BUSHKILL -  All interested parties are invited to attend any or all of the three public meetings for the National Park Service's Susquehanna to Roseland 500 kV Transmission Line Right-of-Way and Special Use Permit Draft Environmental Impact Statement (Draft EIS). The meetings will be held on January 24, 25, and 26, 2012.

The National Park Service has been reviewing a permit application from the Pennsylvania Power and Light Electric Utilities (PPL) and Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G). The application proposes the replacement of an existing 230kV transmission line through park lands with a double circuit transmission line carrying both the 230kV (capable of being energized to 500 kV) and a new 500kV line. These lines would cross the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, Middle Delaware National Scenic and Recreational River, and Appalachian National Scenic Trail, in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

While several alternatives have been identified in the DEIS, including the environmentally preferred alternative, the agency preferred alternative will not be selected until public involvement is complete. Public input and participation is essential in deciding the final outcome and is specifically required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended.

The DEIS can be downloaded from the National Park Service Planning, Environment and Public Comment (PEPC) website at http://parkplanning.nps.gov/DEWA. A CD or hardcopy of the document will be provided to those who request one. A desk copy is also available for viewing at Park Headquarters located at 1 River Road (off US 209) Bushkill, Pennsylvania. Additionally, hardcopies are available at local libraries.

Public comment is extremely important and will be accepted through January 31, 2012. There are several ways to submit comments during this period:

• Online - through the project website shown above;
• Through the mail - send your written comments to:

  Morgan Elmer
  National Park Service
  Denver Service Center
  12795 West Alameda Parkway
  Post Office Box #25287
  Denver, Colorado 80225-0287  

You may also attend one or more of the public meetings below and deliver your comments orally or in writing:

• Tuesday, January 24, 2012 (snow date 1/31, if required)
  Fernwood Hotel and Resort
  U.S. 209 Bushkill, PA 18324
• Wednesday, January 25, 2012
  (snow date 2/1, if required)
  Stroudsmoor Country Inn - Ridgecrest
  RD#4 Stroudsmoor Road
  Stroudsburg, PA 18360
• Thursday, January 26, 2012 (snow date 2/2, if required)
  Farmstead Golf and Country Club
  88 Lawrence Road
  Lafayette, NJ 07848

Each meeting will follow the same format with an Open House from 2:30 - 4:30 pm to learn about the project, followed by a Public Hearing from 6:00 - 9:00 pm to submit oral or written comments into the record.