[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 223 (Wednesday, November 19, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61817-61818]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-30312]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission


Notice of Application Accepted for Filing; Notice That the 
Application Is Not Ready for Environmental Analysis; Notice of 
Solicitation of Interventions and Protests; Notice of Intent To Conduct 
Public Scoping Meetings and Site Visit; and Notice of Solicitation of 
Written Scoping Comments

November 13, 1997.
    Take notice that the following hydroelectric application has been 
filed with the Commission and is available for public inspection:
    a. Type of Application: Major License.
    b. Project No.: 2017-011.
    c. Date Filed: February 26, 1997.
    d. Applicant: Southern California Edison Company.
    e. Name of Project: Big Creek No. 4 Hydropower Project.
    f. Location: On the San Joaquin River near the town of Auberry in 
Madera, Tulare, and Fresno Counties.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act, 16 U.S.C. Sec. 791(a)-
825(r) and 18 CFR sections 4.51 and 16.9.
    h. Applicant Contact: Mr. C. Edward Miller, Manager of Hydro 
Generation, Southern California Edison Company, 2244 Walnut Grove 
Avenue, P.O. Box 800, Rosemead, CA 91770, (818) 302-1564.
    i. FERC Contact: John Ramer, (202) 219-2833.
    j. Deadline Date: January 16, 1998.
    k. Status of Application and Environmental Analysis: This 
application has been accepted for filing, but it is not ready for 
environmental analysis--see attached paragraph E1.
    l. Invitation for Written Scoping Comments: Interested individuals, 
organizations, and agencies with environmental expertise are invited to 
assist the staff in identifying the scope of environmental issues that 
should be analyzed in the environmental analysis once the application 
is determined ready for environmental analysis by submitting written 
scoping comments. To help focus these comments, a scoping document 
outlining subject areas which could be addressed in an environmental 
analysis will be mailed to all agencies and interested individuals on 
the Commission mailing list. Copies of the scoping document may also be 
requested from the staff.
    Persons who have views on the issues or information relevant to the 
issues may submit written statements for inclusion in the public 
record. Those written comments should be filed with the Secretary, 
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street, N.E., 
Washington, D.C., 20426, by the deadline date shown in item (j) above. 
All written correspondence should clearly show the following caption on 
the first page: Big Creek No. 4 Hydropower Project, FERC No. 2017-011.
    m. Invitation to Participate in Public Scoping Meetings and Site 
Visit: A scoping meeting oriented towards the public will be conducted 
on December 15, 1997, beginning at 6:00 PM, at Sierra National Forest, 
Minaret District Office in North Fork, California. A scoping meeting 
oriented towards the agencies will be conducted on December 16, 1997, 
beginning at 8:00 AM, at the Sierra National Forest Supervisor's Office 
at 1600 Tollhouse Road, in Clovis, California.
    Interested individuals, organizations, and agencies are invited to 
attend either or both meetings and assist staff in identifying the 
scope of environmental issues that should be analyzed in any 
environmental analysis the Commission's staff undertakes.

Objectives

    At the scoping meetings the FERC staff will: (1) outline 
preliminary environmental issues they believe are related to the 
proposed project and need to be evaluated; (2) identify preliminary 
resource issues that are not important and do not require detailed 
analysis; (3) identify reasonable alternatives to be addressed in an 
environmental analysis; (4) solicit from meeting participants all 
available information relevant to the identified resource issues; and 
(5) request that the meeting participants provide comments on staff's 
preliminary assessment of the issues and alternatives that should be 
evaluated in an environmental analysis, including any suggestions for 
additional issues and alternatives which should be evaluated.

Procedures

    The meetings will be recorded by a court recorder and all 
statements thereby become a part of the record of the Commission 
proceedings on the Big Creek No. 4 Project. Individuals presenting 
statements at the meeting will be asked to identify themselves for the 
record.
    Individuals, organizations, and agencies with environmental 
expertise and concerns are encouraged to attend the meetings and assist 
the staff in defining and clarifying issues to be addressed in any 
environmental analysis.
    Persons choosing not to speak at the meetings, but who have views 
on the issues or relevant information related 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 Secretary, 
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street, NE, Washington, 
D.C. 20426, until January 16, 1998.
    All written correspondence should show the following caption on the 
first page: Big Creek No. 4 Hydropower Project, FERC Project No. 2017-
011.

Site Visit

    A site visit to the Big Creek No. 4 Hydropower Project is planned 
for December 15, 1997. Those who wish to attend should plan to meet at 
the Auberry Post Office, in Auberry, California at 1:00 PM.
    Any questions regarding this notice should be directed to John 
Ramer (environmental coordinator), at (202) 219-2833.
    n. Invitation to Intervene or Protest: Intervenors 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 for the 
project. Further, if a party or intervenor 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 the document on that resource agency. See attached 
paragraph B1.
    o. Description of the Project: The proposed project would consist 
of: (1) an existing 875-foot-long, 250-foot-high concrete dam, 
impounding a 35,033-acre-foot reservoir; (2) a combination penstock/
pressure tunnel about 11,770 feet long; (3) one powerhouse with a total 
installed capacity of 98,822 kilowatts: (4) two, 220-kilovolt 
transmission lines totaling about 87 miles in length; (5) a bypassed 
river reach totaling about 6.3 river miles; and (6) appurtenant 
facilities.
    p. This notice contains the standard paragraphs B1 and E1.
    q. Locations of the Application: A copy of the application is 
available for inspection or reproduction at the Commission's Public 
Reference and

[[Page 61818]]

Files Maintenance Branch, located at 888 First Street, NE, Room 2A-1, 
Washington, DC 20426, or by calling (202) 208-2326. A copy is also 
available for inspection and reproduction at C.E. Miller, Southern 
California Edison Company, 2244 Walnut Grove Avenue, P.O. Box 800, 
Rosemead, California, 91770, at (818) 302-1564.
    B1. Protest or Motions to Intervene--Anyone may submit a protest or 
a motion to intervene in accordance with the requirements of the Rules 
of Practice and Procedures, 18 C.F.R. sections 385.210, .211, and .214. 
In determining the appropriate action to take, the Commission will 
consider all protests filed, but only those who file a motion to 
intervene in accordance with the Commission's Rules may become a party 
to the proceeding. Any protests or motions to intervene must be 
received on or before the specified deadline date for the particular 
application.
    E1. Filing and Service of Responsive Documents--The application is 
not ready for environmental analysis at this time; therefore, the 
Commission is not now requesting comments, recommendations, terms and 
conditions, or prescriptions.
    When the application is ready for environmental analysis, the 
Commission will issue a public notice requesting comments, 
recommendations, terms and conditions, and prescriptions.
    All filings must: (1) bear in all capital letters the title 
``PROTESTS'' or ``MOTION TO INTERVENE''; (2) set forth in the heading 
the name of the applicant and the project number of the application to 
which the filing responds; (3) furnish the name, address, and telephone 
number of the person protesting or intervening; and (4) otherwise 
comply with the requirements of 18 CFR 385.2001 through 385.2005. 
Agencies may obtain copies of the application directly from the 
applicant. Any of these documents must be filed by providing the 
original and the number of copies required by the Commission's 
regulations to: Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 
First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426. An additional copy must be 
sent to: Director, Division of Licensing and Compliance, Office of 
Hydropower Licensing, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Room 62-15, 
at the above address. A copy of any protest or motion to intervene must 
be served upon each representative of the applicant specified in the 
particular application.
Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 97-30312 Filed 11-18-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M