The company will begin conducting soil borings along the western half of the power line route along the Beltline and Highway 14 in the next few days, continuing until the end of January.
The process involves drilling of a small 2- or 3-inch diameter hole, at depths up to 40ft, periodically along the route to sample the soil and assess its makeup.
The soil boring information is used to determine the exact placement of the structures, whether they will be placed in soil or rocks, and what provisions will be required to ensure that the concrete foundations will adequately secure and stabilize the steel structures, the company said.
ATC project manager Brian Fischer said that conducting soil boring is a necessary step in designing a transmission line of this type.
"We like to take advantage of frozen ground conditions when conducting this work in order to minimize environmental impacts," Fischer said.
