[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 181 (Monday, September 21, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48067-48069]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-22612]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Western Area Power Administration


Modification of the Groton Generation Station Interconnection 
Agreement, Brown County, SD

AGENCY: Western Area Power Administration, DOE.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement 
and conduct a scoping meeting.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Western Area Power Administration (Western), an agency of 
the DOE, intends to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement \1\ (EIS) 
on modifying its Large Generator Interconnection Agreement (LGIA) with 
Basin Electric Power Cooperative (Basin Electric) to eliminate current 
operating limits for the Groton Generation Station. Basin Electric 
currently owns and operates the generating station with a

[[Page 48068]]

condition in the LGIA that limits the output of the generating station 
to 50 average megawatts (MW). 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.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ On October 4, 1999, Department of Energy'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.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    While Western's proposed Federal action would be limited to 
contractual modifications, the EIS will identify and review the 
environmental impacts of operating the Groton Generating Station above 
the 50 average MW limit.

DATES: The public scoping period begins with the publication of this 
notice and closes on October 23, 2009. An open-house public scoping 
meeting will be held on October 7, 2009, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. CST.

ADDRESSES: The open-house public scoping meeting will be held at Groton 
Community Center, 109 West 3rd Avenue, Groton, SD 57445. Written 
comments on the scope of the EIS should be addressed to Ms. Erika 
Walters, NEPA Document Manager, Western Area Power Administration, 
Corporate Services Office, P.O. Box 281213, Lakewood, CO 80228-8213, 
fax (720) 962-7279, or e-mail [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Erika Walters, NEPA Document 
Manager, Western Area Power Administration, Corporate Services Office, 
P.O. Box 281213, Lakewood, CO 80228-8213, fax (720) 962-7279, 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 South 
Dakota. Western owns and operates more than 17,000 miles of high-
voltage transmission lines.

Project Description

    Basin Electric currently owns and operates the Groton Generation 
Station in Brown County, South Dakota. Groton Generation Station has 
two generating units. Each unit is powered by a GE LMS100[reg] simple 
cycle gas turbine rated at 100 MW at design conditions. Unit 1 went 
into commercial operation on July 1, 2006, and Unit 2 went into 
commercial operation on July 1, 2008. Basin Electric currently operates 
the generating station with a condition in its LGIA with Western that 
limits the output of the generating station to 50 average MW. Basin 
Electric proposes to modify the LGIA with Western to eliminate the 50 
average MW administrative limit on its generating station, so it can 
produce power above the 50 average MW limit. Basin Electric needs to 
eliminate the operating limit to help serve increased load demand for 
electric power in the eastern portion of its service area. Basin 
Electric's eastern service area comprises western Nebraska, 
northwestern and central Iowa, portions of southern Minnesota, all of 
South Dakota, portions of eastern Montana, and western and central 
North Dakota. The need for additional generating capacity is driven by 
the increasing electrical power usage of the Basin Electric membership 
consumers. Between 1999 and 2006, Basin Electric's total system peak 
demand increased 752 MW from 1,195 MW to 1,947 MW, or approximately 107 
MW per year. In 2007, Basin Electric prepared a forecast showing load 
and capability surpluses/deficits through the year 2021. The forecast 
predicts that, by 2014, there will be a deficit of 800-900 MW for the 
eastern portion of their service area.
    The interconnection of each generating unit with Western's 
transmission system was addressed in separate environmental 
assessments; East Side Peaking Project, South Dakota, (DOE/EA-1524) and 
Groton Generating Station Project, South Dakota (DOE/EA-1524-S1). Based 
on these environmental assessments, which included the 50 MW operating 
limit provision, Western issued separate findings of no significant 
impact with determinations that the preparation of an EIS was not 
required on July 25, 2005, and June 20, 2008, respectively.

Proposed Agency Action and Alternatives

    In response to Basin Electric's request, Western's proposed Federal 
action is to modify the LGIA with Basin Electric under its Open Access 
Transmission Service Tariff. Upon completion of the EIS, Western will 
make a decision whether or not to modify the LGIA to remove the 50 
average MW limit. Western will also consider the no-action alternative 
in the EIS. Under the no-action alternative Western would not modify 
the LGIA and the current operating limits would remain.

Agency Responsibilities

    Because the proposed contract modification would result in 
incorporating 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. Western will be the lead Federal agency 
for preparing the EIS, as defined at 40 CFR 1501.5. Western will invite 
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. Walters at the address listed above in the ADDRESSES 
section.

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. While Western's proposed Federal action would 
be limited to contractual modifications, the EIS will identify and 
review the environmental impacts of operating the Groton Generating 
Station above the 50 average MW limit. To help the public frame its 
comments, the following list contains potential environmental issues 
preliminarily identified for analysis in the EIS:
    1. Impacts on human health and safety from additional operating 
hours, and
    2. impacts on air and water resources (including air quality and 
surface water impacts).
    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

    Public participation and full disclosure are planned for the entire 
EIS process. The EIS process will include the public open-house scoping 
meeting and a scoping comment period to solicit comments from 
interested parties; consultation and involvement with appropriate 
Federal, State, local, and tribal governmental agencies; public review 
and a hearing on the draft EIS; publication of a final EIS; and 
publication of a Record of Decision, expected in 2010. Western will 
hold the open-house public scoping meeting on October 7, 2009, in 
Groton, South

[[Page 48069]]

Dakota, as noted above. The purpose of the scoping meeting is to 
provide information about Western's Federal action and Basin Electric's 
Groton Generating Station, display maps, answer questions, and take 
written comments from interested parties. Attendees are welcome to come 
and go at their convenience and to speak one-on-one with Western and 
Basin Electric representatives.
    The public will have the opportunity to provide written comments at 
the meeting. In addition, attendees may provide written comments by 
fax, e-mail, or mail as discussed under DATES above. To help define the 
scope of the EIS, comments should be received by Western no later than 
October 23, 2009.

    Dated: August 27, 2009.
Timothy J. Meeks,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. E9-22612 Filed 9-18-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P