[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 177 (Tuesday, September 15, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47245-47246]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-22201]



[[Page 47245]]

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Western Area Power Administration


Interconnection of the Hualapai Valley Solar Project, Mohave 
County, AZ

AGENCY: Western Area Power Administration, DOE.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement 
and Conduct Scoping Meetings; Notice of Floodplain and Wetlands 
Involvement.

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SUMMARY: The Western Area Power Administration (Western), an agency of 
the DOE, intends to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) on 
the proposed interconnection of the Hualapai Valley Solar Project 
(Project) in Mohave County, near Kingman, Arizona. Hualapai Valley 
Solar, LLC (HVS) has applied to Western to interconnect the proposed 
Project to Western's power transmission system. Western is issuing this 
notice to inform the public and interested parties about Western's 
intent to prepare an EIS, conduct a public scoping process, and invite 
the public to comment on the scope, proposed action, alternatives, and 
other issues to be addressed in the EIS.
    This EIS will address Western's Federal action of interconnecting 
the proposed Project to Western's transmission system and making any 
necessary modification to Western facilities to accommodate the 
interconnection. The EIS will also review the potential environmental 
impacts of HVS constructing, operating, and maintaining a 340 megawatt 
(MW) solar-powered generating facility, consisting of a solar field, 
power block, thermal energy storage system, substation site, 
transmission line, temporary laydown areas, and other ancillary 
facilities.

DATES: The public scoping period begins with the publication of this 
notice and closes on October 23, 2009. A public scoping meeting will be 
held on October 1, 2009.

ADDRESSES: A public scoping meeting will be held at the Kingman High 
School Auditorium, 4182 Bank Street, Kingman, AZ 86409. Written 
comments on the scope of the EIS should be addressed to Ms. Mary 
Barger, National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Document Manager, 
Western Area Power Administration, Desert Southwest Region, P.O. Box 
6457, 615 S. 43rd Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85005 or [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Mary Barger, NEPA Document 
Manager, Western Area Power Administration, Desert Southwest Region, 
P.O. Box 6457, 615 S. 43rd Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85005, telephone (602) 
605-2524, fax (602) 605-2630, or e-mail [email protected]. For 
general information on DOE's NEPA review procedures or status of a NEPA 
review, contact Ms. Carol M. Borgstrom, Director of NEPA Policy and 
Compliance, GC-20, U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, 
SW., Washington, DC 20585, telephone (202) 586-4600 or (800) 472-2756.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Western, an agency within DOE, markets 
Federal hydroelectric power to preference customers, as specified by 
law. These customers include municipalities, cooperatives, irrigation 
districts, Federal and State agencies, and Native American tribes. 
Western's service territory covers 15 western states, including 
Arizona. Western owns and operates more than 17,000 miles of high-
voltage transmission lines.
    HVS, a wholly owned subsidiary of Mohave Sun Power LLC, has applied 
to Western to interconnect the proposed Project to Western's 
transmission system. The interconnection would be facilitated with a 
new substation, built, owned, and operated by Western, located at one 
of two alternative locations: (1) The Mead-Phoenix Transmission Line; 
or (2) the Liberty-Mead Transmission Line. The Mead-Phoenix 
Transmission Line is owned by 14 participants, including Western. The 
Liberty-Mead Transmission Line is owned by Western. Western offers 
capacity to deliver electricity on its transmission system, when such 
capacity is available, under Western's Open Access Transmission Service 
Tariff.
    HVS also has applied to the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau 
of Land Management (BLM) for rights-of-way to build, operate, and 
maintain a portion of the proposed transmission line and access roads 
on public lands managed by the BLM, Kingman Field Office. In order for 
Western to build interconnection facilities on BLM lands, Western must 
apply to the BLM to amend its right-of-way.
    Additionally, the proposed Project is subject to State and local 
approvals prior to Project construction. These approvals include the 
following: A Certificate of Environmental Compatibility from the 
Arizona Corporate Commission, an Air Quality Permit for the Arizona 
Department of Environmental Quality, an Aquifer Protection Permit from 
the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, and a General Plan 
amendment from Mohave County.

Project Description and Alternatives

    HVS proposes to construct a 340-MW, solar-powered electrical 
generation facility in Mohave County, Arizona. The solar power facility 
would occupy about 4,160 acres. The proposed Project would be located 
about 27 miles north of Kingman, and 20 miles east of U.S. Highway 93. 
It would be constructed on BLM and private lands within the Semidesert 
Grassland vegetative community of the Mohave Desert.
    The proposed Project would use concentrating solar power trough 
technology to capture the sun's heat to make steam, which would power a 
traditional steam turbine generator. The proposed Project would require 
about 2,400 acre feet of water per year. HVS expects the primary source 
of water would be the aquifer under the project site. HVS is also 
exploring an alternative water source from the new Kingman Hilltop 
wastewater treatment plant, which could supply up to about 1,800 acre 
feet of effluent and would require about 25-35 miles of underground 
water pipeline, depending on routing. The solar power facility would 
contain the power block, solar fields, thermal energy storage system, 
administrative, control, warehouse, and workshop buildings, storm water 
system, water supply and treatment systems, a wastewater system, and 
other supporting facilities.
    Other Project components would include an electrical substation, a 
transmission line, and two access roads. To support delivery of the 
power generated by the proposed Project, HVS proposes to build a new 
500-kilovolt (kV) transmission line to a new substation. The new 
substation would be built, owned, and operated by Western. Two 
locations are being considered for the substation. The applicant's 
preferred substation location would be about 2 miles from the solar 
field, adjacent to the 500-kV Mead-Phoenix Transmission Line. The 
alternative location is about 6 miles further north at the intersection 
of the Mead-Phoenix, Liberty-Mead, and Moenkopi-Eldorado transmission 
lines, with interconnection to the Liberty-Mead 345-kV Transmission 
Line. The substation would occupy about 10 to 12 acres. The length of 
the transmission line to the preferred substation location at the Mead-
Phoenix Transmission Line location would be about 4.1 miles. The length 
of the transmission line to the alternative substation location at the 
Liberty-Mead Transmission Line location would be about 9.6 miles. The

[[Page 47246]]

transmission line right-of-way would be 200 feet wide.
    Two access roads would be required for the proposed Project. One of 
the access roads would originate from Stockton Hill Road and extend 
approximately 3.7 miles east to the solar power facility. The other 
road would originate from Antares Road and extend approximately 2 miles 
to the preferred substation or 1 mile to the alternative substation.
    Two off-site temporary laydown areas would be used during the 
construction phase of the Project. The laydown areas would total about 
640 acres and would be used for storage and assembly of proposed 
Project components.

Agencies Proposed Actions and Alternatives

    Western's proposed actions are to build a new substation and 
interconnect the proposed Project to Western's transmission system at 
one of the substation locations described above. BLM's proposed actions 
are to grant rights-of-way to HVS for the transmission line and 
associated access roads and any other Project components crossing 
Federal lands and to amend one of Western's existing rights-of-way to 
build a substation at one of the substation locations described above.
    Western and BLM will also consider the no-action alternative in the 
EIS. Under the no-action alternative, Western would neither build a new 
substation nor interconnect the proposed Project and/or the BLM would 
not grant or amend rights-of-way.

Agency Responsibilities

    Because interconnection of the proposed Project would incorporate a 
major new generation resource into Western's power transmission system, 
Western has determined that an EIS is required under DOE NEPA 
implementing procedures, 10 CFR part 1021, Subpart D, Appendix D, class 
of action D6.\1\ Western would be the lead Federal agency for preparing 
the EIS, as defined at 40 CFR 1501.5. The proposed Project includes 
construction of facilities on lands managed by the BLM; therefore, the 
BLM has agreed to be a cooperating agency for preparation of the EIS. 
Western invites other Federal, State, local, and tribal agencies with 
jurisdiction by law or special expertise with respect to environmental 
issues to be cooperating agencies on the EIS, as defined at 40 CFR 
1501.6. Such agencies may also make a request to Western to be a 
cooperating agency by contacting Ms. Barger at the address listed above 
in the ADDRESSES section.
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    \1\ On October 4, 1999, DOE's Assistant Secretary for 
Environmental, Safety and Health delegated to Western's 
Administrator the authority to approve EISs for integrating 
transmission facilities with Western's transmission grid.
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    The proposed Project may affect floodplains or wetlands. This 
notice also serves as notice of proposed floodplain or wetland action, 
in accordance with 10 CFR part 1022.

Environmental Issues

    This notice is to inform agencies and the public of Western's 
intent to prepare an EIS and solicit comments and suggestions for 
consideration in the EIS. To help the public frame its comments, the 
following list contains potential environmental issues preliminarily 
identified for analysis in the EIS:
    1. Impacts on protected, threatened, endangered, or sensitive 
species of animals or plants;
    2. impacts on migratory birds;
    3. impacts from noxious weeds, invasive and non-native species;
    4. impacts on recreation and transportation;
    5. impacts on land use, wilderness, farmlands, and Areas of 
Critical Environmental Concern;
    6. impacts on cultural or historic resources and tribal values;
    7. impacts on human health and safety;
    8. impacts on air, soil, and water resources (including air quality 
and surface water impacts);
    9. visual impacts;
    10. socio-economic impacts and disproportionately high and adverse 
impacts to minority and low-income populations.
    This list is not intended to be all-inclusive or to imply any 
predetermination of impacts. Western invites interested parties to 
suggest specific issues within these general categories, or other 
issues not included above, to be considered in the EIS.

Public Participation

    The EIS process includes a public scoping period; public review and 
hearings on the draft EIS; publication of a final EIS; and publication 
of a record of decision (ROD). The public scoping period begins with 
publication of this notice and closes October 23, 2009. At the 
conclusion of the NEPA process, Western and the BLM would each prepare 
a ROD. Persons interested in receiving future notices, Project 
information, copies of the EIS, and other information on the NEPA 
review process should contact Ms. Barger at the address listed above in 
the ADDRESSES section.
    Western will hold a public scoping meeting on October 1, 2009, at 
the Kingman High School Auditorium, 4182 Bank Street, Kingman, AZ 
86409. The meeting is scheduled for 6-8 p.m. with a short presentation 
followed by an open-house meeting, during which attendees are invited 
to speak one-on-one with agency and Project representatives. Attendees 
are welcome to come and go at their convenience throughout the meeting.
    The purpose of the scoping meeting is to provide information about 
the proposed Project, review Project maps, answer questions, and take 
written comments from interested parties. All meeting locations are 
handicapped-accessible. Anyone needing special accommodations should 
contact Ms. Barger to make arrangements.
    The public will have the opportunity to provide written comments at 
the public scoping meetings. Written comments may also be sent to Ms. 
Barger by fax, U.S. Postal Service mail, or e-mail. To help define the 
scope of the EIS, comments should be received by Western no later than 
October 23, 2009. Before including your address, phone number, e-mail 
address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, be 
advised that your entire comment--including your personal identifying 
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can 
ask us in your comment to withhold from public review your personal 
identifying information, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do 
so.

    Dated: September 9, 2009.
Timothy J. Meeks,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. E9-22201 Filed 9-14-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P