Notice2021-12378
Cocheco Falls Associates; Notice Soliciting Scoping Comments
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
June 14, 2021
Issuing agencies
Energy DepartmentFederal Energy Regulatory Commission
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 112 (Monday, June 14, 2021)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 112 (Monday, June 14, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31491-31492]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-12378]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Project No. 4718-039]
Cocheco Falls Associates; Notice Soliciting Scoping Comments
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.: 4718-039.
c. Date Filed: December 29, 2020.
d. Submitted By: Cocheco Falls Associates (CFA).
e. Name of Project: Cocheco Falls Dam Project.
f. Location: On the Cocheco River in the city of Dover, Strafford
County, New Hampshire. The project does not occupy any federal land.
g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act, 16 U.S.C. 791(a)--825(r).
h. Applicant Contact: Mr. John Webster, Cocheco Falls Associates,
P.O. Box 178, South Berwick, ME 03908; Phone at (207) 384-5334, or
email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#70380914021f1d11171e04301707195e1e1504"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="b0f8c9d4c2dfddd1d7dec4f0d7c7d99eded5c4">[email protected]</span></a>.
i. FERC Contact: Amy Chang at (202) 502-8250, or
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#e8898591c68b8089868fa88e8d9a8bc68f879e"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="27464a5e09444f464940674142554409404851">[email protected]</span></a>.
j. Deadline for filing scoping comments: July 8, 2021.
The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file
scoping comments using the Commission's eFiling system at <a href="https://ferconline.ferc.gov/FERCOnline.aspx">https://ferconline.ferc.gov/FERCOnline.aspx</a>. Commenters can submit brief
comments up to 6,000 characters, without prior registration, using the
eComment system at <a href="https://ferconline.ferc.gov/QuickComment.aspx">https://ferconline.ferc.gov/QuickComment.aspx</a>. You
must include your name and contact information at the end of your
comments. For
[[Page 31492]]
assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#02444750414d6c6e6b6c67517772726d707642646770612c656d74"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="d99f9c8b9a96b7b5b0b7bc8aaca9a9b6abad99bfbcabbaf7beb6af">[email protected]</span></a>, (866) 208-3676 (toll free), or (202) 502-
8659 (TTY). In lieu of electronic filing, you may submit a paper copy.
Submissions sent via the U.S. Postal Service must be addressed to:
Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888
First Street NE, Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426. Submissions sent via
any other carrier must be addressed to: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary,
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 12225 Wilkins Avenue, Rockville,
Maryland 20852. All filings must clearly identify the project name and
docket number on the first page: Cocheco Falls Dam Project (P-4718-
039).
The Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure 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. The application is not ready for environmental analysis at this
time.
l. The existing Cocheco Falls Dam Project consists of: (1) A 150-
foot-long, 13.5-foot-high stone masonry arch dam that includes the
following sections: (a) A 4-foot-long left abutment section; (b) a 140-
foot-long spillway section with 24-inch-high flashboards, a 5-foot-
wide, 10-foot-high low-level outlet gate, and a crest elevation of
36.25 feet National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 (NGVD29) at the top
of the flashboards; and (c) a 6-foot-long right abutment section with a
4-foot-wide, 9-foot-high debris sluice gate; (2) an impoundment with a
surface area of 20 acres and a storage capacity of 150 acre-feet at an
elevation of 36.25 feet NGVD29; (3) a 64-foot-wide, 10-foot-high intake
structure equipped with a trashrack with 1-inch clear bar spacing; (4)
an 8.5-foot-diameter, 184-foot-long gated steel penstock that
trifurcates into three 5-foot-diameter, 8-foot-long sections, each
controlled by a 5-foot-diameter butterfly valve; (5) a 40-foot-long,
40-foot-wide concrete and brick masonry powerhouse containing three
238-kW vertical Flygt submersible turbine-generator units for a total
installed capacity of 714 kW; (6) a 40-foot-long, 40-foot-wide tailrace
that discharges into the Cocheco River; (7) a 0.48/34.5-kilovolt (kV)
step-up transformer and a 1,000-foot-long, 34.5-kV underground
transmission line that connects the project to the local utility
distribution system; and (8) appurtenant facilities.
CFA voluntarily operates the project in a run-of-river mode using
an automatic pond level control system to regulate turbine operation,
such that outflow from the project approximates inflow. The project
creates an approximately 200-foot-long bypassed reach of the Cocheco
River.
Downstream fish passage is provided by a bypass facility located on
the left side of the dam that consist of a 5.6-foot-wide, 7-foot-long
fish collection box, a trashrack with 6-inch clear bar spacing, and a
24-inch-diameter PVC fish passage pipe. Upstream fish passage is
provided by a Denil fish ladder located on the right side of the dam.
The Denil fish ladder is owned and maintained by the New Hampshire Fish
and Game Department, and is not a project facility.
Article 25 of the current license, as amended on September 24,
2002, requires a minimum flow release to the bypassed reach of: (1) 20
cubic feet per second (cfs) through the fish ladder from April 15-June
30; (2) 20 cfs through the trash sluiceway from April 15-June 15, to
attract anadromous fish to the fish ladder; and (3) 20 cfs through the
downstream fish passage facility from April 15 until ice forms on the
river. The average annual energy production from 2014 to 2018 was 1,438
megawatt-hours
CFA proposes to: (1) Continue to operate the project in a run-of-
river mode; (2) continue to facilitate upstream and downstream fish
passage by providing the minimum flows required by the current license;
(3) design and install an upstream eel passage facility at the Denil
fish ladder location within 4 years of the effective date of a
subsequent license; and (4) consult with the New Hampshire State
Historic Preservation Officer before beginning any land-disturbing
activities or alterations to known historic structures within the
project boundary.
m. In addition to publishing the full text of this document in the
Federal Register, the Commission provides all interested persons an
opportunity to view and/or print the contents via the internet through
the Commission's Home Page (<a href="http://www.ferc.gov">http://www.ferc.gov</a>) using the ``eLibrary''
link. Enter the docket number excluding the last three digits in the
docket number field to access the document. At this time, the
Commission has suspended access to the Commission's Public Reference
Room, due to the proclamation declaring a National Emergency concerning
the Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19), issued by the President on
March 13, 2020. For assistance, contact FERC at
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#480e0d1a0b07262421262d1b3d3838273a3c082e2d3a2b662f273e"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="ffb9baadbcb0919396919aac8a8f8f908d8bbf999a8d9cd1989089">[email protected]</span></a> or call toll-free, (866) 208-3676 or TYY,
(202) 502-8659.
n. You may also register online at <a href="https://ferconline.ferc.gov/FERCOnline.aspx">https://ferconline.ferc.gov/FERCOnline.aspx</a> 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 will prepare either an environmental assessment
(EA) or an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) that describes and
evaluates the probable effects, if any, of the licensee's proposed
action and alternatives. The EA or EIS will consider environmental
impacts and reasonable alternatives to the proposed action. The
Commission's scoping process will help determine the required level of
analysis and satisfy the NEPA scoping requirements, irrespective of
whether the Commission prepares an EA or an EIS. Due to concerns with
large gatherings related to COVID-19, we do not intend to conduct a
public scoping meeting and site visit in this case. Instead, we are
soliciting written comments and suggestions on the preliminary list of
issues and alternatives to be addressed in the NEPA document, as
described in scoping document 1 (SD1), issued June 8, 2021.
Copies of the SD1 outlining the subject areas to be addressed in
the NEPA document 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 <a href="http://www.ferc.gov">http://www.ferc.gov</a> 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: June 8, 2021.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2021-12378 Filed 6-11-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P
</pre><script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on June 14, 2021.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.