[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 96 (Thursday, May 16, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 42871-42872]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-10672]



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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 2411-030]


Eagle Creek Schoolfield, LLC; City of Danville; 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: New Major License.
    b. Project No.: 2411-030.
    c. Date filed: July 29, 2022.
    d. Applicant: Eagle Creek Schoolfield, LLC and City of Danville.
    e. Name of Project: Schoolfield Hydroelectric Project (Schoolfield 
Project or project).
    f. Location: The project is located on the Dan River at 
approximately river mile 60.1 in the county of Pittsylvania, near the 
City of Danville, Virginia.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act, 16 U.S.C. 791(a)-825(r).
    h. Applicant Contact: Jody Smet, Vice President, Engineering and 
Regulatory Affairs, Eagle Creek Renewable Energy, LLC, 7315 Wisconsin 
Ave., Suite 1100W, Bethesda, Maryland 20814; phone at (804) 382-1764 or 
email at [email protected]; Joyce Foster, Director, Licensing 
and Compliance, Eagle Creek Renewable Energy, LLC, 7315 Wisconsin 
Avenue, Suite 1100W, Bethesda, Maryland 20814; phone at (804) 338-5110 
or email at [email protected]; and Mr. W. Clarke Whitfield, 
Junior, City Attorney, City of Danville, 427 Patton Street, Room 421, 
Danville, Virginia 24541; phone at (434) 799-5122 or email at 
[email protected].
    i. FERC Contact: Claire Rozdilski at (202) 502-8259; or email at 
[email protected].
    j. Deadline for filing scoping comments: June 10, 2024.
    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. 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, please send a paper copy via 
U.S. Postal Service to: Debbie-Anne A. Reese, Acting Secretary, Federal 
Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Room 1A, Washington, 
DC 20426. Submissions sent via any other carrier must be addressed to: 
Debbie-Anne A. Reese, Acting 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: Schoolfield Hydroelectric Project (P-2411-030).
    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. This application is not ready for environmental analysis at this 
time.
    l. The project facilities consist of: (1) a 910-foot-long, 26.5-
foot-high curved ogee-type concrete spillway dam with a crest elevation 
of 434.7 feet National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 (NGVD29) and 
topped with 3-foot-high wooden flashboards; (2) an impoundment having a 
surface area of 287 acres and a gross storage capacity of approximately 
1,952 acre-feet at the project's normal maximum water surface elevation 
of 437.7 feet NGVD29; (3) a 224-foot-long by 35-foot-wide brick and 
concrete powerhouse that contains three identical 1.5-megawatt (MW) 
generating units (each generating unit is connected to two identical 
propeller-type turbine units with a rated capacity of 1,006 horsepower 
each) for a total installed capacity of 4.5 MW; (4) a 72-foot-long 
headwall between the dam and the powerhouse with six low-level sluice 
gates and a non-operating fish ladder; (5) a tailrace that is 
approximately 160 feet long and 220 feet wide and separated from main 
river flows by a concrete wall; (6) a substation; (7) generator leads 
and a step-up transformer; and (8) appurtenant facilities.
    The Schoolfield Project is operated in run-of-river mode, whereby 
outflow from the project approximates inflow, which may be suspended 
during reservoir drawdown and refilling for inspection of the City of 
Danville's water supply intakes, which occurs on an as needed basis. 
During normal operation, a continuous minimum flow of 300 cubic feet 
per second, or inflow if less, is released downstream. The average 
annual generation at the project was 15,220 MW-hours from 2017 through 
2020.
    m. Copies 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. For assistance, contact FERC 
Online Support at [email protected].
    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 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].
    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 an on-site scoping meeting. 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 May 9, 2024.
    Copies of 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 SD1 may 
be viewed on the web 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, call 1-866-
208-3676 or for TTY, (202) 502-8659.


[[Page 42872]]


    Dated: May 9, 2024.
Debbie-Anne A. Reese,
Acting Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2024-10672 Filed 5-15-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P