[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 52 (Wednesday, March 19, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12719-12720]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-04484]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Project No. 4679-050]
New York Power Authority; Notice of Application Accepted for
Filing, Soliciting Motions To Intervene and Protests, Ready for
Environmental Analysis, and Soliciting Comments, Recommendations,
Preliminary Terms and Conditions, and Preliminary Fishway 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.: 4679-050.
c. Date Filed: May 25, 2022.
d. Applicant: New York Power Authority (NYPA).
e. Name of Project: Vischer Ferry Hydroelectric Project (Vischer
Ferry Project or project).
f. Location: On the Mohawk River in Saratoga and Schenectady
Counties, New York.
g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act 16 U.S.C. 791(a)-825(r).
h. Applicant Contact: Rob Daly, Director of Licensing, NYPA, 123
Main Street, White Plains, NY 10601; Telephone: (914) 681-6564 or
[email protected].
i. FERC Contact: Jody Callihan at (202) 502-8278, or
[email protected].
j. Deadline for filing motions to intervene and protests, comments,
recommendations, preliminary terms and conditions, and preliminary
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
motions to intervene, protests, comments, recommendations, preliminary
terms and conditions, and preliminary fishway prescriptions using the
Commission's eFiling system at https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp. Commenters can submit brief comments up to 6,000
characters, without prior registration, using the eComment system at
https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/ecomment.asp. 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: Debbie-Anne A. Reese,
[[Page 12720]]
Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE,
Washington, DC 20426. Submissions sent via any other carrier must be
addressed to: Debbie-Anne A. Reese, 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: Vischer Ferry Hydroelectric Project (P-4679-050).
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 for filing and is now ready
for environmental analysis.
l. The Vischer Ferry Project consists of: (1) the Vischer Ferry
dam, a concrete gravity structure composed of three connected spillway
sections with a total length of 1,919 feet, the outer ogee-shaped weir
sections having an average height of 30 feet and the middle broad-
crested weir sections with a height varying from 1 foot to 3 feet; (2)
an impoundment with an area of 1,137 acres and a gross storage capacity
of 25,000 acre-feet at an elevation of 211 feet Barge Canal Datum (BCD)
(27-inch-high flashboards seasonally installed during the navigation
season add 2,400 acre-feet of storage); (3) a low-level regulating
structure at the northern end of the spillway with sluice gates; (4) a
headrace with a longitudinal retaining wall containing the sluice
gates; (5) a brick and concrete powerhouse that is 73 feet wide, 186
feet long, and contains two Francis turbine-generator units rated at
2.8 megawatts (MW) each and two vertical Kaplan turbine-generator units
rated at 3.0 MW each; (6) an unlined 65-foot-long, 150-foot-wide
tailrace; (7) navigation lock E-7 of the Erie Canal; (8) an earthen
embankment located to the west of Lock E-7; (9) a switchyard; (10)
generator leads and transformer banks; and (11) appurtenant facilities.
The Vischer Ferry Project is operated in a run-of-river mode such
that outflow from the project approximates inflow, and the impoundment
is maintained within 6 inches of the dam crest (or top of the
flashboards, when installed). A year-round, continuous minimum flow of
200 cubic feet per second (cfs) is provided at the project. During the
navigation season (typically mid-May through mid-October), the 200-cfs
minimum flow is provided as part of a fish passage flow (250 cfs) that
is released through notches (absence of flashboards) on the eastern
spillway; during the remainder of the year (non-navigation season), the
minimum flow is typically provided as part of generation flows. An
acoustic deterrent system is seasonally deployed upstream of the
project, from May through October, to guide blueback herring that are
migrating downstream towards non-turbine routes of passage (notches in
the flashboards). Average annual generation at the Vischer Ferry
Project is 56,323 MW-hours. NYPA is not proposing any new project
facilities or changes to existing facilities and the operation of the
project at this time.
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 (i.e., P-4679). For assistance, contact
FERC Online Support (see item j above).
n. Anyone may submit comments, a protest, or a motion to intervene
in accordance with the requirements of Rules of Practice and Procedure,
18 CFR 385.210, .211, and .214. In determining the appropriate action
to take, the Commission will consider all protests or other comments
filed, but only those who file a motion to intervene in accordance with
the Commission's Rules may become a party to the proceeding. Any
comments, protests, or motions to intervene must be received on or
before the specified comment date for the particular application.
All filings must (1) bear in all capital letters the title
``PROTEST,'' ``MOTION TO INTERVENE,'' ``COMMENTS,'' ``REPLY COMMENTS,''
``RECOMMENDATIONS,'' ``PRELIMINARY TERMS AND CONDITIONS,'' or
``PRELIMINARY FISHWAY PRESCRIPTIONS;'' (2) set forth in the heading the
name of the applicant and the project number of the application to
which the filing responds; (3) furnish the name, address, and telephone
number of the person protesting or intervening; 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. A copy of any protest or
motion to intervene must be served upon each representative of the
applicant specified in the particular application. A copy of all other
filings in reference to this application must be accompanied by proof
of service on all persons listed in the service list prepared by the
Commission in this proceeding, in accordance with 18 CFR 4.34(b) and
385.2010.
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,
community organizations, 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].
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, contact FERC
Online Support (see item j above).
o. 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.
p. Procedural Schedule: The application will be processed according
to the following schedule. Revisions to the schedule may be made as
appropriate.
Deadline for filing comments, recommendations, preliminary terms and
conditions, and preliminary fishway prescriptions--May 12, 2025 \1\
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\1\ The Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure provide
that if a deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday, holiday, or other
day when the Commission is closed for business, the deadline does
not end until the close of business on the next business day. 18 CFR
385.2007(a)(2). Because the filing deadline would fall on a Sunday
(i.e., May 11, 2025), the deadline is extended until the close of
business on Monday, May 12, 2025.
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Deadline for filing reply comments--June 25, 2025
q. Final amendments to the application must be filed with the
Commission no later than 30 days from the issuance date of this notice.
Dated: March 12, 2025.
Debbie-Anne A. Reese,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2025-04484 Filed 3-18-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P