[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 187 (Monday, September 28, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58245-58246]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-24539]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 14550-001]


New England Hydropower Company, LLC; Notice of Application 
Accepted for Filing With the Commission, Intent To Waive Scoping, 
Soliciting Motions To Intervene and Protests, Ready for Environmental 
Analysis, and Soliciting Comments, Terms and Conditions, and 
Recommendations, and Establishing an Expedited Schedule for Processing

    Take notice that the following hydroelectric application has been 
filed with the Commission and is available for public inspection.
    a. Type of Application: Exemption from Licensing.
    b. Project No.: 14550-001.
    c. Date filed: June 26, 2015.
    d. Applicant: New England Hydropower Company, LLC.
    e. Name of Project: Hanover Pond Dam Hydroelectric Project.
    f. Location: On the Quinnipiac River, in the City of Meriden, New 
Haven County, Connecticut. The project would not occupy lands of the 
United States.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 
1978, 16 U.S.C. 2705, 2708.
    h. Applicant Contact: Michael C. Kerr, New England Hydropower 
Company, LLC, P.O. Box 5524, Beverly, MA 01915; (978) 360-2547.
    i. FERC Contact: Erin Kimsey, (202) 502-8621, or email at 
[email protected].
    j. Deadline for filing motions to intervene and protests, comments, 
terms and conditions, and recommendations: Due to the small size and 
location of this project and the close coordination with state and 
federal agencies during preparation of the application, the 60-day 
timeframe in 18 CFR 4.34(b) is shortened. Instead, motions to intervene 
and protests, comments, terms and conditions, and recommendations are 
due 30 days from the issuance date of this notice. All reply comments 
must be filed with the Commission within 45 days from the issuance date 
of this notice.
    The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file 
motions to intervene, protests, comments, and recommendations 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-13806-004.
    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. Waiver of Pre-filing Consultation: In its application, the New 
England Hydropower Company requested that the Commission waive the 
requirement to conduct second stage consultation pursuant to section 
4.38(c) of the Commission's regulations. The applicant provided 
documentation indicating that the Connecticut Department of Energy and 
Environmental Protection, National Marine Fisheries Service, and United 
States Fish and Wildlife Service had agreed to waive second stage 
consultation on September 10, 2015, August 26, 2015, and August 26, 
2015, respectively. Therefore, we are waiving the requirement to 
conduct second stage consultation pursuant to section 4.38(c) of the 
regulations and accepting the application.

[[Page 58246]]

    l. This application has been accepted for filing and is now ready 
for environmental analysis.
    m. The proposed Hanover Pond Dam Hydroelectric Project would 
consist of: (1) An existing 25-foot-high, 150-foot-long earth 
embankment dam with four low-level sluice gates and a 250-foot-long 
concrete spillway; (2) an existing 71.0-acre impoundment (i.e., Hanover 
Pond) with a storage capacity of 1,800 acre-feet at a normal operating 
elevation of about 87.3 feet National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 
(NGVD29); (3) an existing 175-foot-long, 16.0-foot-wide fish ladder; 
(4) a new 8-foot-high, 12.5-foot-wide hydraulically-powered sluice gate 
equipped with a new 8-foot-high, 17-foot-wide trashrack with 9-inch bar 
spacing; (5) a new 78-foot-long, 12-foot-diameter buried precast 
concrete penstock; (6) a new 46.5-foot-long, 11.65-foot-wide Archimedes 
screw generator unit, with an installed capacity of 192 kilowatts; (7) 
a new 12-foot-high, 18-foot-long, 16.0-foot-wide concrete powerhouse 
containing a new gearbox, generator, and electrical controls; (8) a new 
15-foot-long, variable-width concrete tailrace; (9) a new 500-foot-
long, 35-kilovolt above-ground transmission line connecting the 
powerhouse to Connecticut Light and Power's distribution system; and 
(10) appurtenant facilities. The estimated annual generation of the 
proposed Hanover Pond Dam Hydroelectric Project would be about 900 
megawatt-hours.
    n. Due to the applicant's close coordination with federal and state 
agencies during the preparation of the application, completed studies 
during pre-filing consultation, and agency recommended preliminary 
terms and conditions, we intend to waive scoping and expedite the 
exemption process. Based on a review of the application, resource 
agency consultation letters including the preliminary 30(c) terms and 
conditions, and comments filed to date, Commission staff intends to 
prepare a single environmental assessment (EA). Commission staff 
determined that the issues that need to be addressed in its EA have 
been adequately identified during the pre-filing period, which included 
a public scoping meeting and site visit, and no new issues are likely 
to be identified through additional scoping. The EA will consider 
assessing the potential effects of project construction and operation 
on geology and soils, aquatic, terrestrial, threatened and endangered 
species, recreation and land use, aesthetic, and cultural and historic 
resources.
    o. 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. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support. A 
copy is also available for inspection and reproduction at the address 
in item h above.
    You may also 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.
    p. Any qualified applicant desiring to file a competing application 
must submit to the Commission, on or before the specified intervention 
deadline date, a competing development application, or a notice of 
intent to file such an application. Submission of a timely notice of 
intent allows an interested person to file the competing development 
application no later than 120 days after the specified intervention 
deadline date. Applications for preliminary permits will not be 
accepted in response to this notice.
    A notice of intent must specify the exact name, business address, 
and telephone number of the prospective applicant, and must include an 
unequivocal statement of intent to submit a development application. A 
notice of intent must be served on the applicant(s) named in this 
public notice.
    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, .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'', ``NOTICE OF INTENT TO FILE 
COMPETING APPLICATION,'' ``COMPETING APPLICATION,'' ``COMMENTS,'' 
``REPLY COMMENTS,'' ``RECOMMENDATIONS,'' or ``TERMS AND CONDITIONS;'' 
(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 
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.
    q. Procedural Schedule: The application will be processed according 
to the following procedural schedule. Revisions to the schedule may be 
made as appropriate.

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               Milestone                           Target date
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Notice of the availability of the EA..  January 2016.
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    Dated: September 16, 2015.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2015-24539 Filed 9-25-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P