By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Hundreds of residents throughout Barton, Pawnee, and Russell Counties have expressed concern over a proposed National Interest Electric Transmission Corridor (NIETC) that would cut through all three counties. Tuesday morning, Barton County Commission Chair Barb Esfeld announced that commissioners from all three counties will hold a joint meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 17 at 6 p.m. The event will be livestreamed but a venue has not yet been named.
"Before, it was just to provide information because we just didn't know enough," Esfeld said. "We're really hoping to sit down this time and seek answers to the questions and hopefully provide answers to the questions we had and so many people had."
The proposed 5-mile-wide energy corridor would stretch 780 miles from Dodge City to the Illinois-Indiana state line. Pawnee County officials, including Larned Mayor Will Nusser, Commissioner Bob Rein, and County Attorney Douglas McNett met with Department of Energy representatives last Wednesday. A big takeaway from that meeting was that the number of proposed NIETCs will likely be reduced from the original 10, and the scope of the remaining proposals may also be narrowed.