[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 184 (Thursday, September 21, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57175-57176]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-24277]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DELAWARE RIVER BASIN COMMISSION


Notice of Commission Meeting and Public Hearing

    Notice is hereby given that the Delaware River Basin Commission 
will hold an informal conference followed by a public hearing on 
Thursday, September 28, 2000. The hearing will be part of the 
Commission's regular business meeting. Both the conference session and 
business meeting are open to the public and will be held in Bellevue 
Hall at the Bellevue State Park, 911 Philadelphia Pike, Wilmington, 
Delaware.
    The conference among the Commissioners and staff will begin at 
10:00 a.m. Topics of discussion will include the Delaware Water Supply 
Coordinating Council Progress Report of May 31, 2000; and the DRBC's 
requirements for review and approval of projects under section 3.8 and 
Article 13 of the Compact, with a focus on the possible need to expand 
Commission review to certain pre-Compact projects. Summaries of the 
following six meetings will be presented: Inaugural meetings of the 
Monitoring Advisory Committee and Flood Advisory Committee on September 
6 and 7, respectively; meeting of the Water Management Advisory 
Committee on September 12, including discussion of a proposal to amend 
DRBC metering regulations; presentation by the Coalition of Municipal/
Industrial Dischargers on August 28; meeting of the Toxics Advisory 
Committee on September 20; and meeting of the Flow Management Technical 
Advisory Committee on September 21. Also scheduled for the conference 
session are a summary of the Christina River Basin TMDL hearings and, 
time permitting, a presentation on the Pocono Creek Goal-Based 
Watershed Management Pilot Study.
    The subjects of the public hearing to be held during the 1:30 p.m. 
business meeting include, in addition to the dockets listed below, 
proposed resolutions to: Temporarily modify Docket No. D-77-20 CP 
(Revision No. 3) to provide additional releases from Cannonsville 
Reservoir; and approve Fiscal Year 2000 budget adjustments.
    The dockets scheduled for public hearing are as follows:
    1. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation D-77-20 
CP (Revision No. 3). An application to temporarily modify the operating 
plan for the Schedule of Release Rates from Cannonsville, Pepacton and 
Neversink Reservoirs in Delaware and Sullivan Counties, New York.
    2. Wilmington Country Club D-90-38 RENEWAL. A renewal of a combined 
surface and ground water withdrawal project to supply up to 24.4 
million gallons (mg)/30 days of water to the applicant's golf course 
irrigation system. Up to 4.32 mg/30 days can be supplied from Wells 
Nos. 1-3 in the Wissahickon Formation, and up to 24.4 mg/30 days from 
an existing surface water intake on Wilson Run, a tributary of 
Brandywine Creek. Commission approval on June 27, 1990 was limited to 
10 years. The applicant requests that the total withdrawal from all 
sources remain limited to 24.4 mg/30 days. The project is located near 
the Village of Montchanin, New Castle County, Delaware.
    3. Telford Borough Authority D-95-40 CP. A project to rerate the 
applicant's existing 0.95 million gallons per day (mgd) extended 
aeration sewage treatment plant (STP) to 1.1 mgd. The STP is located 
off Fourth Street in Franconia Township, Montgomery County, 
Pennsylvania and will continue to serve portions of Franconia Township 
and Telford and Souderton Boroughs in Montgomery County, as well as 
portions of West Rockhill and Hilltown Townships in Bucks County. The 
STP will continue to discharge to Indian Creek in the East Branch 
Perkiomen Creek watershed via the existing outfall structure.
    4. Conectiv Energy, Inc. D-2000-12 CP. A project to increase the 
electric power generation capacity from 450 megawatts (MW) to 1000 MW 
at the applicant's Hay Road Power Complex, which includes the Edge Moor 
and Hay Road Stations, and increase the associated consumptive water 
use. The applicant proposes the phased construction of three gas-fired 
and one steam-powered generation units (Nos. 5, 6, 7 and 8, 
respectively) on the

[[Page 57176]]

Brownfield site located just east of Hay Road in the City of 
Wilmington, New Castle County, Delaware that will supply electric power 
to the Pennsylvania-Jersey-Maryland power grid. As with its Hay Road 
station, the project will utilize the Edge Moor station non-contact 
cooling water discharge (to Water Quality Zone 5) as its source for 
cooling tower make-up and will not require an increase in the existing 
allowable withdrawal for the Complex. The applicant estimates that up 
to 7.2 mgd of water supply will be diverted from the discharge channel 
and that approximately 67 percent (4.8 mgd) will be consumptively used. 
Cooling tower blowdown will be discharged to the existing man-made 
cooling water discharge channel in the Delaware River Water Quality 
Zone 5.
    5. Calpine Construction Finance Company D-2000-14 CP. A project to 
construct a 544 MW combined-cycle electric generating station on the 
applicant's 19-acre site between State Route 61 and the Conrail 
railroad lines in Ontelaunee Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania. The 
natural gas-fired facility will transfer electric power to the GPU 
North Temple substation approximately one mile away. The Reading Area 
Water Authority (RAWA) will supply approximately 4.0 mgd of water from 
its Ontelaunee Reservoir, located approximately three miles north, to 
the applicant's facility for cooling tower make-up and steam, of which 
0.35 mgd will be treated and discharged to the Schuylkill River. The 
applicant also proposes to offset its consumptive use of approximately 
3.6 mgd via use of Ontelaunee Reservoir storage.
    6. Realen Homes D-2000-26 CP. A ground water withdrawal project to 
supply a combined total to 3.7 mg/30 days of water to the applicant's 
proposed Ridgelea residential development from new Wells Nos. SW-1 and 
SW-2 in the Stockton Formation. The project is located in South 
Coventry Township, Chester County in the Southeastern Pennsylvania 
Ground Water Protected Area.
    7. Maidencreek Township Authority D-2000-28 CP. A project to expand 
the applicant's secondary treatment 0.45 mgd STP to an annual average 
0.8 mgd. The proposed oxidation ditch system is designed to treat a 
maximum monthly flow of 1.0 mgd for residential and industrial 
connections in portions of Maidencreek and Ontelaunee Townships, both 
in Berks County, Pennsylvania. The STP is located off Willow Creek 
Road, approximately one-quarter mile northwest of its intersection with 
East Huller Lane. Treated effluent will continue to be discharged to 
Willow Creek, a tributary of Maiden Creek in the Schuylkill River 
watershed.
    8. FPL Energy Marcus Hook, L.P. D-2000-44. A project to construct a 
nominal 750 MW gas-fired combined cycle electric generating station at 
SUNOCO's Marcus Hook Refinery, located along the Delaware River in 
Water Quality Zone 4 in Marcus Hook Borough, Delaware County, 
Pennsylvania. The applicant requests an allocation of up to 11 mgd of 
surface water to be diverted via SUNOCO's existing intake on the 
Delaware River (no increase in SUNOCO'S allocation is necessary). 
Maximum monthly usage is expected to be approximately 9.4 mgd. Up to 
2.34 mgd of project wastewater will be conveyed to the DELCORA sewage 
treatment plant for treatment and discharge to the Delaware River. The 
proposed electric power station will provide electricity to the 
Pennsylvania-Jersey-Maryland power grid and also will supply steam to 
SUNOCO.
    9. Reading Area Water Authority D-2000-59 CP. A new Operating Plan 
for the applicant's Ontelaunee Reservoir due to the decommissioning of 
its 0.945 MW hydroelectric facilities approved via Docket No. D-86-72 
CP on August 3, 1988. Operation of the hydroelectric turbines has 
become cost ineffective and depletes storage in the Reservoir. The 
turbines will be removed from service and Docket No. D-86-72 CP will be 
rescinded. RAWA proposes to initiate a staged release program to 
conserve storage by varying releases depending upon the volume of 
storage available. The new release program is designed to meet 
streamflow objectives for Maiden Creek while storage continues to 
provide for existing and future water demand in the RAWA service area. 
Ontelaunee Reservoir is located on Maiden Creek in Ontelaunee Township, 
Berks County, Pennsylvania.
    10. Jefferson Township Sewer Authority D-2000-61 CP. A project to 
transfer up to 410,000 gpd of raw wastewater from Jefferson Township, 
Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania in the Delaware River Basin, to the 
Scranton Sewer Authority STP in the City of Scranton, also in 
Lackawanna County, for discharge to the Susquehanna River Basin. 
Approximately 385,840 gpd of the wastewater originates from ground 
water sources within the Delaware River Basin, and therefore, is 
considered an exportation. The project will replace failing on-lot 
disposal systems serving portions of Jefferson Township, which 
straddles the Basin divide. The project is proposed as an alternative 
to a 410,000 gpd STP previously approved for in-Basin discharge (in the 
Wallenpaupack Creek watershed) via Docket No. D-97-6 CP on November 19, 
1997.
    In addition to the public hearing, the Commission will address the 
following at its 1:30 p.m. business meeting: minutes of the July 26, 
2000 business meeting; announcements; report on hydrologic conditions 
in the basin; reports by the Executive Director and General Counsel; 
and resolutions to: approve the Delaware Water Supply Coordinating 
Council Progress Report of May 31, 2000 as satisfying the requirements 
of DRBC Docket Nos. D-96-50 CP, D-90-110 CP, and D-97-48 CP to develop 
a preliminary Integrated Resources Supply Plan by July 1, 2000; approve 
a grant agreement between the DRBC and the State of New Jersey for the 
Lower Delaware Watershed Region Program Grant: Tidal Rancocas Creek 
Hydrodynamic Model; authorize the Executive Director to contract with 
the U.S. Geological Survey, the Montgomery County Planning Commission 
and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to complete tasks outlined in an 
amendment to an agreement between the Delaware River Basin Commission 
and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of Environmental 
Protection; and approve continued funding for a monitoring program for 
the tidal Schuylkill River in cooperation with the Academy of Natural 
Sciences of Philadelphia. Time also will be reserved for public 
dialogue.
    Documents relating to the dockets and other items may be examined 
at the Commission's offices. Preliminary dockets are available in 
single copies upon request. Please contact Thomas L. Brand at (609) 
883-9500 ext. 221 with any docket-related questions. Persons wishing to 
testify at this hearing are requested to register in advance with the 
Secretary at (609) 883-9500 ext. 203.
    Individuals in need of an accommodation as provided for in the 
Americans With Disabilities Act who wish to attend the hearing should 
contact the Commission Secretary, Pamela M. Bush, directly at (609) 
883-9500 ext. 203 or through the New Jersey Relay Service at 1-800-852-
7899 (TTY) to discuss how the Commission may accommodate your needs.

    Dated: September 12, 2000.
Pamela M. Bush,
Commission Secretary.
[FR Doc. 00-24277 Filed 9-20-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6360-01-P