[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 98 (Thursday, May 21, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Page 27938]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-13482]



[[Page 27938]]

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Project No. 2077-000-NY/VT]


New England Power Company; Notice of Scoping Meetings Pursuant to 
the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 for an Applicant Prepared 
Environmental Assessment

May 15, 1998.
    Pursuant to the Energy Policy Act of 1992, and as part of the 
license application, the New England Power Company (NEP) intends to 
prepare an Applicant Prepared Environmental Assessment (APEA) to file 
along with the license application, with the Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission (Commission) for the Fifteen Mile Falls (FMF) Project No. 
2077. The license for the project expires on July 31, 2001.
    In October 1995, NEP initiated the cooperative consultation 
process, and in December 1995, state and federal agencies, local 
interests, and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), undertook a 
cooperative effort for the relicensing of the FMF Project. The process 
involved identification of environmental issues associated with the 
relicensing of the FMF Project, including: a public informational 
meeting in February 1996, a project site visit for agencies/
stakeholders, and a public meeting to solicit comments on the Initial 
Consultation Document (ICD) in June 1996.
    As a result of the cooperative consultation process, settlement 
negotiation meetings were conducted during the spring of 1997, 
resulting in a signed Settlement Agreement on August 6, 1997.
    NEP obtained support from the parties involved in the cooperative 
process and Settlement Agreement to pursue the APEA process for the 
relicensing of the FMF Project. On March 9, 1998, NEP requested, and on 
April 22, 1998, obtained FERC's approval to enter the APEA process. As 
part of the APEA process, NEP has prepared a Scoping Document I (SDI), 
which provides information on the scoping process, APEA schedule, 
background information, environmental issues, and proposed project 
alternatives.
    The purpose of this notice is to: (1) advise all parties as to the 
proposed scope of the environmental analysis, including cumulative 
effects, and to seek additional information pertinent to this analysis; 
and (2) advise all parties of their opportunity for comment.

Scoping Process

    The purpose of the scoping process is to identify significant 
issues related to the proposed action and to determine what issues 
should be addressed in the document to be prepared pursuant to the 
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). The SDI will be 
circulated to enable appropriate federal, state, and local resource 
agencies, Indian tribes, NGOs, and other interested parties to 
participate in the scoping process. SDI provides a brief description of 
the proposed action, project alternatives, the geographic and temporal 
scope of a cumulative effects analysis, and a list of issues.

Scoping Meetings and Site Visit

    NEP and FERC staff will conduct two scoping meetings and a site 
visit. All interested individuals, organizations, and agencies are 
invited to attend and assist in identifying the scope of environmental 
issues that should be analyzed in the APEA.
    The public scoping meeting will be held on June 4, 1998, from 7:00 
to 9:00 pm at the Littleton Opera House, Main Street, Littleton, NH. 
The agency scoping meeting will be held on June 5, 1998, from 9:30 to 
12:00 am at the North Country Council Conference Room, 107 Glessner 
Road, Bethlehem, NH. The site visit will commence at 9:30 am on June 4, 
1998. Those persons interested should meet at Moore Visitor Center, 
Rtes. 135/18, Littleton, NH. For more details, interested parties 
should contact John Ragonese, NEP, (603)-443-9229, prior to the meeting 
date.

Objectives

    At the scoping meetings, NEP and FERC staff will: (1) summarize the 
environmental issues identified for analysis in the APEA; (2) solicit 
from the meeting participants all available information, especially 
quantified data, on the resources at issue, and (3) encourage 
statements from experts and the public on issues that should be 
analyzed in the APEA. Individuals, organizations, and agencies with 
environmental expertise and concerns are encouraged to attend the 
meetings and to assist in defining and clarifying the issues to be 
addressed.

Meeting Procedures

    The meeting will be conducted according to the procedures used at 
Commission scoping meetings. Because this meeting will be a NEPA 
scoping meeting, the Commission will not conduct another scoping 
meeting when the application and APEA are filed with the Commission in 
Spring 1999.
    The meetings will be recorded by a stenographer and become a part 
of the formal record of the Commission proceeding on the FMF Project. 
Individuals presenting statements at the meetings will be asked to 
identify themselves for the record. Speaking time allowed for 
individuals will be determined before each meeting, based on the number 
of persons wishing to speak and the approximate amount of time 
available for the session. Persons choosing not to speak but wishing to 
express an opinion, as well as speakers unable to summarize their 
positions within their allotted time, may submit written statements for 
inclusion in the public record no later than June 19, 1998.
    All filings should contain an original and 8 copies. Failure to 
file an original and 8 copies may result in appropriate staff not 
receiving the benefit of your comments in a timely manner. All comments 
should be submitted to the Office of the Secretary, Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20426, 
and should clearly show the following captions on the first page: 
Fifteen Mile Falls Project, FERC No. 2077. A copy of each filing should 
also be sent to John Ragonese, New England Power Company, 407 Miracle 
Mile, Suite 2, Lebanon, NH 02766.
    Based on all written comments, a Scoping Document II (SDII) may be 
issued. SDII will include a revised list of issues, based on the 
scoping sessions.
    For further information regarding the APEA scoping process, please 
contact William Guey-Lee, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 
First Street, NE, Washington, DC, 20426 at (202) 219-2794, or John 
Ragonese, New England Power Company, at (603) 443-9229.
Linwood A. Watson, Jr.
Acting Secretary.
[FR Doc. 98-13482 Filed 5-20-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M