Property in Franklin, Clinton and St. Lawrence counties could be seized in the interest of national security if the land is where a federal commission says power lines should go.

The initiative is meant to improve the delivery of electricity to populated areas along the Eastern Seaboard.

And it is designed to prevent the kind of wide-spread, rolling blackouts and power interruptions that California experienced -- situations that experts predict will start in New York and other eastern states in 2011 unless system upgrades are made.

But opponents, such as the Sierra Club and historic-preservation groups, contend that state and local governments would be stripped of the power to control what occurs within their boundaries under the plan and that host communities and land owners would get little compensation.

Anyone interested in expressing views about the plan can submit comments to the U.S. Department of Energy until Friday, July 6.

U.S. Rep. John McHugh (R-Pierrepont Manor) is co-sponsor of three bills in the House of Representatives that would amend parts and rescind portions of the federal policy that granted such broad powers to protect property owners from intrusion.

To comply with the National Energy Policy Act of 2005 to improve electrical-delivery systems in the U.S., the Department of Energy commissioned a study to determine the strengths and weaknesses of the current system and offer solutions.

The study concluded that an answer would be to establish national corridors to link places that could increase their power-production capacity to places that need more power.

Those corridors would be in effect for 12 years.

In April, the Energy Department presented a draft proposal to establish two National Interest Electric Transmission areas.

The Southwest Area National Interest Corridor would include California, Arizona and Nevada.

And the Mid-Atlantic Area National Interest Corridor would include the District of Columbia, eight states including New York -- specifically Franklin, Clinton and St. Lawrence counties.

Two factors that make the North Country areas of interest for increased power production are the hydropower-production system operated by the New York Power Authority at the St. Lawrence-Franklin Delano Roosevelt Power Project in Massena and the construction and planned development of wind-energy farms in northwest Clinton and eastern Franklin County.

Losing local voice?

Under the proposal, the final say in where power facilities and transmission lines would be built for these corridors would go to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.