Notice of Application Accepted for Filing and Soliciting Motions To Intervene and Protests; Chittenden Falls Hydropower, Inc.

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Federal RegisterDec 31, 2019
84 Fed. Reg. 72355 (Dec. 31, 2019)

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.: 3273-024.

c. Date filed: May 31, 2019.

d. Applicant: Chittenden Falls Hydropower, Inc. (Chittenden Falls Hydro).

e. Name of Project: Chittenden Falls Hydropower Project.

f. Location: On Kinderhook Creek, near the Town of Stockport, Columbia County, New York. The project does not occupy federal land.

g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act, 16 U.S.C. 791(a)-825(r).

h. Applicant Contact: Mark Boumansour, Chief Operating Officer, Gravity Renewables, Inc., 1401 Walnut Street, Suite 420, Boulder, CO 80302; (303) 440-3378; mark@gravityrenewables.com and/or Celeste N. Fay, Regulatory Manager, Gravity Renewables, Inc., 5 Dartmouth Drive, Suite 104, Auburn, NH 03032; (413) 262-9466; celeste@gravityrenewables.com.

i. FERC Contact: Monir Chowdhury at (202) 502-6736 or monir.chowdhury@ferc.gov.

j. Deadline for filing motions to intervene and protests: 60 days from the issuance date of this notice.

The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file motions to intervene and protests using the Commission's eFiling system at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp. 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-3273-024.

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 has been accepted, but is not ready for environmental analysis at this time.

l. The existing Chittenden Falls Hydropower Project consists of: (1) An approximately 4-foot-high, 320-foot-long concrete gravity dam, topped with 2-foot-high wooden flashboards, and having a dam crest elevation of 59.6 feet National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 (NGVD29); (2) a reservoir with a surface area of about 18 acres and a storage capacity of 63 acre-feet at a normal pool elevation of 61.6 feet NGVD29; (3) an 8-foot-wide, 22-foot-long intake structure on the east side of the dam connecting to an 8-foot-wide, 118-foot-long concrete and wooden power canal; (4) a 7.5-foot-diameter, 45-foot-long steel penstock that conveys water from the power canal to a powerhouse on the east side of the dam containing two turbine-generator units with a total rated capacity of 453 kilowatts (kW); (5) an 8-foot-wide, 10-foot-long intake structure on the west side of the dam connecting to a 6-foot-diameter, 62-foot-long steel penstock; (6) a powerhouse on the west side of the dam containing a single turbine-generator unit with a rated capacity of 300 kW; (7) two 480-volt, 40-foot-long generator leads connecting the east powerhouse to a transformer yard and a 2,300-volt, 400-foot-long generator lead connecting the west powerhouse to the transformer yard; and (8) appurtenant facilities.

The Chittenden Falls Project is operated in a run-of-river mode with an estimated average annual generation of 2,300 megawatt-hours between 2012 and 2018. Chittenden Falls Hydro proposes to continue to operate the project in run-of-river mode.

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 also available for inspection and reproduction at the address in item h above.

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. Anyone may submit a protest or a motion to intervene in accordance with the requirements of Rules of Practice and Procedure, 18 CFR 385.210, 385.211, and 385.214. In determining the appropriate action to take, the Commission will consider all protests filed, but only those who file a motion to intervene in accordance with the Commission's Rules may become a party to the proceeding. Any protests or motions to intervene must be received on or before the specified deadline date for the particular application.

All filings must (1) bear in all capital letters the title “PROTEST” or “MOTION TO INTERVENE;” (2) set forth in the heading the name of the applicant and the project number of the application to which the filing responds; (3) furnish the name, address, and telephone number of the person protesting or intervening; and (4) otherwise comply with the requirements of 18 CFR 385.2001 through 385.2005. Agencies may obtain copies of the application directly from the applicant. A copy of any protest or motion to intervene must be served upon each representative of the applicant specified in the particular application.

p. Updated procedural schedule and final amendments: The application will be processed according to the following preliminary Hydro Licensing Schedule. Revisions to the schedule will be made as appropriate.

Issue Scoping Document for comments December 2019.
Request Additional Information (if necessary) February 2020.
Issue Scoping Document 2 (if necessary) March 2020.
Issue Notice of Ready for Environmental Analysis March 2020.
Commission issues EA or draft EA September 2020.
Comments on EA or draft EA October 2020.
Commission issues final EA (If draft EA Issued) January 2021.

Final amendments to the application must be filed with the Commission no later than 30 days from the issuance date of the notice of ready for environmental analysis.

Dated: December 23, 2019.

Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,

Deputy Secretary.

[FR Doc. 2019-28261 Filed 12-30-19; 8:45 am]

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