[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 15 (Monday, January 24, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4097-4099]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-1285]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 2713-082]


Erie Boulevard Hydropower, L.P.; Notice of Application Tendered 
for Filing With the Commission and Establishing Procedural Schedule for 
Licensing and Deadline for Submission of Final Amendments

January 13, 2011.
    Take notice that the following hydroelectric application has been 
filed with the Commission and is available for public inspection.
    a. Type of Application: New Major License.
    b. Project No.: 2713-082.
    c. Date Filed: December 30, 2010.
    d. Applicant: Erie Boulevard Hydropower, L.P.
    e. Name of Project: Oswegatchie River Hydroelectric Project.
    f. Location: The existing multi-development project is located on 
the Oswegatchie River in St. Lawrence County, New York. The project 
does not affect Federal lands.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act, 16 U.S.C. 791(a)-825(r).
    h. Applicant Contact: Jon Elmer, Erie Boulevard Hydropower, L.P, 
800 Starbuck Ave., Suite 802, Watertown, New York 13601, (315) 779-
2401.
    i. FERC Contact: John Baummer, (202) 502-6837 or 
[email protected].
    j. This application is not ready for environmental analysis at this 
time.
    k. The Project Description: The existing Oswegatchie River 
Hydroelectric Project consists of six developments with an installed 
capacity of 30.32 megawatts (MW) and an average annual generation of 
123,769 megawatt-hours. The six developments,

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listed from upstream to downstream, include:

Browns Falls

    The existing Browns Falls Development is located at river mile 96.9 
of the Oswegatchie River and consists of: (1) A 941-foot-long dam with 
a 192-foot-long, 69-foot-high concrete gravity spillway with a crest 
elevation of 1,347.0 feet above mean sea level (msl) and equipped with 
2-foot-high seasonal flash boards; (2) a 168-acre reservoir with a 
gross storage capacity of 3,234 acre-feet and a normal maximum pool 
elevation of 1349.0 feet msl; (3) a 62-foot-long gated intake structure 
equipped with a trashrack with 2.5-inch clear bar spacing; (4) a 12-
foot-diameter, 6,000-foot-long steel pipeline; (5) a 70-foot-high surge 
tank; (6) two 8-foot-diameter, 142-foot-long steel penstocks; (7) a 
powerhouse containing two turbines directly connected to two generating 
units for a total installed capacity of 16 MW; (8) a 123-foot-long, 
6.6-kilovolt (kV) transmission line; and (9) appurtenant facilities.
    The steel pipeline, penstocks, and powerhouse bypass about 7,500 
feet of the Oswegatchie River.

Flat Rock

    The existing Flat Rock Development is located at river mile 95.5 of 
the Oswegatchie River and consists of: (1) A 568-foot-long dam and a 
120-foot-long earthen embankment with a concrete core wall, and a 229-
foot-long, 70-foot-high concrete gravity spillway with a crest 
elevation of 1,080.0 feet msl; (2) a 159-acre reservoir with a gross 
storage capacity of 2,646 acre-feet and a normal maximum pool elevation 
of 1,080.0 feet msl; (3) a 66-foot-long gated intake structure equipped 
with a trashrack with 2.5-inch clear bar spacing; (4) a powerhouse 
containing two turbines directly connected to two generating units for 
a total installed capacity of 5 MW; (5) a 30-foot-long, 2.4-kV 
transmission line; and (6) appurtenant facilities.

South Edwards

    The existing South Edwards Development is located at river mile 
87.1 of the Oswegatchie River and consists of: (1) A 200-foot-long dam 
with a 88-foot-long, 48-foot-high concrete gravity spillway with a 
crest elevation of 843.2 feet msl and mounted with 2-foot-high seasonal 
flash boards; (2) 510-foot-long and 240-foot-long earthen dikes located 
along the south bank of the reservoir, with a concrete core walls and 
partially equipped with 10-inch-high flashboards; (3) a 79.2-acre 
reservoir with a gross storage capacity of 1,003 acre-feet and a normal 
maximum pool elevation of 845.2 feet msl; (4) a 46-foot-long gated 
intake structure equipped with a trashrack with 2.5-inch clear bar 
spacing; (5) a 10-foot-diameter, 1,106-foot-long fiberglass pipeline; 
(6) a 51-foot-high surge tank; (7) a submersible minimum-flow turbine-
generator unit connected to the fiberglass pipeline, and a powerhouse 
containing three turbines directly connected to three generating units 
for a total installed capacity of 3.46 MW; (8) 75-foot-long, 480-volt 
and 3,917-foot-long, 2.4-kV transmission lines; and (9) appurtenant 
facilities.
    The pipeline and powerhouse bypass about 1,500 feet of the 
Oswegatchie River.

Oswegatchie

    The Oswegatchie Development is located at river mile 86.6 of the 
Oswegatchie River and consists of: (1) A 160-foot-long dam with an 80-
foot-long, 12-foot-high concrete gravity spillway with a crest 
elevation of 758.6 feet msl and equipped with a 10-foot-wide notch; (2) 
a 6-acre reservoir with a gross storage capacity of 23 acre-feet and a 
normal maximum pool elevation of 758.6 feet msl; (3) a 50-foot-long 
gated intake structure equipped with a trashrack with 1-inch clear bar 
spacing; (4) two 6.5-foot-diameter, 90-foot-long steel penstocks; (5) a 
powerhouse containing two turbines directly connected to two generating 
units for a total installed capacity of 2 MW; (6) a 2,227-foot-long, 
2.4-kV transmission line; and (7) appurtenant facilities.
    The penstocks and powerhouse bypass about 350 feet of the 
Oswegatchie River.

Heuvelton

    The Heuvelton Development is located at river mile 12 of the 
Oswegatchie River and consists of: (1) A 285-foot-long, 19-foot-high 
concrete gravity dam with a crest elevation of 276.5 feet msl and 
equipped with two 10.9-foot-high inflatable rubber bladder gates and 
four 10.5-foot-high tainter gates; (2) a 239-acre reservoir with a 
gross storage capacity of 405 acre-feet and a normal maximum pool 
elevation of 286.2 feet msl; (3) a 70-foot-long gated intake structure 
equipped with a trashracks with 3.5-inch clear bar spacing; (4) a 
powerhouse containing two turbines directly connected to two generating 
units for a total installed capacity of 0.96 MW; (5) a 62-foot-long, 
2.4-kV transmission line; and (6) appurtenant facilities.

Eel Weir

    The Eel Weir Development is located at river mile 5.1 of the 
Oswegatchie River and consists of: (1) A 1,012-foot-long dam with a 
short earthen embankment and a 744-foot-long, 26-foot-high Ambursen 
spillway with a crest elevation of 272.0 feet msl; (2) a 96-acre 
reservoir with a gross storage capacity of 136.0 acre-feet and a normal 
maximum pool elevation of 272.0 feet msl; (3) a 117-foot-long gated 
intake structure equipped with a trashrack with 3.5-inch clear bar 
spacing; (4) a powerhouse containing three turbines directly connected 
to three generating units for a total installed capacity of 2.9 MW; (5) 
a 127-foot-long, 2.4-kV transmission line; and (6) appurtenant 
facilities.
    The Browns Falls, Flat Rock, South Edwards, and Oswegatchie 
developments operate to meet peak demands for hydroelectric generation, 
while the Heuvelton and Eel Weir developments typically operate in a 
run-of-river mode. With the exception of the Oswegatchie Development, 
the current license does not restrict impoundment fluctuations. The 
Oswegatchie Development operates with a maximum drawdown of 0.4 feet on 
the impoundment.
    The existing minimum flow requirements for the project include: 30 
cubic feet per second (cfs) between April 1 and September 30, and 15 
cfs between October 1 and May 31 in the Browns Falls bypassed reach; 60 
and 40 cfs year-round in the South Edwards and Oswegatchie bypassed 
reaches, respectively; 160 cfs (or inflow, whichever is less) year-
round in the Flat Rock, South Edwards, and Oswegatchie tailraces, 
respectively; and 275 and 325 cfs (or inflow, whichever is less) year-
round in the Heuvelton and Eel Weir tailraces, respectively.
    The applicant, concerned agencies, and non-governmental 
organizations are currently discussing a settlement agreement that 
would require Erie Boulevard Hydropower to implement various 
environmental enhancement measures at the project developments.
    l. Locations of the Application: A copy of the application is 
available for review at the Commission in the Public Reference Room or 
may be viewed on the Commission's Web site at http://www.ferc.gov using 
the ``eLibrary'' link. Enter the docket number excluding the last three 
digits in the docket number field to access the document. For 
assistance, contact FERC Online Support at [email protected] 
or toll-free at 1-866-208-3676, or for TTY,

[[Page 4099]]

(202) 502-8659. A copy is also available for inspection and 
reproduction at the address in item (h) above.
    m. You may also register online at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/esubscription.asp to be notified via e-mail of new filings and 
issuances related to this or other pending projects. For assistance, 
contact FERC Online Support.
    n. Procedural Schedule: The application will be processed according 
to the following preliminary Hydro Licensing Schedule. Revisions to the 
schedule may be made as appropriate.

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              Milestone                           Target date
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Notice of Acceptance/Notice of Ready   February 28, 2011.
 for Environmental Analysis.
Filing of recommendations,             April 28, 2011
 preliminary terms and conditions,
 and fishway prescriptions.
Commission issues EA.................  August 2011.
Comments on EA.......................  September 2011.
Modified terms and conditions........  November 2011.
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    o. Final amendments to the application must be filed with the 
Commission no later than 30 days from the issuance date of the notice 
of ready for environmental analysis.

Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011-1285 Filed 1-21-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P