Document ID: FERC-2014-0677-0001
Agency: ferc
Document Type: Notice
Title: Applications: GB Energy Park, LLC; Scoping Meetings, Environmental Site Review
Posted Date: 2014-05-29T04:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 103 (Thursday, May 29, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30839-30840]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-12368]

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 13642-001]

GB Energy Park LLC; Notice of Scoping Meetings, Environmental 
Site Review, and Soliciting Scoping Comments

    a. Type of Filing: Notice of Intent to File License Application and 
Pre-Application Document for an Original Major License.
    b. Project No.: 13642-001.
    c. Date filed: April 29, 2013.
    d. Applicant: GB Energy Park LLC.
    e. Name of Project: Gordon Butte Pumped Storage Project.
    f. Location: Near Cottonwood Creek in Meagher County near the town 
of Martinsdale, Montana. The project would not occupy any federal 
lands.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act, 16 U.S.C. 791(a)-825(r).
    h. Applicant Contact: Carl Borgquist, President, Absaroka Energy 
LLC, 209

[[Page 30840]]

South Willson Avenue, P.O. Box 309, Bozeman, MT 59771-0309; (406) 570-
4254; carl@absarokaenergy.com.
    i. FERC Contact: Mike Tust, michael.tust@ferc.gov, (202) 502-6522.
    j. Cooperating agencies: Federal, state, local, and tribal agencies 
with jurisdiction and/or special expertise with respect to 
environmental issues that wish to cooperate in the preparation of the 
environmental document should follow the instructions for filing such 
requests described in item k below. Cooperating agencies should note 
the Commission's policy that agencies that cooperate in the preparation 
of the environmental document cannot also intervene. See 94 FERC ] 
61,076 (2001).
    k. Deadline for filing scoping comments: July 25, 2014.
    The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file 
scoping comments using the Commission's eFiling system at http://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 http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/ecomment.asp. You 
must include your name and contact information at the end of your 
comments. For assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at 
FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov, (866) 208-3676 (toll free), or (202) 502-
8659 (TTY). In lieu of electronic filing, please send a paper copy to: 
Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE., 
Washington, DC 20426. The first page of any filing should include the 
docket number P-13642-001.
    l. A copy of the Pre-Application Document is available for review 
at the Commission in the Public Reference Room or may be viewed on the 
Commission's Web site 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, contact 
FERC Online Support. A copy is also available for inspection and 
reproduction at the address in item h above.
    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.
    m. Scoping Process
    The Commission intends to prepare an Environmental Assessment (EA) 
on the project in accordance with the National Environmental Policy 
Act. The EA will consider both site-specific and cumulative 
environmental impacts and reasonable alternatives to the proposed 
action.

Scoping Meetings

    FERC staff will conduct one agency scoping meeting and one public 
meeting. The agency scoping meeting will focus on resource agency and 
non-governmental organization concerns, while the public scoping 
meeting is primarily for public input. All interested individuals, 
organizations, and agencies are invited to attend one or both of the 
meetings, and to assist the staff in identifying the scope of the 
environmental issues that should be analyzed in the EA. The times and 
locations of these meetings are as follows:

Daytime Scoping Meeting

    Date: Wednesday, June 25, 2014.
    Time: 9:00 a.m. (MDT).
    Place: Red Lion Colonial Hotel.
    Address: 2301 Colonial Drive, Helena, Montana.

Evening Scoping Meeting

    Date: Wednesday, June 25, 2014.
    Time: 6:00 p.m. (MDT).
    Place: Martinsdale Community Center.
    Address: 110 Main Street, Martinsdale, Montana.
    Copies of the Scoping Document (SD1) outlining the subject areas to 
be addressed in the EA were distributed to the parties on the 
Commission's mailing list. Copies of the SD1 will be available at the 
scoping meeting or may be viewed on the web at http://www.ferc.gov 
using the ``eLibrary'' link (see item l above).

Environmental Site Review

    The Applicant and FERC staff will conduct a project Environmental 
Site Review beginning at 2:00 p.m. (MDT) on Wednesday, June 25, 2014. 
All interested individuals, organizations, and agencies are invited to 
attend. All participants should meet at the Martinsdale Community 
Center, 110 Main Street, Martinsdale, Montana. All participants are 
responsible for their own transportation to the site. The Environmental 
Site Review will include a trip up to the top of the butte where the 
proposed upper reservoir would be located. This area also provides a 
view of the drop down to the site of the proposed lower reservoir. 
Anyone with questions about the Environmental Site Review should 
contact Mr. Carl Borgquist of Absaroka Energy LLC at (406) 570-4254.

Objectives

    At the scoping meetings, staff will: (1) Summarize the 
environmental issues tentatively identified for analysis in the EA; (2) 
solicit from the meeting participants all available information, 
especially quantifiable data, on the resources at issue; (3) encourage 
statements from experts and the public on issues that should be 
analyzed in the EA, including viewpoints in opposition to, or in 
support of, staff's preliminary views; (4) determine the resource 
issues to be addressed in the EA; and (5) identify those issues that 
require a detailed analysis, as well as those issues that do not 
require a detailed analysis.

Procedures

    The meetings will be recorded by a stenographer and become part of 
the formal record of the Commission proceeding on the project.
    Individuals, organizations, and agencies with environmental 
expertise and concerns are encouraged to attend the meeting and to 
assist the staff in defining and clarifying the issues to be addressed 
in the EA.

    Dated: May 21, 2014.
Kimberly D. Bose,
 Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2014-12368 Filed 5-28-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P