[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 76 (Friday, April 19, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16481-16482]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-07949]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 2934-029]


New York State Electric & Gas Corporation; Notice of Application 
Tendered for Filing With the Commission and Establishing Procedural 
Schedule for Licensing and Deadline for Submission of Final Amendments

    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.: 2934-029.
    c. Date Filed: April 1, 2019.
    d. Applicant: New York State Electric & Gas Corporation (NYSEG).
    e. Name of Project: Upper Mechanicville Hydroelectric Project.
    f. Location: The existing project is located on the Hudson River, 
in Saratoga and Rensselaer Counties, New York. The project does not 
occupy any federal lands.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act, 16 U.S.C. 791(a)-825(r).
    h. Applicant Contact: Hugh J. Ives, Manager, NYSEG Hydro 
Operations, 89 East Avenue, Rochester, NY 14649; (585) 724-8209; 
[email protected].
    i. FERC Contact: Jody Callihan, (202) 502-8278 or 
[email protected].
    j. This application is not ready for environmental analysis at this 
time.
    k. Project Description: The existing Upper Mechanicville 
Hydroelectric Project consists of: (1) A 700-foot-long concrete gravity 
dam with a crest elevation of 66.6 feet National Geodetic Vertical 
Datum of 1929 (NGVD29); (2) 3 spillway bays each extending 222 feet 
across the length of the dam and separated by a 7.5-foot to 10.5-foot-
wide concrete pier, with each spillway bay containing 12 pneumatic 
Obermeyer crest gates that are 6 feet high; (3) a 1.8-mile-long 
impoundment with a 380-acre surface area and gross storage capacity of 
10,735 acre-feet at a normal pool elevation of 72.6 feet NGVD29; (4) an 
intake channel with two reinforced guide walls and three 35-foot-
diameter cofferdam walls constructed of sheet piling; (5) a 20-foot-
wide and 7.5-foot-high intake bypass sluice gate; (6) a 105.5-foot-long 
by 122-foot-wide powerhouse containing two 12,780 horsepower Kaplan 
turbines and two Siemens-Allis generators each having a rated capacity 
of 8,265 kilowatts; (7) a tailrace approximately 1,200 feet long and 
120 feet wide with a bi-level bottom designed to minimize cross-
currents; (8) one 1.10-mile-long, 34.5-kilovolt transmission line; and 
(9) appurtenant facilities.
    During the non-navigation season (typically from December 1 through 
April 30), NYSEG operates the project in a run-of-river (ROR) mode and 
maintains the impoundment at an elevation of 72.6 feet NGVD29. During 
the navigation season (typically May 1 through November 30), NYSEG 
periodically spills water to lower the impoundment up to 3 feet below 
full pool, as directed by the New York State Canal Corporation, to 
accommodate navigation at lock C-3, and uses all available remaining 
inflow (that is not used to support navigation) for generation 
purposes. NYSEG proposes to continue operating the project as it does 
currently, to support both generation and navigation. In addition, 
NYSEG proposes to enhance fish passage at the project by: (1) 
Installing upstream passage for American eel (4 years post-license); 
(2) developing an agreement with the New York State Canal Corporation 
to modify lock operations to accommodate the upstream passage of 
blueback herring and American shad (commencing 2 years post-license); 
and (3) modifying the project's intake bypass sluice gate to provide an 
additional route of downstream fish passage from April 1 through 
November 30. The project currently generates an annual average of 
88,537 megawatt-hours.
    l. Locations of the Application: 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 website 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 at [email protected] 
or toll-free at 1-866-208-3676, or for TTY, (202) 502-8659. A copy is 
also available for inspection and reproduction at the Mechanicville 
District Public Library located at 190 North Main Street, 
Mechanicville, NY 12118 and the A.E. Diver Memorial Library located at 
136 Main Street, Schaghticoke, NY 12154.
    m. 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.
    n. Procedural Schedule: The application will be processed according 
to the following preliminary Hydro Licensing Schedule. Revisions to the 
schedule may be made as appropriate.

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                  Milestone                           Target date
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Notice of Acceptance/Notice of Ready for      June 2019.
 Environmental Analysis.
Filing of recommendations, preliminary terms  August 2019.
 and conditions, and fishway prescriptions.
Commission issues Environmental Assessment    December 2019.
 (EA).
Comments on EA..............................  February 2020.

[[Page 16482]]

 
Modified Terms and Conditions...............  April 2020.
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    o. Final amendments to the application must be filed with the 
Commission no later than 30 days from the issuance date of the notice 
of ready for environmental analysis.

    Dated: April 15, 2019.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2019-07949 Filed 4-18-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6717-01-P