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### UNITED STATES OF AMERICA80 FERC 062, 

### 166 FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION

Central Maine Power Company 

## Proj ect No. 2552- 023

ORDER APPROVING DOWNSTREAM FISH PASSAGE

(August 21, 1997)
On May 30, 1997 , and supplemented on July 28, 1997, Central 

### Maine Power Company (licensee) filed a final report on the results of its 1996 downstream fish passage study for the Fort Halifax Project, pursuant to article 18 of the project 

### license. 1/ The licensee reports that the downstream passage facility and operational procedures developed over the 1993- 

### 1996 study period provide safe passage for most juvenile and adult 

## alewi ves migrating 

## past the proj ect and that additional 

### downstream passage studies are unnecessary. The proj ect is located on the Sebasticook River in Kennebec County, Maine.
Article 18 required the licensee to file a plan to monitor the effectiveness of the downstream fish passage facility to be installed at the project, and, based on the results of monitoring, implement any necessary changes or additions to the 

# facili ty, under a Commission- 

## approved schedule.

BACKGROUND The licensee completed the downstream fish passage facility at the Fort Halifax Project in mid-August 

# 1993. Fishway effectiveness studies began in 1993 and continued through 

### 1995. As a result of the studies, the facility has undergone various 

### modifications over the study period. The facility consists of a gate and flume at the existing trash sluice 

## opening, in combination with 12- 

## foot- deep aluminum punched screens of 

## 1/4-

# inch hole size over the existing trashracks with 1. inch clear spacing.
On September 30, 1996, the Commission issued an order that required the licensee to continue to provide for downstream passage of adult and juvenile river herring at the project using the methodology developed for effective downstream passage in 

### 1995 and previous studies. 2/ The licensee was also required to continue to observe for evaluation downstream fish passage at the project during 1996 and document such in a report to the U. S. 

### Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), the National Marine 

## Fisheries Service (NMFS), and the Maine Department of Marine 

## Resources (DMR) by March 

# 31, 1997. The final report of fish

46 FERC 0 62, 078 

### 76 FERC 0 62, 264



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## proj ect No. 2552- 023

passage observations, including agency comments on the observations and recommendations for further study, were required to be filed with the Commission by May 30, 1997.


### LICENSEE' S 1996 STUDY RESULTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS The study during 1996 consisted of observing fish passage with the aluminum trashrack overlays in place in combination with 3 foot and 2 foot fishway gate 

### openings. The study was conducted during the peak outmigration period for juvenile and adult 

## alewives.
The study found that extremely large numbers of juvenile alewives emigrated safely past the project utilizing the 12 foot deep trashrack overlay screens in combination with a 3 foot deep gate opening at the 

# fishway. The screens excluded juvenile alewives from operational turbine pits during 95 percent of the observation periods for Unit #1 and 62 percent of the observation 

### periods for Unit 

# #2. The project is operated with Unit #2 first 

### on and last off. This maximizes attraction of fish to the downstream Unit #2 trashrack screen and 

## fishway.
Observations in 1996 found that the only significant fish penetration of trashracks into the turbine pits involved Unit 

### #1, which is the unit farthest upstream from the fishway 

## entrance. Penetration was observed only when Unit #1 was operating at a turbine gate setting of 100 

### percent. No penetration was observed at gate settings of 40 to 60 

### percent. To 

## minimize entrainment of fish in the turbine pits into the turbine, the licensee developed an operational procedure that includes reducing the gate setting to 50 percent and then to 0 percent, with the trashrack overlay screen removed for 1 to 2 hours to allow fish to escape into the 

## proj ect

# impoundment.

With respect to adult alewives, the majority of adults were found to pass the project utilizing the 12 foot deep screens in combination with a 2 foot deep fishway gate 

## opening.

Based on 1996 observations, the licensee recommended the following in its 1997 

# filing: 1) install 12- 

## foot- deep aluminum punched screens of 1/4- inch hole size over existing trashracks by June 1, river conditions permitting; 2) open the fishway gate to a depth of 2 feet by June 1 if river conditions allow and open the gate to a depth of 3 feet by August 

# 15; 3) operate Unit #2 on a first on-last off basis; 

# 4) reduce the output of the turbine (s) to 50 percent or less if juvenile alewives enter the turbine 

## pi t (s), then shut the units off and remove one screen to allow fish to escape, if river conditions permit; 5) establish a daily

Project No. 2552-023



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### 9/1/98screen cleaning schedule during any periods of debris 

## loading; and 6) if juvenile alewives congregate near the flashboards during spill events, utilize the removable flashboard section to allow fish to pass.

AGENCY COMMENTS In letters dated April 29, May 23 and May 28, 1997 , the 

### NMFS, DMR and FWS, respectively, stated their concurrence with the licensee that visual observations indicate the majority of downstream migrants successfully use the passage 

### facility. The NMFS and DMR understand that the success rate is dependant on 

## proj ect operations and that the proj ect and passage facility should be operated as required under the licensee s six 

## recommendations.
The FWS, in a letter dated July 17, 1997 recommends that whenever juvenile alewives become entrained into the Unit # turbine pit, the licensee should either reduce the Unit #1 gate setting to 60 percent or less and maintain operation at that setting if river flows allow (i. e., if spill will not occur) or 

### shut the unit off. The screen should then be removed to allow the fish to escape back into the impoundment (if spill will not 

# occur). If river flows begin to exceed the capacity of Unit 

### #2, the licensee should then increase the Unit #1 gate setting incrementally to handle the higher river 

# flows. The FWS states that this will minimize spill and flashboard 

# failure. Addi tionally, the FWS recommends the licensee maintain a log of these events for potential future consultation with the resources 

# agencies (no formal year- 

### end report required). The FWS 

## concludes that the licensee may be required to conduct additional studies in the future regarding other species, including American 

## shad, 

# Atlantic salmon, and American eel.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION The methodology developed by the licensee for effective downstream fish passage from 1993 through 1996 should be applied on an operational basis as the licensee recommends in its final 

### study report. The licensee s observations and results of studies completed through 1996 indicate that the 12-foot-deep punched metal sheet overlays and other additional measures used by the licensee are very effective in preventing 

### entrainment. We concur, therefore, that additional downstream passage studies at 

### this time are unnecessary. The Commission should, however, reserve the right to require downstream fish passage monitoring studies for other anadromous fishes targeted for restoration in the Sebasticook River when recommended by the licensee or the resource agencies.

Project No. 2552- 

### 023 

## -4-

Wi th respect to FWS' recommendations concerning fish entrainment into the Unit #1 turbine pit, the licensee methodology outlined in its 1996 report accommodates the FWS' s recommendations and will provide similar safe 

# passage. Further,

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9/1/98the option to increase the gate setting on Unit #1 (during a fish escapement event), if flows are too high for Unit #2 and excess spillage and flashboard failure may occur, is appropriate to 

### prevent such an occurrence. The licensee should include this 

### recommendation in it operation methodology. The licensee should also maintain a log of those events where juvenile alewives become entrained into the turbine pits and of actions taken to allow escapement to the 

## impoundment. The log would provide further evidence as to the effectiveness of the licensee methods for preventing entrainment and would aid in development of additional measures, if necessary, for other species needing 

## passage protection. The Director orders:
(A) The licensee shall continue to provide for downstream passage of adult and juvenile river herring at the Fort Halifax 

## proj ect using the methodology developed for effective downstream fish passage through 1996 and recommendations presented in the 

## licensee s 1996 study report, filed on May 30, 1997, to include recommendations of the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service with respect to fish escapement 

# events. The licensee shall also maintain a log of those events where juvenile alewives become entrained into the turbine pits and actions taken to allow 

### escapement to the impoundment. The Commission reserves the right to require additional monitoring or changes to project operation or structures regarding other species requiring downstream passage past the Fort Halifax 

## proj ect. 

# (B) This order constitutes final agency action. 

## Requests for rehearing by the Commission may be filed within 30 days of the date of issuance of this order, pursuant to 18 C. R. 0 

### 385. 713.

Kevin P. Madden 

## Acting Director Office of Hydropower Licensing



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