[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 117 (Tuesday, June 17, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34284-34285]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-13538]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 2310-173]


Pacific Gas and Electric Company; Notice of Intent to File 
License Application, Filing of Pre-Application Document, Commencement 
of Licensing Proceeding and Scoping; Request for Comments on the Pad 
and Scoping Document, and Identification of Issues and Associated Study 
Requests

June 10, 2008.
    a. Type of Filing: Notice of Intent to File License Application for 
a New License and Commencing Licensing Proceeding.
    b. Project No.: 2310-173.
    c. Dated Filed: April 11, 2008.
    d. Submitted By: Pacific Gas and Electric Company.
    e. Name of Project: Drum Spaulding Project.
    f. Location: The Drum-Spaulding Project is located on the west 
slope of the Sierra Nevada, on the South Yuba River, Bear River, North 
Fork of the North Fork of the American River and tributaries to the 
Sacramento River basin, in Nevada and Placer counties, California. A 
large portion of the project is located on federal-owned lands managed 
by the Forest Service as part of the Tahoe National Forest. Small 
portions of the project occupy lands managed by the Bureau of Land 
Management and the Bureau of Reclamation.
    The Project consists of 10 developments: Spaulding No. 3; Spaulding 
No. 1 and No. 2; Drum No. 1 and No. 2; Dutch Flat No. 1; Halsey; Wise; 
Newcastle; Deer Creek; Alta; and Wise No. 2. In the 10 developments 
there are 29 reservoirs with a combined gross storage capacity of 
154,388 acre-feet of water; 6 major water conduits; 12 powerhouses with 
a combined authorized installed capacity of 192.5 megawatts, 7 
transmission lines; and appurtenant facilities and structures, 
including recreation facilities.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: 18 CFR Part 5 of the Commission's Regulations
    h. Applicant Contact: Steve Peirano, Relicensing Project Manager, 
Pacific Gas and Electric Company, 245 Market Street, Room 1103, P.O. 
Box 770000, San Francisco, CA 94177-0001, (415) 973-4481, or e-mail 
[email protected].
    i. FERC Contact: John Mudre at (202) 502-8902 or e-mail 
[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 the environmental 
document. Agencies who would like to request cooperating status should 
follow the instructions for filing comments described in paragraph o 
below. Cooperating agencies should note the Commission's policy that 
agencies that cooperate in the preparation of the environmental 
document cannot also intervene. See, 94 FERC ] 61,076 (2001).
    k. With this notice, we are initiating informal consultation with: 
(a) 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 (b) 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. With this notice, we are designating Pacific Gas and Electric 
Company 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. Pacific Gas and Electric Company 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 1-866-208-3676, of for TTY, 
(202) 502-8659. A copy is also available for inspection and 
reproduction at the address in paragraph h.
    Register online at http://ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm to be notified 
via e-mail of new filing and issuances related to this or other pending 
projects. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support.
    o. With this notice, we are soliciting comments on the PAD and 
Scoping Document 1 (SD1), as well as 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: Kimberly D. Bose, 
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 (Drum-Spaulding Project) and number 
(P-2310-173), 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 August 11, 2008.
    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.
    p. Our intent is to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) 
for which the planned meetings will satisfy the NEPA scoping 
requirements. We anticipate preparing a multi-project EIS that would 
also consider the proposed relicensing of Nevada Irrigation District's 
Yuba-Bear Project

[[Page 34285]]

(FERC No. 2266-096) and Pacific Gas and Electric Company's Rollins 
Transmission Line Project (FERC No. 2784-003). Because these three 
projects are located in the same watersheds and have the same license 
expiration dates, NID and PG&E have decided, to the extent practical, 
to cooperate and coordinate on their relicensing efforts. The scoping 
meetings and site visits discussed below will address all three 
projects.

Scoping Meetings

    Commission staff will hold two scoping meetings in the vicinity of 
the project at the times and places noted below. The daytime meeting 
will focus on resource agency, Indian tribes, and non-governmental 
organization 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 the environmental 
document. The times and locations of these meetings are as follows:

Daytime Scoping Meeting

    Date and Time: Tuesday, June 24, 2008, 9 a.m.,
    Location: Auburn Holiday Inn Hotel, 120 Grass Valley Highway, 
Auburn, CA.

Evening Scoping Meeting

    Date and Time: Tuesday, June 24, 2008, 7 p.m.,
    Location: Gold Miners Inn Holiday Inn Express Hotel, 121 Bank 
Street, Grass Valley, California.
    Scoping Document 1 (SD1), which outlines the subject areas to be 
addressed in the environmental document, was mailed to the individuals 
and entities on the Commission's mailing list on May 22, 2008. Copies 
of SD1 will be available at the scoping meetings, or may be viewed on 
the Web at http://www.ferc.gov, using the ``eLibrary'' link. Follow the 
directions for accessing information in paragraph n. Based on all oral 
and written comments, a Scoping Document 2 (SD2) may be issued. SD2 may 
include a revised process plan and schedule, as well as the list of 
issues identified through the scoping process.

Site Visit

    The licensees and Commission staff will visit the project 
facilities on Tuesday, June 17, Wednesday, June 18, and Thursday, June 
19, 2008, starting at 8 a.m. and ending at or about 5 p.m. Participants 
should meet by the start time as follows: (1) On June 17 at the 
Discovery Trail in Bear Valley; (2) on June 18 at the Alta Service 
Center; and (3) on June 19 at Halsey Forebay. Participants are 
responsible for their own transportation; four-wheel-drive vehicles are 
recommended. Anyone interested in attending the site visit should 
contact Mr. James Lynch at (916) 564-4214.

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 an 
environmental document.
    Meeting participants should come prepared to discuss their issues 
and/or concerns. Please review the PAD in preparation for the scoping 
meetings. Directions on how to obtain a copy of the PAD and SD1 are 
included in item n. of this document.

Meeting Procedures

    The meetings will be recorded by a stenographer and will become 
part of the formal record of the Commission proceeding on the project.

Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
 [FR Doc. E8-13538 Filed 6-16-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P