ECOsponsible, LLC; Notice of Termination of License (Major Project) by Implied Surrender and Soliciting Comments, Protests, and Motions To Intervene

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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 197 (Wednesday, October 14, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 197 (Wednesday, October 14, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65203-65204]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-20997]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 9709-070]


ECOsponsible, LLC; Notice of Termination of License (Major 
Project) by Implied Surrender and Soliciting Comments, Protests, and 
Motions To Intervene

    Take notice that the following hydroelectric proceeding has been 
initiated by the Commission:
    a. Application Type: Termination of License by Implied Surrender.
    b. Project No: 9709-070.
    c. Date Initiated: October 8, 2026.
    d. Licensee: ECOsponsible, LLC.
    e. Name of Project: Herkimer Hydroelectric Project.
    f. Location: The Herkimer Hydroelectric Project is located on the 
West Canada Creek, Herkimer County, New York.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: Standard Article 26.
    h. Applicant Contact: 469 Snyder Road, East Aurora NY 14052-9710.
    i. FERC Contact: David Rudisail, (202) 502-6376, 
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#177376617e73396562737e64767e7b577172657439707861"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="0b6f6a7d626f25797e6f62786a62674b6d6e7968256c647d">[email&#160;protected]</span></a>.
    j. Deadline for filing comments, motions to intervene and protests: 
November 9, 2026.
    The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file 
comments, motions to intervene, and protests using the Commission's 
eFiling system at <a href="http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp">http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp</a>. 
Commenters can submit brief comments up to 6,000 characters, without 
prior registration, using the eComment system at <a href="http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/ecomment.asp">http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/ecomment.asp</a>. You must include your name and contact 
information at the end of your comments. For assistance, please contact 
FERC Online Support at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#7e383b2c3d31101217101b2d0b0e0e110c0a3e181b0c1d50191108"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="2b6d6e796864454742454e785e5b5b44595f6b4d4e5948054c445d">[email&#160;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: Debbie-Anne A. Reese, Secretary, Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Room 1A, Washington, DC 
20426. Submissions sent via any other carrier must be addressed to: 
Debbie-Anne A. Reese, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 
12225 Wilkins Avenue, Rockville, Maryland 20852. The first page of any 
filing should include docket numbers P-9709-070. Comments emailed to 
Commission staff are not considered part of the Commission record.
    k. Description of Project Facilities: The project works include: a 
timber crib dam with a 9-foot-high, 95-foot-long section reaching a 
crest elevation of 420 feet mean sea level (msl) and 12-foot-high, 145-
foot-long section reaching a crest elevation of 419.2 feet msl; a 
reservoir with a surface area of 19 acres, storage capacity of 163 
acre-feet, and normal water surface elevation of 420.5 feet msl; timber 
flashboards; an intake structure; a reinforced concrete and steel 
powerhouse containing four generating units with a capacity of 400 
kilowatts (kW) each and an 80-kW minimum flow generator at the base of 
the dam for a total installed capacity of 1,680 kW; a 50-foot-long, 
13.2-kilovolt transmission line; and appurtenant facilities. The 
project has not been operated since 2006.
    l. Description of Proceeding: License Article 26 states in part: If 
the licensee shall abandon or discontinue good faith operation of the 
project or refuse or neglect to comply with the terms of the license 
and the lawful orders of the Commission mailed to the record address of 
the licensee or its agent, the Commission will deem it to be the intent 
of the licensee to surrender the license.
    The project has fallen into disrepair and has not operated since 
2006. The project was transferred to ECOsponsible, LLC, by order dated 
March 12, 2015 (2015 Order). The 2015 Order required the licensee to 
file a plan and schedule to restore project operation within 60 days. 
From June 2020 through October 2021, the Commission's Division of Dam 
Safety and Inspections New York Regional Office (NYRO) and Division of 
Hydropower Administration and Compliance issued 12 letters requiring 
the licensee to file a plan and schedule to make the needed repairs and 
to restore project operation. The licensee responded over the years 
with at least five plans, but all plans were deficient because they 
lacked sufficient detail for NYRO's review and approval. On August 26, 
2021, NYRO inspected the project and found it in unsatisfactory 
condition and largely abandoned. The licensee did not attend the 
inspection and ceased communication with the Commission. On November 8, 
2021, the Commission issued a notice of Termination of License by 
Implied Surrender. Several parties filed interventions and protests in 
response, including an intervention from, Mr. Dennis Ryan, Jr., 
purportedly on behalf of ECOsponsible. In order to explain, in part, a 
lapse in communication with the Commission, Mr. Ryan, Jr. explained 
that ECOsponsible's ``Founder, Management Committee Chairperson, and 
Treasurer Dennis Ryan, Sr. passed away suddenly.'' On March 31, 2022, 
Mr. Ryan, Jr., again purportedly acting on behalf of the existing 
licensee, ECOsponsible, filed a Notice of Intent to File an Application 
for a New License for the Herkimer project (NOI). On April 3, 2024, 
Commission staff rejected the NOI filed by Mr. Ryan, Jr., determining, 
among other things, that Mr. Ryan, Jr. was not authorized to do 
business on behalf of the licensee, ECOsponsible.\1\ Also, on April 3, 
2024, the Commission issued a notice Soliciting Notices of Intent to 
File a New License Application and Pre-Application Documents. Several 
entities, including Stone Ridge Hydro, LLC (Stone Ridge), filed 
responses indicating an interest in filing an application for the 
Herkimer Project. On March 21, 2025, Stone Ridge filed a final license 
application. On January 7, 2025, the Commission authorized Stone Ridge 
to use the Traditional Licensing Process to file an application to 
relicense the Herkimer project. On July 23, 2026, Stone Ridge withdrew 
its application for relicensing the Herkimer project. The withdrawal of 
the application became effective on August

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7, 2026.\2\ Because the project has been abandoned and there are no 
extant license applications for the project the Commission will proceed 
with termination of license by implied surrender.
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    \1\ See also ECOsponsible, 188 FERC ] 61,061(2024) (Order 
addressing argument raised on rehearing).
    \2\ Commission staff August 7, 2026 Notice of Effectiveness of 
Withdrawal of License Application.
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    m. Individuals desiring to be included on the Commission's mailing 
list should so indicate by writing to the Secretary of the Commission.
    n. Comments, Protests, or Motions to Intervene: Anyone may submit 
comments, a protest, or a motion to intervene in accordance with the 
requirements of Rules of Practice and Procedure, 18 CFR 385.210, .211, 
.214, respectively. In determining the appropriate action to take, the 
Commission will consider all protests or other comments 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 comments, 
protests, or motions to intervene must be received on or before the 
specified comment date for the particular application.
    o. For public inquiries and assistance with making filings such as 
interventions, comments, or requests for rehearing, contact the Office 
of Public Participation at (202) 502-6595 or <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#dc938c8c9cbab9aebff2bbb3aa"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="e8a7b8b8a88e8d9a8bc68f879e">[email&#160;protected]</span></a>.
    p. Agency Comments: Federal, state, and local agencies are invited 
to file comments on the described proceeding. If an agency does not 
file comments within the time specified for filing comments, it will be 
presumed to have no comments.
    q. Filing and Service of Responsive Documents: Any filing must (1) 
bear in all capital letters the title ``COMMENTS,'' ``PROTEST,'' or 
``MOTION TO INTERVENE'' as applicable; (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 385.2001-385.2005. All comments, 
motions to intervene, or protests must set forth their evidentiary 
basis and otherwise comply with the requirements of 18 CFR 4.34(b). All 
comments, motions to intervene, or protests should relate to project 
works which are the subject of the implied surrender. A copy of any 
protest or motion to intervene must be served upon each representative 
of the applicant specified in the particular application. If an 
intervener 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. A copy of all other filings in reference to 
this application must be accompanied by proof of service on all persons 
listed in the service list prepared by the Commission in this 
proceeding, in accordance with 18 CFR 4.34(b) and 385.2010.

(Authority: 18 CFR 2.1.)

     Dated: October 8, 2026.
Debbie-Anne A. Reese,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2026-20997 Filed 10-13-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P


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