[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 117 (Tuesday, June 20, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39841-39842]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-13079]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 6115-016]


Pyrites Hydro, LLC; Notice of Application Ready for Environmental 
Analysis and Soliciting Comments, Recommendations, Terms and 
Conditions, and Prescriptions

    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.: 6115-016.
    c. Date filed: August 31, 2021.
    d. Applicant: Pyrites Hydro, LLC (Pyrites Hydro).
    e. Name of Project: Pyrites Hydroelectric Project (Pyrites Project 
or project).
    f. Location: On the Grass River near the Town of Canton, St. 
Lawrence County, New York.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act 16 U.S.C. 791 (a)-825(r).
    h. Applicant Contact: Curtis Mooney, Manager, Regulatory Affairs, 
Patriot Hydro, LLC, 59 Ayers Island Road, Bristol, New Hampshire 03222; 
(603) 744-0846 or [email protected].
    i. FERC Contact: Josh Dub at (202) 502-8138, or email at 
[email protected].
    j. Deadline for filing comments, recommendations, terms and 
conditions, and prescriptions: 60 days from the issuance date of this 
notice; reply comments are due 105 days from the issuance date of this 
notice.
    The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file 
comments, recommendations, terms and conditions, and prescriptions 
using the Commission's eFiling system at https://ferconline.ferc.gov/FERCOnline.asp. Commenters can submit brief comments up to 6,000 
characters, without prior registration, using the eComment system at 
https://ferconline.ferc.gov/QuickComment.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]">FERCOnline[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, 
Maryland 20852. All filings must clearly identify the project name and 
docket number on the first page: Pyrites Hydroelectric Project P-6115-
016.
    The Commission's Rules of Practice 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. This application has been accepted and is now ready for 
environmental analysis.
    The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) issued a final rule on 
April 20, 2022, revising the regulations under 40 CFR parts 1502, 1507, 
and 1508 that Federal agencies use to implement the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) (see National Environmental Policy Act 
Implementing Regulations Revisions, 87 FR 23,453-70). The final rule 
became effective on May 20, 2022. Commission staff intends to conduct 
its NEPA review in accordance with CEQ's new regulations.
    l. The Pyrites Project consists of: (1) a 170-foot-long and 12-
foot-high concrete Ambursen overflow spillway with 1.5-foot-high 
flashboards, a 115-foot-long concrete auxiliary spillway, and a 208-
foot-long non-overflow dam, which includes a 50-foot-wide intake 
structure; (2) a 6-foot-diameter, 700-foot-long steel penstock running 
from the intake structure to an upper powerhouse and a 10-foot-
diameter, 2,160-foot-long penstock running from the intake structure to 
a lower powerhouse; (3) a 21-foot by 31-foot upper powerhouse located 
700 feet downstream of the intake structure containing one 1.2-megawatt 
(MW) turbine/generator unit operating under a rated head of 76 feet and 
a 50-foot by 53-foot lower powerhouse located 1,200 feet downstream of 
the tailrace containing two 3.5-MW turbine/generator units operating 
under a rated head of 111 feet; (4) a 50-foot by 97-foot, 115/4.16/2.3-
kilovolt (kV) switchyard and substation for use by both powerhouses; 
(5) a 470-foot-long 2.3-kV transmission line connecting the upper 
powerhouse to the switchyard; (6) a 1,150-foot-long 4.16-kV 
transmission line connecting the lower powerhouse to the switchyard; 
and (7) appurtenant facilities.
    The Pyrites Project is operated in a run-of-river mode with an 
average annual generation of 27,865 megawatt-hours.
    Pyrites Hydro proposes to continue to operate the project in a run-
of-river mode and maintain a continuous minimum flow to the bypassed 
reach of 45 cubic feet per second or inflow to the impoundment, 
whichever is less.
    m. A copy of the application can 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 this time, the Commission has suspended access to the 
Commission's Public Reference Room. For assistance, contact FERC at 
[email protected]">FERCOnline[email protected] or call toll-free, (886) 208-3676 or TTY, 
(202) 502-8659.
    All filings must (1) bear in all capital letters the title 
``COMMENTS,'' ``REPLY COMMENTS,'' ``RECOMMENDATIONS,'' ``TERMS AND 
CONDITIONS,'' or ``PRESCRIPTIONS;'' (2) set forth in the heading the 
name of the applicant and

[[Page 39842]]

the project number of the application to which the filing responds; (3) 
furnish the name, address, and telephone number of the person 
submitting the filing; and (4) otherwise comply with the requirements 
of 18 CFR 385.2001 through 385.2005. All comments, recommendations, 
terms and conditions or prescriptions must set forth their evidentiary 
basis and otherwise comply with the requirements of 18 CFR 4.34(b). 
Agencies may obtain copies of the application directly from the 
applicant. Each filing must be accompanied by proof of service on all 
persons listed on the service list prepared by the Commission in this 
proceeding, in accordance with 18 CFR 4.34(b) and 385.2010.
    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. The applicant must file no later than 60 days following the date 
of issuance of this notice: (1) a copy of the water quality 
certification; (2) a copy of the request for certification, including 
proof of the date on which the certifying agency received the request; 
or (3) evidence of waiver of water quality certification. Please note 
that the certification request must comply with 40 CFR 121.5(b), 
including documentation that a pre-filing meeting request was submitted 
to the certifying authority at least 30 days prior to submitting the 
certification request. Please also note that the certification request 
must be sent to the certifying authority and to the Commission 
concurrently.
    o. Procedural schedule: The application will be processed according 
to the following schedule. Revisions to the schedule will be made as 
appropriate.

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                 Milestone                           Target date
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Filing of Comments, Recommendations, Terms  August 2023.
 and Conditions, and Prescriptions.
Filing of Reply Comments..................  September 2023
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    p. The Commission's Office of Public Participation (OPP) supports 
meaningful public engagement and participation in Commission 
proceedings. OPP can help members of the public, including landowners, 
environmental justice communities, Tribal members and others, access 
publicly available information and navigate Commission processes. For 
public inquiries and assistance with making filings such as 
interventions, comments, or requests for rehearing, the public is 
encouraged to contact OPP at (202) 502-6595 or [email protected].

    Dated: June 13, 2023.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2023-13079 Filed 6-16-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P