Would it not stand to reason that if there is so much impedance on a circuit that the wire size must be increased to achieve suitable operation under normal conditions, then the fault path must also be up-sized if the ocpd is going to clear the fault in a timely manner?
That is a good reason to increase the size of the circuit and EGC. The problem there is no science behind the rule of up-sizing. A poster a while back had a 20 amp circuit to a pump on a golf course. Because of the distance he installed 2/0 copper conductors and due to the rule he had to install a 2/0 EGC. According to the table, if he had used a 200 amp breaker, he would have needed a #6 EGC. There is no science behind the rule for the EGC when up-sizing a circuit. On long circuits, the designer needs to consider the size of the EGC using some engineering methods to ensure the conductor is properly sized.
Table 250.122?Minimum Size Equipment Grounding (Bonding) Conductor
Protection Rating.......CopperConductor d
15A..........................14 AWG
20A...........................12 AWG
30?60A..................10 AWG
70?100A..................8 AWG
110?200A................6 AWG
225?300A................4 AWG
350?400A................3 AWG
450?500A................2 AWG
600A...........................1 AWG
700?800A.............1/0 AWG
1,000A.....................2/0 AWG
1,200A.....................3/0 AWG