[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 156 (Tuesday, August 15, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55442-55443]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-17478]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 15006-001]


Owyhee Energy Storage, LLC; Notice of Intent To File License 
Application, Filing of Pre-Application Document (PAD), Commencement of 
ILP Pre-Filing Process and Scoping; Request for Comments on the PAD and 
Scoping Document, and Identification of Issues and Associated Study 
Requests

    a. Type of Filing: Notice of Intent to File License Application for 
an Original License, Commencing Pre-filing Process, and Denial of 
Request to Use the Traditional Licensing Process.
    b. Project No.: 15006-001.
    c. Dated Filed: April 14, 2023.
    d. Submitted By: Owyhee Energy Storage, LLC (OES).
    e. Name of Project: Owyhee Pumped Storage Project (Owyhee Project)
    f. Location: On the northeast side of U.S. Bureau of Reclamation's 
(Reclamation) Owyhee Reservoir on the Owyhee River approximately 10 
miles southwest of Adrian in Malheur County, Oregon. The project would 
be located on Federal lands owned and/or administered by Reclamation 
and Bureau of Land Management.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: 18 CFR part 5 of the Commission's 
regulations.
    h. Applicant Contact: Mr. Matthew Shapiro, rPlus Hydro LLLP, 800 
West Main Street, Suite 640, Boise, Idaho 83702; phone: (208) 246-9925.
    i. FERC Contact: John Matkowski, (202) 502-8576, 
[email protected].
    j. OES filed its Pre-Application Document (PAD) and request to use 
the Traditional Licensing Process (TLP) on April 14, 2023. OES 
published public notice of its Notice of Intent to file a license 
application, PAD, and request to use the TLP on the same day. After 
reviewing comments submitted by stakeholders, Commission staff denied 
OES's request to use the TLP on June 13, 2023. OES must use the 
Integrated Licensing Process to prepare a license application for the 
Owyhee Project.
    k. Cooperating agencies: Federal, State, local, and Tribal agencies 
with jurisdiction and/or special expertise with respect to 
environmental issues that wish to cooperate in the preparation of the 
environmental document should follow the instructions for filing such 
requests described in item o below. Cooperating agencies should note 
the Commission's policy that agencies that cooperate in the preparation 
of the environmental document cannot also intervene. See 94 FERC ] 
61,076 (2001).
    l. With this notice, we are initiating informal consultation with: 
(a) the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and/or NOAA Fisheries under 
section 7 of the Endangered Species Act and the joint agency 
regulations thereunder at 50 CFR part 402; and (b) the Oregon State 
Historic Preservation Officer, as required by section 106, National 
Historic Preservation Act, and the implementing regulations of the 
Advisory Council on Historic Preservation at 36 CFR 800.2.
    m. With this notice, we are designating OES as the Commission's 
non-Federal representative for carrying out informal consultation, 
pursuant to section 7 of the Endangered Species Act, and section 106 of 
the National Historic Preservation Act.
    n. A copy of the PAD is available for review on the Commission's 
website (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], (866) 208-3676 (toll free), or 
(202) 502-8659 (TTY). A copy of the PAD is also available for public 
inspection during normal business hours at the office of rPlus Hydro, 
800 W. Main Street, Suite 640, Boise, Idaho 83702.
    You may 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.
    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 at [email protected].
    o. With this notice, we are soliciting comments on the PAD and 
Commission staff's Scoping Document 1 (SD1), as well as study requests. 
All comments on the PAD and SD1, and study requests should be sent to 
the address above in paragraph h. In addition, all comments on the PAD 
and SD1, study requests, requests for cooperating agency status, and 
all communications to and from

[[Page 55443]]

Commission staff related to the merits of the potential application 
must be filed with the Commission.
    The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file 
documents 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. 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: Owyhee Pumped Storage Project (P-15006-001).
    All filings with the Commission must bear the appropriate heading: 
``Comments on Pre-Application Document,'' ``Study Requests,'' 
``Comments on Scoping Document 1,'' ``Request for Cooperating Agency 
Status,'' or ``Communications to and from Commission Staff.'' Any 
individual or entity interested in submitting study requests, 
commenting on the PAD or SD1, and any agency requesting cooperating 
status must do so by October 7, 2023.
    p. Scoping Process
    In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), 
Commission staff will prepare either an environmental assessment (EA) 
or an environmental impact statement (EIS) (collectively referred to as 
the ``NEPA document''). The NEPA document will consider both site-
specific and cumulative environmental effects, and reasonable 
alternatives to the proposed action. The Commission's scoping process 
will help determine the required level of analysis and satisfy the NEPA 
scoping requirements, irrespective of whether the Commission prepares 
an EA or EIS.

Scoping Meetings

    Commission staff will hold two public scoping meetings to receive 
input on the scope of the environmental issues that should be analyzed 
in the NEPA document. The daytime scoping meeting will focus on 
resource agency, Native American Tribes, and non-governmental 
organization (NGO) concerns, while the evening scoping meeting will 
focus on receiving input from the public. We invite all interested 
agencies, Native American Tribes, NGOs, and individuals to attend one 
of these meetings to assist us in identifying the scope of 
environmental issues that should be analyzed in the NEPA document. The 
dates, times and locations of these meetings are as follows:

Daytime Scoping Meeting

Date: Wednesday, September 6, 2023
Time: 2:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m. Mountain Daylight Time (MDT)
Place: Holiday Inn Express & Suites--Ontario Meeting Room
Address: 212 SE 10th St, Ontario, OR 97914

Evening Scoping Meeting

Date: Wednesday, September 6, 2023
Time: 6:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. MDT
Place: Holiday Inn Express & Suites--Ontario Meeting Room
Address: 212 SE 10th St, Ontario, OR 97914

    Copies of SD1, outlining the subject areas to be addressed in the 
environmental document, was mailed to the individuals and entities on 
the Commission's mailing list and OES's PAD distribution list. Copies 
of SD1 may be viewed on the web at http://www.ferc.gov, using the 
``eLibrary'' link. Follow the directions for accessing information in 
paragraph n. Based on all oral and written comments, a Scoping Document 
2 (SD2) may be issued. SD2 may include a revised process plan and 
schedule, as well as a list of issues, based on the scoping process.

Environmental Site Reviews

    The applicant and Commission staff will conduct an environmental 
site review of the proposed project. All interested agencies, Native 
American Tribes, NGOs, and individuals are invited to attend. All 
participants are responsible for their own transportation and must wear 
closed-toe shoes/boots for walking in uneven/sloped terrain around the 
proposed project area. If you plan to attend the environmental site 
review, please contact Matthew Shapiro with rPlus Hydro at (208) 246-
9925, or via email at [email protected], on or before August 
25, 2023. If calling to RSVP, stakeholders should provide their name, 
phone number, and an email address. The time and location of the 
environmental site review is as follows:

Owyhee Project On-Site Environmental Site Review

Date: Thursday, September 7, 2023
Time: 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. (MDT)
Place: The location to meet for the Environmental Site Review will be 
provided to those that RSVP

Meeting Objectives

    At the scoping meetings, Commission staff will: (1) initiate 
scoping of the issues; (2) review and discuss existing conditions; (3) 
review and discuss existing information and identify preliminary 
information and study needs; (4) review and discuss the process plan 
and schedule for pre-filing activity that incorporates the time frames 
provided for in part 5 of the Commission's regulations and, to the 
extent possible, maximizes coordination of Federal, State, and Tribal 
permitting and certification processes; and (5) discuss the potential 
of any Federal or State agency or Native American Tribe to act as a 
cooperating agency for development of an environmental document. 
Meeting participants should come prepared to discuss their issues and/
or concerns. Please review the PAD in preparation for the scoping 
meetings. Directions on how to obtain a copy of the PAD and SD1 are 
included in item n of this document.

Meeting Procedures

    The scoping meetings will be recorded by a court reporter, and all 
statements will become part of the Commission's public record for the 
project.
    Agencies, Native American Tribes, NGOs, and individuals with 
environmental expertise and concerns are encouraged to attend the 
meetings and to assist Commission staff in defining and clarifying the 
issues to be addressed in the NEPA document.

    Dated: August 8, 2023.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2023-17478 Filed 8-14-23; 8:45 am]
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