[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 136 (Friday, July 17, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34738-34740]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-16973]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 6597-012]


Monadnock Paper Mills, Inc; Notice of Intent To File License 
Application, Filing of Pre-Application Document, Commencement of 
Licensing Proceeding, Scoping Meetings, Solicitation of Comments on the 
PAD and Scoping Document, and Identification of Issues and Associated 
Study Requests

July 10, 2009.
    a. Type of Filing: Notice of Intent to File License Application for 
a New License and Commencing Licensing Proceeding.
    b. Project No.: 6597-012.
    c. Date Filed: May 11, 2009.
    d. Submitted by: Monadnock Paper Mills, Inc.
    e. Name of Project: Monadnock Hydroelectric Project.
    f. Location: Contoocook River in the communities of Peterborough, 
Greenfield, Hancock, and Bennington in Hillsborough County, New 
Hampshire. No federal lands are involved.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: 18 CFR Part 5 of the Commission's 
Regulations.
    h. Applicant Contact: Michelle Hamm, Monadnock Paper Mills, Inc., 
117 Antrim Road, Bennington, NH 03442. [email protected] or (603) 588-3311 
ext 255.
    i. FERC Contact: Kenneth Hogan, [email protected], (202) 502-
8434.
    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

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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 Monadnock Paper Mills, Inc. 
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. Monadnock Paper Mills, Inc. 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. The 
Commission issued a Scoping Document on July 10, 2009.
    n. A copy of the PAD and the scoping document are 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 the 
scoping document, as well as study requests. All comments on the PAD 
and the scoping document, and study requests should be sent to the 
address above in paragraph h. In addition, all comments on the PAD and 
the scoping document, 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, Monadnock Hydroelectric Project and number 
(P-6597-012), 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 the scoping 
document, and any agency requesting cooperating status must do so by 
September 8, 2009.
    Comments on the PAD and the scoping document, 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 current intent is to prepare a single environmental 
assessment (EA). These meetings will satisfy the NEPA scoping 
requirements, irrespective of whether an EA or an Environmental Impact 
Statement is issued by the Commission.

Scoping Meetings

    Commission staff will hold two scoping meetings in the vicinity of 
the project at the time and place noted below. The evening meeting is 
primarily for receiving input from the public and the daytime meeting 
will focus on resource agency, Indian tribes, and non-governmental 
organization concerns. 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:

Evening Scoping Meeting

    Date: Tuesday August 4, 2009.
    Time: 7 p.m. (EST).
    Location: Veterans for Foreign Wars Hall, 9 Hancock Street, 
Bennington, NH 03442.
    Contact person: Michelle Hamm at (603) 588-3311 ext. 255.

Daytime Scoping Meeting

    Date: Wednesday August 5, 2009.
    Time: 9 a.m. (EST).
    Location: Veterans for Foreign Wars Hall, 9 Hancock Street, 
Bennington, NH 03442.
    Contact person: Michelle Hamm at (603) 588-3311 ext. 255.

    The scoping document, 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. Copies of the scoping 
document 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. Depending on the 
extent of comments received, Scoping Document 2 may or may not be 
issued.

Site Visit

    Monadnock Paper Mills, Inc. will conduct a site visit of the 
project at 1 p.m. on Tuesday August 4, 2009. All participants should 
meet at the location of the offices for Monadnock Paper Mills, Inc. at 
117 Antrim Road, Bennington, NH 03442. All participants are responsible 
for their own transportation. Anyone with questions about the site 
visit should contact Michelle Hamm at (603) 588-3311 ext. 255.

Scoping 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 the scoping 
document are included in paragraph n.

Meeting Procedures

    The meetings will be recorded by a stenographer and will become 
part of

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the formal record of the Commission proceeding on the project.

Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E9-16973 Filed 7-16-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P