[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 235 (Friday, December 7, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63192-63194]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-26531]


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TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY


Environmental Impact Statement for Gallatin Fossil Plant Surface 
Impoundment Closure and Restoration Project

AGENCY: Tennessee Valley Authority.

ACTION: Notice of intent.

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SUMMARY: The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) intends to prepare an 
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to address the potential 
environmental effects associated with management of coal combustion 
residual (CCR) material at the Gallatin Fossil Plant (GAF) located near 
Gallatin in Sumner County, Tennessee. The purpose of the EIS is to 
address the final disposition of CCR onsite at GAF, support TVA's goal 
to eliminate wet CCR storage at its plants, and assist TVA in complying 
with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) CCR Rule. The 
proposed actions would also provide long-term on-site landfill space 
for operations and/or storage of CCR. TVA will develop and evaluate 
various alternatives for these actions, including the No Action 
Alternative. Public comments are invited concerning both the scope of 
the review and environmental issues that should be addressed.

DATES: Comments on the scope of the EIS must be received on or before 
January 11, 2019.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted in writing to Ashley Farless, NEPA 
Specialist, 1101 Market Street, BR4A-C, Chattanooga, TN, 37402. 
Comments may also be submitted online

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at: https://www.tva.gov/nepa or by email to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Other related questions should be sent 
to Tennessee Valley Authority, Ashley Farless, NEPA Specialist, 1101 
Market Street, BR4A-C, Chattanooga, TN, 37402, Phone 423.751.2361 or 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice is provided in accordance with 
the Council on Environmental Quality's regulations (40 CFR parts 1500 
to 1508) for implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), 
TVA's procedures for implementing NEPA, and Section 106 of the National 
Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) and its implementing regulations (36 
CFR part 800).

TVA Power System and CCR Management

    TVA is a corporate agency and instrumentality of the United States 
created by and existing pursuant to the TVA Act of 1933 that provides 
electricity for business customers and local power distributors. TVA 
serves more than 9 million people in parts of seven southeastern 
states. TVA receives no taxpayer funding, deriving virtually all of its 
revenues from sales of electricity. In addition to operating and 
investing its revenues in its electric system, TVA provides flood 
control, navigation and land management for the Tennessee River system 
and assists local power companies and state and local governments with 
economic development and job creation.
    The GAF is located in Sumner County, Tennessee, on 1,950 acres of 
land on the north bank of the Cumberland River. The plant has four 
turbo-generating units with a combined summer net generating capacity 
of 976 megawatts. The plant consumes an average of 3.5 million tons of 
coal per year which results in the annual production of approximately 
255,000 tons of CCR. This CCR is the byproduct produced from burning 
coal and includes fly ash, bottom ash, boiler slag, and flue gas 
desulfurization materials. Historically, GAF stored CCR wet in onsite 
surface impoundments (commonly referred to as ash ponds). Bottom ash 
and boiler slag are the only remaining CCRs currently sent to the 
ponds. Newly installed air emission controls at GAF allow the majority 
of CCR to be stored dry in the North Rail Loop Landfill located at GAF, 
a state-of-the-art lined and state permitted facility. When the 
construction of a new bottom ash dewatering facility is finished in 
2020, the plant will have completed its transition from wet CCR 
handling to dry handling of all CCR.

Background

    In July 2009, the TVA Board of Directors passed a resolution for 
staff to review TVA practices for storing CCRs at its generating 
facilities, including GAF, which resulted in a recommendation to 
convert the wet ash management system at GAF to a dry storage system. 
On April 17, 2015, the EPA published the final Disposal of CCRs from 
Electric Utilities rule, also known as the CCR Rule.
    In June 2016, TVA issued a Final Programmatic Environmental Impact 
Statement (PEIS) that analyzed methods for closing CCR impoundments at 
TVA fossil plants and identified specific screening and evaluation 
factors to help frame its evaluation of closures at its other 
facilities. A Record of Decision was released in July 2016 that would 
allow future environmental reviews of qualifying CCR impoundment 
closures to tier from the PEIS. This PEIS can be found at www.tva.com/nepa.

Alternatives

    The EIS will examine closure of the following surface impoundments: 
Ash Pond A, Ash Pond E, Middle Pond A and a Non-Registered Site. In 
addition, TVA will examine removal of CCR from on-site Stilling Ponds 
and permanent disposition of CCR from the Bottom Ash Pond at Gallatin. 
TVA is performing a separate NEPA review for a project at Gallatin that 
could result in a temporary stockpile of CCR from the Bottom Ash Pond 
in the on-site landfill (North Rail Loop Landfill). The Bottom Ash Pond 
CCR would be temporarily stockpiled to make the most efficient use of 
property at GAF. Whether the Bottom Ash Pond CCR remains in its current 
location onsite at GAF or is temporarily stockpiled to allow TVA to 
make use of real estate available onsite, the final disposition of the 
Bottom Ash Pond CCR will be addressed in this EIS. Construction of a 
new on-site landfill will be examined as well as construction of a CCR 
beneficial re-use facility.
    In addition to a No Action Alternative, this EIS will address 
alternatives that meet the purpose and need for the project. One 
alternative identified by TVA is closure of all surface impoundments 
and stilling ponds via closure-by-removal with construction of a new 
on-site landfill. The CCR material removed in this closure-by-removal 
alternative would be disposed of in a new on-site landfill and/or a 
beneficial re-use facility. Another alternative identified by TVA is 
closure of all surface impoundments and stilling ponds via closure-in-
place with construction of a new on-site landfill that would be used to 
support ongoing long-term plant operations. TVA could also consider a 
combination closure-in-place and closure-by-removal alternative(s).
    No decision has been made about CCR storage at GAF beyond the 
current operations. TVA is preparing this EIS to inform decision 
makers, other agencies and the public about the potential for 
environmental impacts associated with management of CCR at GAF.

Proposed Resources and Issues To Be Considered

    This EIS will identify the purpose and need of the project and will 
contain descriptions of the existing environmental and socioeconomic 
resources within the area that could be affected by management of CCR 
at GAF. Evaluation of potential environmental impacts to these 
resources will include, but not be limited to, water quality, aquatic 
and terrestrial ecology, threatened and endangered species, wetlands, 
land use, historic and archaeological resources, solid and hazardous 
waste, safety, and socioeconomic and environmental justice issues. The 
final range of issues to be addressed in the environmental review will 
be determined, in part, from scoping comments received. The preliminary 
identification of reasonable alternatives and environmental issues in 
this notice is not meant to be exhaustive or final.

Public Participation

    TVA is interested in an open process and wants to hear from the 
community. The public is invited to submit comments on the scope of 
this EIS no later than the date identified in the ``Dates'' section of 
this notice. Federal, state, local agencies and Native American Tribes 
are invited to provide comments.
    After consideration of comments received during the scoping period, 
TVA will develop and distribute a scoping document that will summarize 
public and agency comments that were received and identify the schedule 
for completing the EIS process. Following analysis of the issues, TVA 
will prepare a draft EIS for public review and comment. In making its 
final decision, TVA will consider the analyses in this EIS and 
substantive comments that it receives. A final decision on proceeding 
with the management and storage of CCRs at GAF will depend on a number 
of factors. These include results of the EIS, requirements of the CCR 
Rule,

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relevant state law requirements, engineering and risk evaluations, 
financial considerations, as well as the resolution of ongoing 
litigation concerning Gallatin.
    TVA anticipates holding a community meeting near the plant after 
releasing the Draft EIS. Meeting details will be posted on TVA's 
website. TVA expects to release the Draft EIS in the Fall 2019.

    Authority:  40 CFR 1501.7.

M. Susan Smelley,
Director, Environmental Compliance and Operations.
[FR Doc. 2018-26531 Filed 12-6-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 8120-08-P