Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 5 / Monday, January 8, 2001 / Notices 1331

(HEU) Materials Storage mission and

Special Materials mission. The preferred

alternative is to construct and operate a

new HEU Materials Storage Facility and

a new Special Materials Complex.

Preferred sites on Y–12 for these new

facilities have not been selected, but

will be identified in the Y–12 Final

SWEIS.

DATES: Comments on the Y–12 Draft

SWEIS may be submitted to DOE (see

Addresses below) until February 5,

2001. To ensure consideration in the Y–

12 Final SWEIS, comments must be

postmarked by February 5, 2001. Late

comments will be considered to the

extent practicable. Two public hearings

to discuss issues and receive oral

comments on the Y–12 Draft SWEIS will

be held as follows: Thursday, January

25, 2001, in the Cumberland Room at

the Oak Ridge Conference Center

located at the Oak Ridge Mall, Oak

Ridge, Tennessee. The first hearing will

be held from 1–4 p.m. The second

public hearing will be held from 6–9

p.m. The public hearings will provide

the public with an opportunity to

present comments, ask questions, and

discuss concerns with DOE/NNSA

officials regarding the Y–12 Draft

SWEIS.

ADDRESSES: Comments on the Y–12

Draft SWEIS may be submitted by mail

(U.S. Department of Energy, Oak Ridge

Operations Office, Attn: Mr. Gary

Hartman, P.O. Box 2001, Oak Ridge, TN

37831), by fax (1–865–576–1237), by

phone (1–865–576–0273), or

electronically (Y12EIS@oro.doe.gov).

Specific information regarding the

public meetings can be obtained by

calling 1–865–576–0273, writing to the

address above, or electronically via the

Y–12 SWEIS web site: http://

www.ttclients.com/y12/. Copies of the

Y–12 Draft SWEIS and/or its Summary

may also be obtained by contacting Mr.

Gary Hartman by any of the means

described above. The Y–12 Draft SWEIS

is also available for review at the U.S.

Department of Energy Public Reading

Room at 230 Warehouse Road, Oak

Ridge, TN 37830.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For

general information on the NNSA NEPA

process, please contact: Mr. Henry

Garson, NEPA Compliance Officer for

Defense Programs, U.S. Department of

Energy/NNSA, 1000 Independence

Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585; or

telephone 1–800–832–0885, ext. 30470.

For general information on the DOE

NEPA process, please contact: Ms. Carol

M. Borgstrom, Director, Office of NEPA

Policy and Compliance (EH–42), U.S.

Department of Energy, 1000

Independence Avenue, SW.,

Washington, DC 20585, telephone 202–

586–4600, or leave a message at 1–800–

472–2756.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

NNSA is responsible for providing the

Nation with nuclear weapons and

ensuring that those nuclear weapons

remain safe, secure, and reliable. As one

of the major production facilities, the

Oak Ridge Y–12 Plant has been DOE’s

primary site for enriched uranium

processing and storage, and one of the

manufacturing facilities for maintaining

the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile. In

recent years, the emphasis of the U.S.

weapons program has shifted from

developing and producing new weapons

to dismantlement and maintenance of a

smaller stockpile.

The Y–12 Draft SWEIS evaluates the

potential environmental impacts from

continued operation of the Oak Ridge

Y–12 Plant, and the construction and

operation of new facilities for two of Y–

12’s missions: HEU Materials Storage

mission and Special Materials mission.

Alternatives considered for the HEU

Materials Storage mission include

constructing and operating a new HEU

Materials Facility at one of two

candidate sites, or expanding and

operating Building 9215. Three

candidate sites are evaluated for a new

Special Materials Complex for the

Special Materials mission at Y–12. More

specifically, the Y–12 Draft SWEIS

analyzes potential impacts on land uses,

transportation, socioeconomics, geology

and soils, hydrology, biological

resources, air quality/noise, site

facilities and support activities, waste

management, and cultural resources. In

addition, environmental justice,

radiological and chemical impacts

during normal operations, and effects of

accidents on workers and the public are

included in the assessment. A

disclaimer statement was mistakenly

printed on the inside cover of each

volume of the Draft SWEIS. DOE wishes

to inform the public that the

information contained in the Draft

SWEIS is accurate and complete. Please

disregard this disclaimer statement.

The preferred alternative is to

construct and operate a new HEU

Materials Storage Facility and a new

Special Materials Complex. Preferred

sites on Y–12 for these new facilities

have not been selected, but will be

identified in the Y–12 Final SWEIS. The

Y–12 Final SWEIS is scheduled to be

completed in August 2001. A Record of

Decision would be issued no sooner

than 30 days after the Y–12 Final SWEIS

is issued.

Issued in Washington, DC this 29th day of

December, 2000.

Madelyn R. Creedon,

Deputy Administrator for Defense Programs,

National Nuclear Security Administration,

Department of Energy.

[FR Doc. 01–443 Filed 1–5–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6450–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

PhA Environmental Restoration

Corporation

AGENCY: Office of the General Counsel,

DOE.

ACTION: Notice of intent to grant

exclusive patent licenses.

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given of an

intent to grant to PhA Environmental

Restoration Corp., of Oak Hill, Virginia,

exclusive licenses to practice the

inventions described in U.S. Patent No.

5,324,661, entitled ‘‘Chemotactic

Selection of Pollutant Degrading

Bacteria’’ and U.S. Patent No. 5,326,703,

entitled ‘‘Method of Degrading

Pollutants in Soil.’’ The inventions are

owned by the United States of America,

as represented by the U.S. Department

of Energy (DOE).

DATES: Written comments or

nonexclusive license applications are to

be received at the address listed below

no later than March 9, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Office of the Assistant

General Counsel for Technology

Transfer and Intellectual Property, U.S.

Department of Energy, 1000

Independence Avenue, SW.,

Washington, DC 20585.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Robert J. Marchick, Office of the

Assistant General Counsel for

Technology Transfer and Intellectual

Property, U.S. Department of Energy,

Forrestal Building, Room 6F–067, 1000

Independence Avenue, SW.,

Washington, DC 20585; Telephone (202)

586–4792.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 35 U.S.C.

209 provides the Department with

authority to grant exclusive licenses in

Department-owned inventions, if,

among other things, the agency finds

that the public will be served by the

granting of the license. The statute

requires that no exclusive license may

be granted unless public notice of the

intent to grant the license has been

provided, and the agency has

considered all comments received, in

response to that public notice, before

the end of the comment period.

PhA Environmental Restoration

Corporation, of Oak Hill, Virginia, has

applied for exclusive license to practice

1332 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 5 / Monday, January 8, 2001 / Notices

the inventions embodied in U.S. Patent

Nos. 5,324,661 and 5,326,703, and has

plans for commercialization of the

inventions.

The exclusive licenses will each be

subject to a license and other rights

retained by the U.S. Government, and

other terms and conditions to be

negotiated. DOE intends to negotiate to

grant the licenses, unless, within 60

days of this notice, the Assistant

General Counsel for Technology

Transfer and Intellectual Property,

Department of Energy, Washington, DC

20585, receives in writing any of the

following, together with supporting

documents:

(i) A statement from any person

setting forth reasons why it would not

be in the best interests of the United

States to grant either of the proposed

licenses; or

(ii) An application for a nonexclusive

license to either invention, in which

applicant states that he already has

brought either invention to practical

application or is likely to bring either

invention to practical application

expeditiously.

The Department will review all timely

written responses to this notice, and

will proceed with negotiating the

licenses if, after consideration of written

responses to this notice, a finding is

made that the licenses are in the public

interest.

Issued in Washington, DC, on January 2,

2001.

Paul A. Gottlieb,

Assistant General Counsel for Technology,

Transfer and Intellectual Property.

[FR Doc. 01–441 Filed 1–5–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6450–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Bonneville Power Administration

Umatilla Generating Project

AGENCY: Bonneville Power

Administration (BPA), Department of

Energy (DOE).

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

SUMMARY: This notice announces BPA’s

intention to prepare an EIS, under the

National Environmental Policy Act

(NEPA), on a proposed electrical

interconnection requested by Umatilla

Generating Company, L.P., to integrate

electrical power from the Umatilla

Generating Project into the Federal

transmission grid. BPA proposes to

execute an agreement with Umatilla

Generating Company L.P., to provide

them with an interconnection.

DATES: BPA has established a 45-day

scoping period during which affected

landowners, concerned citizens, special

interest groups, local governments, and

any other interested parties are invited

to comment on the scope of the

proposed EIS. Written comments are

due to the address below no later than

February 22, 2001. Comments may also

be made at an EIS scoping open house

meeting to be held on January 30, 2001.

ADDRESSES: To comment, telephone tollfree 1–800–622–4519; send an e-mail to

the BPA Internet address

comment@bpa.gov; or mail comments to

Communications, Bonneville Power

Administration—KC–7, P.O. Box 12999,

Portland, Oregon, 97212. To be placed

on the project mail list, call 1–800–622–

4520.

An EIS open house will be held on

January 30, 2001, 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.,

at Hermiston High School, 600 S. First

Street, Hermiston, Oregon. At this

informal scoping meeting, BPA staff will

answer questions and accept oral and

written comments, and representatives

of BPA and the Umatilla Generating

Company, L.P., will be available to

discuss the proposed project and the

topics to be addressed in the EIS.

Information on the proposed project

will be available for review.

Scoping will help BPA ensure that a

full range of issues related to this

proposal is addressed in the EIS, and

also will identify significant or

potentially significant impacts that may

result from the proposed project. When

completed, the Draft EIS will be

circulated for review and comment, and

BPA will hold a public comment

meeting on the Draft EIS. BPA will

consider and respond in the Final EIS

to comments received on the Draft EIS.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Thomas C. McKinney, Bonneville Power

Administration—KEC–4, P.O. Box 3621,

Portland, Oregon, 97208–3621; toll-free

telephone 1–800–282–3713; direct

telephone 503–230–4749; or e-mail

tcmckinney@bpa.gov. Additional

information can be found at BPA’s web

site: www.bpa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The EIS

will assess the environmental

consequences of the agreement which

BPA proposes with Umatilla Generating

Company, L.P., and of any

modifications to the transmission

system needed to provide an electrical

connection under the terms of the

agreement. In addition to these Federal

actions, the EIS will consider the

environmental consequences of

construction and operation of the

Umatilla Generating Project.

The proposed project has several

components. They include an electrical

connection at BPA’s McNary Substation

for the Umatilla Generating Company,

L.P.; a natural-gas-fired, combined-cycle

combustion turbine; electric-powergeneration plant (Umatilla Generating

Project); a natural-gas pipeline; and new

and modified electric-powertransmission lines. All proposed

facilities would be located within

Umatilla County, Oregon.

The Umatilla Generating Project is

proposed by the Umatilla Generating

Company, L.P., an independent power

producer. They would build and operate

the power plant, and would also pay for

the construction of approximately threequarters of a mile of new transmission

lines and modification of approximately

11 miles of existing transmission lines

owned by the Umatilla Electric

Cooperative. The new transmission

lines would be owned by the Umatilla

Electric Cooperative. PG&E Gas

Transmission-Northwest Corporation

(GTN) or Cascade Natural Gas would

build a natural-gas pipeline up to 5

miles in length to supply fuel to the

power plant.

A. Proposed Action. The proposed

Umatilla Generating Project would be a

combustion turbine/combined-cycle

electric power plant with a nominal

generating capacity of 550 megawatts.

The energy facility site would be located

about 4 miles southwest of the city of

Hermiston and about one-half mile west

of the existing Hermiston Generating

Plant.

The proposed Umatilla Generating

Project would consist of two essentially

identical combustion turbine generators,

two heat-recovery steam generators

(HRSG) and one steam turbine. The

proposed generating project would be

fueled by natural gas from the existing

GTN pipeline that passes approximately

5 miles south of the energy facility site.

Natural gas would be burned in the

combustion turbines. Expanding gases

from combustion would turn rotors

within the turbines that are connected

to electric generators. The hot gases

exhausted from the combustion turbines

would be used to raise steam in the

HRSGs. Steam from the HRSGs would

be expanded through a steam turbine

that drives its own electric generator.

Water would be needed at the facility

to generate steam and cool the steam

process. Water would be supplied from

the Port of Umatilla’s regional water

supply pipeline that currently extends

to the Hermiston Generating Plant. A

recirculating cooling system employing

mechanically induced draft evaporative

cooling towers would be used to

minimize water use. Water would be