[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 122 (Tuesday, June 26, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35031-35032]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-12294]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Rural Utilities Service


East Kentucky Power Cooperative: Notice of Availability of an 
Environmental Assessment

AGENCY: Rural Utilities Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of Availability of an Environmental Assessment for 
Public Review.

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SUMMARY: The Rural Utilities Service (RUS), an Agency delivering the 
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development 
Utilities Programs, hereinafter referred to as Rural Development and/or 
Agency, has prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) related to 
possible financial assistance to East Kentucky Power Cooperative (EKPC) 
for the construction of two new combustion turbine electric generating 
units (CTs) at its existing J.K. Smith Electric Generating Station in 
southern Clark County, Kentucky. The proposed new units would utilize 
natural gas as a fuel source and would each have a net electrical 
output of between 82 and 98 megawatts. The proposed new units are 
needed to provide additional electric generating capacity that would 
allow EKPC to meet its projected electrical peaking demand in the 2009-
2011 period. EKPC is also proposing to construct two new electric 
switching stations, one at its existing J.K. Smith Generating Station 
and one in western Garrard County, Kentucky; and a 36 mile, 345 
kilovolt electric transmission line that would extend through Clark, 
Madison, and Garrard Counties, Kentucky, between the proposed new 
switching stations. The proposed new transmission facilities are needed 
to provide an outlet for the additional electric power that would be 
generated at the J.K. Smith Station as a result of the installation of 
the proposed new CTs. EKPC is requesting USDA Rural Development to 
provide financial assistance for the proposed project.

DATES: Written comments on this Notice must be received on or before 
July 26, 2007.

ADDRESSES: To obtain copies of the EA, or for further information, 
contact: Stephanie Strength, Environmental Protection Specialist, USDA, 
Rural Development, Utilities Programs, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., 
Stop 1571, Washington, DC 20250-1571, phone (202) 720-0468 (e-mail 
[email protected]). A copy of the EA may be viewed online 
at the Agency's Web site: http://www.usda.gov/rus/water/ees/ea.htm and 
at EKPC's headquarters office located at 4775 Lexington Road, 
Winchester, Kentucky 40391, or the following:

Julie Maruskin, Director, Clark County Library, 370 South Burns Avenue, 
Winchester, Kentucky 40391, (859) 744-5661.
Sue Hays, Director, Madison County Library, 507 West Main Street, 
Richmond, Kentucky 40475, (859) 623-6704.
Joan Tussey, Director, Garrard County Public Library, 101 Lexington 
Street, Lancaster, Kentucky 40444, (859) 792-3424.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Originally five CT units were considered in 
the EA. Due to the cancellation of Warren Rural Electric Cooperative 
Corporation's (Warren) wholesale power contract with EKPC, the need for 
the additional peaking power has been partially delayed. Three of the 
originally proposed units have been removed from consideration in the 
EA, and removed from the current application for RUS financing, as the 
need for the units is not projected to occur until between 2012 and 
2014. Therefore, the federal action limited to this proposal is the two 
CT Units 9 & 10. The Smith to West Garrard 345 kV transmission line 
will be combined with the Smith CT Units 9 & 10 in the EA. The purpose 
of the proposed action is to provide additional electric generating 
capacity to allow EKPC to meet projected peaking demand in the 2009-
2011 period and to construct necessary transmission facilities to allow 
EKPC to deliver the additional electric power required during that 
period plus additional planned generation.
    The proposed CTs would be either model 7EA or model LMS100, both 
manufactured by GE Energy. Each 7EA would have a net electrical output 
of 82.2 MW at 59[deg]F. Each LMS100 would have a net electrical output 
of 97.8 MW at 30[deg]F. The CTs would be operated on natural gas as a 
fuel source approximately 2,000 hours per year. Very short electric 
transmission connections consisting of approximately one span of 
overhead line would be constructed on-site to connect each of the 
proposed new CT units to the existing electric switching station 
servicing existing CT units currently located at the site.
    The proposed Smith to West Garrard Electric Transmission Line would 
be designed for 345 kilovolt (kV) operation and would be approximately 
36 miles in length, involving roughly 12 miles of transmission line 
rebuild, 15 miles of co-location, and nine miles of new build. The new 
transmission line would

[[Page 35032]]

be supported by vertical H-frame steel pole structures that would range 
in height from 90 to 130 feet aboveground. Angles, or changes in 
direction in the transmission line, would require larger structures 
and/or steel guy cables to act as a counter-force to maintain the 
integrity of the support structures.
    The proposed new transmission line would require a 150-foot wide 
right-of-way (ROW). The width of the ROW where the proposed line would 
be co-located with, or parallel to, existing electric transmission 
lines would also be 150 feet; however, a portion of the existing ROW 
would be utilized by locating the proposed line as close as possible to 
the existing facilities. A 75-foot buffer would be maintained to each 
side of the centerline of the transmission line. EKPC is also proposing 
to rebuild a portion of an existing 69 kV transmission line as part of 
the proposed project. Within the proposed rebuild section, the existing 
electric transmission line ROW is currently 100 feet in width and would 
require 50 additional feet in ROW width to accommodate the proposed new 
line.
    The J.K. Smith 345 kV Switching Station would be a 345 kV breaker-
and-a-half configuration. It would be constructed within EKPC's 
existing J.K. Smith Generating Station's fenced boundary near an 
existing electric switchyard. The proposed site for the new switching 
station has been previously graded in association with other 
construction activity at the generating station and would not require 
extensive grading or earth moving activities. The structure heights in 
the switching station would be between 80 and 90 feet aboveground. The 
amount of land that would be affected by the proposed construction 
activity associated with the new switching station would be 
approximately eight acres.
    The West Garrard Switching Station would be a 345 kV breaker-and-a-
half configuration designed to accommodate 138 kV and 69 kV step down 
transformers sometime in the future. The structure heights in the 
switching station would be between 80 and 90 feet aboveground. The 
proposed construction activity would affect approximately five to ten 
acres of land. The construction of the proposed electric generation and 
transmission project is tentatively scheduled to begin in the fall of 
2007 and the estimated duration of construction would be 2 years.
    Alternatives considered by USDA Rural Development and EKPC included 
for the CTs were (a) no action, (b) alternate sources of power, (c) 
conservation and interruptible load service, (d) renewable energy 
sources, (e) non-renewable energy sources, (f) alternate sites. The 
alternatives considered for the transmission facilities were (a) no 
action, (b) placing the line underground, (c) electrical alternatives, 
(d) alternate routes, and (e) alternate switching station sites. An 
Environmental Report (ER) that describes the proposed project in detail 
and discusses its anticipated environmental impacts has been prepared 
by EKPC. The USDA Rural Development has reviewed and accepted the 
document as its EA of the proposed project. The EA is available for 
public review at addresses provided above in this Notice.
    Questions and comments should be sent to USDA Rural Development at 
the mailing or e-mail addresses provided above in this Notice. USDA 
Rural Development should receive comments on the EA in writing by July 
26, 2007 to ensure that they are considered in its environmental impact 
determination.
    Should USDA Rural Development determine, based on the EA of the 
proposed project, that the impacts of the construction and operation of 
the project would not have a significant environmental impact, it will 
prepare a Finding of No Significant Impact. Public notification of a 
Finding of No Significant Impact would be published in the Federal 
Register and in newspapers with circulation in the project area.
    Any final action by USDA Rural Development related to the proposed 
project will be subject to, and contingent upon, compliance with all 
relevant Federal, state and local environmental laws and regulations, 
and completion of the environmental review requirements as prescribed 
in USDA Rural Development's Environmental Policies and Procedures (7 
CFR part 1794).

Mark S. Plank,
Director, Engineering and Environmental Staff, USDA/Rural Development/
Utilities Programs.
 [FR Doc. E7-12294 Filed 6-25-07; 8:45 am]
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