95-2022. Southern California Edison Company (Kern River No. 1 Hydroelectric Project; Intent to Conduct Environmental Scoping Meetings and Site Visit

[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 18 (Friday, January 27, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5378-5379]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-2022]



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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
[Project No. 1930-014]


Southern California Edison Company (Kern River No. 1 
Hydroelectric Project; Intent to Conduct Environmental Scoping Meetings 
and Site Visit

January 23, 1995.
    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or Commission) has 
received an application for a new license for the Kern River No. 1 
Hydroelectric Project, Project No. 1930-014. The Kern River No. 1 
Hydroelectric Project is located on the Kern River, about 17 miles 
northeast of Bakersfield and 16 miles southwest of Bodfish, in Kern 
County, California. The project occupies lands within the Sequoia 
National Forest, administered by the U.S. Forest Service (FS).
    The Commission and FS staffs (staff) intend to prepare a joint 
Environmental Assessment (EA) on this hydroelectric project in 
accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act.
    In the EA, we will consider both site-specific and cumulative 
environmental impacts of the project and reasonable alternatives, and 
will include an economic, financial, and engineering analysis.
    The draft EA will be issued and circulated for review by all 
interested parties. All comments filed on the draft EA will be analyzed 
by the staff and considered in a final EA. The staff's conclusions and 
recommendations will then be presented for the consideration by the 
Commission in reaching its final licensing decision.

Scoping Meetings

    Staff will hold two scoping meetings. A scoping meeting oriented 
towards the public will be held on Tuesday, March 7, 1995, at 6:30 PM, 
at the City of Bakersfield City Hall, 1501 Truxtun Avenue, Bakersfield, 
California. A scoping meeting oriented towards the agencies will be 
held on Wednesday, March 8, 1995, at 9:00 AM, at the Bureau of Land 
Management offices, 3801 Pegasus Drive, Bakersfield, California.
    Interested individuals, organizations, and agencies are invited to 
attend either or both meetings and assist the staff in identifying the 
scope of environmental issues that should be analyzed in the EA.
    To help focus discussions at the meetings, a scoping document 
outlining subject areas to be addressed in the EA will be mailed to 
agencies and interested individuals on the Commission mailing list. 
Copies of the scoping document will also be available at the scoping 
meetings.

Objectives

    At the scoping meetings the staff will: (1) Identify preliminary 
environmental issues related to the proposed project; (2) identify 
preliminary resource issues that are not important and do not require 
detailed analysis; (3) identify reasonable alternatives to be addressed 
in the EA; (4) solicit from the meeting [[Page 5379]] participants all 
available information, especially quantified data, on the resources 
issues; and (5) encourage statements from experts and the public on 
issues that should be analyzed in the EA, including points of view in 
opposition to, or in support of, the staff's preliminary views.

Procedures

    The scoping meetings will be recorded by a court reporter and all 
statements (oral and written) will become part of the formal record of 
the Commission proceedings on the Kern River No. 1 Hydroelectric 
Project. Individuals presenting statements at the meetings will be 
asked to clearly identify themselves for the record.
    Individuals, organizations, and agencies with environmental 
expertise and concerns are encouraged to attend the meetings and assist 
the staff in defining and clarifying the issues to be addressed in the 
EA.
    Persons choosing not to speak at the meetings, but who have views 
on the issues or information relevant to the issues, may submit written 
statements for inclusion in the public record at the meetings. In 
addition, written scoping comments may be filed with Secretary, Federal 
Energy Regulatory Commission, 825 North Capitol Street, NE, Washington, 
D.C. 20426, until April 10, 1995.
    All written correspondence should clearly show the following 
caption on the first page: Kern River No. 1 Hydroelectric Project, FERC 
Project No. 1930-014.
    Intervenors--those on the Commission's service list for this 
proceeding (parties)--are reminded of the Commission's Rules of 
Practice and Procedure, requiring parties filing documents with the 
Commission, to serve a copy of the document on each person whose name 
appears on the official service list. Further, if a party or interceder 
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. All entities commenting on this scoping document must 
file an original and eight copies of the comments with the Secretary of 
the Commission.

Site Visit

    A site visit to the Kern River No. 1 Hydroelectric Project is 
planned for March 7, 1994. Those who wish to attend should plan to meet 
at 9:00 AM at the US Forest Service, Sequoia National Forest, Greenhorn 
Ranger District Offices at 15701 Highway 178 in Bakersfield, 
California, and shortly thereafter, leave for the project site located 
about 4 miles away. If you plan to attend, contact Mr. Geoff Rabone, 
Southern California Edison Company, by February 27, 1995, at (818) 302-
8951 for directions or additional details.
    Any questions regarding this notice may be directed to Mr. David 
Turner, Environmental Coordinator, FERC, at [phone] or Ms. Patty 
Bates, FS, at [phone].
Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 95-2022 Filed 1-26-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M