stop the line
Evergy wants to destroy one of the last untouched prairies in our nation.
about Protect the Prairie
The Flint Hills are not just a beautiful landscape; they are a living, breathing powerhouse of environmental resilience. As the largest remaining expanse of Tallgrass Prairie in the world, this ecosystem is the "Last Stand" of a habitat that once covered a vast portion of North America. Today, less than 4% of the original Tallgrass Prairie remains, and the majority of it is right here in Kansas.
The Flint Hills are under attack by Evergy’s proposed Buffalo Flats transmission line, which threatens our state’s heritage, economy, and environment. This $500 million project bypassed competitive bidding, potentially forcing Kansas ratepayers to cover hundreds of millions in unnecessary costs. Furthermore, Evergy’s plan to bisect the Flint Hills ignores the ecological importance of the world’s last remaining Tallgrass Prairie. The project serves as a scheme to export wind energy to Oklahoma and Missouri, providing no power to the Kansas counties it traverses.
Despite receiving no material benefit, Kansans are expected to pay a significant portion of the $2.2 billion regional cost. We must urge the Kansas Corporation Commission to deny this application and protect our land from corporate overreach.
VIOLATES CURRENT POLICY
Both Republican and Democrat Governors have signed a moratorium on wind power and wind infrastructure in the Flint Hills. This Evergy line carries wind power from Western Kansas through the Flint Hills to Northeastern Oklahoma. This violates the Governor’s moratorium and in public hearings, Evergy testified that the Flint Hills “is not a protected ecosystem.”
NO PUBLIC COMPETITIVE BID
Kansas law requires that electrical transmission projects be publicly bid to protect Kansans from price gouging. Historically, this has saved as much as 40% of project costs. Evergy evaded this law with the Buffalo Flats project and now Kansans are paying 16.5% of a $500 million project with no competitive bid. The longer the line, the more profit Evergy makes at the expense of Kansans.
DELIVERS NO POWER TO KANSANS
Evergy and Southwest Power Pool seek the power of eminent domain to supply emergency power capacity to the Branson, MO area. The line takes Kansas wind power, but delivers none of that power over the 133 mile route to Kansans. The line permanently destroys protected prairie, increases electricity costs, but delivers no improved reliability or power along the route.
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