[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 130 (Thursday, July 8, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39241-39243]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-16622]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Bonneville Power Administration


Hooper Springs Project

AGENCY: Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), Department of Energy 
(DOE).

ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement 
(EIS) and notice of floodplain and wetlands involvement.

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SUMMARY: BPA intends to prepare an EIS in accordance with the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) on the proposed construction, 
operation, and maintenance of a 115-kilovolt (kV) transmission line and 
a 138/115-kV substation (collectively referred to as the Hooper Springs 
Project). The new BPA substation would be called Hooper Springs 
Substation and would be located adjacent to PacifiCorp's existing 345/
138-kV Threemile Knoll Substation, located near the City of Soda 
Springs in Caribou County, Idaho. The new 115-kV single-circuit BPA 
transmission line would extend generally north and east from these 
substations to a connection with Lower Valley Energy's (LVE's) existing 
115-kV Lane Creek Substation, east of the City of Wayan, Idaho. The 
proposed project would address voltage stability and reliability 
concerns of two of BPA's full requirements customers, LVE and Fall 
River Rural Electric Cooperative (Fall River), which purchase all or 
almost all of the electric power required to serve their loads from BPA 
under existing contracts. With this Notice of Intent, BPA is initiating 
the

[[Page 39242]]

public scoping process for the EIS and is requesting comments about the 
proposal and its potential environmental impacts that BPA should 
consider as it prepares the EIS. In accordance with DOE regulations for 
compliance with floodplain and wetlands environmental review 
requirements, BPA will prepare a floodplain and wetlands assessment to 
avoid or minimize potential harm to or within any affected floodplains 
and wetlands. The assessment will be included in the EIS.

DATES: Written scoping comments are due to the address below by August 
9, 2010 to ensure their consideration in the preparation of the Draft 
EIS. Comments may also be submitted at the public scoping meeting to be 
held on July 29, 2010 in Soda Springs, Idaho at the address below. 
Scoping comments received after the comment period will be considered 
to the extent practicable.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to inform the preparation of the Draft 
EIS, and requests to be placed on the project mailing list, to Hooper 
Springs Project, P.O. Box 9250, Portland, OR 97207, or by fax to (888) 
315-4503. You also may call BPA's toll free comment line at (800) 622-
4519 and leave a message (please include the name of this project), or 
submit comments online at http://www.bpa.gov/comment. BPA will post all 
comment letters in their entirety on BPA's Web site at http://www.bpa.gov/comment.
    On Thursday, July 29, 2010, an open-house style scoping meeting 
will be held from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Soda Springs High School, in 
the commons area, 300 E 1st N, Soda Springs, Idaho 83276. At the 
meeting, BPA will provide maps and other information about the project 
and have members of the project team available to answer questions and 
accept oral and written comments. You may stop by any time during the 
open house.
    Persons needing reasonable accommodation to attend and participate 
in the public meetings should contact John Barco (see FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT) at least 10 business days prior to the meeting, to 
allow sufficient time to process requests. Information regarding the 
Hooper Springs Project is available in alternative formats upon 
request.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Barco, Environmental Project 
Lead, Bonneville Power Administration--KEC-4, P.O. Box 3621, Portland, 
Oregon 97208-3621; toll-free telephone 1-800-282-3713; direct telephone 
503-230-3223; or e-mail [email protected]. You may also contact Erich 
Orth, Project Manager, Bonneville Power Administration--TEP-TPP-3, P.O. 
Box 3621, Portland, Oregon 97208-3621; toll-free telephone 1-800-282-
3713; direct telephone 360-619-6559; or e-mail [email protected]. 
Additional information can be found at BPA's Web site: http://www.efw.bpa.gov/environmental_services/Document_Library/HooperSprings/.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: BPA needs to respond to a request from LVE 
to help improve the stability and reliability of the transmission 
system in southeastern Idaho. LVE, along with Fall River, are full 
requirements customers of BPA that purchase all or almost all of the 
electric power required to serve their electrical loads from BPA under 
existing contracts. LVE and Fall River provide electrical service to 
eastern Idaho, northwestern Wyoming, and southwestern Montana.
    Over the past few years, BPA has increased the voltage stability 
and reliability of its existing transmission lines in the area (e.g., 
Palisades-Goshen, Swan Valley-Goshen, Swan Valley-Teton, and Goshen-
Drummond lines), which has helped improve the stability and reliability 
of the Fall River transmission system and the northern portion of LVE's 
transmission system. However, the voltage stability and reliability of 
the southern portion of LVE's transmission system continues to be a 
concern. LVE's system experiences extreme peaks in electrical load 
during winter, when temperatures can drop to -50 [deg]F and electricity 
is needed for heat. If a transmission line were to go out of service 
during these times, voltage instability could occur and utility 
customers could lose power, potentially creating life-threatening 
situations. The proposed project would allow BPA to provide 
transmission reinforcement to avoid loss of LVE's entire voltage load 
during peak winter conditions, enhance the existing system in the 
southern Idaho region, and prepare to meet ongoing and forecasted load 
growth of about 3 percent per year in southeast Idaho and the Jackson 
Hole valley area in Wyoming.
    Background: In May 2009, BPA completed and issued a Preliminary 
Environmental Assessment (EA) (DOE/EA-1567) for BPA's proposal to 
construct, operate, and maintain Hooper Springs Substation and to 
partially fund LVE's construction, operation, and maintenance of a new 
22-mile double-circuit 115-kV Hooper Springs-Lower Valley Line. The 
proposed line considered in the Preliminary EA extended from the 
proposed Hooper Springs Substation generally northeast across a portion 
of the U.S. Forest Service Caribou-Targhee National Forest (USFS), U.S. 
Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land, and private land, along the 
Blackfoot River, connecting with LVE's existing Lanes Creek-Valley Line 
at a point about 2 miles southeast of the intersection of Blackfoot 
River Road and Diamond Creek.
    Based on comments received on the Preliminary EA, it was discovered 
that the proposed route identified in the Preliminary EA crossed four 
contaminated mining sites (Conda, Ballard, Wooley Valley, and North 
Maybe Phosphate Mines) that are the subject of an ongoing Superfund 
Site Investigation for selenium soil contamination under the 
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act 
(CERCLA). Each of these Superfund Site Investigation areas is currently 
under review to determine the nature and extent of contamination. Given 
the presence of these Superfund Sites and the routing of the line as 
originally proposed, either through or near those sites, BPA has 
determined that preparation of an EIS is appropriate.
    BPA will be the lead agency for preparation of the EIS. The USFS 
and BLM will act as cooperating agencies to assist with preparation of 
the EIS, including assisting BPA in evaluating transmission line 
alternatives and identifying interests that should be addressed in the 
EIS. If, after completion of the environmental review in the EIS, BPA 
decides to proceed with constructing, operating, and maintaining a new 
line, both the USFS and BLM would be able to use the information in the 
EIS to support their respective decisions to grant Special Use Permits 
to BPA, as appropriate, where the line would cross their respective 
lands. Additional cooperating agencies for the EIS may be identified as 
the proposed project proceeds through the NEPA process.
    Alternatives Proposed for Consideration: BPA has identified three 
potential action alternatives that vary the transmission line by route, 
connection point, length, and voltage. Two of these alternatives would 
originate from the same proposed Hooper Springs Substation as was 
described in the May 2009 Preliminary EA, while the third alternative 
would originate from PacifiCorp's existing ThreeMile Knoll Substation. 
The three potential alternatives are as follows:
     Hooper Springs Substation and Northernmost Route (Proposed 
Action): Under this alternative, BPA would construct, operate, and 
maintain a new

[[Page 39243]]

115-kV, 32-mile, single-circuit transmission line, from BPA's proposed 
Hooper Springs Substation, extending generally north along Highway 34 
before heading east to connect with LVE's existing 115-kV Lane Creek 
Substation east of the City of Wayan, Idaho, crossing both private land 
and public land (USFS and BLM lands), but remaining south of Grays Lake 
National Wildlife Refuge and outside the four known contaminated mining 
sites to the maximum extent practicable.
     Hooper Springs Substation and Easternmost Route, with Line 
Adjustments: Under this alternative, BPA would construct, operate, and 
maintain a new 115-kV, 22- to 30-mile, double-circuit transmission 
line, connecting PacifiCorp's existing Threemile Knoll Substation with 
the proposed BPA-constructed, operated, and maintained Hooper Springs 
Substation, extending generally northeast and then east before 
connecting with LVE's existing Lane Creek-Valley Line at a point about 
2 miles southeast of the intersection of Blackfoot River Road and 
Diamond Creek Road. This alternative is similar to the action 
originally proposed in the Preliminary EA, except that BPA, rather than 
LVE, would retain ownership, operation, and maintenance of the line, 
and would route the line around known Superfund Sites, thus also 
lengthening the line.
     Threemile Knoll Substation and Northernmost Route: Under 
this alternative, BPA would not construct Hooper Springs Substation. 
BPA would construct, operate, and maintain a new 138-kV (230-kV 
construction), 32-mile, single-circuit transmission line, connecting 
PacifiCorp's existing Threemile Knoll Substation with LVE's existing 
138/115-kV Lane Creek Substation, using the route specified in the 
Proposed Action.
    In addition to these three action alternatives, BPA also will 
consider a No Action Alternative. Under this alternative, BPA would not 
construct the Hooper Springs Substation or a transmission line. Other 
alternatives may be identified through the scoping process.
    Public Participation and Identification of Environmental Resources: 
With this Notice of Intent, BPA is initiating the public scoping 
process for the Hooper Springs Project EIS. BPA will conduct a 30-day 
scoping period during which Tribes, affected landowners, concerned 
citizens, special interest groups, local, State, and Federal 
governments, and any other interested parties are invited to comment on 
the scope of the Draft EIS to be prepared. The potential environmental 
resources identified for analysis in most transmission line projects 
include land use, recreation, transportation and aviation, 
socioeconomics, cultural resources, visual resources, public health and 
safety, noise, electric and magnetic field effects, sensitive plants 
and animals and their habitats, soil erosion, wetlands and floodplains, 
and fish and water resources. BPA is seeking any additional information 
about these environmental resources, and impacts to those resources, 
from the proposed alternatives, including potential mitigation measures 
for each proposed alternative or different alternatives that may meet 
the technical requirements of the transmission system.
    While all comments are appreciated, BPA specifically seeks comment 
to inform its analysis of the effects of any potential line route on 
bird species, habitat, and habitat use, including flyway patterns and 
other behaviors in the Grays Lake National Wildlife Refuge area and any 
other flyway areas identified through this process. BPA also 
particularly seeks information about the nature and extent of the four 
known Superfund sites, and any other contamination in the area not 
currently known to the agency.
    Scoping will help BPA further assess and refine the transmission 
line alternatives to be studied in the Draft EIS. Scoping will also 
ensure that a full range of issues related to this proposal are 
addressed in the Draft EIS, and identify significant or potentially 
significant impacts that may result from the proposed project. When 
completed, the Draft EIS will be circulated for review and comment, and 
BPA will hold public meetings to answer questions and receive comments. 
At this time, BPA expects to issue the Draft EIS in spring 2012. BPA 
will consider and respond to comments received on the Draft EIS in the 
Final EIS. The Final EIS is expected to be published in fall 2012. 
BPA's decision will be documented in a Record of Decision that will 
follow the Final EIS.

    Issued in Portland, Oregon, on June 29, 2010.
Stephen J. Wright,
Administrator and Chief Executive Officer.
[FR Doc. 2010-16622 Filed 7-7-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P