[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 224 (Thursday, November 19, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73696-73697]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-25560]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 5124-022]


Washington Electric Cooperative, Inc.; 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 Minor License.
    b. Project No.: 5124-022.
    c. Date Filed: October 30, 2020.
    d. Applicant: Washington Electric Cooperative, Inc. (WEC).
    e. Name of Project: North Branch No. 3 Hydroelectric Project.
    f. Location: On the North Branch Winooski River in Washington, 
County, Vermont. 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: Ms. Patricia Richards, General Manager, 
Washington Electric Cooperative, Inc., P.O. Box 8, 40 Church Street 
East Montpelier, Vermont 05651; phone: (802) 223-5245 or email at 
[email protected].
    i. FERC Contact: Michael Tust at (202) 502-6522; or email at 
[email protected].
    j. This application is not ready for environmental analysis at this 
time.
    k. Project Description:

Existing Project Facilities and Operation

    The project is located at the existing 115-foot-high, 1,525-foot-
long Wrightsville Dam which is owned, operated, and maintained by the 
state of Vermont for flood control but also contains facilities 
utilized by WEC for hydropower generation. The licensed project 
consists of the following constructed facilities: A 445-foot-long, 5-
foot-diameter steel aboveground penstock emerging from the base of the 
dam that conveys water to a 1,320-square-foot partially-buried project 
powerhouse containing three fixed blade turbines with rated capacities 
of 96, 259, and 578-kilowatts (kW) for a total installed capacity of 
933 kW; a 750 square-foot substation located adjacent to the powerhouse 
that steps up the voltage from 4.16 kilovolts (kV) to 12.5 kV; a 450-
foot-long, 12.5-kV transmission line; and appurtenant facilities.
    Water from Wrightsville Reservoir enters an existing non-project 
intake structure at the dam containing two separate intake chambers: A 
``hydropower bay'' located at an elevation of 631 feet and an overflow 
bay located at an elevation of 635 feet. Water entering the hydropower 
bay passes through trashracks, a headgate, and non-project conveyance 
tunnel within the dam and is conveyed to the powerhouse through the 
project penstock before re-entering the North Branch Winooski River 
approximately 400 feet downstream of the dam creating a 400-foot 
bypassed reach. Water entering the overflow bay passes

[[Page 73697]]

through trashracks and an overflow tunnel within the dam before being 
discharged to the bypassed reach through a low-level outlet at the base 
of the dam. WEC's three turbines located in the powerhouse cannot be 
throttled; however, WEC operates its turbines in a specific sequence to 
operate in near run-of-river mode while maintaining reservoir 
elevations between 633 and 635 feet from September 1 through May 31 and 
between 634 and 635 feet from June 1 through August 31. Additionally, 
WEC maintains minimum flows of 3.4 cubic feet per second (cfs) in the 
bypassed reach and 25 cfs in the North Branch Winooski River downstream 
of the powerhouse.

Proposed Project Facilities and Operation

    WEC proposes to bring the following existing facilities into the 
project boundary as project structures: the trash racks with one-inch 
spacing and the 9.5-foot by 6.5-foot headgate located within the non-
project hydropower bay at the intake; the 1.3-foot by 1.5-foot 
automated minimum flow gate located at the base of the wall separating 
the two intake chambers used to pass minimum flows to the bypassed 
reach; the 100 square-foot hydraulic house located within the dam 
housing a hydraulic pump and controls used to operate the project 
headgate and minimum flow gate; and the 550-foot-long dirt road used to 
access the intake structure.
    WEC would continue to operate its three turbine units to replicate 
near run-of-river operations and continue to maintain its existing 
minimum flows both within the bypassed reach (i.e., 3.4 cfs) and 
downstream of the powerhouse (i.e., 25 cfs). However, WEC proposes to 
modify operations by using its minimum flow gate to release more flow 
into the bypassed reach (up to 25 cfs) as generating units are turned 
on and off to reduce flow fluctuations downstream of the powerhouse. 
WEC also proposes to maintain the reservoir between an elevation of 634 
and 635 feet year-round (rather than operating between 633-635 feet) 
and would cease all generation when reservoir levels fall below 634 
feet.
    l. Locations of the Application: In addition to publishing the full 
text of this document in the Federal Register, the Commission provides 
all interested persons an opportunity to view and/or print the contents 
via the internet through the Commission's Home Page (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. At this time, the Commission has suspended access to the 
Commission's Public Reference Room, due to the proclamation declaring a 
National Emergency concerning the Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19), 
issued by the President on March 13, 2020. For assistance, contact FERC 
at [email protected] or call toll-free, (866) 208-3676 or TYY, 
(202) 502-8659.
    m. You may also register online at https://ferconline.ferc.gov/FERCOnline.aspx 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 will be made as appropriate.

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            Milestone                           Target date
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Issue Notice of Acceptance/Notice  December 2020.
 of Ready for Environmental
 Analysis.
Filing of recommendations,         February 2021.
 preliminary terms and
 conditions, and fishway
 prescriptions.
Commission issues draft NEPA       August 2021.
 document.
Comments on draft NEPA document..  September 2021.
Filing of modified terms and       November 2021.
 conditions.
Commission issues final NEPA       February 2022.
 document.
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    o. Final amendments to the application must be filed with the 
Commission no later than thirty (30) days from the issuance date of the 
notice of ready for environmental analysis.

    Dated: November 13, 2020.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2020-25560 Filed 11-18-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P