[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 112 (Wednesday, June 11, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31815-31816]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-15194]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Project Nos. 503, 1971, 1975-014, 2055, 2061-004, 2726, 2777-007, 
2778-005--Idaho]


Idaho Power Company; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental 
Impact Statement (EIS) and Conduct Public Scoping Meetings and a Site 
Visit

June 5, 1997.
    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) is reviewing 
applications to relicense and continue operating the following Idaho 
Power Company hydroelectric projects:

Bliss Project--Project No. 1975
Lower Salmon Falls Project--Project No. 2061
Upper Salmon Falls Project--Project No. 2777
Shoshone Falls Project--Project No. 2778

    The projects are located on the Snake River in Twin Falls, Elmore, 
Gooding, and Jerome Counties, Idaho.
    Relicensing these projects could constitute a major federal action

[[Page 31816]]

significantly affecting the quality of the human environment. 
Therefore, the Commission intends to prepare an Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS) on the projects in accordance with the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969, and the Commission's regulations. The 
EIS will objectively consider both site-specific and cumulative 
environmental impacts of the projects and reasonable alternatives, and 
will include an economic and engineering analysis.
    A draft EIS will be circulated for review and comment by all 
interested parties, and the Commission will hold a public meeting on 
the draft EIS. FERC staff will consider and respond to comments 
received on the draft EIS in the final EIS. the FERC staff's 
conclusions and recommendations will then be presented for the 
consideration of the Commission in reaching its final licensing 
decision.
    The Commission staff is also preparing a cumulative analysis of the 
four projects already filed along with the following four other Idaho 
Power Company projects, scheduled to be filed between 1998 and 2008:

C.J. Strike Project--Project No. 2055
Upper and Lower Malad Project--Project No. 2726
Hells Canyon Project--Project No. 1971
Swan Falls Project--Project No. 503

Scoping

    Concerned citizens, special interest groups, local governments, 
state and federal agencies, tribes, and any other interested parties 
are invited to comment on the scope of the environmental issues that 
should be analyzed in the EIS and the cumulative analysis. Scoping will 
help ensure that all significant issues related to this proposal are 
addressed in the EIS.

Bliss, Lower Salmon Falls, Upper Salmon Falls, and Shoshone Falls 
Projects

    A scoping meeting oriented toward the public will be held starting 
at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, July 15, 1997, at the College of Southern 
Idaho, located at 315 Falls Avenue West, Twin Falls, Idaho.
    A scoping meeting oriented toward the agencies will be held at 9:00 
am on Thursday, July 15, 1997, at the Boise Center on the Grove, 850 
West Front Street, Boise, Idaho.
    The public and the agencies may attend either or both meetings.

Cumulative Analysis of the Snake River Basin

    A scoping meeting for the cumulative analysis will be held starting 
at 9:00 a.m. on Friday, July 18, 1997, at the Boise Center on the 
Grove, 850 West Front Street, Boise, Idaho.

Objectives

    At the July 15 and 17 scoping meetings, FERC staff will (1) 
identify preliminary environmental issues related to the proposed 
projects; (2) attempt to identify preliminary resource issues that are 
not important and do not require detailed analysis; (3) identify 
reasonable alternatives to be addressed in the EIS; (4) solicit from 
the meeting participants all available information, especially 
quantified data, on the resource issues; and (5) encourage statements 
from experts and the public on issues that should be analyzed in the 
EIS, including points of view in opposition to, or in support of, the 
staff's preliminary views.
    At the July 18 scoping meeting in Boise, we will discuss approaches 
to evaluating cumulative impacts of the Idaho Power's eight relicense 
projects and cumulative impact issues associated with the eight 
projects.

Procedures

    The meetings will be recorded by a court reporter and all 
statements (oral and written) will become a part of the official record 
of the Commission proceedings for the three projects. Individuals 
presenting statements at the meetings will be asked to clearly identify 
themselves for the record.
    To help focus discussions at the scoping meeting, the FERC will 
mail a Scoping Document, outlining subject areas to be addressed in the 
EIS, to agencies and interested individuals on the project mailing 
list. Copies of the scoping document will also be available at the 
scoping meetings.
    Persons choosing not to speak at the meetings, but who have views 
on the issues or information relevant to the issues, may submit written 
statements for inclusion in the public record at the meetings. In 
addition, written scoping comments may be filed with the Office of the 
Secretary, Dockets Room 1A, Federal Energy Regulation Commission, 888 
First Street, NE, Washington, D.C. 20426 until August 18, 1997. All 
written correspondence should clearly identify the appropriate projects 
on the first page: Project Nos. 503 (C.J. Strike), 2061-004 (Lower 
Salmon Falls), 2726 (Upper and Lower Malad), 2777-007 (Upper Salmon 
Falls), 2778 (Shoshone Falls).
    Intervenors--those on the Commission's service list for this 
proceeding (parties)--are reminded of the Commission's Rules of 
Practice and Procedure, requiring parties filing documents with the 
Commission, to serve a copy of the document on each person whose name 
appears on the official service list. Further, if a party or interceder 
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 service a copy of the document on that 
resource agency.

Site Visit

    There will also be a tour of the Bliss, Lower Salmon Falls, Upper 
Salmon Falls, and Shoshone Falls Projects on July 16, 1997. Attendees 
will meet at the Shoshone Falls overlook parking lot at 9:00 a.m. 
Please call Craig Jones, Idaho Power Company, at 208-388-2934, if you 
plan to attend no later than July 9, 1997.
    For Further Information Contact: Alan Mitchnick, FERC-OHL (202) 
219-2826.
Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 97-15194 Filed 6-10-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M