Paper I did in Chemistry Class about High Tension Power Lines

AJ O’Hagan

High Tension Power Lines-Chemistry Paper

04/02/01

High tension power lines can be seen all over the place. For instance, you see them while traveling on highways or busy streets. You even see them in quiet neighborhoods. High tension power lines can even be seen next to houses.
High tension power lines are towers sometimes made out of metal, sometimes wood, etc. They carry electricity through transmission lines from one nuclear power plant to another. The bigger the towers are the more high voltage it carries.
High tension power lines are inserted into the ground via helicopters. A few helicopters carry the tower portion of the high tension power lines and put them into the ground. They all carry the wires called transmission wires.

High tension power lines are shaped by how much wires they carry. They are also shaped by what role they carry the transmission lines. For example, high tension power lines that are shaped like pretzels on a pole are responsible for carrying the transmission lines in a straight direction.

High tension power lines that are shaped like butterflies are responsible for changing the direction of the transmission lines. Sometimes, the wires will shift a little bit to the right or they could go into a complete different direction. High tension power lines can move into a different direction thanks to these butterfly type towers. The reason why directions of the high tension power lines have to change is because of incoming neighborhoods and towns. They can be next to houses and stores but they cannot be positioned on top of them so there is a shift in direction.

Birds are able to stand on the transmission lines without getting electrocuted because of their webbed feet. A human is not able to touch the wires because the wires carry a huge amount of high voltage electricity. If a human were to touch the wires, he or she would get electrocuted.

For some people, having high tension power lines next to their homes is a cause for great concern. Beginning in 1979, various groups have claimed that high tension power lines can cause cancer and the chances of people getting cancer increase if they live near high tension power lines.

The difference between high tension power lines and regular utility lights in the street is that high tension power lines carry high voltage electricity through neighborhoods from nuclear power plants while utility lights just carry cable, and communications through the lines. High tension power lines are high voltage lines. They are just called high tension power lines because high tension doesn’t sound as scary as high voltage through the eyes of the public.

Scientists say that there hasn’t been any proof that links high tension power lines to cancer. Never the less, the majority of the public are still afraid to buy homes near High tension power lines. The Radiation flowing through the electrical lines have people concerned that they will get cancer or other diseases, especially if they get too close.

Another side affect of living next to High tension power lines is the eye sore and the scenery. A lot of people think that High tension power lines are not attractive and will make the scenery around their house dismal. As a result, housing next to High tension power lines are usually cheaper than the ones not next to them even if they have the same values.

People have also speculated that high tension power lines are the cause of autism. Close exposure to the high tension power lines is a possible cause for Autism. Scientists have turned that claim down. Nobody knows what causes autism but people and even scientists have speculated that autism is caused by factors in the environment. It is worth knowing that high tension power Lines are huge factors in the environment since they carry electricity and also damage the environment by trees getting cut down because of it. Perhaps with more research, there could be a connection between high tension power lines and autism.

As a matter of fact, there was a blog post on “The Advocate for Autism” about an individual with high functioning autism who had an unusual obsession with high tension power lines. He used to love looking at them. At the same time, he would always have nightmares about them. In the nightmare, he would look up at the high tension power lines from a corner angle. The high tension power line would turn towards him, laugh at him, and then attack him. This all occurred while the boy was at a young age.

Many years later, now being an adult, he had another dream of the high tension power lines. This time he told the lines that Chris (His friend with autism as well) was coming and that caused the high tension power lines to be destroyed and disappear.

Back in 2006, 150 people were protesting in Sherburne’s Gaines Park against Proposed high tension power lines coming into the area. Resident Rose Tenney was quoted as saying “the power outages of New York City were due to a lack of maintenance rather than a lack of electricity.” She believed that high tension power lines could cause blackouts in neighborhoods that have them. She also believed that high tension power lines could lead to an uprising in cancer and childhood leukemia. The rally was a success as the plans to add high tension power lines through the neighborhood fell apart.

According to Biological Effects of Electric and Magnetic Fields on Productivity of Dairy Cows by JF Burchard, farmers in Canada conducted an experiment on how much milk a cow produces under high tension power lines and compared it to the milk produced by cows away from the high tension power lines, back in 1995. According to the report, farmers concluded that cows produced more milk prior to the high tension power lines being installed which supports the theory that high tension power lines do have an effect on the health and production of organisms.

Richard Wilson, a physics professor at Harvard University, believes that the radiation from the high tension power lines affects the cells in a human body, yet it doesn’t penetrate in the body.
Other scientists feel that Wilson’s theory shouldn’t be taken too seriously unless the experiment is repeated in more laboratories.
Richard P. Liburdy of the Energy Department’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory believed that radiation from the high tension power lines alters the human cell membranes. However, according to the Radsafe archives, an ethics probe found that Liburdy manipulated and falsified information about high tension power lines affecting the cell membranes.

As of right now, there is no proof that high tension power lines causes cancer. People often turn away from buying homes next to the power lines, but there hasn’t been a breakthrough in the cancer claim. For right now, the only thing known about high tension power lines is that they carry high voltage electricity.

High tension power lines occur in similar locations. You rarely spot them in the city. They can usually be located in rural areas like the suburbs. A person can usually see them when they are traveling on the highway in rural areas like the New York Thruway or the Long Island Expressway.

Highways in the city however, high tension power lines are rarely found probably because there are so much lights and electricity flowing in the city that it would be too much to combine with high tension power lines. There would be power outages and blackouts.

In rural areas, there are less lights and mostly areas with a lot of trees. It is much safer to position high tension power lines in more empty areas and less populated areas.

In conclusion, high tension power lines are more sophisticating and complex than people assume. Just because something is motionless and doesn’t have a personality, doesn’t mean it isn’t rich with information, stories, and even controversy.