Assumptions made and displayed . . .
A dozen color maps, approx. 6' x 8' detailed with land use, natural resource, cultural and historical and other constraints, were prominently displayed on the walls so we would know where not to put our proposed routes.
The problem was, they were all giant maps of Oregon. You could see a narrow strip of Idaho down the right side. The two Oregon and two Idaho routes proposed by Stop Idaho Power many, many months ago could not even be drawn properly on the maps.
If you wanted to put a route in Idaho, the detailed information on constraints was not available unless you wanted to look at one of the few computers run by a Tetra Tech employee. The meeting itself was attended mostly by Oregon residents, as have been previous meetings. Apparently Idaho residents do not feel the need to be as involved in the process. No Idaho resource officials to speak of, although we requested them earlier.
We drew Idaho routes in the margins of the printed maps of Oregon during the actual Thursday mapping.
Gary Pearson stood up at the beginning of the Wednesday evening meeting and gave an impassioned, and completely justified and necessary speech about the utter lack of attention and consideration given to our repeated requests that Idaho routes be considered along with Oregon routes during the mapping process. It is apparent that we in Oregon are deemed dim enough to accept overbearing assumptions like this.
Mr. Pearson gently indicated what we intend to do if these assumptions continue:
- We can again stop this at a PUC hearing for Need (it has been conclusively stopped and proven once already that it doesn't NEED to be in Oregon,) and
- We can stop this at Oregon's Department of Energy EFSC hearing by testifying that the Community Advisory Project mapping process is flawed because Idaho Power Company intentionally withheld pertinent information based on assumptions within the organization that Oregon will bear the brunt of a line that serves Idaho and Idahoans.
The first maps showing the original route through Idaho were discarded long ago in favor of the obvious NIMBY corridors bulging into Malheur County, setting off fire alarms among the rural citizenry that resulted in the formation of Stop Idaho Power. (To be sure, these routes unaccountably crossed several Idaho population centers and irrigated farmland as well.)
And now, after nearly a year of effort to gain recognition as something barely above illiterate peasants, and even though Exclusive Farm Use land is finally listed under the constraint exclusions, it is clear that the attitude has been, and continues to be, that Boardman to Hemingway is going to stay in Oregon no matter what anyone, hired, helpful or hindering, has to say about it.
We have requested a meeting to address this unacceptable situation and have been assured by the RCBI facilitators that such a meeting will take place.
We expect that a valid and reasonable route through Idaho will be identified and submitted as a part of this process.
