the pipes, vents and engineering hidden in the rest of the school's sleek classrooms. Woodworking, hand-building with clay, and art made on computers will all be part of the STEAM curriculum, said Jennifer MacKnight, the new school's principal. She is shifting from leading the high school to being the principal of the new middle school. MacKnight said the school's design will make it possible to do learning support in groups of about 10 before or after lunch — a practice that can help both students who might need more practice with a concept and students who are ready for the next thing. The schedule for this support time, like all of the furniture in the classrooms, will be flexible and based on students' learning needs, she said. Suozzo is also excited about a room called 'The Nook' which includes a variety of comfortable L-shaped, low-to-the-ground spots where students can relax if they need a mental or emotional health break. Last year, students were surveyed to find out what playground equipment they are still interested in playing on as middle school students. The new school will include new playground equipment and a basketball court on a former parking lot. 'Believe it or not, kids still love swing sets,' Suozzo said. Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting with a subscription. Liz Rosenberg may be reached at lrosenberg@ Solve the daily Crossword
New York Post
3 days ago
- New York Post
Lucky NYC traveler finds $27K diamond in an Arkansas park — now she has a special use for it: ‘I got on my knees and cried'
She's a local rock star. Bidding a temporary farewell to the Big Apple boded well for future bride Micherre Fox, 31, who stumbled upon a 2.30-carat white diamond — worth around $27,000 — during a three-week hunt at the Crater of Diamonds State Park in Arkansas. It's a finger-licking find that's saving her fiancé a handful of dough. 5 Fox spent several weeks scouring through an Arkansas park, looking for a diamond for her engagement ring. Arkansas State Parks 'Having never seen an actual diamond in my hands, I didn't know for sure, but it was the most diamond-y diamond I had seen,' the Manhattan-based millennial raved in a statement. 'I got on my knees and cried, then started laughing.' Fox, a recent graduate school grad, decided to celebrate her academic achievements with an excavating adventure through the park's diamond-search area, a 37.5-acre landmark, where over 75,000 stellar stones have been unearthed since the early 1900s. A staggering 366 diamonds have been registered at Crater of Diamonds in 2025 alone, including 11 weighing more than one carat each. Fox did not immediately respond to The Post's request for a comment. But now, she's laughing on easy street. 5 Fox experienced an array of emotions — including tearful shock and laughing excitement — upon finding her diamond on the last day of the hunt. Arkansas State Parks With the national average cost of an engagement ring totaling $5,500, per a recent study, Fox and her groom-to-be, who fully supported her decision to dig for her own diamond, are coming up roses ahead of their big day. Owing to the high price of weddings, which can cost couples across the country more than $26,000 — and the lovebirds near NYC over $58,000 — every penny counts. Rather than blowing their budget on a ritzy rock, Fox was more than eager to take engagement matters into her own hands — quite literally. 'I was willing to go anywhere in the world to make that happen,' she said. 'I researched, and it turned out that the only place in the world to do it was right in our backyard, in Arkansas!' 5 The largest diamond ever discovered in Crater of Diamonds State Park was a 40.23-carat rock, which is now part of the Smithsonian's mineral and gem collection. Shutterstock / VioletSkyAdventures Well, it's not so much 'our backyard' as it is 1,200 miles away from New York — but hey, who's counting? 'There's something symbolic about being able to solve problems with money, but sometimes money runs out in a marriage,' added Fox. 'You need to be willing and able to solve those problems with hard work.' And work, she did. The brunette kicked off her weeks-long search on July 8, spending hours combing through the grounds at Crater of Diamonds for bling. Daily, she'd hit the trail, desperately looking high and low for that glitzy glow, but would routinely come up empty-handed. Fox's luck, however, changed at 11 a.m. on July 29, her final day at the park, when she noticed something shiny by her feet. The nearly-wed initially assumed it was an iridescent, dew-covered spiderweb. 5 Fox initially mistook the stone for a spiderweb until she got a closer look and discovered it was, in fact, a diamond. Arkansas State Parks But after giving it a slight nudge and noticing its gleam, Fox realized she'd scored treasure. Experts at the park's Diamond Discovery Center confirmed that Fox had found a white, or colorless, diamond weighing more than two carats. It's approximately the size of a human canine tooth. The gem — which she's named the Fox-Ballou Diamond — in honor of her and her fiancé, reportedly boasts a smooth, rounded shape and beautiful metallic luster, typical of most Crater diamonds. It is the third-largest diamond found at the park, thus far, this year. Park officials are happy for the soon-to-be married gal. 5 Park authorities confirmed the weight and color of Fox's sweet fine, and congratulated her on the dazzling discovery. Shutterstock / VioletSkyAdventures 'Ms. Fox's story highlights the fact that, even when putting forth your best effort, being in the right place at the right time plays a part in finding diamonds,' said Waymon Cox, Crater of Diamonds State Park Assistant Superintendent, in a statement. 'After weeks of hard work, Ms. Fox found her diamond sitting right on top of the ground.' A satisfies Fox is grateful that her search was successful — and that it's now over. 'After all the research, there's luck and there's hard work,' said the belle, who plans to have the rock set in her engagement ring. 'When you are literally picking up the dirt in your hands, no amount of research can do that for you; no amount of education can take you all the way.' 'It was daunting!'
Miami Herald
3 days ago
- Miami Herald
Adopted dog was ‘dumped over a fence.' Now he needs someone ‘who won't give up'
An adopted dog was 'dumped over a fence' — and now, he needs a fresh start. 'He deserves someone who won't give up on him,' a Florida animal shelter wrote Aug. 7 on Facebook. 'Someone to love him, protect him, and committed to him.' Baby Bear waits for a new home after traveling nearly 1,000 miles. His journey started after he was adopted from the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) Florida in 2022, Randa Richter, humane programs and public media director, told McClatchy News via email. Then recently, the Lakeland-based shelter received a call from West Virginia. A facility found Baby Bear and checked his microchip, which stores the contact information of pet owners. 'How he traveled to West Virginia, nobody knows; but what we do know is that he was dumped over a fence at a West Virginia Animal Control,' SPCA Florida wrote in a news release. 'Scared, nervous, and unsure, Baby Bear found himself in a foreign environment, with loud barking dogs, strangers, and different smells.' Shelter workers reached out to Baby Bear's family but didn't hear back. After the 10-year-old mixed breed dog was left behind, SPCA Florida said it didn't want someone to fail him again. 'We knew we had to act fast — because unlike SPCA Florida, that shelter didn't have a no-kill policy,' the animal organization wrote. 'Time was running out.' So, SPCA Florida arranged for a volunteer to fly Baby Bear back to its shelter in Lakeland, a roughly 35-mile drive east from Tampa. He showed off his 'sweet' and well-behaved nature as he got 'first-class service' on the flight, according to the Facebook post and an online adoption profile. 'He stepped off the plane, tail wagging, ears perked, and eyes full of trust,' the shelter wrote. 'He looked as if he finally knew he was home.' As of Aug. 13, the shelter's website still listed the rescued senior pup among the animals available for adoption. Details about the shelter's adoption process can be found at 'Come meet Baby Bear and be the reason his journey ends in joy,' the shelter wrote. 'After all he's been through… this sweet boy deserves nothing less than the best.'
