Runway Substation 230kV Line Siting Project

The Runway Power Line project involves siting a double-circuit 230-kV line to provide redundant power sources to existing and planned data center developments at and near the Runway Substation in Goodyear, Arizona. To identify potential transmission line route options within a 30-square-mile siting area, SWCA completed an environmental siting study that reviewed opportunities and constraints for siting locations and involved high public and stakeholder engagement.

SWCA provided stakeholders, local residents, and landowners with information about the potential routes by developing and maintaining a project contact list (mailing); providing a project telephone line; developing materials and information for Arizona Public Service’s (APS’s) siting website; producing materials for briefings and open house meetings (i.e., newsletters, maps, and informational boards); conducting community leader, jurisdictional, and agency briefings; assisting in the preparation of a newspaper advertisement; hosting multiple in-person and virtual public open house meetings; and employing a public comment tracking system.

Throughout this process, SWCA has assisted APS in identifying preferred route options that were studied and documented in a Certificate of Environmental Compatibility (CEC) application. SWCA conducted studies for land use and biological, cultural, visual, and recreational resources; and analyzed the project’s impacts to those resources in support of the CEC application.

Following submittal of the CEC application, SWCA assisted APS in Arizona Power Plant and Transmission Line Siting Committee (Arizona Siting Committee) hearings through the provision of expert witness testimony and hearing logistics support at the hearing in November 2022, resulting in a unanimous approval by the Arizona Siting Committee.