[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 60 (Wednesday, March 29, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Page 18537]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-06437]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 5679-041]


Energy Stream, LLC; Notice Soliciting Scoping Comments

    Take notice that the following hydroelectric application has been 
filed with the Commission and is available for public inspection.
    a. Type of Application: Subsequent Minor License.
    b. Project No.: 5679-041.
    c. Date Filed: July 15, 2022.
    d. Applicant: Energy Stream, LLC (Energy Stream).
    e. Name of Project: M.S.C. Hydroelectric Project (project).
    f. Location: On the Quinebaug River in Windham County, Connecticut. 
The project does not occupy federal land.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act, 16 U.S.C. 791(a)-825(r).
    h. Applicant Contact: Mr. Rolland Zeleny, Energy Stream, LLC, 18 
Washington St., Suite 18, Canton, MA 02021; call at (603) 498-8089; 
email at [email protected].
    i. FERC Contact: Arash Barsari at (202) 502-6207, or 
[email protected].
    j. Deadline for filing scoping comments: April 21, 2023.
    The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file 
scoping comments using the Commission's eFiling system at https://ferconline.ferc.gov/FERCOnline.aspx. Commenters can submit brief 
comments up to 6,000 characters, without prior registration, using the 
eComment system at https://ferconline.ferc.gov/QuickComment.aspx. 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 submit 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. All filings must clearly identify the project name and docket 
number on the first page: M.S.C. Hydroelectric Project (P-5679-041).
    The Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure 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. The application is not ready for environmental analysis at this 
time.
    l. The existing M.S.C. Hydroelectric Project consists of: (1) an 
approximately 283-foot-long dam that includes: (a) an approximately 38-
foot-long headgate structure with four sluice gates; (b) a 115-foot-
long spillway section with 1.6-foot-high flashboards, and a crest 
elevation of 287.80 feet mean sea level (msl) at the top of the 
flashboards; (c) a 7-foot-wide pier; (d) a 91-foot-long auxiliary 
spillway section with a crest elevation of 288.70 feet msl; and (e) a 
32-foot-long retaining wall section with a crest elevation of 289.7 
feet msl; (2) an impoundment with a surface area of 52 acres at an 
elevation of 287.80 feet msl; (3) a forebay and intake structure with a 
trashrack with 1.6-inch clear bar spacing; (4) a low-level outlet gate 
adjacent to the trashrack; (5) a powerhouse containing a 400-kilowatt 
(kW) Kaplan turbine-generator unit and a 112-kW Francis turbine-
generator unit, for a total installed capacity of 512 kW; (6) a 50-
foot-long, 28-foot-wide, 10-foot-deep tailrace; (7) three 50-foot-long, 
2.4-kilovolt (kV) lead lines that connect the generators to three 2.4/
23-kV step-up transformers, where the project is connected to the 
regional grid; and (8) appurtenant facilities. The project creates an 
approximately 65-foot-long bypassed reach of the Quinebaug River.
    The current license requires Energy Stream to: (1) operate the 
project in a run-of-river mode, such that project outflow approximates 
inflow; (2) release a minimum flow of 144 cubic feet per second (cfs) 
or inflow to the impoundment, whichever is less, below the tailrace; 
(3) release minimum flows when refilling the impoundment following 
emergency or maintenance drawdowns; and (4) provide upstream and 
downstream passage for American eels.
    The minimum and maximum hydraulic capacities of the project are 40 
and 545 cfs, respectively. The average annual energy production of the 
project from 2017 through 2021 was 2,885 megawatt-hours.
    Energy Stream is not proposing any changes to project facilities or 
operation.
    m. A copy of the application can be viewed on the Commission's 
website at https://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 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.
    n. 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, please 
contact FERC Online Support.
    o. Scoping Process:
    Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), 
Commission staff intends to prepare either an environmental assessment 
(EA) or an environmental impact statement (EIS) (collectively referred 
to as the ``NEPA document'') that describes and evaluates the probable 
effects, including an assessment of the site-specific and cumulative 
effects, if any, of the proposed action and alternatives. The 
Commission's scoping process will help determine the required level of 
analysis and satisfy the NEPA scoping requirements, irrespective of 
whether the Commission issues an EA or an EIS.
    At this time, we do not anticipate holding on-site scoping 
meetings. Instead, we are soliciting written comments and suggestions 
on the preliminary list of issues and alternatives to be addressed in 
the NEPA document, as described in scoping document 1 (SD1), issued 
March 22, 2023.
    Copies of the SD1 outlining the subject areas to be addressed in 
the NEPA document were distributed to the parties on the Commission's 
mailing list and the applicant's distribution list. Copies of the SD1 
may be viewed on the web at http://www.ferc.gov using the ``eLibrary'' 
link (see item m above).

    Dated: March 22, 2023.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2023-06437 Filed 3-28-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P