96-27218. Thermalito Power Corporation; Notice of Intent To Conduct Environmental Scoping Meetings and Site Visit

[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 207 (Thursday, October 24, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55146-55147]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-27218]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
[Project No. 11565-000]


Thermalito Power Corporation; Notice of Intent To Conduct 
Environmental Scoping Meetings and Site Visit

October 18, 1996.
    The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has received an 
application for a license to construct and operate the Therm II 
Hydroelectric Project No. 11565-000. The project would be located on 
the Feather River outlet, of the Thermalito afterbay near the town of 
Oroville, in Butte County, California.
    The FERC staff intends to prepare an Environmental Assessment (EA) 
for this hydroelectric project in accordance with the National 
Environmental Policy Act.
    In the EA, we will consider both site-specific and cumulative 
environmental effects of the project and reasonable alternatives, and 
will include economic and engineering analyses.
    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 consideration by the 
Commission in reaching its final licensing decision.

Scoping Meetings

    Staff will hold two scoping meetings. A scoping meeting oriented 
toward the agencies will be held on Wednesday, November 13, 1996, at 
9:00 AM, at Memorial Hall, 249 Sycamore Street, Gridley, California. A 
scoping meeting oriented toward the public will be held the same day at 
6:30 PM, at the same location.
    Interested individuals, organizations, and agencies are invited to 
attend either

[[Page 55147]]

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 FERC mailing list. Copies of 
the scoping document will also be available at the scoping meetings.

Objectives

    At the scoping meetings, the FERC 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 the 
proposal; (4) solicit from meeting participants all available 
information, especially quantified data, on the resource 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, both oral and written, will become part of the formal 
record of the Commission proceedings on the Therm II 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 (an original and eight copies) may 
be filed with Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 1st 
Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20426, until December 16, 1996.
    All written correspondence should clearly show the following 
caption on the first page: Therm II Hydroelectric Project, FERC Project 
No. 11565-000.
    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 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.

Site Visit

    A site visit to the Therm II Hydroelectric Project is planned for 
Tuesday, November 12, 1996. Those who wish to attend should plan to 
meet at 9:00 AM at the Joint Water District, 735 Virginia Street, 
Gridley, California. For more details, contact Mr. Stan Malinky, 
Thermalito Power Corporation, at [phone].
    Any questions regarding this notice may be directed to Gaylord W. 
Hoisington, FERC Environmental Coordination, at [phone].
Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 96-27218 Filed 10-23-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M