POWER LINE RIGHT OF WAYS AND WATER QUALITY DEGRADATION

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1 POWER LINE RIGHT OF WAYS AND WATER QUALITY DEGRADATION Douglas C. Williams, Department of Earth Sciences, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL Alabama Power Company is planning to construct a power line right of way in the floodplain adjacent to Milkhouse Creek s tributary north of Grelot Road. A 100 foot wide clearing would be required for the right of way to be completed. The right of way would begin at Grelot Road and extend northward and tie into a substation near Providence Hospital. The clearing would destroy wetland vegetation, trees and the wildlife habitat. Residents in the area are against this construction because they feel it will ultimately lead to the degradation of the water quality of Milkhouse Creek, Halls Mill Creek and eventually Dog River. My objective is to obtain sufficient background water quality data from a sampling location just south of Grelot Road and the proposed right of way. This will enable local environmental groups, such as Dog River Clearwater Revival, to determine if this construction does indeed have a negative impact on the water quality. Another objective is to develop a digital photo archive of the current conditions of the stream and floodplain in order to compare them to the area if Alabama Power is successful in getting this right of way completed. My conclusions will show what the current water quality is and additionally present the current conditions of the stream and surrounding floodplain. Keyword: water quality, right of way, transmission line Introduction Alabama Power Company is planning to build a power line right of way (ROW) along a tributary of Milkhouse Creek between Providence Hospital and Grelot Road in Mobile, Alabama (Figure 1). The forest that is adjacent to the creek in the proposed construction area consists of old growth pine and hardwood trees (Save Milkhouse Creek 2008). The construction of the right of way would require that one hundred feet of existing vegetation, trees and grasses be destroyed. Additionally, Alabama Power would have the right to cut any danger trees outside of the ROW that could possibly fall and damage the power lines or poles (Save Milkhouse Creek 2008). These trees and vegetation are critical for cleaning up any runoff water before it enters the creek and 1

2 also can serve as a barrier to slow down any flood waters. Due to these natural cleaners being destroyed, the creek would receive more sediment, trash and other contaminants. Figure 1 Location of proposed transmission line along Milkhouse Creek (in green). Google Earth Image courtesy of the Save Milkhouse Creek website. 2

3 Milkhouse Creek is tributary of Dog River; therefore, any new contaminants could ultimately end up flowing into Halls Mill Creek, Dog River and Mobile Bay. Water quality in Milkhouse Creek could ultimately be degraded including increased turbidity from additional sediment, decreases in dissolved oxygen (D.O.), and rise in water temperatures due to more direct sunlight. Wetlands help prevent water quality degradation (NU transmission 2008) Electric utilities find wetlands to be a desirable area for construction of power transmission lines because they are free from major obstructions, low in price and away from public view (Thibodeau and Nickerson 1986). Alabama Power could find an alternate route or even consider underground power lines. There are clear advantages to having urban power lines underground. However, power companies operate in monopoly status and usually have no incentive to accommodate the public (Maney 1996). Research Question What is the current condition of the water quality of the tributary of Milkhouse Creek down-stream of the proposed ROW? Additionally, what is the current condition of the stream and the floodplain of the tributary where Alabama Power is planning its ROW? Methods To determine whether the water quality of the tributary will be affected by the construction of the ROW, I collected background data down stream of where the ROW is planned to be constructed. The location is located just south of Grelot Road and is 3

located geographically at N 30º 39.658 latitude and W 088º 12.122 longitude.

4 located geographically at N 30º latitude and W 088º longitude. The site location is shown on the Project Location Map (Figure 2). Figure 2 Project Location Map 4

5 A total of eleven water quality sampling events were conducted in order to have sufficient background data. Alabama Water Watch test kits were used to test the water for temperature, ph, alkalinity, hardness, dissolved oxygen and turbidity. The ph of the water is a measure of the acidity of water. A scale of 0 to 14 is used, with seven considered neutral. Any reading below seven is considered acidic and above seven is basic. Alkalinity is the measure of the water s buffering capacity. The higher the alkalinity of the water is, the higher the buffer against changes in the ph of the water. The hardness is a measure of the dissolved calcium and magnesium in the water. The dissolved oxygen is a measure of the oxygen in the water and is critical for any aquatic life. Turbidity is the measure of the cloudiness of the water. The majority of the samples were collected at approximately 10:00 a.m. However, several samples were collected at approximately 1:00 p.m. According to the Alabama Water Watch Certification course, the time period in which water quality samples should be collected is between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. I chose to collect samples at the beginning and end of the time period in order to see if any change occurred during those hours. One sample was collected after a major rain event in order to evaluate whether heavy rainfall has an affect on water quality. In addition to the water quality data collected, I took a series of digital photographs in order to document what the current conditions of the tributary itself and the surrounding floodplain are. For example, a picture of my chosen water quality sampling location was taken at normal conditions and after a heavy rainfall event (Figures 3 and 4). The remaining pictures of the tributary and surrounding floodplain are included as Appendix A. 5

6 Figure 3 Picture of water quality sample location during normal flow Figure 4 Picture of water quality sample location after heavy rain event. 6

7 Results The results of the water quality sampling indicate that the water in the tributary is relatively in good condition at the study area. The temperature of the water ranged from 14º Celsius to 18º Celsius (Figure 5). The ph remained at a slightly acidic 6 to 6.5. The alkalinity and hardness remained consistent over the sampling period, except after the heavy rain event. The dissolved oxygen ranged from 7.5 to 8.4 mg/l (Figure 6). The turbidity of the water was clear except for after the heavy rain event where it climbed to 30 JTU (Figure 7). The results of the digital photographs taken indicate that the tributary and stream are in good condition and are relatively free of debris or trash. The tributary is surrounded by various forms and species of vegetation, trees and wildlife. 30 Comparison of Air and Water Temperatures for Milkhouse C reek C /10/2009 3/17/2009 3/24/2009 3/31/2009 4/7/2009 4/14/2009 4/21/2009 Air Temperature Water Temperature Figure 5 Comparison of Air and Water Temperatures 7

8 Dissolved Oxygen, Alkalinity and Hardness in Milkhouse Creek Sample Location Rain /10/09 3/17/09 3/24/09 3/31/09 4/7/09 4/14/09 4/21/09 Dissolved Oxygen Total Hardness Total Alkalinity Figure 6 Dissolved oxygen, alkalinity and hardness at sampling location 8

9 35 Turbidity in Milkhouse Creek /10/2009 3/17/2009 3/24/2009 3/31/2009 4/7/2009 4/14/2009 4/21/2009 JTU Figure 7 Turbidity of water at the sample location Discussion and Conclusions If Alabama Power is successful in their attempt to construct the ROW at the present location, the water quality in the stream and the surrounding floodplain would be negatively impacted. If the 100 foot ROW is cleared, the stream would have no protection from direct sunlight to the stream. It is not only the 100 foot easement, but also the space around it where it would let unwanted sunlight in the woods where it doesn t belong. It could change the plant life of the area (Carbery 2007). This could ultimately raise the temperature of the water of the tributary and affect the dissolved oxygen. Small minnows and other wildlife were observed in the stream and could be affected by this temperature rise. Additionally, the vegetation and trees act as a barrier 9

10 for the flood waters that occur during very heavy rain events. By clearing the vegetation and trees, flooding could be worse than normal. There would be nothing to slow the flood waters down and they could eventually wash out Grelot Road if it were to get high enough. Utility right of ways through wetland areas can generate long-term impacts to these valuable ecosystems (Nickerson et al. 1989). The residents in the area are against the construction of the ROW at its present proposed location. They argue that there are already poles set on Cody Road and Alabama Power could run its new transmission lines along that route instead. In an article regarding the proposed project (Mobile Register, March 29, 2009), critics insist that a power line ROW is a sure-fire recipe for increased erosion. However, at the present moment, Alabama Power insists that it is going to construct the ROW as planned. At present, there is no planned starting date for the project. There have been several court hearings on the project, but so far rulings have leaned toward Alabama Power. If the ROW is completed as planned, I will volunteer to continue to monitor the water quality of the tributary of Milkhouse Creek in order to assess whether there is a negative impact. 10

11 References Cited Alabama Water Watch Water Chemistry Monitoring, 2008 Carbery, K Cedar Hill: Power Line opponents send message to Ameren. Suburban Journals Sunday October 7, Maney, C.T Benefits of underground power delivery. Technology and Society Magazine, IEEE 15:12-22 Nickerson, N. Dobberteen, R., Jarman, N Effects of power line construction on wetland vegetation in Massachusetts, USA. Environmental Management 13 (4) NU Transmission. Save Milkhouse Creek. (assessed on March 3, 2009) Thibodeau, F, and Nickerson, N., Impact of Utility Rights-of-way on Wooded Wetland. Environmental Management 10 (6)

12 Appendix A-Additional pictures of the current status of the stream and floodplain Area behind Mr. Jim Mitchell s house (Lamplighter Woods). Looking North. Area behind Mr. Jim Mitchell s house. Looking North. AL Power flagging in trees. 12

13 Area behind Mr. Jim Mitchell s house. Looking South. AL Power flagging in trees. Alabama Power clearing near Providence Hospital and beginning of tributary 13

14 Alabama Power flagging crossing dry steam bed of tributary Part of tributary just east of Somerby Housing Community. AL power clearing to west. 14

15 Part of tributary floodplain area looking west from Somerby. ROW would run through this area Alabama Power location near Providence Hospital that ROW would be routed to. 15

16 Normal tributary flow under Grelot Road toward Milkhouse Creek. Tributary flow under Grelot Road toward Milkhouse Creek after heavy rains. 16

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