[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 62 (Monday, April 3, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16194-16195]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-06421]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 2221-038]


Empire District Electric Company; Notice of Intent To File 
License Application, Filing of Pre-Application Document (PAD), 
Commencement of Pre-Filing Process, and Scoping; Request for Comments 
on the PAD and Scoping Document, and Identification of Issues and 
Associated Study Requests

    a. Type of Filing: Notice of Intent to File License Application for 
a New License and Commencing Pre-filing Process.
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    \5\ Based on data from Fiscal Year 2016, there were 520 
projects, owned by 242 FERC-regulated private and public licensees. 
Many of the licensees owned multiple projects.
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    b. Project No.: 2221-038.
    c. Dated Filed: January 26, 2017.
    d. Submitted By: Empire District Electric Company.
    e. Name of Project: Ozark Beach Hydroelectric Project.
    f. Location: On the White River near the Town of Forsyth, in Taney 
County, Missouri. The project occupies 5.1 acres of United States lands 
administered by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: 18 CFR part 5 of the Commission's 
Regulations.
    h. Potential Applicant Contact: Blake Mertens, Vice President of 
Energy Supply and Delivery Operations, Empire District Electric 
Company, P.O. Box 127, Joplin, MO 64802, (417) 625-6587 or 
[email protected]; and Randy Richardson, Plant Manager, 
Empire District Electric Company, 2537 Fir Road, Sarcoxie, MO 64862, 
(417) 625-6138 or [email protected].
    i. FERC Contact: Colleen Corballis at (202) 502-8598 or email at 
[email protected].
    j. Cooperating agencies: Federal, state, local, and tribal agencies 
with jurisdiction and/or special expertise with respect to 
environmental issues that wish to cooperate in the preparation of the 
environmental document should follow the instructions for filing such 
requests described in item o below. Cooperating agencies should note 
the Commission's policy that agencies that cooperate in the preparation 
of the environmental document cannot also intervene. See 94 FERC ] 
61,076 (2001).
    k. With this notice, we are initiating informal consultation with: 
(a) The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service under section 7 of the 
Endangered Species Act and the joint agency regulations thereunder at 
50 CFR, Part 402 and (b) the State Historic Preservation Officer, as 
required by section 106, National Historic Preservation Act, and the 
implementing regulations of the Advisory Council on Historic 
Preservation at 36 CFR 800.2.
    l. With this notice, we are designating Empire District Electric 
Company as the Commission's non-federal representative for carrying out 
informal consultation, pursuant to section 7 of the Endangered Species 
Act and section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act.
    m. Empire District Electric Company filed with the Commission a 
Pre-Application Document (PAD; including a proposed process plan and 
schedule), pursuant to 18 CFR 5.6 of the Commission's regulations.
    n. A copy of the PAD is available for review at the Commission in 
the Public Reference Room or may be viewed on the Commission's Web site 
(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], (866) 208-3676 (toll free), or (202) 502-
8659 (TTY). A copy is also available for inspection and reproduction at 
the address in paragraph h.
    Register online at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/esubscription.asp to be notified via email of new filing and issuances 
related to this or other pending projects. For assistance, contact FERC 
Online Support.
    o. With this notice, we are soliciting comments on the PAD and 
Commission's staff Scoping Document 1 (SD1), as well as study requests. 
All comments on the PAD and SD1, and study requests should be sent to 
Randy Richardson at the address above in paragraph h. In addition, all 
comments on the PAD and SD1, study requests, requests for cooperating 
agency status, and all communications to and from Commission staff 
related to the merits of

[[Page 16195]]

the potential application must be filed with the Commission.
    The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file 
all documents 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]. 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-2221-038.
    All filings with the Commission must bear the appropriate heading: 
``Comments on Pre-Application Document,'' ``Study Requests,'' 
``Comments on Scoping Document 1,'' ``Request for Cooperating Agency 
Status,'' or ``Communications to and from Commission Staff.'' Any 
individual or entity interested in submitting study requests, 
commenting on the PAD or SD1, and any agency requesting cooperating 
status must do so by May 26, 2017.
    p. Although our current intent is to prepare an environmental 
assessment (EA), there is the possibility that an Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS) will be required. Nevertheless, this meeting will 
satisfy the NEPA scoping requirements, irrespective of whether an EA or 
EIS is issued by the Commission.

Scoping Meetings

    Commission staff will hold two scoping meetings in the vicinity of 
the project at the times and places noted below. The daytime meeting 
will focus on resource agency, Indian tribes, and non-governmental 
organization concerns, while the evening meeting is primarily for 
receiving input from the public. We invite all interested individuals, 
organizations, and agencies to attend one or both of the meetings, and 
to assist staff in identifying particular study needs, as well as the 
scope of environmental issues to be addressed in the environmental 
document. The times and locations of these meetings are as follows:

Evening Scoping Meeting

    Date: April 18, 2017.
    Time: 6:30 p.m.
    Location: Taney County Courthouse, 1st Floor Hearing Room, 132 
David Street, Forsyth, MO 65653.
    Phone: (417) 546-7204.

Daytime Scoping Meeting

    Date: April 19, 2017.
    Time: 9:00 a.m.
    Location: Taney County Courthouse, 1st Floor Hearing Room, 132 
David Street, Forsyth, MO 65653.
    Phone: (417) 546-7204.

    SD1, which outlines the subject areas to be addressed in the 
environmental document, was mailed to the individuals and entities on 
the Commission's mailing list. Copies of SD1 will be available at the 
scoping meetings, or may be viewed on the web at http://www.ferc.gov, 
using the ``eLibrary'' link. Follow the directions for accessing 
information in paragraph n. Based on all oral and written comments, a 
Scoping Document 2 (SD2) may be issued. SD2 may include a revised 
process plan and schedule, as well as a list of issues, identified 
through the scoping process.

Environmental Site Review

    The potential applicant and Commission staff will conduct an 
Environmental Site Review of the project on Tuesday, April 18, 2017, 
starting at 1:00 p.m. All participants should meet at the Ozark Beach 
Dam parking lot, located at 3292 State Highway Y, Forsyth, MO 65653. 
All participants are responsible for their own transportation. Anyone 
planning on participating in the site visit, or with questions about 
it, should contact Mr. Randy Richardson of Empire District Electric 
Company at (417) 625-6138 or [email protected] on or 
before April 11, 2017.

Meeting Objectives

    At the scoping meetings, staff will: (1) Initiate scoping of the 
issues; (2) review and discuss existing conditions and resource 
management objectives; (3) review and discuss existing information and 
identify preliminary information and study needs; (4) review and 
discuss the process plan and schedule for pre-filing activity that 
incorporates the time frames provided for in Part 5 of the Commission's 
regulations and, to the extent possible, maximizes coordination of 
federal, state, and tribal permitting and certification processes; and 
(5) discuss the appropriateness of any federal or state agency or 
Indian tribe acting as a cooperating agency for development of an 
environmental document.
    Meeting participants should come prepared to discuss their issues 
and/or concerns. Please review the PAD in preparation for the scoping 
meetings. Directions on how to obtain a copy of the PAD and SD1 are 
included in paragraph n of this document.

Meeting Procedures

    The meetings will be recorded by a stenographer and will be placed 
in the public records of the project.

    Dated: March 24, 2017.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2017-06421 Filed 3-31-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P