PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 11, 2023
The proposed LS Power Grid power lines would go through Unity, about 70% of which has been designated an area of special ecological importance. As currently planned, the route also runs through 0.6 miles of protected aquifer district; 1.4 miles of conserved land at the Unity Agricultural Center, where at-risk youth learn biodynamic farming skills; the hills of Overland Farm, where Highland cattle spend their lives before feeding locals in the form of beef; almost half a mile of endangered and threatened species habitat within the Sandy Stream watershed, and 2.3 miles of deer wintering area. What are the environmental implications of carving 150-foot easements through ecologically sensitive places? Of maintaining corridors by spraying herbicides that leach into the ground, poisoning the soil and threatening farmers’ livelihoods? Of core-drilling 10 feet to 20 feet through ledge, creating pathways for PFAS to enter aquifers and contaminate more wells? ~ Joshua Abram Kercsmar teaches at Unity Environmental University