[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 227 (Friday, November 27, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62298-62300]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-28409]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Western Area Power Administration


Interconnection of the Buffalo Ridge III Wind Project, Brookings 
and Deuel Counties, SD

AGENCY: Western Area Power Administration, DOE.

ACTION: Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement 
and Conduct Scoping Meetings; Notice of Potential 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 Buffalo Ridge III Wind Project 
(Project) in Brookings and Deuel counties, near the cities of White and 
Toronto, South Dakota. Heartland Wind, LLC (Heartland), a wholly owned 
subsidiary of Iberdrola Renewables, Inc., has applied to Western to 
interconnect their 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 include a review of the potential 
environmental impacts of Heartland constructing, operating, and 
maintaining a 170-megawatt (MW) wind power generating facility, 
consisting of wind turbine generators, access roads, an electrical 
collection system, a collection substation, permanent meteorological 
tower(s), a sonic detection and ranging (SODAR) unit, an operations and 
maintenance building and yard, a transmission line, temporary laydown 
areas, and other ancillary facilities.

DATES: The public scoping period begins with the publication of this 
notice and closes on December 31, 2009. A public

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scoping meeting will be held on December 16, 2009.

ADDRESSES: A public scoping meeting will be held at the Clear Lake 
Community Center, 216 Third Avenue, South, Clear Lake, SD 57226. 
Written comments on the scope of the EIS should be addressed to Mr. Rod 
O'Sullivan, Document Manager, Western Area Power Administration, P.O. 
Box 35800, 2900 4th Avenue, North, Billings, MT 59107, fax (406) 247-
7408 or e-mail [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Rod O'Sullivan, Document Manager, 
Western Area Power Administration, P.O. Box 35800, 2900 4th Avenue, 
North, Billings, MT 59107, telephone (406) 247-7492, 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. Heartland has applied to Western to 
interconnect the proposed Project to Western's transmission system. The 
interconnection would be facilitated with a 15 to 20-mile, 115-kilovolt 
(kV), above-ground transmission line, running from the proposed Project 
substation to Western's White Substation. Western offers capacity to 
deliver electricity on its transmission system, when such capacity is 
available, under Western's Open Access Transmission Service Tariff.
    The proposed Project is subject to State and local approvals prior 
to Project construction. These approvals include an Energy Facility and 
Transmission Siting Permit from the South Dakota Public Utilities 
Commission and a Wind Energy System Permit from Deuel County.

Project Description

    Heartland proposes to construct a 170-MW wind energy project, in 
Brookings and Deuel counties in eastern South Dakota. The Project area 
would occupy about 30 square miles. The proposed wind turbines would be 
located predominantly around and to the north of the city of Toronto, 
South Dakota. The majority of the project area lies within Blom and 
Scandinavia townships in Deuel County, with smaller portions of the 
project extending through Argo, Oak Lake, Sherman, and Richland 
townships in Brookings County.
    Heartland proposes to build up to 113 wind turbines. Permanent 
disturbance for each turbine would be 0.5 to 1.0 acres. Heartland is 
considering a variety of turbine types, with capacities ranging from 
1.5 to 2.4 MW. Each wind turbine generator would be mounted on a single 
steel tower 262 to 328 feet high. Turbine blades would be 128 to 156 
feet long, for a total height, at the blade's highest point, of 390 to 
484 feet.
    Approximately 40 to 50 miles of aboveground and underground, 
electrical collector cable would be required to carry generated power 
from each turbine to a single project collection substation. The 
underground collector cables would be buried to a depth that would not 
interfere with farming operations. The collection substation would 
occupy about 5 to 10 acres of land.
    Heartland proposes to add a second circuit, about 15 miles long, to 
their 115-kV Buffalo Ridge Transmission Line. Additionally, they 
propose to build about 5 miles of new 115-kV transmission line from the 
collection substation to the northern point of the Buffalo Ridge 
Transmission Line and the southern point of the same line to Western's 
White Substation.
    Heartland proposes to build about 25 to 35 miles of new roads and 
upgrade 20 to 40 miles of existing roads for construction and 
maintenance access to all turbines and Project facilities. Other 
facilities would include one or more permanent meteorological towers, a 
SODAR unit, and an operations and maintenance building.
    Heartland would site wind turbine generators and supporting 
infrastructure to optimize wind and land resources in the area while 
minimizing environmental impacts to the extent practicable. The 
proposed Project would be located on privately-owned lands, consisting 
of mostly rural cropland and some grazing land. Heartland would comply 
with local zoning requirements, including setbacks from residences, 
roads, and existing transmission and distribution lines. Heartland 
proposes to begin construction as early as fall 2010. The life of the 
project is anticipated to be a minimum of 20 years.

Agency Proposed Action and Alternatives

    Western's proposed action is to interconnect the proposed Project 
to the Federal transmission system at its White substation. Western 
will also consider the no-action alternative in the EIS. Under the no-
action alternative, Western would not interconnect the proposed 
Project. If additional alternatives are identified, they will be 
analyzed in the EIS.

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 is the lead Federal agency for preparing the 
EIS, as defined at 40 CFR 1501.5. 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 
Mr. O'Sullivan 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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    Western's proposed action 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 and farmland.
    6. Impacts on cultural or historic resources and tribal values.
    7. Impacts on human health and safety.

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    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 
hearing 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 December 31, 2009. At the 
conclusion of the NEPA process, Western would 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 Mr. O'Sullivan at the address listed above in the ADDRESSES 
section.
    Western will hold a public scoping meeting on December 16, 2009, at 
the Clear Lake Community Center, 216 Third Avenue, South, Clear Lake, 
SD. The meeting is scheduled for 6 to 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. 
If inclement weather prohibits the scoping meeting, an alternate 
meeting date and location will be publicized locally.
    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 Mr. O'Sullivan 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 Mr. 
O'Sullivan 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 December 31, 2009.

    Dated November 17, 2009.
Timothy J. Meeks,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. E9-28409 Filed 11-25-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P