[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 126 (Friday, July 1, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39510-39511]
[FR Doc No: 2022-14109]

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 3211-010; Project No. 2701-061]

Power Authority of the State of New York; Erie Boulevard
Hydropower, L.P.; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental
Assessment

    On July 31, 2020, the Power Authority of the State of New York
(NYPA) filed an application for a new major license for the 9-megawatt
Hinckley (Gregory B.

Jarvis) Hydroelectric Project (Hinckley-Jarvis Project; FERC No. 3211).
The Hinckley-Jarvis Project is located on West Canada Creek near the
Hamlet of Hinckley in the counties of Oneida and Herkimer, New York. On
February 26, 2021, Erie Boulevard Hydropower, L.P. (Erie) filed an
application for a new major license for the 39.75-megawatt West Canada
Creek Hydroelectric Project (West Canada Creek Project; FERC No. 2701).
The West Canada Creek Project is also located on West Canada Creek,
downstream of the Hinckley-Jarvis Project, in the counties of Oneida
and Herkimer, New York. No federal or tribal lands occur within or
adjacent to either project's boundary.
    In accordance with the Commission's regulations, on January 12,
2022, Commission staff issued separate notices that both the Hinckley-
Jarvis and West Canada Creek projects were ready for environmental
analysis (REA Notice).\1\ Based on the information in the projects'
records, including comments filed on the REA Notices, staff does not
anticipate that licensing the projects would constitute a major federal
action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment.
However, because the Hinckley-Jarvis and West Canada Creek projects are
located adjacent to each other in the same river basin and include
similar issues, it is the Commission's intent to continue to process
these relicense applications concurrently. Therefore, staff intends to
prepare a draft and final multi-project Environmental Assessment (EA)
on the applications to relicense the Hinckley-Jarvis and West Canada
Creek projects.
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    \1\ On March 1, 2022, NYPA requested that the deadline for
filing motions to intervene and protests, comments, recommendations,
preliminary terms and conditions, and preliminary fishway
prescriptions be extended until June 11, 2022, in order to allow
parties to work on a settlement agreement. On March 3, 2022, Erie
requested a similar extension. Commission staff granted both
requests for extension in letters issued on March 10, 2022.
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    The EA will be issued and circulated for review by all interested
parties. All comments filed on the EA will be analyzed by staff and
considered in the Commission's final licensing decision.
    The applications will be processed according to the following
schedule. Revisions to the schedule may be made as appropriate.

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                 Milestone                           Target date
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Commission issues draft EA................  December 2022.
Comments due on draft EA..................  January 2023.
Commission issues final EA................  June 2023.\2\
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    Any questions regarding this notice may be directed to Emily Carter
at<PHONE_NUMBER> or [email protected].
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    \2\ The Council on Environmental Quality's (CEQ) regulations
under 40 CFR 1501.10(b)(1) require that EAs be completed within 1
year of the federal action agency's decision to prepare an EA. This
notice establishes the Commission's intent to prepare a draft and
final EA for the Hinckley-Jarvis and West Canada Creek projects.
Therefore, in accordance with CEQ's regulations, the final EA must
be issued within 1 year of the issuance date of this notice.

    Dated: June 28, 2022.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2022-14109 Filed 6-30-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P