[Federal Register: October 6, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 193)]
[Notices]               
[Page 57683-57684]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr06oc03-46]                         

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. 2230-033]

 
City & Borough of Sitka, Alaska; Notice of Scoping Meeting, Site 
Visit, and Solicitation of Scoping Comments

October 1, 2003.
    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (Commission) regulations 
allow applicants to prepare their own Environmental Assessment (EA) for 
hydropower projects for filing with the Commission along with the 
license application as part of an alternative licensing procedure 
(ALP). On September 10, 2003, the Commission noticed the request of 
City & Borough of Sitka, Alaska (Sitka) to use the ALP and set a 
deadline for comments of October 10, 2003. Sitka wishes to hold a 
scoping meeting on Wednesday, October 22, 2003. Because the Commission 
will need ample time to fully consider comments received from 
interested stakeholders on Sitka's request to use the ALP, the 
Commission is not likely to make a decision on Sitka's request to use 
the ALP prior to the scoping meeting. However, the ALP allows greater 
flexibility than the traditional licensing process, and the Commission 
believes that it is in the public interest to solicit scoping comments 
in this notice. The Commission has not pre-judged Sitka's request to 
use the ALP.

Public Meeting and Site Visit

    Sitka distributed a Scoping Document 1 (SD1) for the Blue Lake 
Hydroelectric Project on September 17, 2003, to the mailing list for 
this proceeding. In addition, Sitka will hold a scoping meeting for the 
project. The purpose of the meeting is to review the information 
presented in the SD1 and to initiate the identification of areas of 
interest that should be addressed in the licensing and any related 
Applicant-Prepared Environmental Assessment (APEA) processes. The 
meeting will be held as follows:

Blue Lake Scoping Meeting

    Date: Wednesday, October 22, 2003.
    Place: Harrigan Centennial Hall, 330 Harbor Drive, Sitka, Alaska.
    Time: 7 p.m.
    This meeting is posted on the Commission's calendar located at 
http://www.ferc.gov/EventCalendar/EventsList.aspx along with other 
related information.
    Sitka will also conduct a site visit to the project on Thursday, 
October 23, 2003. Those wishing to attend the site

[[Page 57684]]

visit should meet at the Blue Lake Powerhouse at 9 a.m. Please RSVP 
Dean Orbison, Engineering Manager, at (907) 747-6633, at least 3 days 
prior to the site visit if you plan on attending.
    The deadline for filing comments is November 21, 2003. All 
documents (an original and eight copies) should be filed with: Magalie 
R. Salas, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First 
Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426.
    Scoping comments may be filed electronically via the Internet in 
lieu of paper. The Commission strongly encourages electronic filings. 
See 18 CFR 385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the instructions on the Commission's 
web site: http://www.ferc.gov under the ``e-Filing'' link.
    The Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure require all 
interveners filing documents with the Commission to serve a copy of 
that document on each person on the official service list for the 
project. Further, if an intervener files comments or documents with the 
Commission relating to the merits of an issue that may affect the 
responsibilities of a particular resource agency, they must also serve 
a copy of that document on that resource agency.
    Based on feedback received on the SD1 and the project site visit, 
Sitka will prepare a Scoping Document 2 (SD2). SD2 will include a 
revised list of issues based on the meeting and written comments.
    All interested individuals, organizations, and agencies are invited 
and encouraged to attend the meetings and site visit and to assist in 
the identification of environmental issues that should be included in 
SD2.
    We are asking federal, state, local, and tribal agencies with 
jurisdiction and/or special expertise with respect to environmental 
issues to cooperate with us in the preparation of the Commission's EA. 
Agencies who would like to request cooperating agency status should 
file such a request (original and eight copies) with the Secretary at 
the aforementioned address. Please put the docket number, P-2230-033, 
on the first page of your filing.
    For further information regarding the scoping meeting and project 
site visit or to be added to the mailing list for the project, please 
contact Mr. Dean Orbison of Sitka or Nicholas Jayjack of the 
Commission's staff at (202) 502-6073.
    A copy of the SD1 is available for review at the Commission in the 
Public Reference Room or may be viewed on the Commission's website at 
http://www.ferc.gov using the ``eLibrary'' link. Enter the project 
number (P-2230) in the docket number field to access the document. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support at FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov 
or toll-free at 1-866-208-3676, or for TTY, (202) 502-8659.
    You may also register online at http://www.ferc.gov/docs filing/
esubscription.asp to be notified via email of new filings and issuances 
related to this or other pending projects. For assistance, contact FERC 
Online Support.

Magalie R. Salas,
Secretary.
 [FR Doc. 03-25450 Filed 10-3-03; 8:45 a.m.]

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