Document ID: FERC-2023-0216-0001
Agency: ferc
Document Type: Notice
Title: Environmental Impact Statements; Availability, etc.: Brookfield White Pine Hydro, LLC; Merimil, LP; Hydro-Kennebec, LLC: Proposed Project Relicense, Interim Species Protection Plan, and Final Species Protection Plan
Posted Date: 2023-02-23T05:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 36 (Thursday, February 23, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11430-11431]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-03687]

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project Nos. 2322-069, 2322-071, 2325-100, 2574-092, 2611-091]

Brookfield White Pine Hydro, LLC, Merimil Limited Partnership, 
Hydro-Kennebec, LLC; Revised Procedural Schedule for Environmental 
Impact Statement for the Proposed Project Relicense, Interim Species 
Protection Plan, and Final Species Protection Plan

    On January 31, 2020, Brookfield White Pine Hydro, LLC filed an 
application for a new license to continue to operate and maintain the 
8.65-megawatt (MW) Shawmut Hydroelectric Project No. 2322 (Shawmut 
Project). On June 1, 2021, in a separate compliance proceeding for the 
Shawmut Project, Brookfield White Pine Hydro, LLC filed an Interim 
Species Protection Plan (Interim Plan) for Atlantic salmon and 
requested Commission approval to amend the current Shawmut license to 
incorporate the Interim Plan. The Interim Plan includes measures to 
protect endangered Atlantic salmon until the Commission issues a 
decision on the relicense application for the Shawmut Project.
    Also on June 1, 2021, Brookfield Power US Asset Management, LLC 
(Brookfield), on behalf of the affiliated licensees for the 6.915-MW 
Lockwood Hydroelectric Project No. 2574, 15.433-MW Hydro-Kennebec 
Hydroelectric Project No. 2611, and 15.98-MW Weston Hydroelectric 
Project No. 2325, filed a Final Species Protection Plan (Final Plan) 
for Atlantic salmon, Atlantic sturgeon, and shortnose sturgeon and 
requested Commission approval to amend the three project licenses to 
incorporate the Final Plan. All four projects are located on the 
Kennebec River, in Kennebec and Somerset Counties, Maine.
    On November 23, 2021, Commission staff issued a notice of intent to 
prepare a draft and final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to 
evaluate the effects of relicensing the Shawmut Project and amending 
the licenses of all four projects to incorporate the measures in the 
Interim and Final Plans. The notice of intent included a schedule for 
preparing a draft and final EIS.
    On September 21, 2022, Brookfield filed supplemental information 
for the Final Plan, Interim Plan, and License Application. The filing 
includes a delayed mortality analysis for salmon smolts and additional 
measures that are intended to improve the downstream survival of 
juvenile and adult Atlantic salmon at the four projects. On October 5, 
2022, Commission staff noticed the filing and solicited comments. 
Numerous comments were filed by stakeholders. The EIS will consider 
Brookfield's additional measures and the comments filed in response to 
the notice.
    Therefore, by this notice, Commission staff is updating the 
procedural schedule for completing a draft and final EIS. The revised 
schedule is shown below. Further revisions to the schedule may be made 
as appropriate.

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               Milestone                           Target date
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Issue Draft EIS........................   August 2023.
Issue Final EIS........................  March 2024.
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    Any questions regarding this notice may be directed to Matt Cutlip 
at (503)

[[Page 11431]]

552-2762, or by email at [email protected].

    Dated: February 15, 2023.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2023-03687 Filed 2-22-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P