Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) prepared a draft EA for the South of Tri-Cities Reinforcement Project (DOE/EA-2291) in Benton County, Washington. The proposed substation near County Well Road would tie into an existing 500-kV transmission line and convert the voltage to 115-kV for local transmission along the new approximately 18-mile-long transmission line to the existing Badger Canyon Substation in Richland, Washington. Up to 0.8 mile of the proposed 115-kV transmission line would cross land managed by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM)-Spokane Border Field Office (BLM-Spokane). Badger Canyon Substation would be reconfigured and upgraded to incorporate the new transmission line. Fiber optic cable would be added to the new transmission line, as well as along other existing transmission lines in the area, to improve operational communication and control.
For more information, please visit the BPA project website.
Public Comment Opportunities
Please send comments on the draft EA by June 21, 2025, and reference "South of Tri-Cities Reinforcement Project." BPA will consider all comments submitted during the comment period and provide responses to substantive comments in the final EA. In addition, comments will be available on the BPA project website.
There are several ways to comment:
Mail:
Bonneville Power Administration
Public Affairs – DKE-7
P.O. Box 14428
Portland, OR 97291-4428
Toll-free: 800-622-4519
FAX: 503-230-4019
Online: publiccomments.bpa.gov/
Public Meeting:
BPA has scheduled an informal, open-house style meeting to answer questions and accept comments on the draft EA. We do not plan to give a presentation, so you may come any time during the meeting.
June 4, 2025, at 6:00pm to 8:00pm
Cottonwood Elementary School
16734 Cottonwood Creek Blvd.
Kennewick, WA 99338