Notice2023-01102
Cumberland Fossil Plant Retirement 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
January 20, 2023
Issuing agencies
Tennessee Valley Authority
Abstract
The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) has made a decision to adopt the Preferred Alternative identified in the Cumberland Fossil Plant Retirement Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The Notice of Availability of the Final EIS for the Cumberland Fossil Plant Retirement was published in the Federal Register on December 9, 2022. TVA's preferred alternative, Alternative A, involves the retirement and demolition of TVA's two-unit, coal-fired Cumberland Fossil Plant (CUF) and the construction and operation of a natural gas-fueled combined cycle (CC) plant on the CUF Reservation to replace the generation capacity of one of the two retired units. This least-cost alternative would achieve the purpose and need of the project to retire and decommission the two CUF units, one unit by the end of 2026 and the other unit by the end of 2028, and to provide replacement generation that can supply 1,450 megawatts (MW) of firm, dispatchable power by the time the first unit is retired by the end of 2026 to ensure that TVA is able to meet required year-round generation, maximum capacity system demands and planning reserve margin targets, particularly during peak load events.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 13 (Friday, January 20, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 13 (Friday, January 20, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3767-3771]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-01102]
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TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY
Cumberland Fossil Plant Retirement Environmental Impact Statement
AGENCY: Tennessee Valley Authority.
ACTION: Record of decision.
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SUMMARY: The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) has made a decision to
adopt the Preferred Alternative identified in the Cumberland Fossil
Plant Retirement Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The Notice
of Availability of the Final EIS for the Cumberland Fossil Plant
Retirement was published in the Federal Register on December 9, 2022.
TVA's preferred alternative, Alternative A, involves the retirement and
demolition of TVA's two-unit, coal-fired Cumberland Fossil Plant (CUF)
and the construction and operation of a natural gas-fueled combined
cycle (CC) plant on the CUF Reservation to replace the generation
capacity of one of the two retired units. This least-cost alternative
would achieve the purpose and need of the project to retire and
decommission the two CUF units, one unit by the end of 2026 and the
other unit by the end of 2028, and to provide replacement generation
that can supply 1,450 megawatts (MW) of firm, dispatchable power by the
time the first unit is retired by the end of 2026 to ensure that TVA is
able to meet required year-round generation, maximum capacity system
demands and planning reserve margin targets, particularly during peak
load events.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ashley Pilakowski, NEPA Project
Manager, Tennessee Valley Authority, 400 West Summit Hill Drive,
Knoxville, Tennessee 37902; telephone 865-632-2256; or email
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#ed8c8c9d84818c86829a9e8684ad999b8cc38a829b"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="a6c7c7d6cfcac7cdc9d1d5cdcfe6d2d0c788c1c9d0">[email protected]</span></a>. The Final EIS, this Record of Decision (ROD) and
other project documents are available on TVA's website <a href="https://www.tva.gov/nepa">https://www.tva.gov/nepa</a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice is provided in accordance with
the Council on Environmental Quality's regulations for implementing the
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) (40 Code of Federal
Regulations (CFR) 1500 through 1508) and TVA's NEPA procedures (18 CFR
1318). TVA is a corporate agency of the United States that provides
electricity for business customers and local power distributors serving
10 million people in the Tennessee Valley--an 80,000-square-mile region
comprised of Tennessee and parts of Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia,
Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky. TVA receives no taxpayer funding
and derives virtually all revenues from the sale of electricity. In
addition to operating and investing revenues in its power system, TVA
provides flood control, navigation, and land management for the
Tennessee Valley watershed and provides economic development and job
creation assistance within the Service area.
In 2019, TVA completed its Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) and
associated Final EIS. The IRP identified the various energy resource
options that TVA intends to pursue to meet the energy needs of the
Tennessee Valley region over a 20-year planning period.
Following the completion of the TVA 2019 IRP, TVA began conducting
end-of-life evaluations of its operating coal-fired generating plants
not already scheduled for retirement to inform long-term planning. This
evaluation confirmed that the aging TVA coal fleet is among the oldest
in the nation and is experiencing performance challenges as well as
deteriorating material condition. The performance challenges are
projected to increase because of the coal fleet's advancing age and the
difficulty of adapting the fleet's generation within the changing
generation profile. The continued long-term operation of TVA's coal
plants is contributing to environmental, economic, and reliability
risks. CUF is the largest plant in the TVA coal fleet with a summer net
generating capacity of 2,470 MW. CUF is situated on a 2,388-acre
reservation on the Cumberland River in Cumberland City, Stewart County,
Tennessee.
CUF was built between 1968 and 1973 and used primarily as baseload
generation. As TVA's generating fleet evolved, primarily with the
additions of nuclear, gas, and renewable resources over the past 10-15
years, there was less of a need for CUF to consistently operate at full
power. This has resulted in frequent cycling of the large super-
critical units or turning them on and off as needed to meet demand. The
plant was not originally designed for this type of operation, which
presents reliability challenges that are difficult to anticipate and
expensive to mitigate. As TVA continues to transition the rest of its
fleet to cleaner and more flexible technologies, CUF will continue to
be challenged to reliably operate on this as-needed basis. Based on
this analysis, TVA has developed planning assumptions for CUF
retirement. These assumptions include retirement of both CUF units and
the addition of at least 1,450 MW of firm, dispatchable generation to
replace the generation capacity lost from retirement of one of the CUF
units, which is in-line with the recommendations in the 2019 IRP.
Replacement generation of this kind will allow TVA to replace the
dependable capacity of the first unit as well as account for modest
anticipated load increases. The replacement generation would need to be
online prior to retirement of the first CUF unit by the end of 2026.
Planning for the replacement generation for the second retired CUF unit
will be deferred to allow consideration of a broader range of
replacement generation alternatives depending on system needs and the
state of technology at the time replacement is needed.
TVA has prepared the Final EIS pursuant to NEPA to assess the
[[Page 3768]]
environmental impacts associated with retiring and decommissioning the
two coal-fired CUF units and constructing and operating the replacement
generation for one of the retired units.
Alternatives Considered
TVA assessed a No Action Alternative and three action alternatives.
Under all action alternatives, two CUF units would be retired and
demolished. The three action alternatives assessed in the Final EIS
provide at least 1,450 MW of replacement generation for one retired
unit using one of the following: (1) construction and operation of a
natural gas-fueled CC plant on the CUF Reservation (Alternative A); (2)
construction and operation of natural gas-fueled simple cycle
combustion turbine (CT) plants at two alternate locations (Alternative
B); and (3) construction and operation of solar generation and energy
storage facilities at alternate locations primarily in Middle Tennessee
(Alternative C). The Final EIS also evaluated related actions
associated with the gas supply and transmission components of the
respective alternatives.
The alternatives considered by TVA in the Draft and Final EIS are:
No Action Alternative--Under the No Action Alternative, TVA would
not retire the two CUF units. These units would continue to operate as
part of the TVA generation portfolio. For the existing units to remain
operational, additional construction, repairs, and maintenance would be
necessary to maintain reliability and comply with applicable regulatory
requirements, such as the Effluent Limitation Guidelines under the
Clean Water Act (CWA). Under the No Action Alternative, TVA would not
construct new replacement generation. Based on the age, material
condition, and cost required to ensure reliability of CUF, this
alternative does not meet the purpose and need of TVA's proposed
action.
Alternative A--TVA's preferred alternative, Alternative A, involves
retirement of CUF, demolition of the units, and construction and
operation of a 1,450-MW natural gas-fueled CC plant on the CUF
Reservation. The CC plant and associated 500-kilovolt (kV) switchyard
and gas compression station would occupy approximately 196 acres. The
30-inch diameter gas pipeline to supply natural gas to the CC plant
would be constructed and operated by Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company,
L.L.C. (TGP) in a 100-foot-wide corridor adjacent to an existing TVA
transmission line crossing portions of Dickson, Houston, and Stewart
Counties, Tennessee.
The pipeline requires approval by the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission (FERC) through issuance of a Certificate of Public
Convenience and Necessity under section 7 of the Natural Gas Act. TGP
has submitted an application for certification of the pipeline to FERC.
The pipeline project, named the Cumberland Project, is FERC Docket No.
CP22-493-000 and the subject of a Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare an
EIS issued by FERC on September 13, 2022. Details of the pipeline and
its potential environmental impacts, provided in resource reports
prepared by TGP and submitted to FERC, are incorporated into the TVA
Final EIS.
Alternative B--Alternative B would provide the necessary
replacement generation through the construction and operation of a 4-
unit combustion turbine (CT) plant on TVA's Johnsonville reservation in
New Johnsonville, Humphreys County, Tennessee, and a 3-unit CT plant on
TVA's Gleason Reservation near Dresden in Weakley County, Tennessee.
The two CT plants would have a combined generating capacity of 1,530
MWs. The Johnsonville CT plant would occupy the site of a demolished
coal plant and the Gleason CT plant site is relatively undisturbed.
Both sites have an adequate existing natural gas supply. The Gleason CT
plant would require the construction of a 40-mile, 500-kV transmission
line and 500-kV substation in Weakley and Henry Counties, Tennessee.
Alternative C--Under Alternative C, the necessary replacement power
would be provided by the construction and operation of 3,000 MW of
solar photovoltaic generating facilities and 1,700 MW of battery energy
storage facilities. Due to an average annual capacity factor of 25
percent for solar resources, in order to match the total energy output
lost to the TVA system from the retirement of the first CUF unit, a
higher nameplate capacity would be required for a solar resource than
the 1,450 MW minimum resource requirement for a fully dispatchable
resource, such as a CC or CT plant. These facilities would be located
at numerous sites totaling approximately 22,000 acres for the solar
facilities and 640 acres for the battery storage facilities that are
primarily in Middle Tennessee. Each solar and storage facility would
also require the construction of an interconnection to the TVA
transmission system.
TVA identified Alternative A, the retirement of CUF and the
construction and operation of a 1,450-MW natural gas-fired CC plant on
the CUF reservation, as the preferred alternative in both the Draft and
Final EISs. This was largely due to Alternative A best meeting the
purpose and need of the proposed action, particularly its ability to
provide replacement generation that can supply 1,450 MW of firm,
dispatchable power by the time the first CUF unit is retired by the end
of 2026. The replacement described in Alternative A aligns with the
2019 IRP near-term actions to evaluate engineering end-of-life dates
for aging generation units to inform long-term planning; enhance system
flexibility to integrate renewables and distributed resources; increase
reliability and resiliency; and meet near-term energy production goals.
Alternative A costs approximately $1.8 billion less than Alternative C
in project costs which include capital, fuel, transmission, and
production costs. Financial and system analysis indicates that
replacement of the first CUF unit with a CC plant is the best overall
solution to provide low-cost, reliable, and cleaner energy for the TVA
power system. TVA has also selected Alternative A because the proposed
CC plant at CUF provides the flexibility needed to reliably integrate
10,000 MW of solar onto the system by 2035 and significantly reduces
carbon emissions as compared to the No Action Alternative.
While the Alternative B replacement generation by the two CT plants
could likely be constructed by the end of 2026, the planning,
permitting, and construction of the associated 500-kV transmission line
would be unachievable by the end of 2026. Likewise, for Alternative C,
the construction of the multiple solar and storage facilities, as well
as their associated transmission system interconnections, would be
unachievable by the end of 2026.
Alternatives Considered Environmentally Preferable
The anticipated environmental impacts of the No Action Alternative
and the three action alternatives are described in the Final EIS. For
Alternative A, as noted above, the description of the anticipated
impacts of the associated natural gas supply pipeline are based on
information provided to TVA by TGP and will also be addressed in the
EIS for the Cumberland pipeline project being prepared by FERC. For
Alternative B, the route of the 40-mile, 500-kV transmission line and
the location of the associated substation are unknown at this time and
their potential impacts are described generally based on impact
[[Page 3769]]
assessments of previous TVA transmission projects. Similarly, the
locations of the multiple solar and battery storage facilities for
Alternative C are unknown at this time and the descriptions of their
impacts are also described generally based on impact assessments of
similar previous TVA projects. For several environmental resources, the
differences in the impacts of the three action alternatives are
negligible.
The No Action Alternative would avoid the impacts of constructing
and operating new generating facilities and associated gas pipeline and
transmission system connections. It would, however, continue to produce
relatively large quantities of air pollutants, including greenhouse
gases, from continued operation of the CUF coal-fired plant, as well as
wastewater discharges and solid wastes from coal combustion.
The Alternative A and Alternative B generating plants have been
sited and designed to largely avoid or minimize impacts to water
resources, including streams and wetlands. The Alternative A natural
gas pipeline would require trenching across several streams, resulting
in short-term, localized impacts. The Alternative B transmission line
would likely also cross streams and possibly wetlands, although with
minimal impacts. Adverse effect to a historic house listed on the
National Register of Historic Places resulting from the construction of
the Alternative A CC plant would be mitigated by TVA in accordance with
a Memorandum of Agreement with the Tennessee State Historic
Preservation Office (SHPO). The Alternative B transmission line and
Alternative C solar and storage facilities would, to the extent
feasible, be sited to avoid impacts to historic properties and any
unavoidable impacts would be mitigated.
All of the action alternatives would affect land use and prime
farmland. The various components of Alternatives A, B, and C would have
long-term effects on the land use of approximately 585 acres, 1,000
acres, and 22,500 acres, respectively. For Alternatives A and B, the
effects on prime farmland would largely occur during the construction
of the pipeline and transmission line and long-term effects would be
minimal. Based on past experience in developing solar facilities in the
TVA region, a large proportion of the 22,500 acres occupied by
Alternative C facilities would be prime farmland. Aside from potential
use as pasture, the solar facility sites would be unavailable for
agricultural production. The sites could, however, be returned to
agricultural production with little loss of soil productivity following
decommissioning of the solar facilities. A portion of the approximately
640 acres occupied by storage facilities would likely be farmland,
which would be converted to industrial use.
All of the Alternative A, B, and C components have been or would be
sited to minimize impacts to threatened and endangered species. Most
impacts to listed species would be avoided although all alternatives
would likely adversely affect habitat for tree-roosting threatened and
endangered bats through the clearing of forest. The clearing of forest
would also result in local adverse effects to other forest-dwelling
wildlife.
For the Cumberland Final EIS, TVA completed its consultation under
section 7 of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) with the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (USFWS) on August 26, 2022. Since conclusion of that
consultation, the USFWS reclassified the northern long-eared bat (NLEB)
as ``endangered'' under the ESA on November 30, 2022. This
reclassification becomes effective on January 30, 2023. Further, on
September 13, 2022, the USFWS issued a proposed rule to list the tri-
colored bat as ``endangered'' under the ESA. TVA will ensure that
project activities are conducted in a manner consistent with any
protections established for the tricolored bat, and with the up-listing
of the NLEB to ``endangered'' that will become effective on January 30,
2023 pursuant to the ESA and its implementing regulations.
Locally adverse impacts to visual resources would likely result
from all of the action alternatives. The main sources of visual impacts
from Alternatives A and B would be from the cleared right-of-way for
the 32-mile natural gas pipeline associated with Alternative A and the
cleared right-of-way and approximate 100-foot tall transmission
structures and conductors for the 40-mile transmission line associated
with Alternative B. The Alternative C solar and battery storage
facilities would alter the scenery at multiple locations. Overall
visual impacts are likely lowest under Alternative A.
Based on currently available site-specific information, effects
experienced by environmental justice populations may be amplified,
specifically for adverse effects to surface water, waste, safety,
noise, transportation, and visual aesthetics under Alternative A; for
adverse effects to recreation, air quality, transportation, waste,
noise, and visual aesthetics under Alternative B; and for adverse
effects to land use, vegetation, recreation, water resources, wildlife,
transportation, noise, safety, and visual aesthetics under Alternative
C. However, none of the action alternatives are likely to result in
significant disproportionate adverse impacts to qualifying low-income
and minority environmental justice populations. All of the action
alternatives would have local beneficial impacts from employment during
the construction of the generating and storage facilities. For
Alternative C, this construction employment would be dispersed over a
much larger area than for Alternatives A and B. The retirement of CUF,
however, would likely result in an overall decline in employment by
plant operators, as the replacement facilities would require fewer
employees.
All of the action alternatives would result in large decreases in
emissions of air pollutants, including greenhouse gases (GHGs, ethane,
nitrous oxide), compared to the No Action Alternative. Specifically,
with respect to GHGs, TVA's primary analysis for GHG impacts is based
on the use of ``proxy emissions.'' This proxy analysis shows similar
GHG impacts for all action alternatives. Despite uncertainties
surrounding the use of Social Cost of GHGs (SC-GHG), TVA conducted a
life cycle analysis using the SC-GHGs as a secondary analysis that
could be given appropriate and due weight by the decision-maker. Under
such a secondary GHG analysis, Alternative C generates, compared to the
No Action Alternative, the most cost savings (approximately $4.8
billion), followed by Alternative A (approximately $4.4 billion), then
followed by Alternative B (approximately $3.9 billion). In sum, all
action alternatives would have a long-term beneficial impact to air
quality and climate compared to the No Action alternative, with
Alternative C resulting in the largest decrease of air emissions.
Alternatives A and B facilitate future integration of solar on the
grid, thereby advancing TVA's path towards reducing carbon emissions by
about 80 percent by 2035. The difference in impacts to most other
environmental and socioeconomic resources amongst all action
alternatives is small, with the exception of impacts to land use and
prime farmland that are potentially the greatest under Alternative C.
TVA notes that the 2019 IRP (Chapter 5) accounts for the resiliency
of TVA's power system, detailing the annual outage rate assumptions for
all selectable resources including CC, CT, solar and battery
(Alternatives considered in the Final EIS). For plans between IRPs, TVA
regularly updates outage rates based on actual performance, and current
planning
[[Page 3770]]
assumptions remain largely consistent with those discussed in the IRP.
Appendix D of the 2019 IRP explains how the reserve margin study
approach and analysis captures uncertainty that arises due to weather,
load forecast error, and plant outages. The decision evaluated in the
Cumberland EIS falls within the parameters of the broader,
comprehensive asset strategy established by the 2019 IRP, which
considers the resiliency of TVA's entire power system. Similarly, the
IRP's evaluation of risk and the required planning reserve constraints
appropriate to account for risk are inherently part of the broader
asset strategy with which this decision evaluation and analysis is
aligned.
Public Involvement
TVA initiated a 30-day public scoping period on May 11, 2021, when
it published the NOI in the Federal Register (86 FR 25933) announcing
the preparation of an EIS for the retirement of CUF and construction
and operation of facilities to replace part of the retired generating
capacity. TVA also announced the proposal and requested comments on the
proposal in news releases; on its website; in notices in CUF-area
newspapers; and in letters to federal, state, and local agencies and
federally recognized Indian tribes. TVA held a live virtual public
scoping meeting on May 27, 2021, and hosted a virtual meeting room with
project information for the duration of the scoping period. TVA
received approximately 830 scoping comments, the majority of which were
through a form letter campaign. These comments were carefully
considered during the preparation of the EIS.
The Notice of Availability (NOA) of the Draft EIS was published by
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) in the Federal
Register on April 29, 2022 (87 FR 25485), initiating a 45-day public
comment period that ended on June 13, 2022. The availability of the
Draft EIS and request for comments was also announced on the TVA
website; in regional and local newspapers; in a news release; and in
letters to local, state, and Federal agencies and federally recognized
tribes. TVA contacted local officials and leaders, schools, and
community action organizations in the CUF area. TVA held a virtual
public meeting and in-person public meetings in Cumberland City and
Erin, Tennessee, during the Draft EIS comment period.
TVA received approximately 770 individual comments and 930
signatures on the Draft EIS, many of which were submitted through form
letter campaigns. Most commentors generally supported the retirement of
the CUF Plant but opposed Alternative A, Alternative B, or both. TVA
carefully reviewed all of the substantive comments that it received
and, where appropriate, revised the text of the EIS to address the
comments. The submitted comments and TVA's responses to them are
included in an appendix to the Final EIS. The USEPA, in its comments on
the Draft EIS, requested to be a cooperating agency in the preparation
of the Final EIS. TVA granted this request. After considering and
responding to comments on the Draft EIS, TVA issued the Final EIS. The
NOA for the Final EIS was published in the Federal Register on December
9, 2022 (87 FR 75625). Following the publication of the NOA for the
Final EIS, and therefore outside of the comment period for the EIS, TVA
received additional public comments in January 2023, including a
comment letter from the USEPA. The USEPA reviewed the document in
accordance with section 309 of the Clean Air Act (CAA) and section
102(2)(C) of NEPA. USEPA is also a cooperating agency on this project.
The comments raised by the USEPA reiterated the agency's earlier
comments on the Draft EIS and did not raise new issues of relevance
that were not already addressed by TVA in the Final EIS or Appendix O
of the Final EIS, with the exception of the resiliency of the
considered Alternatives with respect to grid emergencies, which is
addressed in the above section on ``Alternatives Considered
Environmentally Preferable.''
Decision
TVA certifies, in accordance with 40 CFR 1505.2(b), that the agency
has considered all of the alternatives, information, analyses, material
in the record determined to be relevant, and objections submitted by
State, Tribal, and local governments and public commenters for
consideration in developing the Final EIS.
TVA has decided to implement the preferred alternative identified
in the Final EIS: Alternative A, to retire and demolish the two CUF
coal units and construct a new natural gas-fueled, 1,450-MW CC plant at
the CUF reservation. This alternative best achieves TVA's purpose and
need to retire the two CUF units and to replace the generation from one
of the retired units by the end of 2026.
Mitigation Measures
TVA would employ standard practices and routine measures and other
project-specific measures to avoid, minimize, and mitigate adverse
impacts from implementation of Alternative A. TVA would also implement
minimization and mitigation measures based on best management practices
(BMP), permit requirements, and adherence to erosion and sediment
control plans. TVA would utilize standard BMPs to minimize erosion
during construction, operation, and maintenance activities. These BMPs
are described in A Guide for Environmental Protection and BMPs for TVA
Construction and Maintenance Activities--Revision 4 and the Tennessee
Erosion and Sediment Control Handbook.
For those activities with potential to affect listed bats, TVA
would commit to implement specific conservation measures previously
approved by USFWS through TVA's programmatic consultation to ensure
effects would not be significant. Relevant conservation measures that
would be implemented as part of the approved project are listed in the
bat strategy form (appendix L of the FEIS) and include a commitment to
remove trees between November 15 and March 31 when listed bat species
are not expected to be roosting in trees and when most migratory bird
species of conservation concern are not nesting in the region.
TVA has committed to ensuring that the design of the Alternative A
CC plant would enable and accommodate potential future modifications
for carbon capture and the combustion of hydrogen as a replacement or
supplemental fuel for natural gas, as and when these technologies
mature to scale. The proposed CC plant would be designed to be 5
percent hydrogen capable at commissioning by adding balance of plant
(BOP) equipment that includes areas for future hydrogen storage,
appropriately sized piping, and a blending station during the original
construction. TVA would also purchase a combustion turbine capable of
burning at least 30 percent hydrogen, by volume, with modifications to
the BOP once a hydrogen source is available. TVA would only consider
burning hydrogen as a part of test burns or normal operations when it
is commercially available at an acceptable chemical content that would
reduce carbon emissions and be price-competitive in the market at that
time.
It is important to note that once a viable option for future
mitigation projects is identified, TVA would conduct additional
analyses to determine proposed pipeline routes, costs, storage
requirements, or other needs with hydrogen fuel incorporation. TVA
would analyze the site-specific impacts associated with any future
[[Page 3771]]
mitigation that is planned as additional details become available.
Non-routine mitigation measures associated with cultural resources,
specifically the historic Henry Hollister House, include adherence to
the project specific MOA that has been executed for the Cumberland
Retirement project. These mitigation measures include:
<bullet> Installation of a Tennessee Historical Marker
[cir] TVA will submit a proposal for a historical marker through
the Tennessee Historical Commission's (THC's) Historical Markers
Program; work with THC staff regarding eligibility of the proposed
marker for the program and regarding the marker's location and text;
and install the marker, at TVA's expense, in an appropriate location,
accessible by the public, near the Hollister House. The historical
marker will present a brief narrative of the history and historic
significance of the Hollister House.
<bullet> Vegetative Screening
[cir] TVA will plant trees to screen views to the new facilities
from the Hollister House.
[cir] TVA will create the vegetative screening using various tree
species, including native species, and including both deciduous and
evergreen species.
[cir] TVA will plant the vegetative screening on the south and east
sides of the Hollister House, on TVA property.
[cir] TVA will maintain the vegetative screening for so long as TVA
owns and operates the new CC plant, so that it may provide the visual
screen in perpetuity.
<bullet> Study of Graveyard Hill Cemetery
[cir] TVA will complete a search for documents related to the
Graveyard Hill Cemetery and the persons who may be buried there.
[cir] The archival study will endeavor to include (but will not
necessarily be limited to) the following sources: birth and death
certificates, marriage certificates, deeds, census data, records of
sales in the slave trade, and obituaries.
[cir] TVA will also complete a delineation of the cemetery using
one or more remote sensing methods and shall attempt to identify the
boundaries of the cemetery and anomalies that could correspond to
graves.
[cir] TVA will prepare a report of the investigations and submit
them to SHPO for review and comment and provide a final report that
addresses any comments received from SHPO/THC.
<bullet> Updating the Hollister House National Register of Historic
Places NRHP Registration Form
[cir] TVA will update the Hollister House NRHP Registration Form,
which was completed in 1987, with new information detailed in three
historic architectural assessments performed between 2012 and 2022.
[cir] The new information will include details of the history of
the property and the associated cemeteries (Brunson/Hollister Cemetery
and Graveyard Hill Cemetery), additional historic photographs, and
information on the property's current condition, and the inclusion of
any additional resources that TVA and SHPO agree in consultation are
contributing resources to the Hollister House.
[cir] TVA will provide the updated form to the THC for review, and
upon approval, to the NPS.
Dated: January 10, 2023.
Jeff Lyash,
President & Chief Executive Officer, Tennessee Valley Authority.
[FR Doc. 2023-01102 Filed 1-19-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8120-08-P
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