Document ID: FERC-2019-0892-0001
Agency: ferc
Document Type: Notice
Title: Application: Turners Falls Hydro, LLC
Posted Date: 2019-07-31T04:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 147 (Wednesday, July 31, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37270-37271]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-16274]

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

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 2622-013]

Notice Soliciting Scoping Comments: Turners Falls Hydro, LLC

    Take notice that the following hydroelectric application has been 
filed with the Commission and is available for public inspection.
    a. Type of Application: Subsequent Minor License.
    b. Project No.: 2622-013.
    c. Date filed: February 4, 2019.
    d. Applicant: Turners Falls Hydro, LLC (Turners Falls Hydro).

[[Page 37271]]

    e. Name of Project: Turners Falls Project.
    f. Location: On the Connecticut River, in the power canal of the 
Turners Falls Hydroelectric Project No. 1889, in Franklin County, 
Massachusetts. No federal lands are occupied by the project works or 
located within the project boundary.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act 16 U.S.C. 791(a)-825(r).
    h. Applicant Contact: Mr. Michael Scarzello, Director, Eagle Creek 
Renewable Energy, LLC, 65 Madison Avenue, Suite 500, Morristown, NJ 
07960; Phone at (973) 998-8400, or email at 
michael.scarzello@eaglecreekre.com.
    i. FERC Contact: Amanda Gill, (202) 502-6773 or 
amanda.gill@ferc.gov.
    j. Deadline for filing scoping comments: August 24, 2019.
    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 
docket number P-2622-013.
    The Commission's Rules of Practice require all intervenors filing 
documents with the Commission to serve a copy of that document on each 
person on the official service list for the project. Further, if an 
intervenor files comments or documents with the Commission relating to 
the merits of an issue that may affect the responsibilities of a 
particular resource agency, they must also serve a copy of the document 
on that resource agency.
    k. This application is not ready for environmental analysis at this 
time.
    l. Project Description: The Turners Falls Project consists of: (1) 
An existing 10-foot-long, 20-foot-wide, 12- to 22-foot-high forebay; 
(2) a 20-foot-wide, 22-foot-high trashrack with 1.5-inch clear-bar 
spacing; (3) two 9.75-foot-wide, 10.3-foot-high headgates; (4) an 8.5-
foot-diameter, 50-foot-long steel penstock; (5) a 77-foot-long, 42-
foot-wide powerhouse containing one 937-kilowatt vertical Francis-type 
turbine- generator unit; (6) a 50-foot-long, 10-foot-diameter draft 
tube; (7) an 80-foot-long, 10-foot-wide tailrace; (8) a 280-foot-long, 
2.3-kilovolt generator lead line that connects the generator to a step-
up transformer; (9) and appurtenant facilities.
    When generating, the project withdraws up to 289 cubic feet per 
second from FirstLight Hydro Generating Company's (FirstLight) power 
canal for the Turners Falls Hydroelectric Project No. 1889, and 
discharges directly into the Connecticut River. Turners Falls Hydro 
coordinates project operation with FirstLight via an off-license Water 
Use Agreement, which allows Turners Falls Hydro to generate only when 
flows within the power canal are greater than 15,000 cubic feet per 
second (cfs) and the needs of FirstLight's Turners Falls Hydroelectric 
Project No. 1889 are met. When operating the project, Turners Falls 
Hydro uses the 289-cfs maximum hydraulic capacity of the turbine for 
hydroelectric generation and does not fluctuate its water use. The 
average annual generation of the project is approximately 1,512 
megawatt-hours.
    Turners Falls Hydro proposes to operate the project either: (1) On 
a continuous basis between the project's minimum and maximum hydraulic 
capacities (60 cfs and 289 cfs, respectively), without the operating 
constraints of the off-license Water Use Agreement with FirstLight; (2) 
pursuant to the same provisions of the existing Water Use Agreement 
with FirstLight; or (3) pursuant to a modified Water Use Agreement with 
FirstLight.
    m. A copy of the application is available for review at the 
Commission in the Public Reference Room or may be viewed on the 
Commission's website 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 available for inspection and 
reproduction at the Montague Public Library, Carnegie Library Branch 
located at 201 Avenue A, Turners Falls, MA 01376.
    n. 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.
    o. Scoping Process.
    Commission staff intend to prepare a single Environmental 
Assessment (EA) for 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.
    At this time, we do not anticipate holding on-site public or agency 
scoping meetings. Instead, we are soliciting your comments and 
suggestions on the preliminary list of issues and alternatives to be 
addressed in the EA, as described in scoping document 1 (SD1), issued 
July 25, 2019.
    Copies of the SD1 outlining the subject areas to be addressed in 
the EA were distributed to the parties on the Commission's mailing list 
and the applicant's distribution list. Copies of SD1 may be viewed on 
the web 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, call 1-866-208-3676 or 
for TTY, (202) 502-8659.

    Dated: July 25, 2019.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2019-16274 Filed 7-30-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6717-01-P