[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 86 (Tuesday, May 6, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19197-19200]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-07875]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Project No. 2426-235]
California Department of Water Resources & Los Angeles Department
of Water and Power; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact
Statement for the South State Water Project Hydroelectric Project,
Schedule for Environmental Review, and Request for Comments
The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or
Commission) will prepare draft and final environmental impact
statements (EIS) to evaluate potential environmental impacts of
continued operation and maintenance of the proposed South State Water
Project Hydroelectric Project (South SWP Project; FERC No. 2426). The
South SWP Project is located on the West Branch of the California
Aqueduct (non-project) in Los Angeles County, California.\1\ The
California Aqueduct and the South SWP Hydroelectric Project are
components of the larger State Water Project (SWP), an approximately
705-mile-long water storage and delivery system of reservoirs,
aqueducts, power plants, and pumping plants, which distributes water
collected from rivers in northern California to the Central Valley and
[[Page 19198]]
Southern California for drinking water, industrial use, and irrigation.
The Commission will use this EIS in its decision-making process in
accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The
schedule for preparing the EIS is discussed in the Schedule for
Environmental Review section of this notice.
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\1\ For tracking purposes under the National Environmental
Policy Act, the unique identification number for documents relating
to this environmental review is EISX-019-20-000-1745337097.
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As part of the NEPA review process, the Commission takes into
account concerns the public may have about proposals and the
environmental impacts that could result whenever it considers the
issuance of a license. This gathering of public input is referred to as
``scoping.'' On September 30, 2016, Commission staff issued Scoping
Document 1, initiating the scoping process for the project. Commission
staff conducted an environmental site visit open to the public on
October 25, 2016, and held two public scoping meetings. Two scoping
meetings were held in Valencia, California on October 26, 2016. A court
reporter recorded oral comments made during the scoping meetings. On
January 13, 2017, Commission staff issued a revised scoping document
(Scoping Document 2) based on the comments received during the scoping
comment period, which ended November 29, 2016. Scoping Document 2
describes the project, project alternatives, and the current view of
anticipated environmental effects that will be addressed in the EIS.
In accordance with the Commission's regulations, on December 2,
2020, Commission staff issued a notice that the project was ready for
environmental analysis and soliciting comments, recommendations, terms
and conditions, and prescriptions (REA Notice). The comment period for
the REA Notice closed on January 31, 2021. Based on the information in
the record, including comments filed during scoping and in response to
the REA Notice, staff has determined that licensing the project may
constitute a major federal action significantly affecting the quality
of the human environment. Therefore, Commission staff will prepare a
draft and final EIS for the proposed South SWP Project, which will
address the concerns raised during prior comment periods and comments
received in response to this notice.
By this notice, the Commission requests any additional comments on
the scope of issues to address in the EIS, including comments on
potential alternatives and impacts, and any relevant information,
studies, or analyses of any kind concerning impacts affecting the
quality of the human environment. If you previously submitted comments
and recommendations to the Commission, you do not need to file those
comments and recommendations again. To ensure that your comments are
timely and properly recorded, please submit your comments so that the
Commission receives them in Washington, DC on or before 5:00 p.m.
Eastern Time on May 30, 2025.
Public Participation
There are three methods you can use to submit your comments to the
Commission. The Commission encourages electronic filing of comments and
has staff available to assist you at (866) 208-3676 or
[email protected]. Please carefully follow these instructions
so that your comments are properly recorded.
(1) You can file your comments electronically using the eComment
feature, which is located on the Commission's website (www.ferc.gov)
under the link to FERC Online. Using eComment is an easy method for
submitting brief, text-only comments on a project;
(2) You can file your comments electronically by using the eFiling
feature, which is located on the Commission's website (www.ferc.gov)
under the link to FERC Online. With eFiling, you can provide comments
in a variety of formats by attaching them as a file with your
submission. New eFiling users must first create an account by clicking
on ``eRegister.'' You will be asked to select the type of filing you
are making; a comment on a particular project is considered a ``Comment
on a Filing''; or
(3) You can file a paper copy of your comments by mailing them to
the Commission. Be sure to reference the project docket number (P-2426-
235) on your letter. Submissions sent via the U.S. Postal Service must
be addressed to: Debbie-Anne A. Reese, 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, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission,
12225 Wilkins Avenue, Rockville, Maryland 20852.
Additionally, the Commission offers a free service called
eSubscription. This service provides automatic notification of filings
made to subscribed project dockets, document summaries, and direct
links to the documents. Go to https://www.ferc.gov/ferc-online/overview
to register for eSubscription.
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].
Summary of the South SWP Project
On January 30, 2020, the California Department of Water Resources
(DWR) and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) (co-
applicants) filed an application for a new license with the Commission
to continue to operate and maintain the existing 1,350-megawatt (MW)
South SWP Project. The project occupies 2,807.28 acres of federal land,
including 2,790.02 acres within the Angeles National Forest of Los
Padres National Forest administered by U.S. Department of Agriculture,
Forest Service (Forest Service), and 17.26 acres administered by the
U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
Existing Project Facilities
The South SWP Project consists of two developments--DWR's Warne
Development (upstream) and LADWP's Castaic Development (downstream).\2\
The project generates an average of 824,803 megawatt-hours of energy
annually.\3\
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\2\ The project's remaining development, Devil Canyon, is
located along the East Branch of the California Aqueduct and is
currently being relicensed as a separate project (Devil Canyon
Project No. 14797).
\3\ DWR and LADWP's average annual generation is for the period
from calendar years 2007 through 2017.
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Warne Development
The Warne Development consists of the following existing
facilities: (1) a 15-foot-high embankment impounding the 288-acre Quail
Lake with a maximum capacity of 7,583 acre-feet at normal maximum water
surface elevation (NMWSE) of 3,325 feet; (2) the Quail Lake outlet
consisting of a 12-foot by 12-foot reinforced concrete double box with
four 6-foot by 12-foot remotely controlled slide gates, a service bay,
and outlet transition (2) the 2-mile-long, concrete-lined Lower Quail
canal with a maximum flow capacity of 3,129 cubic feet per second
(cfs), which along with Quail Lake serves as the forebay to the
powerplant; (3) the 350-foot-long, 50-
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foot-high Peace Valley pipeline intake embankment and intake structure
located at the downstream end of Lower Quail canal that conveys water
to the Peace Valley pipeline; (4) the 12-foot-diameter, 5.5-mile-long
Peace Valley pipeline located entirely underground and extending to the
penstock; (5) the 78-inch-diameter Gorman bypass channel extending 5.9
miles from the Lower Quail canal to Pyramid Lake serves to divert flows
exceeding the pipeline's capacity or during a pipeline outage; (6) a
penstock bifurcating into two 8-foot-diameter steel branches with a
combined maximum capacity of 1,564 cfs; (7) the Warne powerplant
located at the northern (upstream) end of Pyramid Lake at the terminus
of the Peace Valley pipeline, with an installed capacity of 74.29 MW
and housing two 38.25-MW Pelton-type turbines each connected to a
three-phase generator; (8) a switchyard adjacent to the powerplant; (8)
the 2.95-mile-long, single-circuit, 220-kilovolt (kV) Warne
transmission line; (9) the Quail Lake fishing access path and day use
area; and (10) appurtenant facilities.
Castaic Development
The Castaic Development consists of the following existing
facilities: (1) the 1,269-acre Pyramid Lake, with a storage capacity of
161,375 acre-feet impounded by the 1,090-foot-long, 400-foot-high
Pyramid Dam with a crest elevation at 2,606 feet; (2) a controlled
service spillway with a flow capacity of 17,000 cfs; (3) an emergency,
uncontrolled spillway with a spill capacity of 148,900 cfs; (4) a 15-
foot-diameter, 1,350-foot-long, low-level outlet tunnel lined with
concrete with a flow capacity of 1,000 cfs used for downstream releases
to Piru Creek; (5) the 30-foot-diameter, 7.2-mile-long Angeles tunnel
with a flow capacity of 18,400 cfs; (6) the 120-foot-diameter, 383-
foot-tall Angeles tunnel surge chamber connected to the Angeles tunnel
with a 108-foot-long junction structure with a 28-foot-diameter riser;
(7) the Castaic penstock located immediately downstream of the south
portal of the Angeles tunnel that consists of: (a) a double
trifurcation with shutoff valves on each trifurcation branch, (b) six
2,400-foot-long steel penstocks ranging in diameter from 9 feet to 13.5
feet, and (c) a 1,900-foot-long steel penstock ranging in diameter from
7 feet to 9 feet branching from a Y-connection between the Angeles
tunnel portal and the main trifurcation; (8) the Castaic powerplant
located on the upstream end of Elderberry Forebay, which is a pumping-
generating powerhouse containing six reversible Francis-type pump-
turbine units each with a dependable capacity of 205.35 MW; (9) one
Pelton-type pump starting turbine unit, housed in a separate building,
used solely to start the six main units and is not used for power
generation; (10) a fenced switchyard adjacent to the powerhouse; (11)
the 1,935-foot-long, 179-foot-high zoned earthfill Elderberry Forebay
dam with a 25-foot-wide crest at elevation 1,550 feet; (12) the 496-
acre Elderberry Forebay that serves as an afterbay with a gross storage
capacity of 31,196 acre-feet at an elevation of 1,540 feet; (13) an
uncontrolled, emergency spillway with an overflow weir crest at
elevation 1,540 feet and a spill capacity of at least 12,000 cfs
connecting the Elderberry Forebay to the non-project Castaic Lake
located immediately downstream of the forebay; (14) the Elderberry
Forebay outlet, with a capacity of 17,000 cfs at 1,540-feet elevation,
consisting of both high-level and low-level outlets equipped with slide
gates facilities in a tower upstream of the dam; (15) the Storm Bypass
Channel located on Castaic Creek above Elderberry Forebay with a series
of three check-dam basins with a total area of about 21 acres; (16) the
11.4 mile-long, 230-kV Castaic transmission line connecting the
switchyard to the Haskell Junction substation; (17) recreation
facilities include the Emigrant Landing Day Use Area, Vista Del Lago
Visitor Center, Vaquero Day Use Area, Spanish Point Boat-in Picnic
Area, Serrano Boat-in Picnic Area, Bear Trap Boat-in Picnic Area,
Yellow Bar Boat-in Picnic Area, and Los Alamos Campground. There are
project-related roads and trails associated with these facilities.
Applicants' Proposal
The co-applicants propose to continue operating the project in the
same manner as it is currently operated. The co-applicants also propose
to make the following existing facilities part of the license for the
South SWP Project: (1) the Quail detention embankment, located adjacent
to the Peace Valley pipeline intake embankment along the northwest
portion of the Lower Quail canal, which serves as a flood-management
structure to attenuate waters from Quail Lake or the Lower Quail canal
and to protect Interstate 5; (2) 99 project road segments totaling 55.4
miles; and (3) the streamflow gage located on Piru Creek below Pyramid
Lake near Gorman, CA. Additionally, the co-applicants propose to remove
the Warne transmission line from the license because it is owned and
operated by SCE as part of SCE's Pardee-Pastoria-Warne 220-kV
transmission line and because the transmission line is part of the
interconnected electric grid the co-applicants believe it is not within
the Commission's licensing jurisdiction. The co-applicants state the
transmission line would continue to function as it has historically.
The purpose of the project is to continue to provide a source of
hydroelectric power and flood control and serve as a water supply for
domestic and irrigation purposes. Therefore, under the provisions of
the Federal Power Act (FPA), the Commission must decide whether to
issue a license to DWR and LADWP for the project and what conditions
should be placed on any license issued.
The NEPA Process and the EIS
The draft and final EIS issued by the Commission will discuss
impacts that could occur because of the proposed project under the
following relevant general resource areas:
geology and soils resources
aquatic resources
terrestrial resources
federally threatened and endangered species
recreation, land use, and aesthetics
cultural resources
Some of the potential effects include: (1) erosion and
sedimentation; (2) the timing and magnitude of operational flows in
Piru Creek on water quality and aquatic habitat, including associated
effects on threatened and endangered species and riparian habitat; (3)
toxic algal blooms in Pyramid Lake and the spread of non-native,
invasive mussel species on aquatic communities and project facilities;
(4) the spread of non-native, invasive terrestrial plant species on
terrestrial communities; (5) disturbance of vegetation and suitable
habitat for special-status wildlife species; including federally listed
plant species; (6) potential effects on recreation facilities and
aesthetics; (7) public safety resulting from potential project-related
wildfires; and (8) cultural resources.
Commission staff will also make recommendations on how to lessen or
avoid impacts on the various resource areas. Your comments will help
Commission staff focus its analysis on the issues that may have a
significant effect on the human environment.
The draft and final EIS will present Commission staff's independent
analysis of the issues. On September 30, 2016, Commission staff issued
a notice of the co-applicant's intent to file a relicense application
for the project, which also invited agencies wishing to cooperate in
the preparation of the environmental document. No agencies filed
requests for cooperating status. A
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draft EIS will be issued for public comment and circulated for review
by all interested parties. Commission staff will consider all timely
comments received during the comment period on the draft EIS and revise
the document, as necessary, before issuing a final EIS. The draft and
final EIS will be available in electronic format in the public record
through eLibrary.\4\ If eSubscribed, you will receive an instant email
notification when the environmental document is issued.
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\4\ For instructions on connecting to eLibrary, refer to the
Additional Information section of this notice this notice.
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Alternatives Under Consideration
As part of our review in the EIS, the Commission will consider a
range of reasonable alternatives that are technically and economically
feasible and meet the purpose and need for the proposed action.
Alternatives that do not meet these requirements will be summarized and
dismissed from further consideration in the EIS document. In addition
to the proposed action, staff will consider a no-action alternative. We
are also considering an alternative to the proposed action that
potentially meets the above criteria: the applicants' proposed action
with staff modifications, including any mandatory conditions (i.e., the
staff alternative with mandatory conditions).
With this notice, we ask commenters to identify other potential
reasonable alternatives for consideration. The alternatives considered
may be expanded based on the comments received, provided they meet the
criteria described above.
Schedule for Environmental Review
This Notice of Intent identifies Commission staff's planned
schedule for completion of the final EIS for the project, which is
based on an issuance of a draft EIS in August 2025, opening a 45-day
public comment period. All comments filed will be reviewed by staff and
considered in the Commission's final decision on the proceeding.
Issuance of Notice of Availability of the final EIS March 31, 2026
This notice identifies the Commission's anticipated schedule for
issuance of a license order for the project, which serves as the
Commission's record of decision. We currently anticipate issuing a
license order for the project no later than:
Issuance of the License Order July 16, 2026
If a schedule change becomes necessary, an additional notice will
be provided so that the relevant agencies and interested stakeholders
are kept informed of the project's progress.
Permits and Authorizations
The table below lists the anticipated permits and authorizations
for the project required under federal law. This list may not be all-
inclusive and does not preclude any permit or authorization if it is
not listed here. Agencies with jurisdiction by law and/or special
expertise may formally cooperate in the preparation of the Commission's
EIS and may adopt the EIS to satisfy its NEPA responsibilities related
to this project.
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Agency Permit or authorization
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FERC................................... Non-Federal Hydropower License.
BLM.................................... Right-of-Way Permit; Resource
Management Plan Amendment;
Mandatory Conditioning
Authority under Section 4(e)
of the FPA.
Forest Service......................... Mandatory Conditioning
Authority under Section 4(e)
of the FPA.
National Marine Fisheries Service...... Reservation of Authority to
Prescribe Fishways under
Section 18 of the FPA.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service......... Consultation under Section 7 of
the Endangered Species Act.
California State Historic Preservation Consultation under Section 106
Office. of the National Historic
Preservation Act.
California State Water Resources Clean Water Act Section 401
Control Board. Water Quality Certification.
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Additional Information
Additional information about the project is available on the FERC
website at www.ferc.gov using the eLibrary link. Click on the eLibrary
link, click on ``General Search'' and enter the Docket No. P-2426 in
the ``Docket Number'' field. Be sure you have selected an appropriate
date range. For assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at
[email protected] or (866) 208-3676, or for TTY, contact (202)
502-8659.
Any questions regarding this notice may be directed to Quinn
Emmering, the FERC relicensing coordinator for the South SWP Project,
at (202) 502-6382 or [email protected].
Dated: April 30, 2025.
Debbie-Anne A. Reese,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2025-07875 Filed 5-5-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P