[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 200 (Wednesday, October 18, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48501-48502]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-22534]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 2685-029]


Notice of Application Accepted for Filing and Soliciting Motions 
To Intervene and Protests; New York Power Authority

    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.: 2685-029.
    c. Date filed: April 27, 2017.
    d. Applicant: New York Power Authority (NYPA).
    e. Name of Project: Blenheim-Gilboa Pumped Storage Project 
(Blenheim-Gilboa Project).
    f. Location: The existing project is located on Schoharie Creek, in 
the Towns of Blenheim and Gilboa in Schoharie 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: Mr. Robert Daly, Licensing Manager, New York 
Power Authority, 123 Main Street, White Plains, New York 10601. 
Telephone: (914) 681-6564, Email: [email protected].
    i. FERC Contact: Andy Bernick, Telephone (202) 502-8660, and email 
[email protected].
    j. Deadline for filing motions to intervene and protests: 60 days 
from the issuance date of this notice.
    The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file 
motions to intervene and protests using the Commission's eFiling system 
at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp. 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-2685-029.
    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, but is not ready 
for environmental analysis at this time.
    l. The existing Blenheim-Gilboa Project consists of the following: 
(1) A 2.25-mile-long, 30-foot-wide earth and rock fill embankment dike 
with a maximum height of 110 feet, constructed at Brown Mountain and 
forming the 399-acre Upper Reservoir (operating at the maximum and 
extreme minimum elevations of 2,003 feet and 1,955 feet National 
Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 [NGVD 29], respectively) with 15,085 
acre-feet of usable storage and dead storage of 3,706 acre-feet below 
elevation 1,955 feet NGVD 29; (2) a 655-foot-long emergency spillway 
with a 25-foot-wide asphaltic concrete crest at elevation 2,005 feet 
NGVD 29 and a capacity of 10,200 cubic feet per second (cfs); (3) an 
intake system that includes: (i) a 125-foot-wide hexagonal-shaped 
intake cover with trash racks with a clear spacing of 5.25 inches; (ii) 
a 1,042-foot-long, 28-foot-diameter, concrete-lined vertical shaft in 
the bottom of the Upper Reservoir; (iii) a 906-foot-long horizontal, 
concrete-lined rock tunnel; and (iv) a 460-foot-long concrete-lined 
manifold that distributes flow to four 12-foot-diameter steel-lined 
penstocks, each with a maximum length of about 1,960 feet, to four 
pump-turbines located at the powerhouse; (4) a 526-foot-long, 172-foot-
wide, and 132-foot-high multi-level powerhouse located along the east 
bank of the Lower Reservoir at the base of Brown Mountain, containing 
four reversible pump turbines that each produce approximately 290 
megawatts (MW) in generation mode, and have a total maximum discharge 
of 12,800 cfs during generation and 10,200 cfs during pumping; (5) a 
bottom trash rack with a clear spacing of 5.625 inches, and four upper 
trash racks with a clear spacing of 5.25 inches; (6) an 1,800-foot-long 
central core, rock-filled lower dam with a maximum height of 100 feet 
that impounds Schoharie Creek to form the 413-acre Lower Reservoir 
(operating at the maximum and minimum elevations of 900 feet and 860 
feet NGVD 29, respectively) with 12,422 acre-feet of usable storage and 
dead storage of 3,745 acre-feet below 860 feet NGVD 29; (7) three 38-
foot-wide by 45.5-foot-high Taintor gates at the left end of the lower 
dam; (8) a 425-foot-long, 134-foot-wide concrete spillway structure 
with a crest elevation of 855 feet NGVD 29; (9) a 238-foot-long, 68.5-
foot-deep concrete stilling basin; (10) a low level outlet with four 
discharge valves of 4, 6, 8, and 10 inches for release of 5 to 25 cfs, 
and two 36-inch-diameter Howell-Bunger valves to release a combined 
flow of 25 to 700 cfs; (11) a switchyard on the eastern bank of 
Schoharie Creek adjacent to the powerhouse; and (12) appurtenant 
facilities.
    During operation, the Blenheim-Gilboa Project's pump-turbines may 
be turned on or off several times throughout the day, but the project 
typically generates electricity during the day when consumer demand is 
high and other power resources are more expensive. Pumping usually 
occurs at night and on weekends when there is excess electricity in the 
system available for use. According to a July 30, 1975, settlement 
agreement, NYPA releases a minimum flow of 10 cubic feet per second 
(cfs) during low-flow periods when 1,500 acre-feet of water is in 
storage, and 7 cfs when less than 1,500 acre-feet is in storage. For 
the period 2007 through 2016, the project's average annual generation 
was about 374,854 megawatt-hours (MWh) and average annual energy 
consumption from pumping was about 540,217 MWh.
    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

[[Page 48502]]

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. 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 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 
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 
or MOTION TO INTERVENE; (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. 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.
    o. Procedural Schedule: The application will be processed according 
to the following revised Hydro Licensing Schedule. Revisions to the 
schedule may be made as appropriate.

 
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                 Milestone                           Target date
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Filing of motions to intervene and protests  December 11, 2017.
Issuance of Ready for Environmental          January 4, 2018.
 Analysis notice.
Filing of recommendations, preliminary       March 5, 2018.
 terms and conditions, and preliminary
 fishway prescriptions.
Reply comments due.........................  April 19, 2018.
Commission Issues Draft EA.................  September 1, 2018.
Comments on Draft EA.......................  October 1, 2018.
Modified terms and conditions due..........  November 30, 2018.
Commission issues Final EA.................  February 28, 2019.
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    Dated: October 12, 2017.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2017-22534 Filed 10-17-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P