Alberta Utilities Commission approves Western Alberta Transmission Line

The Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) approved the Western Alberta Transmission Line (WATL), selecting major route options that will minimize impacts on environmentally significant areas. More than 60 per cent of the approved route parallels existing lines. The proposed 500-kilovolt, 350 km transmission line will run from Genesee, west of Edmonton to the Langdon area east of Calgary. Proposed routings rejected by the AUC included those that would have crossed the Pine Lake Moraine, an environmentally significant area in endangered Aspen Parkland habitats east of Red Deer, as well as an extensive wetland complex in the Langdon area.