[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 222 (Monday, November 20, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 80713-80714]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-25529]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 2444-042]


Northern States Power Corporation; 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.: 2444-042.
    c. Date Filed: July 21, 2023.
    d. Applicant: Northern States Power Company.
    e. Name of Project: White River Hydroelectric Project (project).
    f. Location: On the White River in Ashland and Bayfield Counties, 
Wisconsin.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act, 16 U.S.C. 791(a)-825(r).
    h. Applicant Contact: Mr. Matthew Miller, Environmental Analyst, 
Northern States Power Company--Wisconsin, 1414 W Hamilton Avenue, P.O. 
Box 8, Eau Claire, WI 54702; Phone at (715) 737-1353, or email at 
[email protected].
    i. FERC Contact: Taconya D. Goar at (202) 502-8394, or 
[email protected].
    j. Deadline for Filing Scoping Comments: December 13, 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: White River Hydroelectric Project P-2444-042.
    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. Project Description: The White River Project includes an earthen 
and concrete dam that includes: (1) a 400-foot-long north earthen 
embankment; (2) a concrete section that includes: (a) a north abutment; 
(b) a 20-foot-long intake structure equipped with a trashrack; (c) a 
35-foot-high spillway with two 25-foot-long bays that each contain a 
Tainter gate; and (d) a south abutment; and (3) a 300-foot-long south 
earthen embankment. The dam creates an impoundment that has a surface 
area of 39.9 acres at a normal elevation of 711.6 feet National 
Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 (NGVD 29). From the impoundment, water 
flows through the intake structure to a 1,345-foot-long concrete pipe 
that conveys water to a steel surge tank and two 30-foot-long steel 
penstocks. The penstocks provide water to a 700-kilowatt (kW) turbine-
generator and a 500-kW turbine-generator located in a powerhouse, for a 
total installed capacity of 1,200 kW. Water is discharged from the 
turbines to the White River. Electricity generated at the project is 
transmitted to the electric grid via a 220-foot-long, 2.4-kilovolt (kV) 
transmission line and a 2.4/69-kV step-up transformer. The average 
annual energy production of the White River Project from 2017 through 
2022 was 4,927 megawatt-hours.
    Project recreation facilities include: (1) a boat access site and 
canoe portage take-out site at the north embankment of the dam; (2) an 
approximately 2,260-foot-long canoe portage trail; (3) a canoe put-in 
site approximately 90 feet downstream of the powerhouse; and (4) a 
tailrace fishing area.
    The current license requires Northern States Power to operate in a 
run-of-river mode and to maintain the impoundment at an elevation 
between 710.4 and 711.6 feet NGVD 29. The license also a minimum 
bypassed reach flow of 16 cubic feet per second (cfs) or inflow, 
whichever is less.
    Northern States Power does not propose to add any new project 
facilities. However, Northern States Power proposes to decrease the 
amount of land and water enclosed by the project boundary from 136.4 to 
52.7 acres.
    Northern States Power proposes to continue operating the project in 
a run-of-river mode and maintaining the surface elevation of the 
impoundment between 710.4 and 711.6 feet NGVD 29. Northern States Power 
also proposes to: (1) continue releasing a minimum bypassed reach flow 
of 16 cfs or inflow, whichever is less; (2) develop an operation 
compliance monitoring plan; (3) conduct shoreline erosion surveys every 
ten years; (4) develop an invasive species monitoring plan; (5) pass 
woody debris from the impoundment to the bypassed reach; (6) replace 
recreational signage; (7) maintain project recreation facilities; (8) 
implement the State of Wisconsin's broad incidental take permits/
authorizations for Wisconsin cave bats and wood turtles; (9) avoid 
vegetation management and construction activities within 660 feet of 
bald eagle nests during the nesting season; and (10) develop a historic 
properties management plan.
    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 
project's docket number excluding the last three digits in the docket 
number field to access the document (P-2444). For assistance, contact 
FERC Online Support.
    You may also register 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.
    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

[[Page 80714]]

interventions, comments, or requests for rehearing, the public is 
encouraged to contact OPP at (202)502-6595 or [email protected].
    n. Scoping Process: Pursuant to 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'') 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 
November 13, 2023.
    Copies of the SD1 outlining the proposed project and 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 SD1 may be viewed on the web at http://www.ferc.gov using the 
``eLibrary'' link (see item m above).

    Dated: November 13, 2023.
Debbie-Anne A. Reese,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2023-25529 Filed 11-17-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P