Letter to Patricia Hoffman, Assistant Secretary of DOE - Reschedule Northern Pass Public Hearings, Schedule Additional Hearing

Letter

The Honorable Patricia Hoffman
Assistant Secretary
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Electricity Delivery & Energy Reliability
1000 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, D.C. 20585

RE: The Northern Pass Transmission Project EIS Public Hearings

Dear Assistant Secretary Hoffman:

I write to formally request that the U.S Department of Energy reschedule the December public comment hearings on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (Draft EIS) for the proposed Northern Pass Project and include an additional public comment hearing in northern Coos County.

Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Energy announced that the public comment hearings on the Draft EIS for the proposed Northern Pass Project would be held during the week of December 14 in Whitefield, Concord, and Plymouth, New Hampshire. I am concerned that the timing of the public comment hearings may be prohibitive for many citizens that had hoped to attend and present their comments. In addition, even the northern-most hearing location is more than a three-hour round trip for citizens in Clarkesville, Stewartstown and Pittsburg, areas that will be impacted by this route.

The siting of large-scale energy transmission can have implications for decades to come, and we must ensure a thorough and transparent review of proposed projects so that the most impacted communities have the opportunity to be heard. Rescheduling the December public hearings and including an additional public hearing in the northern part of the state will help ensure that all Granite Staters have an opportunity to attend and have their voices heard.

Thank you for your consideration.

With every good wish,

Margaret Wood Hassan
Governor

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