[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 72 (Thursday, April 14, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20971-20973]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-9069]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Project No. 2299-075]
Turlock Irrigation District and Modesto Irrigation District;
Notice of Intent To File License Application, Filing of Pre-Application
Document (PAD), Commencement of Pre-Filing Process, and Scoping;
Request for Comments on the PAD and Scoping Document, and
Identification of Issues and Associated Study Requests
a. Type of Filing: Notice of Intent to File License Application for
a New License and Commencing Pre-filing Process.
[[Page 20972]]
b. Project No.: 2299-075.
c. Dated Filed: February 10, 2011.
d. Submitted By: Turlock Irrigation District and Modesto Irrigation
District.
e. Name of Project: Don Pedro Hydroelectric Project.
f. Location: The Don Pedro Project facilities are located on the
Tuolomne River in Tuolomne County, California. Portions of the Don
Pedro Project occupy lands of the Bureau of Land Management Sierra
Resource Management Unit.
g. Filed Pursuant to: 18 CFR part 5 of the Commission's
Regulations.
h. Potential Applicant Contact: Robert M. Nees, Director of Water
Resources and Regulatory Affairs, Turlock Irrigation District, P.O. Box
949, Turlock, California 95381, 209-883-8241 and Greg Dias, Project
Manager, Modesto Irrigation District, P.O. Box 4060, Modesto,
California 95352, 209-526-7566.
i. FERC Contact: Jim Hastreiter at (503) 552-2760 or
[email protected].
j. Cooperating agencies: Federal, state, local, and tribal agencies
with jurisdiction and/or special expertise with respect to
environmental issues that wish to cooperate in the preparation of the
environmental document should follow the instructions for filing such
requests described in item o below. Cooperating agencies should note
the Commission's policy that agencies that cooperate in the preparation
of the environmental document cannot also intervene. See 94 FERC ]
61,076 (2001).
k. With this notice, we are initiating informal consultation with:
(a) The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and/or NOAA Fisheries under
section 7 of the Endangered Species Act and the joint agency
regulations thereunder at 50 CFR part 402 and (b) the California State
Historic Preservation Officer, as required by section 106, National
Historical Preservation Act, and the implementing regulations of the
Advisory Council on Historic Preservation at 36 CFR 800.2.
l. With this notice, we are designating the Turlock Irrigation
District and Modesto Irrigation District as the Commission's non-
federal representative for carrying out informal consultation, pursuant
to section 7 of the Endangered Species Act and section 106 of the
National Historic Preservation Act.
m. Turlock Irrigation District and Modesto Irrigation District
filed with the Commission a Pre-Application Document (PAD; including a
proposed process plan and schedule), pursuant to 18 CFR 5.6 of the
Commission's regulations.
n. A copy of the PAD is available for review at the Commission in
the Public Reference Room or may be viewed on the Commission's Web site
(http://www.ferc.gov), using the ``eLibrary'' link. Enter the docket
number, excluding the last three digits in the docket number field to
access the document. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support at
[email protected] or toll free at 1-866-208-3676, or for TTY,
(202) 502-8659. A copy is also available for inspection and
reproduction at the address in paragraph h.
Register online at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/esubscription.asp to be notified via e-mail of new filing and issuances
related to this or other pending projects. For assistance, contact FERC
Online Support.
o. With this notice, we are soliciting comments on the PAD and
Commission's staff Scoping Document 1 (SD1), as well as study requests.
All comments on the PAD and SD1, and study requests should be sent to
the address above in paragraph h. In addition, all comments on the PAD
and SD1, study requests, requests for cooperating agency status, and
all communications to and from Commission staff related to the merits
of the potential application must be filed with the Commission.
Documents may be filed electronically via the Internet. See 18 CFR
385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the instructions on the Commission's Web site
http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp. Commenters can submit
brief comments up to 6,000 characters, without prior registration,
using the eComment system at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/ecomment.asp. You must include your name and contact information at the
end of your comments. For assistance, please contact FERC Online
Support. Although the Commission strongly encourages electronic filing,
documents may also be paper-filed. To paper-file, mail an original and
seven copies to: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, 888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426.
All filings with the Commission must include on the first page, the
project name (Don Pedro Hydroelectric Project) and number (P-2299-075),
and bear the appropriate heading: ``Comments on Pre-Application
Document,'' ``Study Requests,'' ``Comments on Scoping Document 1,''
``Request for Cooperating Agency Status,'' or ``Communications to and
from Commission Staff.'' Any individual or entity interested in
submitting study requests, commenting on the PAD or SD1, and any agency
requesting cooperating status must do so by June 10, 2011.
p. Our current intent is to prepare an Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS). This meeting will satisfy the NEPA scoping
requirements.
Scoping Meetings and Environmental Site Review
Commission staff will hold two scoping meetings in the vicinity of
the project at the time and place noted below. The daytime meeting will
focus on resource agency, Indian tribes, and non-governmental
organization concerns, while the evening meeting is primarily for
receiving input from the public. We invite all interested individuals,
organizations, and agencies to attend one or both of the meetings, and
to assist staff in identifying particular study needs, as well as the
scope of environmental issues to be addressed in the environmental
document. The times and locations of these meetings are as follows:
Daytime Scoping Meeting
Date and Time: Wednesday, May 11, 2011, 9 a.m. (PST)
Location: CSU-Stanislaus, University Student Union-Events Center, 801
W. Monte Vista, Turlock, California
Evening Scoping Meeting
Date and Time: Wednesday, May 11, 2011, 7 p.m. (PST)
Location: Double Tree Hotel-Modesto, Ballroom 3, 1150 Ninth Street,
Modesto, California
Scoping Document 1 (SD1), which outlines the subject areas to be
addressed in the environmental document, was mailed to the individuals
and entities on the Commission's and Turlock Irrigation District and
Modesto Irrigation District mailing lists. Copies of SD1 will be
available at the scoping meetings, or may be viewed on the web at
http://www.ferc.gov, using the ``eLibrary'' link. Follow the directions
for accessing information in paragraph n. Based on all oral and written
comments, a Scoping Document 2 (SD2) may be issued. SD2 may include a
revised process plan and schedule, as well as a list of issues,
identified through the scoping process.
Environmental Site Review
Date and Time: Tuesday, May 10, 2011, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. (PST)
Location: meet at the Don Pedro Recreation Agency Headquarters &
Visitor Center, 10200 Bonds Flat Road, La Grange, California 95329.
[[Page 20973]]
Please notify Jim Hastreiter at 503-552-2760 or
[email protected] by May 2, 2011, if you plan to attend the
site visit.
Meeting Objectives
At the scoping meetings, staff will: (1) Initiate scoping of the
issues; (2) review and discuss existing conditions and resource
management objectives; (3) review and discuss existing information and
identify preliminary information and study needs; (4) review and
discuss the process plan and schedule for pre-filing activity that
incorporates the time frames provided for in Part 5 of the Commission's
regulations and, to the extent possible, maximizes coordination of
federal, state, and tribal permitting and certification processes; and
(5) discuss the appropriateness of any federal or state agency or
Indian tribe acting as a cooperating agency for development of an
environmental document.
Meeting participants should come prepared to discuss their issues
and/or concerns. Please review the PAD in preparation for the scoping
meetings. Directions on how to obtain a copy of the PAD and SD1 are
included in item n. of this document.
Meeting Procedures
The meetings will be recorded by a stenographer and will be placed
in the public record of the project.
Dated: April 8, 2011.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011-9069 Filed 4-13-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P