[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 80 (Thursday, April 25, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20507-20508]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-10145]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission


Notice of Scoping Meetings and Site Visit and Soliciting Scoping 
Comments

April 19, 2002.
    Take notice that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 
(Commission) intends to perform early scoping for the Baker River 
Hydroelectric Project: a.
    a. Type of Application: Early Scoping Under the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for New Major License.
    b. Project No.: 2150.
    c. Date Filed: License Application Expected by April 30, 2004.
    d. Applicant: Puget Sound Energy, Inc.
    e. Name of Project: Baker River Project.
    f. Location: On the Baker River in Skagit and Whatcom Counties, 
Washington. The project occupies 5,335 acres of United States lands 
managed by the U.S. Forest Service.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act, 16 USC Sec. 791(a)--
825(r).
    h. Applicant Contact: Connie Freeland, Puget Sound Energy, Inc., 
P.O. Box 97034, Bellevue, WA 98009-9734; [email protected] (425) 462-
3556.
    i. FERC Contact: Steve Hocking, [email protected] (202) 219-
2656.
    j. Deadline for filing scoping comments: July 22, 2002.
    All documents (an original and eight copies) should be filed with: 
Magalie R. Salas, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 
First Street, NE, Washington DC 20426.
    Scoping comments may be filed electronically via the Internet in 
lieu of paper. See 18 CFR 385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the instructions on 
the Commission's web site www.ferc.gov under the ``e-Filing'' link.
    k. This application is not ready for environmental analysis at this 
time.
    l. The existing Baker River Project has two developments. The Upper 
Baker Development is located at river mile 9.35 on the Baker River 
about 8 miles upstream of the City of Concrete, Washington. This 
development has the following existing facilities: (1) A 312-foot-high 
and 1,200-foot-long dam with an ogee-type spillway containing three 
radial gates that are each 25 feet wide and 30 feet high; (2) a 115-
foot-high and 1,200-foot-long West Pass dike; (3) a 9-mile-long 
reservoir (Baker Lake) with a surface area of 4,797 acres at a normal 
maximum pool elevation of 724 feet mean sea level (fmsl); (4) a 122-
foot-long and 59-foot-wide reinforced concrete powerhouse located in 
the north half of the existing river bed and housing two turbine-driven 
generators with an authorized capacity of 90.7 megawatts (MW) and a 
hydraulic capacity of 5,100 cubic feet per second (cfs); (5) 
transmission lines; (6) downstream fish passage facilities and 
artificial spawning beaches; and (7) appurtenant facilities.
    The Lower Baker Development is located 0.5 mile upstream of the 
confluence of the Baker and Skagit Rivers. This development has the 
following existing facilities: (1) A 285-foot-high and 570-foot-long 
concrete gravity arch dam with a spillway containing 23 vertical slide 
gates that are each 14 feet high and 9.5 feet wide; (2) a concrete 
intake equipped with trashracks and gatehouse located near the left dam 
abutment; (3) one concrete and steel-lined penstock; (4) a 7-mile-long 
reservoir (Lake Shannon) with a surface area of 2,190 acres at a normal 
maximum pool elevation of 438.6 fmsl; (5) a reinforced concrete 
powerhouse that is 90 feet long and 66 feet wide housing a single 
turbine-generator with an authorized capacity of 71.4 MW and a 
hydraulic capacity of 4,100 cfs; (6) transmission lines; (7) a barrier 
dam; (8) upstream and downstream fish passage facilities; and (9) 
appurtenant facilities.
    m. A copy of SD1 is on file with the Commission and is available 
for public inspection. SD1 may also be viewed on the web at 
www.ferc.gov using the ``RIMS'' link-select ``Docket #'' and follow the 
instructions (call 202-208-2222 for assistance). A copy is also 
available for inspection and reproduction at the address in item h 
above.
    n. Scoping Process: Although the Commission's intent is to prepare 
an environmental assessment (EA) for the Baker River Project, there is 
the possibility that an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) will be 
required. Nevertheless, our scoping meetings described below will 
satisfy NEPA scoping requirements, irrespective of whether an EA or EIS 
is issued by the Commission. The Commission does not intend to conduct 
NEPA scoping meetings after Puget Sound Energy, Inc. (Puget) files its 
license application.

Scoping Meetings

    Commission staff and Puget will jointly conduct one evening scoping 
meeting and one morning scoping meeting. The morning meeting will focus 
on resource agency and non-governmental organization concerns, while 
the evening meeting is primarily for public input. All interested 
individuals, organizations, and agencies are invited to attend one or 
both of the

[[Page 20508]]

meetings. Meeting times and locations are:

 Evening Scoping Meeting

Date: May 21, 2002.
Time: 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Place: Concrete High School Multipurpose Room, 7830 Superior Avenue, 
Concrete, Washington.

 Morning Scoping Meeting

Date: May 22, 2002.
Time: 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Place: Cottontree Inn, 2401 Riverside Drive, Mount Vernon, Washington.

    Copies of SD1 outlining the subject areas to be addressed in an EA 
were distributed to the parties on the Commission's mailing list. 
Copies of SD1 will be available at the scoping meetings or may be 
viewed on the web at www.ferc.gov using the ``RIMS'' link, select 
``Docket #'' and follow the instructions (call 202-208-2222 for 
assistance).

Site Visit

    Commission staff and Puget will have a site visit to the Baker 
River Project at 10:00 a.m. on May 21, 2002. All interested 
individuals, organizations, and agencies are invited to attend. All 
participants should meet at the Baker River Project Visitor Center at 
46110 East Main Street, Concrete, Washington. Any person interested in 
attending the site visit should call the Baker Message Line at 1-888-
225-5773 (option 5, extension 81-3110) or send an email to 
[email protected]. Puget will supply on-site transportation for 
the site visit.

Objectives

    At the scoping meetings, Commission staff will: (1) Summarize the 
environmental issues tentatively identified for analysis in the EA; (2) 
solicit from meeting participants all available information, especially 
quantifiable data, on the resources at issue; (3) encourage statements 
from experts and the public on issues that should be analyzed in the 
EA, including viewpoints in opposition to, or in support of, Commission 
staff's preliminary views; (4) determine the resource issues to be 
addressed in the EA; and (5) identify those issues that require a 
detailed analysis, as well as those issues that do not require a 
detailed analysis. Individuals, organizations, and agencies with 
environmental expertise and concerns are encouraged to attend the 
scoping meetings and to assist Commission staff in defining and 
clarifying the issues to be addressed in an EA. Both scoping meetings 
will be recorded by a stenographer and the transcripts will become part 
of the Commission's official record for this project.

Magalie R. Salas,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 02-10145 Filed 4-24-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P