Community Meeting on Energy Infrastructure & Land Use — Baraboo, Wisconsin | August 20, 2026

Members of the Ethical Horizons Project attended a community informational meeting in Baraboo, Wisconsin, concerning the proposed Bell Center–Columbia–Sugar Creek–Illinois/Wisconsin State Line (BECI) 765-kV transmission project (“BECI Project”). The meeting brought together farmers, landowners, community members, and advocates to discuss the proposed transmission infrastructure and its potential effects on communities across southern Wisconsin.

The BECI project would extend approximately 190 miles across southern Wisconsin as part of a broader regional effort to strengthen electrical reliability and accommodate changing energy needs. Although no final route has been selected, potential routes would cross public and privately owned land, including working farms, and pass through portions of Wisconsin’s Driftless Area—a region distinguished by its unusual topography, waterways, agricultural landscape, wildlife habitat, and ecological resources.

Participants raised concerns about the creation of new transmission corridors across agricultural and environmentally sensitive lands, the acquisition of utility easements, interference with farming and future land use, and the possible use of eminent domain where necessary property rights cannot be obtained voluntarily. The discussion also considered the environmental consequences of major transmission infrastructure and the importance of protecting the distinctive landscape and natural resources of the Driftless region.

These questions arise within a broader period of rapidly increasing electricity demand, including substantial new loads associated with data centers and AI computing infrastructure. The meeting provided an opportunity to hear directly from people who may bear the local consequences of decisions intended to meet broader needs regional needs.

Responsible technological development requires reliable energy infrastructure, but it also requires transparent planning, meaningful public participation, careful stewardship of land and natural resources, and public policies that fairly balance regional needs with the rights and interests of affected communities.

For More Information Contact:

Michael Brown – press@no765line.org

Joel Johnson – jjzp@me.com