[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 122 (Tuesday, June 27, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29063-29064]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-13418]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

[Docket No. PP-371]


Informational Notice Regarding Public Notification Procedures for 
the Northern Pass Transmission Line Project

AGENCY:  Department of Energy.

ACTION: Notice of changes to the public notification procedures for 
consultation under the National Historic Preservation Act for the 
Northern Pass Transmission Line Project.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is notifying the public of 
changes to the public notification procedures for consultation under 
the National Historic Preservation Act for the Northern Pass 
Transmission Line Project, including implementation of the Programmatic 
Agreement developed for the Project.

DATES: DOE is changing the public notification procedures for 
consultation under the National Historic Preservation Act for the 
Northern Pass Transmission Line Project effective June 14, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Requests for information about the proposed project and 
DOE's Section 106 review should be addressed to: Brian Mills, Office of 
Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability (OE-20), U.S. Department of 
Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585; or by email 
to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  For information on DOE's review of 
the Presidential permit application, contact Brian Mills by one of the 
methods listed in ADDRESSES above, or at 202-586-8267.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    Executive Order (E.O.) 10485, as amended by E.O. 12038, requires 
that before an electric transmission facility may be constructed, 
operated, maintained, or connected at the U.S. international border, a 
Presidential permit must be issued by DOE. E.O. 10485 provides that DOE 
may issue a Presidential permit upon finding issuance of the permit to 
be consistent with the public interest and after obtaining favorable 
recommendations from the U.S. Departments of State and Defense. In 
determining whether issuance of a Presidential permit would be 
consistent with the public interest, DOE takes into account the 
potential effects of the issuance of a Presidential permit for the 
proposed project's international border crossing on historic properties 
listed in or eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic 
Places (NRHP) and gives the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation 
(ACHP) and state historic preservation offices (SHPOs) an opportunity 
to comment, in accordance with Section 106 of the National Historic 
Preservation Act (NHPA) of 1966 (54 United States Code (U.S.C.) 306108) 
(Section 106), as amended, and the Section 106 implementing regulations 
(36 CFR part 800).
    On October 14, 2010, NPT applied to DOE for a Presidential permit 
to construct, operate, maintain, and connect a high-voltage direct 
current (HVDC) transmission line across the U.S.-Canada border (the 
proposed Project). On July 1, 2013, NPT submitted an amended 
Presidential permit application to DOE (see 78 FR 50405 (Aug. 19, 
2013)). On August 31, 2015, NPT further amended its Presidential permit 
application to DOE (see 80 FR

[[Page 29064]]

58725 (Sep. 30, 2015)). The amended applications are summarized below.

Applicant's Proposal

    In the July 2013 amended application, NPT proposed to construct and 
operate a primarily overhead high voltage direct current (HVDC) 
electric transmission line that would originate at an HVDC converter 
station to be constructed at the Des Cantons Substation in 
Qu[eacute]bec, Canada, then would be converted from HVDC to alternating 
current (AC) in Franklin, NH, and would continue to its southern 
terminus in Deerfield, NH. The proposed facilities would be capable of 
transmitting up to 1200 megawatts (MW) of power.
    The New Hampshire portion of the proposed Project would be a single 
circuit 300 kilovolt (kV) HVDC transmission line running approximately 
153 miles from the U.S. border crossing with Canada near the community 
of Pittsburg, NH, to a new HVDC-to-AC transformer facility to be 
constructed in Franklin, NH. From Franklin, NH, to the Project terminus 
at the Public Service Company of New Hampshire's existing Deerfield 
Substation located in Deerfield, NH, the proposed Project would consist 
of 34 miles of 345-kV AC electric transmission line. The total length 
of the proposed Project would be approximately 187 miles.
    NPT's August 2015 application amendment (80 FR 58725) changed the 
proposed transmission line route by adding three miles of buried 
transmission line adjacent to a road not previously analyzed, adding 
two new transition stations (one in Bridgewater and one in Bethlehem; 
both would transition the transmission line between aboveground and 
buried) of approximately one acre each, and increasing the amount of 
proposed buried transmission line from approximately eight miles to 
approximately 60 miles with a total proposed Project length of 
approximately 192 miles. In addition, the amendment proposed a minor 
shift (less than 100 feet) in the international border crossing 
location, changed the project size from 1,200 MW to 1,000 MW with a 
potential transfer capability of 1,090 MW and included other design 
changes (e.g., change in converter technology and type of cable). A 
copy of the amended Presidential permit application and maps of the 
proposed Project route can be found at the DOE environmental impact 
statement (EIS) Web site (http://www.northernpasseis.us).

Section 106 Review

    Section 106 of the NHPA requires federal agencies to take into 
account the potential effects of their undertakings that require 
federal funding, approvals, or permits on historic properties and to 
give the ACHP and SHPOs an opportunity to comment. Compliance with 
Section 106 also requires consultation with other consulting parties, 
which may include federally-recognized Indian tribes, representatives 
of local governments, the applicant, certain individuals and 
organizations with a demonstrated interest in the proposed undertaking 
due to the nature of their legal or economic relation to the 
undertaking or affected properties, or their concern with the 
undertaking's effects on historic properties (36 CFR 800.2). The public 
is also a participant in the Section 106 process, and federal agencies 
must also seek and consider the views of the public (36 CFR 800.2(d)). 
If adverse effects on historic properties are anticipated, agencies 
develop measures to avoid, minimize, or mitigate those adverse effects 
through consultation.
    DOE initiated Section 106 consultation with the NH SHPO--the New 
Hampshire Division of Historical Resources--in February 2011 in 
response to NPT's 2010 Presidential permit application. DOE suspended 
its Section 106 consultation following notification from NPT that NPT 
would be submitting an amended Presidential permit application. DOE re-
engaged the NH SHPO in 2013 to continue Section 106 consultation on 
NPT's amended Presidential permit application submission; through 
consultation with the NH SHPO and other consulting federal agencies, 
DOE defined the area of potential effects (APE) (36 CFR 800.16(d)) and 
identified potential additional consulting parties (36 CFR 800.2). The 
ACHP was invited to participate in DOE's Section 106 consultation in 
January 2014; ACHP formally joined DOE's Section 106 consultation in 
February 2015. Additional consulting parties (36 CFR 800.2) were 
invited to participate in DOE's Section 106 consultation in January 
2014. DOE initiated consultation with the VT SHPO--the Vermont Division 
of Historic Preservation--in June 2016 to address the portion of the 
APE within Vermont.
    When the potential effects on historic properties are complex, 
involve large land areas, and cannot be fully determined prior to 
approval of an undertaking, an agency's obligations under Section 106 
are satisfied by negotiation and execution of a legally binding 
agreement called a Programmatic Agreement or PA. DOE has developed a 
draft PA through which it proposes to satisfy the Section 106 
requirements for the proposed Northern Pass project. All information 
for the public regarding the Section 106 process are available at DOE's 
Section 106 Consultation Page for the proposed Northern Pass 
Transmission Line Project: http://www.northernpasseis.us/consultations/section106/.

Change in Public Notification Procedure for Section 106 Consultation

    The Section 106 implementing regulations provide for specific 
public involvement opportunities in the Section 106 process. The level 
of public involvement is determined on a project-by-project basis by 
the federal agency implementing Section 106. DOE previously indicated 
that it would notify the public about the Section 106 process through 
future Federal Register notices (see 78 FR 54876 (Sept. 6, 2013)). DOE 
is no longer using the Federal Register to notify the public regarding 
Section 106. Going forward, DOE will continue to provide updates and 
information to the public, including about opportunities for public 
involvement, regarding the Section 106 process through DOE's Section 
106 Consultation Page for the Project: http://www.northernpasseis.us/consultations/section106/. In accordance with this decision, on June 
14, 2017, DOE notified the public that the draft Section 106 
Programmatic Agreement for the Northern Pass Transmission Project was 
available to the public at this site.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on June 16, 2017.
Brian Mills,
Director, Transmission Permitting & Technical Assistance, Office of 
Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability.
[FR Doc. 2017-13418 Filed 6-26-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P