[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 109 (Tuesday, June 8, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32357-32359]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-13499]



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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE



Forest Service




Gallatin National Forest; Montana; Jack Rabbit to Big Sky Meadow 

Village 161 kV Transmission Line Upgrade Project



AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.



ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.



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SUMMARY: The U.S. Forest Service (Forest Service) is preparing an 

environmental impact statement (EIS) to consider potential effects of a 

proposed project by NorthWestern Energy to rebuild an existing 69-

kilovolt (kV) electric transmission line to a 161-kV electric 

transmission line. The upgraded 161-kV transmission line would connect 

the existing Jack Rabbit Substation located near Four Corners, west of 

Bozeman, Montana, to a new substation near Big Sky Meadow Village in 

Big Sky, Montana. Alternatives for the proposed transmission line would 

pass through private, state, and federally managed lands in Montana. 

Federally managed lands include National Forest System (NFS) lands 

administered by the Gallatin National Forest. The Forest Service will 

consider whether to authorize the construction, operation and 

maintenance activities along and within the existing right of way for 

the portion of the transmisson line that is on NFS lands, approximately 

16 miles of the proposed 37-mile route.



DATES: Comments concerning the scope of the analysis must be received 

by July 8, 2010. The draft EIS is expected in December 2010 and the 

final EIS is expected in April 2011.



ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Teri Seth, Forest Service Project 

Manager, Gallatin National Forest, 3710 Fallon Street, Suite C, 

Bozeman, MT 59718. Comments may also be sent via e-mail to [email protected] or via facsimile to (406) 522-2528. 

Electronic comments must be submitted with Microsoft word software.

    It is important that reviewers provide their comments at such times 

and in such a way that they are useful to the Agency's preparation of 

the EIS. Therefore, comments should be provided prior to the close of 

the comment period and should clearly articulate the reviewer's 

concerns and contentions specific to this proposal on NFS lands.

    Comments received in response to this solicitation, including names 

and addresses of those who comment, will be part of the public record 

for this proposed action. Comments submitted anonymously will be 

accepted and considered, also.



FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Teri Seth, Forest Service Project 

Manager, Gallatin National Forest; or Lisa Stoeffler, District Ranger. 

Both contacts can be reached at 406/522-2520. For additional project 

details you can also go to the Gallatin Forest Webpage, look for the 

Big Sky 161 kV Upgrade Project on the Planning page: http://www.fs.fed.us/rl/gallatin/?page=projects.

    Individuals who use telecommunication devices for the deaf (TDD) 

may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 

between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern Time, Monday through Friday.



SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:



[[Page 32358]]



Purpose and Need for Action



    The Gallatin Valley and Big Sky, MT are among the fastest growing 

areas within NorthWestern Energy's service territory. NorthWestern 

Energy is the sole electricity provider for the project area. 

Electrical Utility companies in the United States must plan, operate, 

and maintain their transmission systems according to the North American 

Electrical Reliability Corporation (NERC) reliability standards. NERC 

develops and enforces reliability standards; monitors power systems; 

assesses future adequacy; audits owners, operators, and users for 

preparedness; and educates and trains industry personnel. NERC works 

with eight regional entities to improve the reliability of the bulk 

power system. The Jack Rabbit to Big Sky Meadows system operates under 

the guidance of the Western Electric Coordinating Council (WECC). 

Utility companies must remain in compliance with these industry 

standards. When loop service is provided to an area or load, utility 

transmission systems must be built with sufficient levels of redundancy 

to enable the transmission system to reliably operate in the event of 

the loss of any single element (e.g. transmission line segment or 

substation element). In the simplest application of these standards, a 

bulk transmission system consisting of one line and one substation will 

have to be constructed with an additional (redundant) line and 

necessary substation components capable of providing backup electrical 

paths in the event an element of the system is lost due to forced 

outage or outage required for maintenance.

    The electrical power demand in the Big Sky area is currently served 

from two 69 kV transmission lines--one from the Ennis Auto Substation 

at Ennis, MT and the other from Jack Rabbit Auto Substation near Four 

Corners west of Bozeman, MT. On an annual basis, current usage exceeds 

capacity of the Jack Rabbit Auto 69 kV line about 40% of time. In the 

event of a power outage from the Ennis Auto side, there is inadequate 

infrastructure to serve the electrical load from the Jack Rabbit Auto 

and some level of power outage would be experienced in the entire area. 

As the Big Sky area continues to grow, this situation will worsen. 

These reliability shortfalls do not meet industry standards.

    Rebuilding and upgrade of the existing 69 kV line to a 161 kV 

facility between the Jack Rabbit substation and the Meadow Village 

substation, along with building a new Meadow Village Substation and an 

upgraded distribution circuit, eliminates the adequacy and reliability 

problems associated with the current electric transmission system. This 

proposed project would meet the current energy demands and provide for 

anticipated growth, which would better comply with industry standards 

and customer needs.



Proposed Action



    The Gallatin National Forest proposes to authorize the 

construction, operation and maintenance of an entirely new transmission 

and distribution line facility along and within the existing right of 

way for the portion of the line on National Forest System lands. 

Construction of the project would take one to two years to complete. 

Construction would be scheduled to begin in 2011 with the system coming 

on line, energized at the 161-kV level, during the fall of 2013. The 

design, construction, operation and maintenance of the project would 

meet or exceed the requirements of the National Electrical Safety Code 

(NESC), U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health 

Standards, Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC) Transmission 

System Performance and Reliability Criteria and North Western Energy's 

requirements for safety and the protection of landowners and their 

property.

    The Forest Service will also consider the no-action alternative in 

the ETS. Under the no-action alternative, the existing special use 

permit would remain in place and maintenance of the existing 69 kV line 

would be continued.



Responsible Official



    Forest Supervisor, Gallatin National Forest.



Nature of Decision To Be Made



    The decision framework refers to the scope of the decision that 

will be issued at the conclusion of this analysis by the Responsible 

Official. The decision will be based on information disclosed in the 

EIS and comments submitted during the scoping of the proposed action 

and the comment period. The decision maker will take into consideration 

relationships of alternatives to the identified significant issues.

    The Responsible Official may decide whether or not to:

     Authorize the rebuild and/or upgrade of the transmission 

and distribution line for the portion of the Jack Rabbit to Big Sky 

Meadow Village Transmission Line on NFS land;

     What if any associated activities, mitigation measures, 

restoration actions or monitoring would be included in the decision

     Whether a site specific Forest Plan Amendment is needed.



Preliminary Issues



    Northwestern Energy and the Forest Service previously held internal 

and public information meetings in April 2009 to obtain input on issues 

and concerns for the proposed action. Through these initial activities, 

the Forest Service identified the need for an ETS and the following 

issues, potential impacts, mitigation measures, and alternatives to the 

proposed action:

     Cultural and archeological resources

     Visual resources/Scenery

     Human health and safety (including electric and magnetic 

fields)

     Recreation and land use (including special management 

designations on public land)

     Socioeconomics (including property value impacts and 

impacts to ratepayers)

     Soils and geology

     Biological resources (wildlife, special status plants and 

animals, invasive weeds, snag habitat)

     Water resources and wetlands

     Road blockages and power outages from construction

     Fire risk

     Reclamation practices

     Alternative energy generation

     Alternative transmission methods (i.e. underground lines)

     Consideration of adding a second line on Ennis side

     Consideration of reroutes near Cascade Creek homes/Lava 

Lake Trailhead area, Greek Creek homes and the Deer Creek Trailhead 

areas.



Permits or Licenses Required



    Permits would be required to construct, operate and maintain the 

proposed project. A special use authorization is required for use of 

NFS lands. A utility encroachment/occupancy permit would need to be 

obtained from the Montana Department of Transportation to cross and 

occupy the right-of-way of US 191 that extends through the Gallatin 

National Forest. Montana Department of Environmental Quality would 

require a Joint Application for Proposed Work in Streams, Lakes and 

Wetlands. Depending on the resources impacted by the proposed action 

and alternatives, other permits may be required and will be identified 

in the EIS.



Scoping Process



    This notice of intent initiates the scoping process, which guides 

the development of the environmental impact statement. The Forest 

Service



[[Page 32359]]



encourages you to send your comments concerning the proposed action, 

possible mitigation measures, and any other information relevant to the 

proposal.

    Any persons wanting to be added to a mailing list of interested 

parties can call or write to Forest Service, as described in this 

notice. Additional announcements will be made by news release to the 

Bozeman Daily Chronicle and other media outlets. Scoping meetings were 

held last spring and summer. No additional meetings are planned. All 

comments received by the Forest Service during the scoping comment 

period in March/April 2009 and the follow-up meetings will be 

considered and are part of the record for this EIS. You are encouraged 

to submit additional issues but there is no need to resubmit previously 

submitted comments or concerns. All comments will be considered in the 

EIS.

    The Forest Service believes, at this early stage, it is important 

to give reviewers notice of several court rulings related to public 

participation in the environmental review process. First, reviewers of 

draft environmental impact statements must structure their 

participation in the environmental review of the proposal so that it is 

meaningful and alerts an agency to the reviewer's position and 

contentions. Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp. v. NRDC, 435 U.S. 519, 

553 (1978). Also, environmental objections that could be raised at the 

draft environmental impact statement stage but that are not raised 

until after completion of the final environmental impact statement may 

be waived or dismissed by the courts. City of Angoon v. Hodel, 803 F.2d 

1016, 1022 (9th Cir. 1986) and Wisconsin Heritages, Inc. v. Harris, 490 

F. Supp. 1334, 1338 (E.D. Wis. 1980). 5

    Because of these court rulings, it is very important that those 

interested in this proposed action participate during comment periods 

provided so that substantive comments and objections are made available 

to the Forest Service at a time when they can meaningfully consider 

them. To assist the Forest Service in identifying and considering 

issues, comments should be specific to concerns associated with the 

upgraded 161-kV transmission line. Reviewers may wish to refer to the 

Council on Environmental Quality Regulations for implementing the 

procedural provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act at 40 

CFR 1503.3 in structuring comments.



    Dated: May 25, 2010.

Mary C. Erickson,

Forest Supervisor.

[FR Doc. 2010-13499 Filed 6-7-10; 8:45 am]

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