[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 140 (Thursday, July 22, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43838-43839]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E4-1630]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 2301-019]


PPL Montana; Notice of Intent To File License Application, Filing 
of Pre-Application Document (Pad), Issuance of Scoping Document, 
Solicitation of Comments on the Pad and Scoping Document, Solicitation 
of Study Requests, and Commencement of Proceeding

July 15, 2004.
    a. Type of Filing: Notice of intent to file a license application 
and Pre-Filing Document (PAD) under the Commission's Integrated 
Licensing Process and Commencing Licensing Proceeding.
    b. Project No.: 2301-019.
    c. Date Filed: July 1, 2004.
    d. Filed by: PPL Montana.
    e. Project Name: Mystic Lake Hydroelectric Project.
    f. Location: On West Rosebud Creek, in Stillwater and Carbon 
Counties, Montana. The project occupies about 575.6 acres of U.S. 
Forest Service lands within the Custer National Forest;
    g. Filed Pursuant to: 18 CFR part 5 of the Commission's 
Regulations.
    h. PPL Montana Contact: Jon Jourdonnais, PPL Montana, 45 Basin 
Creek Road, Butte, MT 59701; (406) 533-3443.
    i. FERC Contact: Steve Hocking, Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission, 888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426; (202) 502-
8753; [email protected].
    j. We are asking Federal, State, local, and tribal agencies with 
jurisdiction and/or special expertise with respect to environmental 
issues to cooperate with us in the preparation of an environmental 
document for this project. Agencies wanting cooperating agency status 
should follow the filing instructions described in paragraph p below.
    k. With this notice, we are initiating informal consultation with: 
(1) the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and/or NOAA Fisheries under 
section 7 of the Endangered Species Act and the joint agency 
regulations thereunder at 50 CFR part 402 and (2) the State Historic 
Preservation Officer, as required by section 106, National Historical 
Preservation Act, and the implementing regulations of the Advisory 
Council on Historic Preservation at 36 CFR 800.2.
    l. By letters dated January 14, 2004, we designated PPL Montana as 
the Commission's non-Federal representative for carrying out informal 
consultation pursuant to section 7 of the Endangered Species Act and 
section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act.
    m. PPL Montana filed a Pre-Application Document (PAD) including a 
proposed process plan and schedule with the Commission, pursuant to 18 
CFR 5.6 of the Commission's regulations.
    n. A copy of the PAD is available for review at the Commission in 
the Public Reference Room or may be viewed on the Commission's Web site 
http://www.ferc.gov using the ``eLibrary'' link. Enter the docket 
number, excluding the last three digits in the docket number field to 
access the document. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support at 
[email protected] or toll free at (866) 208-3676, or for TTY, 
(202) 502-8659. A copy is also available for inspection and 
reproduction at the address in paragraph h.
    Register online at http://www.ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm to be 
notified via e-mail of new filings and issuances related to this or 
other Commission projects. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support.
    o. Concurrently with this notice, we are issuing Scoping Document 1 
(SD1) for this project which describes the alternatives and issues to 
be addressed in our environmental document. A copy of SD1 is available 
for review at the Commission in the Public Reference Room or may be 
viewed on the Commission's Web site http://www.ferc.gov using the 
``eLibrary'' link as described in item n above. SD1 will also be mailed 
to all entities on the Commission's mailing list for this project and 
will be available at the Commission's scoping meetings. Based on 
Commission staff's review of the proposed project at this time, we do 
not intend to issue a second scoping document for the Mystic Lake 
Project.
    p. With this notice, we are soliciting comments on the PAD and SD1, 
as well as any study requests. All comments on the PAD and SD1, and 
study requests should be sent to the address above in paragraph h. In 
addition, all comments on the PAD and SD1, study requests, requests for 
cooperating agency status, and all communications to and from 
Commission staff related to the merits of the potential application 
(original and eight copies) must be filed with the Commission at the 
following address: The Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 
888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426. All filings with the 
Commission must include on the first page, the project name (Mystic 
Lake Hydroelectric Project) and number (P-2301-019), and bear the 
heading ``Comments on Pre-Application Document,'' ``Study Requests,'' 
``Comments on Scoping Document 1,'' ``Request for Cooperating Agency 
Status,'' or ``Communications to and from Commission Staff.'' Any 
individual or entity interested in submitting study requests, 
commenting on the PAD or SD1, and any agency requesting cooperating 
status must do so by September 15, 2004.
    Comments on the PAD and SD1, study requests, requests for 
cooperating agency status, and other permissible forms of 
communications with the Commission may be filed electronically via the 
Internet in lieu of paper. The Commission strongly encourages 
electronic filings. See 18 CFR 385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the instructions 
on the Commission's Web site http://www.ferc.gov under the ``e-filing'' 
link.
    q. At this time, the Commission intends to prepare a single 
Environmental Assessment for the project in accordance with the 
National Environmental Policy Act.
    r. Scoping Meetings: Commission staff will hold two scoping 
meetings in the vicinity of the project as discussed below. The daytime 
meeting will focus on resource agency, Indian tribe, and non-
governmental organization

[[Page 43839]]

concerns, while the evening meeting is primarily for receiving input 
from the public. We invite all interested individuals, organizations, 
and agencies to attend one or both of the meetings, and to assist staff 
in identifying particular study needs, as well as the scope of 
environmental issues to be addressed in our environmental document. The 
times and locations of these meetings are as follows:

Daytime Scoping Meeting

    When: August 11, 2004; from 8:30 to 2 p.m. (m.s.t.).
    Where: The Elks Club: 114 N. Broadway, Red Lodge, Montana.

Evening Scoping Meeting

    When: August 12, 2004; from 7 to 10 p.m. (m.s.t.).
    Where: City of Columbus Firehall: 944 East Pike Ave, Columbus, 
Montana.

Site Visit

    PPL Montana will conduct a site visit of the project on August 10, 
2004, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. (m.s.t.). All participants should meet at 
the Mystic Lake powerhouse parking lot. We will tour the powerhouse 
area, tour the re-regulation dam, and view Mystic Lake and dam. Persons 
wishing to view Mystic Lake and dam must hike a 3-mile primitive trail 
from the powerhouse that gains 1,130 feet in elevation. Anyone with 
questions about the site visit should contact Jon Jourdonnais with PPL 
Montana at (406) 533-3443.

Meeting Objectives

    At the scoping meetings, staff will: (1) Initiate scoping of the 
issues; (2) review and discuss existing conditions and resource 
management objectives; (3) review and discuss existing information and 
identify preliminary information and study needs; (4) review and 
discuss the process plan and schedule for pre-filing activity that 
incorporates the time frames provided for in part 5 of the Commission's 
regulations and, to the extent possible, maximizes coordination of 
Federal, State, and tribal permitting and certification processes; and 
(5) discuss the appropriateness of any Federal or State agency or 
Indian tribe acting as a cooperating agency for development of our 
environmental document.

Meeting Procedures

    Scoping meetings will be recorded by a court reporter and all 
statements, oral and written, will become part of the Commission's 
official public record for this project.

Magalie R. Salas,
Secretary.
 [FR Doc. E4-1630 Filed 7-21-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P