A Legacy Worth Protecting

Photos supplied by the family

A stroll at sunset envelopes the senses, evoking nineteenth-century pastoral paintings.

The proposed MidAtlantic Resiliency Link (MARL) transmission line, awarded to NextEra Energy, threatens to cut across pristine wildlands in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, western Maryland, and Virginia. Juliana Glassco's family owns a historic farm in Garrett County, Maryland, once lovingly maintained by her late grandfather, Greydon Tolson, founder of the Montgomery County Forestry Board and a lifelong leader in Maryland forestry. What he started in the mountains is respectfully cared for by descendants from three generations. What has long been immune from development is now in the crosshairs of the transmission line developer. With good reason, Juliana is gravely concerned that the proposed route not only impacts her family's slice of natural beauty but also cuts through protected state forests and wildlands that are home to endangered species and pristine headwaters.

That is why Juliana is inviting residents and organizations to register to submit comments and be proactive in opposing the MARL project. More details on the MARL line can be found here, and instructions for petitioning to be an intervenor are here. Anyone can also file as an interested party, a simple process that still allows you to comment on the proceedings.

Juliana's family was comforted knowing that the priceless land they own, and the public forest around it, was off-limits to development until the Maryland legislature overturned those protections in the 2025 General Assembly, granting NextEra carte blanche to bulldoze 200-foot-wide right-of-ways and access roads through ancient, virgin forests for the construction of transmission lines.

The Maryland General Assembly first designated specific wildlands as protected areas in 1973, the same year Potomac Edison secured its right-of-way to build transmission lines that are still in service today. Two years prior, the Maryland Wildlands Preservation System was established by the Wildlands Protection Act of 1971. Although part of the PJM Interconnection power grid, which spans 13 states, MARL is one of two newly proposed transmission lines in Maryland. The threat of private and public lands being taken through eminent domain has captured headlines and enraged residents across the state.

Greydon Tolson's daughter, Sarah, marvels at a mature tree planted by her father. Echoes of her parents can be enjoyed at every turn.

The Maryland Piedmont Reliability Project (MPRP) transmission line, which affects Frederick, Carroll, and Baltimore counties in central Maryland, has already sparked legal battles between its developer, Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG), and citizens who are refusing surveyors' requests for access along its route. Surveys are a critical step when applying to the Public Service Commission to proceed with a utility project. The construction timeline is roughly one year ahead of the MARL line farther west, so opponents in Garrett County are watching closely as legal arguments play out. Juliana raises the alarm that, unlike densely populated central Maryland, western Maryland has fewer people to speak out, less money for legal representation, and lower media visibility. She feels an urgency for environmental groups to rally on behalf of citizens and public lands by taking a stand against the proposed line.

"The scale of irreversible destruction caused by data centers and the high-voltage transmission lines that power them, and the rise in energy costs that come along with them, is alarming and impossible to ignore," said Juliana.

Because of this and her conviction to protect what she holds dear, Juliana offered to volunteer with Engage Mountain Maryland, helping to educate and mobilize residents in Garrett and Allegany counties. But as she says, "We can't do it alone."

Juliana is calling on individuals and organizations that value natural habitats along the MARL line to get involved in opposing the MARL power line. The Maryland Public Service Commission (PSC) is currently reviewing NextEra Energy's request for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN). If granted, the CPCN will empower NextEra Energy to leverage eminent domain over thousands of acres of ecologically critical fields, meadows, forests, and private property. PSC approval of the CPCN is a drawn-out process that allows for public comments. For individuals or organizations to be granted the authority to comment or legally intervene, the deadline for filing is Friday, April 3, 2026.

 “My grandfather dedicated his whole life to forestry and his family. He compared the love he shared with my grandmother to a great oak tree. Cherishing this land and these forests is the way of life and legacy he left our family," said Juliana.

If the MARL line is approved by the PSC, Juliana's family's heritage could be quickly dismissed in the name of progress. The need to power data centers in Northern Virginia takes precedence over ratepayers, who will fund the infrastructure expansion, whatever the cost. What is often overlooked is that utility customers foot the bill, and those unfortunate enough to be in its path are additionally subject to eminent domain easements that generally undervalue the land property owners assumed was permanently theirs. Monstrous steel H-frames permanently replace trees, looming over and violating nature's bounty.

"Western Maryland’s precious natural landscapes and ecosystems matter to many people across the state and beyond, but if we don’t speak up for them now, we will lose them forever," Juliana says with conviction.

Additionally, she notes that the development of transmission lines through untouched lands threatens to jeopardize Garrett County’s calling card: its natural, unspoiled beauty. This increasingly rare asset draws 1.4 million visitors to the western-most county each year, according to the Garrett County Chamber of Commerce. Besides its bucolic vistas, premier cold-water trout-fishing streams, and roughly 40 remote trails, the mountaintop's economy depends on a four-season, Arcadian backdrop for outdoor adventure, which generates over 60% of the county’s revenue from tourism, second homes, vacation rental markets, and ancillary businesses.

With towers up to 200 feet tall, views like this across western Maryland would be decimated by high-voltage power lines.

Juliana notes, "If there is someone else that this information should be reaching, please share it! This power line, as proposed, would forever destroy resources and nature that are precious to all of us, and we all need to work together to fight it."

Contact Juliana by writing to EngageMountainMaryland@gmail.com

Anyone wishing to donate to a legal fund to oppose the MARL line can do so online or by mail. Transaction fees apply to online donations.

Engage Mountain Maryland

P.O. Box 81

Oakland, MD 21550

Three generations gather at Tolson Farm, appreciating the legacy that their family established years ago.