Notice2022-18381
Badger State Solar, LLC: Notice of Availability of a Final Environmental Impact Statement
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
August 26, 2022
Issuing agencies
Agriculture DepartmentRural Utilities Service
Abstract
The Rural Utilities Service (RUS), an agency within the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), has prepared a Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) to meet its responsibilities under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) as amended, RUS's implementing regulations, and other applicable environmental requirements related to providing financial assistance for Badger State Solar, LLC's proposed Alternating Current solar project (Project) in Wisconsin. RUS has included documentation in the FEIS demonstrating RUS has completed its responsibilities under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act and its implementing regulations, "Protection of Historic Properties." The FEIS addresses the construction, operation, and maintenance of a 149 megawatt (MW) photovoltaic (PV) alternating current solar energy generating facility on a site in in Jefferson County, Wisconsin described previously in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS). It also addresses comments received during the comment period for the DEIS.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 87 Issue 165 (Friday, August 26, 2022)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 165 (Friday, August 26, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52502-52503]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-18381]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Rural Utilities Service
[Docket #: RUS-22-ELECTRIC-0049]
Badger State Solar, LLC: Notice of Availability of a Final
Environmental Impact Statement
AGENCY: Rural Utilities Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of availability of a Final Environmental Impact
Statement.
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SUMMARY: The Rural Utilities Service (RUS), an agency within the United
States Department of Agriculture (USDA), has prepared a Final
Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) to meet its responsibilities
under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) as amended,
RUS's implementing regulations, and other applicable environmental
requirements related to providing financial assistance for Badger State
Solar, LLC's proposed Alternating Current solar project (Project) in
Wisconsin. RUS has included documentation in the FEIS demonstrating RUS
has completed its responsibilities under Section 106 of the National
Historic Preservation Act and its implementing regulations,
``Protection of Historic Properties.'' The FEIS addresses the
construction, operation, and maintenance of a 149 megawatt (MW)
photovoltaic (PV) alternating current solar energy generating facility
on a site in in Jefferson County, Wisconsin described previously in the
Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS). It also addresses comments
received during the comment period for the DEIS.
DATES: Written comments on the FEIS will be accepted for 30 days
following the publication of the Environmental Protection Agency's
environmental impact statement receipt notice in the Federal Register.
Comments must be received by October 3, 2022. Notices of Availability
of the FEIS will be published in local newspapers. After a 30-day
comment period on the FEIS, RUS will prepare a Record of Decision for
its respective action. The environmental review process is expected to
conclude in Fall 2022.
ADDRESSES: The Final EIS and other Project-related information is
available at RUS's and Badger State Solar's websites located at:
<a href="https://www.rd.usda.gov/resources/environmental-studies/impact-statements">https://www.rd.usda.gov/resources/environmental-studies/impact-statements</a>, <a href="https://badgerstatesolar.consultation.ai">https://badgerstatesolar.consultation.ai</a>, and <a href="https://www.badgerstatesolar.com">https://www.badgerstatesolar.com</a>.
All comments submitted during the comment period will become part
of the public record. Before including your address, telephone number,
email address, or other personal identifying information in your
comment, you should be aware that your entire comment_including your
personal identifying information_may be made publicly available at any
time. All comments will be reviewed and in the Record of Decision. For
consideration, comments must be received by October 3, 2022.
Comments may be submitted at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#5a183b3e3d3f28092e3b2e3f0935363b281f13091a2f293e3b743d352c"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="9cdefdf8fbf9eecfe8fde8f9cff3f0fdeed9d5cfdce9eff8fdb2fbf3ea">[email protected]</span></a> during
the comment period. Comments submitted after the comment period may not
be considered by the agency.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To receive copies of the FEIS or
request information on the proposed Project, the FEIS process, and RUS
financing, contact Peter Steinour at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#fbb99a9f9c9e89a88f9a8f9ea894979a89beb2a8bb8e889f9ad59c948d"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="f5b79491929087a681948190a69a999487b0bca6b580869194db929a83">[email protected]</span></a> or
202-692-5346.
Copies of the FEIS will be available for review at the Jefferson
Public Library in Jefferson, WI, the Cambridge Community Library in
Cambridge, WI and the Lake Mills Library in Lake Mills, WI. Library
locations will be published in the local papers.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Badger State Solar is a project of the solar
development company, Ranger Power. Many of Wisconsin's fossil-fueled
power plants are scheduled to cease power generation over the next
several years. Six of the 12 coal-fired power plants in Wisconsin have
been retired or are scheduled to go offline. The Applicant's purpose
and need for the proposed Project is to develop a utility-scale solar
facility in Jefferson County, Wisconsin, to replace load demand on
local utilities, including Dairyland Power, resulting from coal-fired
power plant closures or scheduled decommissioning.
Badger State Solar has indicated the intention to request Federal
financing from USDA RUS for development of the Project. While RUS is
authorized under the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 (REA) to finance
electric generation infrastructure in rural areas, it is the
Midcontinent Independent System Operator, Inc. (MISO), not RUS, who is
responsible for electric grid planning. Supporting renewable energy
projects meets both RUS's goal to support infrastructure development in
rural communities and USDA's support of the President's Climate Action
Plan, issued in June 2013, which encourages voluntary actions to
increase energy independence.
Badger State Solar proposes to construct, install, operate, and
maintain a 149 MW PV alternating current solar energy generating
facility on a site in the Townships of Jefferson and Oakland, in
Jefferson County, Wisconsin. The proposed Project involves
approximately 1,200 acres located on the north and south sides of U.S.
Highway 18, approximately 2-miles west of the City of Jefferson and
west of State Highway 89. Site land cover is predominantly agricultural
crops and pasture, with some forest and wetland. Bader State Solar
estimates the total project cost will be approximately $225,000,000.
Project construction would begin in October 2022. Construction would be
complete, and the project would be expected to come online by Fall
2023.
Construction involves the installation on leased lands of 487,848
single-axis tracking PV panels. The PV panels would be mounted on a
steel racking frame. Supporting facilities include an electrical
substation. The lease agreement allows for an operating period of 40
years. A power purchase agreement (PPA) has been executed with
Dairyland Power Cooperative for the entire output of the Project. The
proposed site is near the point of interconnection to the grid at the
American Transmission Company Jefferson substation near the
[[Page 52503]]
intersection of State Trunk Highway 89 and U.S. Highway 18.
Construction equipment would include graders, bulldozers,
excavators, forklifts, trailers, plows, trenchers, pile drivers, and
directional boring rigs. Vehicles for transporting construction
materials and components primarily would be legal load over-the road
flatbed and box trucks. Transport would use existing regional roads,
bridges, and intersections. Laydown areas would be established within
the Project site. Internal site access roads would be required. The
solar facility would be interconnected to the transmission grid through
the existing ATC substation located to the northeast of the proposed
substation and would require a short 138 kilovolt (kV) overhead line
between the two stations. Laydown areas and a Laydown Yard would be
established within the Project site. Fencing would be placed around
contiguous blocks of solar arrays.
Potential locations for development of the solar facility in
Wisconsin were evaluated in an initial preliminary site review to
identify locations where electric transmission infrastructure would be
sufficient to connect a solar project to the power grid. The Site
Selection Study consisted of three phases of evaluation which began
with 18 potential sites and ended with the identification of the 1,200
acre proposed site in Jefferson County as the most feasible alternative
for detailed evaluation in the EIS because it best meets the purpose
and need and minimizes or mitigates potential impacts.
RUS is authorized to make loans and loan guarantees that finance
the construction of the Badger State Solar Alternating Current Project.
RUS is responsible for completing the environmental review process in
processing Badger State Solar's application. RUS is serving as the lead
Federal agency, as defined at 40 CFR1501.5, for preparation of the
FEIS.
The proposed Project is subject to the jurisdiction of Public
Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSCW), Wisconsin Department of Natural
Resources (WDNR), Wisconsin State Historical Society of Historic
Preservation Office (SHPO), Wisconsin Department of Transportation
(WisDOT), and State of Wisconsin Division of Safety and Buildings. PSCW
and WDNR are responsible for coordination of environmental reviews for
compliance with the Wisconsin Environmental Policy Act (WEPA). PSCW and
WDNR must comply with WEPA when reviewing proposed energy construction
projects, including electric generating and transmission projects
seeking PSCW statutory approval. WEPA applies only to actions of state
agencies. However, the environmental impact of the proposed Project was
reviewed by PSCW, in coordination with WDNR, as part of the application
for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN). PSCW
issued an Order approving the CPCN application subject conditions
issued in the Final Decision on February 26, 2020 (Docket 9800-CE-100)
RUS has prepared the FEIS to analyze the impacts of its respective
Federal actions and the proposed Project in accordance with the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), as amended (42 United
States Code [U.S.C.] 4321 et seq.), Council on Environmental Quality
(CEQ) regulations for implementing the procedural provisions of NEPA
(40 Code of Federal Regulations [CFR] part 1500 et seq.), and Rural
Utilities Service (RUS), Environmental Policies and Procedures (7 CFR
part 1970 et seq.). RUS has prepared and published a DEIS which can be
found on the RUS and Badger State Solar websites (<a href="https://www.rd.usda.gov/resources/environmental-studies/impact-statements">https://www.rd.usda.gov/resources/environmental-studies/impact-statements</a>,
<a href="https://badgerstatesolar.consultation.ai">https://badgerstatesolar.consultation.ai</a>, and <a href="https://www.badgerstatesolar.com">https://www.badgerstatesolar.com</a>).
RUS evaluated the potential impacts of the proposed Project on
environmental resources. The analysis determined that there would be no
impact or minor adverse impacts on soils and geology, air quality,
acoustic environment (noise), water resources (including groundwater
and surface water), biological resources (including vegetation,
wetlands, riparian areas, floodplains, wildlife, fisheries and aquatic
resources, and threatened and endangered species), land resources
(including prime farmlands), visual resources, transportation, cultural
resources and historic properties, public health and safety, and
socioeconomics and environmental justice associated with the proposed
Project. Badger State Solar would implement mitigation measures as
necessary and appropriate to minimize adverse impacts. There would be
potential beneficial effects on soils, water resources, air quality,
and socioeconomics. Unavoidable adverse effects related to proposed
Project operations would last only as long as the useful life of the
solar facility (an expected 40 years). Implementation of the proposed
Project would not result in significant unavoidable adverse impacts,
irreversible or irretrievable commitment of resources, or in permanent
losses to maintenance or enhancement of long-term productivity of the
environment. When the incremental effects from the proposed Project are
considered together with other past, present, and reasonably
foreseeable future actions, there would be no cumulative adverse
impact.
This Notice of Availability also serves as a notice of proposed
wetland and floodplain actions. It is anticipated that there will be no
permanent wetland impacts and no significant direct or indirect impacts
to floodplains. The proposed Project was planned to avoid and minimize
impacts to wetlands and waterways to the extent practicable during the
site selection and design phase of the Project. Throughout the Project,
best management practices (BMPs) (e.g., silt fences, hand-clearing of
vegetation where necessary, etc.) will be implemented to minimize soil
disturbance in or near wetlands and jurisdictional streams, and BMPs in
accordance with requirements of the Project's Sediment and Erosion
Control Plan and stormwater pollution prevention plan would be
followed. Temporary impacts to wetlands would be permitted in
accordance with United States Army Corps of Engineers and state
requirements. The proposed Project also has been designed to avoid
impacts to sensitive floodplains; there are no floodplains present
within the Project boundary.
Christopher A. McLean,
Acting Administrator, Rural Utilities Service, U.S. Department of
Agriculture.
[FR Doc. 2022-18381 Filed 8-25-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-15-P
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