[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 219 (Wednesday, November 13, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68045-68047]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-27047]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 2629-014]


Village of Morrisville, Vermont; Notice of Application Accepted 
for Filing, Soliciting Motions To Intervene and Protests, Ready for 
Environmental Analysis, and Soliciting Comments, Recommendations, 
Preliminary Terms and Conditions, and Preliminary Fishway Prescriptions

    Take notice that the following hydroelectric application has been 
filed with the Commission and is available for public inspection.
    a. Type of Application: Major License.
    b. Project No.: 2629-014.
    c. Date Filed: April 25, 2013.
    d. Applicant: Village of Morrisville, Vermont (Morrisville).
    e. Name of Project: Morrisville Hydroelectric Project.
    f. Location: On the Green River, Elmore Pond Brook, and Lamoille 
River, in Lamoille County, Vermont. 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: Craig Myotte, Village of Morrisville, Water & 
Light Department, P.O. Box 460--857 Elmore Street, Morrisville, 
Vermont, 05661-0460; (802) 888-6521 or [email protected].
    i. FERC Contact: Steve Kartalia, (202) 502-6131 or 
[email protected].
    j. Deadline for filing motions to intervene and protests, comments, 
recommendations, preliminary terms and conditions, and preliminary 
prescriptions: 60 days from the issuance date of this notice; reply 
comments are due 105 days from the issuance date of this notice.
    The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file 
motions to intervene, protests, comments, recommendations, preliminary 
terms and conditions, and preliminary fishway prescriptions using the 
Commission's eFiling system at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp. Commenters can submit brief comments up to 6,000 
characters, without prior registration, using the eComment system at 
http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/ecomment.asp. You must include your 
name and contact information at the end of your comments. For 
assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at 
[email protected], (866) 208-3676 (toll free), or (202) 502-
8659 (TTY). In lieu of electronic filing, please send a paper copy to: 
Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE., 
Washington, DC 20426. The first page of any filing should include 
docket number P-2629-014.
    The Commission's Rules of Practice require all intervenors filing 
documents with the Commission to serve a copy of that document on each 
person on the official service list for the project. Further, if an 
intervenor files comments or documents with the Commission relating to 
the merits of an issue that may affect the responsibilities of a 
particular resource agency, they must also serve a copy of the document 
on that resource agency.
    k. This application has been accepted for filing and is now ready 
for environmental analysis.
    l. The Project Description:
    The existing Morrisville Hydroelectric Project consists of four 
developments with a total installed capacity of 4,990 kilowatts (kW). 
The project's average annual generation is 9,032,221 kilowatt-hours. 
The power generated by the Morrisville Project is used by Morrisville 
to meet the power needs of its regional retail customers within the 
Village of Morrisville and surrounding communities.

Green River Development

    The existing Green River Development is located on the Green River 
and consists of: (1) A 360-foot-long, 105-foot-high concrete arch dam 
that includes, near its center, a 60-foot-long ungated spillway with a 
crest elevation of 1,220 feet above mean sea level (msl); (2) a 45-
foot-long, 15-foot-high concrete gravity weir that creates a 180-foot-
long, 11-foot-deep stilling pool downstream of the concrete arch dam; 
(3) a 200-foot-long, 16-foot-high earthen embankment with 2-foot-high 
wooden wave barriers approximately 1.25 miles southeast of the concrete 
arch dam; (4) a 690-acre impoundment with a storage

[[Page 68046]]

capacity of 17,400-acre-feet and a normal maximum elevation of 1,220 
feet msl; (5) a 16-foot-long, 12-foot-high gated intake structure; (6) 
a 22-foot-long, 16-foot-wide intake-valve house and a 14-foot-long, 13-
foot-wide outlet-valve house; (7) a 116-foot-long penstock, that 
includes a 6-foot-diameter, 94.5-foot-long buried, steel section that 
bifurcates into two 3-foot-diameter, 21.5-foot-long steel sections; (8) 
a 32-foot-long, 37-foot-wide concrete powerhouse containing two 945-kW 
turbine-generator units for a total installed capacity of 1,890 kW; (9) 
a 14.5-foot-long, concrete tailrace; (10) a 5-mile-long, 34.5-kilovolt 
(kV) transmission line connecting the powerhouse to the regional grid; 
and (11) appurtenant facilities.
    The Green River Development bypasses approximately 180 feet of the 
Green River, including the stilling pool.

Lake Elmore Development

    The existing Lake Elmore Development is located on Elmore Pond 
Brook and consists of: (1) A 26-foot-long, 10-foot-high concrete 
gravity dam and spillway with a crest elevation of 1,139 feet msl; (2) 
a 300-acre impoundment (Lake Elmore) with a 1,000-acre-foot storage 
capacity and a normal maximum water surface elevation of 1,139 feet 
msl; (3) a 8.5-foot-long, 7.5-foot-wide gatehouse; (4) a 8.3-foot-long, 
3.5-foot-high gated intake structure; (5) a 2.5-foot-long concrete-
lined tailrace; and (6) appurtenant facilities.

Morrisville Development

    The existing Morrisville Development is located on the Lamoille 
River and consists of: (1) A 384-foot-long, 37-foot-high concrete 
gravity dam comprised of a 138-foot-long concrete retaining wall, a 30-
foot-long intake and gatehouse section, and a 216-foot-long spillway 
with two 108-foot-long, 4-foot-high Obermeyer inflatable crest gates 
and a crest elevation of 627.79 feet msl; (2) a 141-foot-long, 8-foot-
high concrete wall approximately 260 feet northwest of the dam that 
includes a 60-foot-long overflow section (back spillway) with 2-foot-
high wooden flashboards ; (3) a 15-acre impoundment with a 72-acre-foot 
storage capacity and a normal maximum water surface elevation of 631.79 
feet msl; (4) a 28-foot-long, 36-foot-wide gatehouse; (5) a 30-foot-
long, 16-foot-high gated intake structure; (6) one 7-foot-diameter, 
150-foot-long buried steel penstock and one 10-foot-diameter, 150-foot-
long buried, steel penstock; (7) a 54.5-foot-long, 30.5-foot-wide 
concrete-brick powerhouse containing a 600-kW turbine-generator unit 
and a 1,200-kW turbine-generator unit for a total installed capacity of 
1,800 kW; (8) one 17.5-foot-long concrete-lined tailrace and one 14.0-
foot-long concrete-lined tailrace; (9) a 435-foot-long, 34.5-kV 
transmission line connecting the powerhouse to the regional grid; and 
(10) appurtenant facilities.
    The Morrisville Development bypasses approximately 380 feet of the 
Lamoille River.

Cadys Falls Development

    The existing Cadys Falls Development is located on the Lamoille 
River approximately 1 mile downstream of the Morrisville Development 
and consists of: (1) A 364-foot-long, 41-foot-high concrete gravity dam 
comprised of a 23-foot-long embankment section, a 186-foot-long 
spillway section with 3.5-foot-high wooden flashboards and a crest 
elevation of 576.89 feet msl, a 60-foot-long intake and gatehouse 
section, and a 95-foot-long non-overflow section; (2) a 150-acre 
impoundment (Lake Lamoille) with a 72-acre-foot storage capacity and a 
normal maximum water surface elevation of 580.39 feet msl; (3) a 29-
foot-long, 40-foot-wide gatehouse; (4) an 18.0-foot-long, 9.2-foot-high 
gated intake structure; (5) a buried, steel penstock that includes a 7-
foot-diameter, 1,110-foot-long section leading to a 35.6-foot-high, 
29.7-foot-diameter concrete surge tank and bifurcating into a 90-foot-
long, 8-foot-diameter section and a 30-foot-long, 9-foot-diameter 
section; (6) a 96-foot-long, 46-foot-wide concrete-brick powerhouse 
containing a 600-kW turbine-generator unit and a 700-kW turbine-
generator unit for a total installed capacity of 1,300 kW; (7) a 12-
foot-long concrete-lined tailrace; (8) a 150-foot-long, 34.5-kV 
transmission line connecting the powerhouse to the regional grid; and 
(9) appurtenant facilities.
    The Cadys Falls Development bypasses approximately 1,690 feet of 
the Lamoille River.
    The Green River and Lake Elmore developments are operated in 
seasonal store and release mode and the Morrisville and Cadys Falls 
developments are operated in run-of-river mode. The existing license 
requires instantaneous minimum flows of 5.5 cubic feet per second (cfs) 
in the tailrace of the Green River Development; 135 cfs and 12 cfs in 
the tailrace and bypassed reach of the Morrisville Development, 
respectively; and 150 cfs in the tailrace of the Cadys Falls 
Development. Morrisville proposes to maintain existing project 
operations and provide additional minimum flows of 4 cfs over the back 
spillway at the Morrisville Development and 12 cfs in the bypassed 
reach at the Cadys Falls Development. Morrisville also proposes to 
remove the Lake Elmore Development from the project and remove a 0.4-
acre parcel of property at the Morrisville Development from the project 
boundary.
    m. 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, (202) 502-8659. A copy is also available for 
inspection and reproduction at the address in item (h) above.
    Register online at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/esubscription.asp to be notified via email of new filings and issuances 
related to this or other pending projects. For assistance, contact FERC 
Online Support.
    n. Anyone may submit comments, a protest, or a motion to intervene 
in accordance with the requirements of Rules of Practice and Procedure, 
18 CFR 385.210, .211, and .214. In determining the appropriate action 
to take, the Commission will consider all protests or other comments 
filed, but only those who file a motion to intervene in accordance with 
the Commission's Rules may become a party to the proceeding. Any 
comments, protests, or motions to intervene must be received on or 
before the specified comment date for the particular application.
    All filings must (1) bear in all capital letters the title 
``PROTEST'', ``MOTION TO INTERVENE'', ``COMMENTS,'' ``REPLY COMMENTS,'' 
``RECOMMENDATIONS,'' ``PRELIMINARY TERMS AND CONDITIONS,'' or 
``PRELIMINARY FISHWAY PRESCRIPTIONS;'' (2) set forth in the heading the 
name of the applicant and the project number of the application to 
which the filing responds; (3) furnish the name, address, and telephone 
number of the person protesting or intervening; and (4) otherwise 
comply with the requirements of 18 CFR 385.2001 through 385.2005. All 
comments, recommendations, terms and conditions or prescriptions must 
set forth their evidentiary basis and otherwise comply with the 
requirements of 18 CFR 4.34(b). Agencies may obtain copies of the 
application directly from the applicant. A copy of any protest or 
motion to intervene must be served upon each representative of the 
applicant specified in the particular

[[Page 68047]]

application. A copy of all other filings in reference to this 
application must be accompanied by proof of service on all persons 
listed in the service list prepared by the Commission in this 
proceeding, in accordance with 18 CFR 4.34(b) and 385.2010.
    o. Procedural Schedule: The application will be processed according 
to the following preliminary Hydro Licensing Schedule. Revisions to the 
schedule may be made as appropriate.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                Milestone                           Target date
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Filing of recommendations, preliminary    January 2014.
 terms and conditions, and fishway
 prescriptions.
Commission issues EA....................  May 2014.
Comments on EA..........................  June 2014.
Modified terms and conditions...........  July 2014.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    p. Final amendments to the application must be filed with the 
Commission no later than 30 days from the issuance date of this notice.
    q. A license applicant must file no later than 60 days following 
the date of issuance of the notice of acceptance and ready for 
environmental analysis provided for in 5.22: (1) A copy of the water 
quality certification; (2) a copy of the request for certification, 
including proof of the date on which the certifying agency received the 
request; or (3) evidence of waiver of water quality certification.

    Dated: November 5, 2013.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2013-27047 Filed 11-12-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P