A 2022 consultant report only released by PGE in October 2024 points out that alternative routes exist outside of Forest Park for the company’s proposed high voltage lines.
The report from the consultant Toth and Associates along with a revised version of PGE’s land-use application were recently turned in to the city. Phase 3 of the plan proposes to clearcut 4.7 acres of 150+ year old Douglas fir and bigleaf maple trees and remove five white oak trees estimated to be 170-500 years old in the northern section of the park.
Phases 4 and 5 would impact another 15 acres to the northwest and west, potentially disrupting the Miller Creek watershed which contains salmon habitat. Details of Phase 5 are not clear.
In total, the proposal includes the removal of 376 living trees, and 21 dead trees. It will permanently fill at least two wetlands and disrupt two streams that support multiple species of aquatic wildlife. One of the streams that would be denuded is habitat for the northern red-legged frog, an at-risk species as noted in the Special Status and At-Risk Species List prepared by the City of Portland in 2022.
Advocates for the park say PGE must comply with the City of Portland’s Forest Park Natural Resources Management Plan, which specifies that the park’s resources should not be disturbed unless there is no other possible alternative.
The Toth report points to two potential alternative routes for the new lines but they have not been fully studied at this time. PGE now claims that time is the critical issue that limits alternatives to the Forest Park route.
See more information about the consultant’s report and the latest PGE Plan in letters from Forest Park Conservancy, Coalition to Protect Forest Park and Paul Majkut, retired Deputy General Counsel of the Bonneville Power Administration Office of General Counsel.