SIX - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, July 19, 2023
State utilities commission approves Red & Gena Leonard Foundation
B2H certificate
announces scholarships
Sam Myers drives his combine during this year’s harvest in
the location of the future B2H line. -Contributed photo
By Andrea Di Salvo
The Oregon Public Util-
ities Commission (PUC)
approved Idaho Power’s
certificate for the proposed
Boardman to Hemingway
transmission line recently,
an outcome that has many
in Morrow County far from
happy.
The certificate of public
convenience and necessity
(CPCN) is required when
an Oregon electric utility
proposes to construct an
overhead transmission line
that requires condemnation
of private property. In this
case, Idaho Power is pro-
posing to build a 300-mile,
500-kilovolt transmission
line that would connect the
Hemingway substation in
Idaho with a substation near
Boardman.
The transmission line
is known as the Boardman
to Hemingway, or B2H,
project and will be jointly
owned by Idaho Power and
PacifiCorp, with the Bonne-
ville Power Administration
(BPA) contracting to use
the line to serve customers
in southeast Idaho.
What has many land-
owners concerned is that,
with the CPCN in hand,
Idaho Power can initiate
condemnation proceed-
ings in court to secure land
rights along the transmis-
sion line’s path, whether
they like it or not.
And most don’t.
The power struggle
between the electric com-
panies and the famers in
their path has been ongoing
for several years. In August
of last year, STOP B2H
Coalition filed a petition
to intervene in the utility
commission’s decision,
which administrative law
judge John Mellgren grant-
ed Sept. 12.
STOP B2H is a grass-
roots organization of more
than 1,000 members op-
posed to the proposed trans-
mission line. Joining STOP
B2H were several local
voices, including Sam My-
ers of Butter Creek, Brian
Morter of Sand Hollow,
Oregon Wheat Growers
League Secretary/Trea-
surer Erin Heideman and
then-county commissioner
Melissa Lindsay.
Months of testimony
and legal back-and-forth
ended June 29 when the
PUC granted Idaho Power
the certificate.
“By statute, when the
PUC is presented with a pe-
tition for a CPCN, the com-
mission must determine
after a hearing whether the
transmission line has been
proven to be necessary,
safe, practicable, and justi-
fied in the public interest,”
the utility commission said
in a press release regard-
ing the decision. “When
these criteria are met, the
PUC must grant a CPCN to
benefit the public interest,
despite the private proper-
ties that may be impacted
by its construction and
operation.”
However, STOP B2H
co-chairperson Jim Kreider
refers to the decision as a
“setback.”
“This decision rep-
resents a significant setback
for environmental conser-
vation, energy indepen-
dence, and the well-being of
local communities impact-
ed by the proposed B2H
power line,” said Kreider.
However, many land-
owners are still uncon-
vinced that the transmission
line is justified, necessary
or safe.
High on the list of safe-
ty issues is fire mitigation,
especially during harvest,
when heat is high, humidity
is low and combines are
raising clouds of chaff that,
B2H opponents say, could
be ignited by stray sparks
from the transmission line.
“There is consequence
for my cropland value and
yet Idaho Power views it a
collateral damage that sim-
ply doesn’t matter,” Morter
wrote in his testimony to
the PUC. “My farm is rural
and lacks any nearby fire
cerned that Idaho Power’s
original application doesn’t
tell the whole story. STOP
B2H says it anticipates
multiple amendments to
the site certificate. One that
is already pending includes
the addition of 1,000 acres
and over 40 miles of access
roads.
Another amendment
will be for a large mid-line
capacitor station near Baker
City to boost the power,
since 300 miles will have
too much line loss, which
the coalition says indicates
a lack of comprehensive
planning.
And, with family liveli-
hoods at stake, farmers are
concerned that they won’t
be compensated fairly. Not
only does the PUC certif-
icate demonstrate to the
court that the transmission
line is necessary for public
convenience, but the court
must also decide what com-
pensation must be given to
the landowner.
According to STOP
B2H, 70 percent of land-
owners have rejected Ida-
ho Power’s “inadequate”
offers, “leading to legal
battles for fair compensa-
tion.” Morter says he has
been approached by solar
developers who place more
value on his lands than Ida-
ho Power does, something
he doesn’t think is being
taken into account.
The PUC stands behind
This sign on a fence on Butter Creek is a visual reminder of
how unhappy local landowners are about the possible effects
of the B2H line on their lands. -Contributed photo
agency that can quickly
address a fire. Even more
troublesome is the fact that
I will have no ability to
address a fire near or under
the line because I, my fam-
ily, or employees might be
electrocuted from the arc
that can occur through the
smoke.”
The Myers family on
Butter Creek has been farm-
ing in Morrow County for
more than 100 years. In his
testimony to the PUC, Sam
Myers said Idaho Power
has failed to show that all
fir risks are mitigated.
“I have growing crops
at risk and currently these
risks are of no concern
to Idaho Power,” Myers
wrote. “The risks I face are
very real and worth thou-
sands of dollars if they are
lost in a fire.”
In response, Idaho
Power said that 500-ki-
lovolt transmission lines
are less likely to result in
ignitions than lower voltage
transmission and distribu-
tion lines because of stricter
engineering requirements.
Dr. Chris Lautenberger
testified on behalf of Idaho
Power and said his analysis
indicates that the probabil-
ity of arcing or flashover
on the transmission line as
a result of dust clouds or
heavy smoke is low.
Opponents of the trans-
mission line are also con-
its decision, however.
“We appreciate the con-
structive, well informed and
considerate involvement
in this process by individ-
uals and groups who are
concerned about the B2H
project’s negative impacts
on their land. The time and
effort to voice concerns
helped the commissioners
take the hard look at Ida-
ho Power’s proposal that
it deserved,” said Megan
Decker, PUC Chair.
“We take our obliga-
tion to review CPCN ap-
plications seriously and
recognize the importance
of granting them only after
robust scrutiny and careful
weighing of the interests
involved,” added Decker.
While an appeal is pos-
sible, landowners like My-
ers, who have been fighting
the battle from the begin-
ning, don’t see much hope
of a turnaround now.
“Without a doubt this
B2H project has been a
convoluted project from
the beginning. My question
is whether the governing
body in Oregon will force
IPC to get things correct
on every level before the
project begins,” wrote My-
ers. “Infrastructure of this
magnitude should not dev-
astate livelihoods or the
environment. Currently, as
things stand, in my opinion,
it could devastate both.”
Lifetime of hard work and frugal living pays
off for many local students
The Red & Gena Leon-
ard Foundation has issued
$382,800 in scholarship
awards to 144 Eastern Or-
egon students for the 2023-
24 academic year.
The Red & Gena Leon-
ard Foundation awards
scholarships to students
who have graduated or
obtained a GED from Ar-
lington, Boardman, Con-
don, Echo, Fossil, Heppner,
Hermiston, Ione, Irrigon,
Monument, Pendleton, Pi-
lot Rock, Spray, Stanfield,
Ukiah or Umatilla high
schools.
Students must attend
an accredited college, uni-
versity, community col-
lege, vocational, trade or
technical program based in
Oregon.
Each recipient will re-
ceive between $2,100 and
$4,500. The students that
will receive the scholarship,
listed by school, are:
Heppner: Conor Bros-
nan, LBCC, Welding; Ka-
son Cimmiyotti, OSU, Fi-
nance/Marketing; Hailey
Cunningham, BMCC, Ag
Business; Keegan Gibbs,
OSU, Ag Business; Jacob
Lentz, BMCC, Ag Busi-
ness; Paul Lindsay, EOU,
Nursing; Madison Palm-
er, EOU, Education/Math;
Daralynn Teeman, WOU,
Education; Hailey Wen-
berg, BMCC, Nursing; Al-
yse Wentz, LBCC, Dental
Assistant.
Ione: Lewkus Burri-
ght, OIT, Business; Megan
Doherty, OSU, Education/
Elem; Fauiola Juarez, Mt.
Hood CC, Business Man-
agement; Jessica Medi-
na, OSU, Physical Ther-
apy; Fernando Ramirez,
WWCC, Welding; David
Rietmann, WWCC, Fire
Science.
Boardman: Jessica
Amaya, WOU, Criminal
Justice; Lesly Anzora,
EOU, Psychology; Martha
Calvillo-Mendoza, EOU,
Psychology; Uriel Di-
az-Ramos, BMCC, AAOT;
Valeria Echevarria-Cle-
mente, BMCC, AAOT/
Vet Tech; Damian Garcia,
Perry Tech, Info Tech; Ya-
zeli Lomas-Ayala, OSU,
Business Analytics; Tania
Mendoza, Mt Hood CC,
Nursing; Juliet Montes,
BMCC, Nursing; Cielo Mu-
noz-Rosales, OSU, Busi-
ness/Int; America Pacheco,
OSU, Computer Science;
Marisol Pacheco-Madri-
gal, OSU, Business/Fi-
nance; Diana Ramirez-Ro-
driguez, TVCC, Nursing;
Noah Reaves, BMCC,
Pre-Physical Therapy; Ro-
driguez-Coria Perla, WSU,
Ag Food & Business; Maria
Silva Gallardo, OSU, Engi-
neer/Environmental; Coo-
per Szasz, OSU, Engineer/
Chemical; Aleydis Torres,
BMCC, Psychology; Bren-
da Trujillo-Vasquez, OSU,
Food Science-Tech.
Irrigon: Braden Atkins,
BMCC, Data Center Tech;
Caren Cardenas Navarrete,
OSU, Construction Mgt;
Joanna Carrillo-Ochoa,
OSU, Social Work/Human
Services; Esmeralda De
Loera, PSU, Counselor/
Family Therapy; Payge
Foster, BMCC, AAOT/
social work; Klarisza Go-
mez, OSU, Animal Science;
Vanessa Juarez-Murguia,
PSU, Criminal Justice; Alan
Murguia-Ortega, WOU,
Accounting; Jose Ramirez,
BMCC, Electrician; Colton
Taylor, WOU, Criminal
Justice; Jimena Villarreal,
WOU, Education.
It is the intent of the
Red & Gena Leonard Foun-
dation to benefit average
students of good character
with poor financial circum-
stances who have a desire
to seek further educational
opportunities; Red & Gena
had a desire to help those
that wanted to earn a living
in a trade, so the scholarship
gives special consideration
to all students planning
to enter a trade school or
program.
The Red & Gena Leon-
ard Foundation was es-
tablished in 1997 by the
late Mervin “Red” and
Gena Leonard. The funds
in the foundation represent
a lifetime of hard work
and frugal living. It was
the desire of the Leonards
to further the educational
opportunities of Eastern Or-
egon students and promote
healthy economies in our
communities.
The foundation award-
ed its first scholarships
during the 2000-01 year
and is now celebrating 23
years of giving back to the
community that Red and
Gena loved. Over the years,
the foundation has awarded
a total of 3,161 scholarships
to local students totaling
$6,461,700.
In addition to the
$382,800.00 in scholar-
ships; the Foundation also
awarded $14,000 in grants
to further local educational
opportunities. BMCC Nurs-
ing program will receive
$10,000 and the TRIO pro-
gram at BMCC will receive
$4,000.
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