[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 49 (Tuesday, March 14, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15706-15707]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-05162]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CD23-5-000]


Sites Project Authority; Notice of Preliminary Determination of a 
Qualifying Conduit Hydropower Facility and Soliciting Comments and 
Motions To Intervene

    On February 22, 2023, the Sites Project Authority, filed a notice 
of intent to construct a qualifying conduit hydropower facility, 
pursuant to section 30 of the Federal Power Act (FPA). The proposed 
Funks Energy Recovery Project would have an installed capacity of 
34,500 kilowatts (kW), and would be located along a pipeline within the 
water supply system near Maxwell, Colusa County, California.
    Applicant Contact: Jerry Brown, Executive Director, Sites Project 
Authority, PO Box 517, Maxwell, CA 95955, 925-260-7417, 
[email protected].
    FERC Contact: Christopher Chaney, 202-502-6778, 
[email protected].
    Qualifying Conduit Hydropower Facility Description: The project 
would consist of: (1) two turbine generator buildings, one housing a 
20,000-kW unit and the other housing a 14,500-kW unit, (2) intake and 
discharge pipes, and (3) appurtenant facilities. The proposed project 
would have an estimated annual generation of approximately 37,000 
megawatt-hours.
    A qualifying conduit hydropower facility is one that is determined 
or deemed to meet all the criteria shown in the table below.

      Table 1--Criteria for Qualifying Conduit Hydropower Facility
------------------------------------------------------------------------
      Statutory provision              Description       Satisfies (Y/N)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
FPA 30(a)(3)(A)................  The conduit the                      Y
                                  facility uses is a
                                  tunnel, canal,
                                  pipeline, aqueduct,
                                  flume, ditch, or
                                  similar manmade water
                                  conveyance that is
                                  operated for the
                                  distribution of water
                                  for agricultural,
                                  municipal, or
                                  industrial
                                  consumption and not
                                  primarily for the
                                  generation of
                                  electricity.
FPA 30(a)(3)(C)(i).............  The facility is                      Y
                                  constructed,
                                  operated, or
                                  maintained for the
                                  generation of
                                  electric power and
                                  uses for such
                                  generation only the
                                  hydroelectric
                                  potential of a non-
                                  federally owned
                                  conduit.
FPA 30(a)(3)(C)(ii)............  The facility has an                  Y
                                  installed capacity
                                  that does not exceed
                                  40 megawatts.
FPA 30(a)(3)(C)(iii)...........  On or before August 9,               Y
                                  2013, the facility is
                                  not licensed, or
                                  exempted from the
                                  licensing
                                  requirements of Part
                                  I of the FPA.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Preliminary Determination: The proposed Funks Energy Recovery 
Project will not alter the primary purpose of the conduit, which is for 
irrigation, municipal water supply, and other uses. Therefore, based 
upon the above criteria, Commission staff preliminarily determines that 
the operation of the project described above satisfies the requirements 
for a qualifying conduit hydropower facility, which is not required to 
be licensed or exempted from licensing.
    Comments and Motions to Intervene: Deadline for filing comments 
contesting whether the facility meets the qualifying criteria is 30 
days from the issuance date of this notice. Deadline for filing motions 
to intervene is 30 days from the issuance date of this notice.
    Anyone may submit comments or a motion to intervene in accordance 
with the requirements of Rules of Practice and Procedure, 18 CFR 
385.210 and

[[Page 15707]]

385.214. Any motions to intervene must be received on or before the 
specified deadline date for the particular proceeding.
    Filing and Service of Responsive Documents: All filings must (1) 
bear in all capital letters the ``COMMENTS CONTESTING QUALIFICATION FOR 
A CONDUIT HYDROPOWER FACILITY'' or ``MOTION TO INTERVENE,'' as 
applicable; (2) state in the heading the name of the applicant and the 
project number of the application to which the filing responds; (3) 
state the name, address, and telephone number of the person filing; and 
(4) otherwise comply with the requirements of sections 385.2001 through 
385.2005 of the Commission's regulations.\1\ All comments contesting 
Commission staff's preliminary determination that the facility meets 
the qualifying criteria must set forth their evidentiary basis.
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    \1\ 18 CFR 385.2001-2005 (2021).
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    The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file 
motions to intervene and comments using the Commission's eFiling system 
at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp. Commenters can submit 
brief comments up to 6,000 characters, without prior registration, 
using the eComment system at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/ecomment.asp. You must include your name and contact information at the 
end of your comments. 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, you may send a 
paper copy. Submissions sent via the U.S. Postal Service must be 
addressed to: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission, 888 First Street NE, Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426. 
Submissions sent via any other carrier must be addressed to: Kimberly 
D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 12225 Wilkins 
Avenue, Rockville, MD 20852. A copy of all other filings in reference 
to this application must be accompanied by proof of service on all 
persons listed in the service list prepared by the Commission in this 
proceeding, in accordance with 18 CFR 385.2010.
    Locations of Notice of Intent: The Commission provides all 
interested persons an opportunity to view and/or print the contents of 
this document via the internet through the Commission's website at 
http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/elibrary.asp. Enter the docket number 
(i.e., CD23-5) in the docket number field to access the document. 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. Copies of the notice of 
intent can be obtained directly from the applicant. For assistance, 
call toll-free 1-866-208-3676 or email [email protected]. For 
TTY, call (202) 502-8659.

    Dated: March 8, 2023.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2023-05162 Filed 3-13-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P