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                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, February 5, 1992                   TAG: 9202050399
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A-6   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

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ELECTRICITY A LUXURY, AND MANY MISUSE IT

I REALIZE that William M. Guthrie (letter, Jan. 17), along with most of America, considers electricity a necessity. There's nothing like being able to cut on a light on a dark, stormy night, turn up the electrical heat, and settle back to watch the tube.

The truth is that too many Americans misuse their electrical privileges. If more people used less electricity, the Ohio Valley and Washington, D.C., areas would not have to ask for a huge new power line.

We need to realize that electricity is actually a luxury, not something that can be taken for granted. At the nature camp where I work in summer, we use only what we absolutely need. It can be done.

However, my most important point is that the environmental impact of this power line proposal is more than simply the desecration of "pretty mountain scenery." I noticed that in the same issue where the Guthrie letter appeared was an article on water quality in Virginia. Several area universities are conducting studies on the impact that this power line will have on surface and ground-water quality.

Effects on private land value, timber production, fish and wildlife habitats, endangered species of plants and animals, and geologic resources must also be considered. Construction and maintenance of this line may cause more trouble than many realize. The list goes on. AMY B. STRAUB BLACKSBURG

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