2020-04032. Chittenden Falls Hydropower, Inc.; Notice of Application Ready for Environmental Analysis and Soliciting Comments, Recommendations, Terms and Conditions, and Prescriptions

Take notice that the following hydroelectric application has been filed with the Commission and is available for public inspection.

a. Type of Application: Subsequent Minor License.

b. Project No.: 3273-024.

c. Date filed: May 31, 2019.

d. Applicant: Chittenden Falls Hydropower, Inc. (Chittenden Falls Hydro).

e. Name of Project: Chittenden Falls Hydropower Project.

f. Location: On Kinderhook Creek, near the Town of Stockport, Columbia County, New York. The project does not occupy federal land.

g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act, 16 U.S.C. 791 (a)-825(r).

h. Applicant Contact: Mark Boumansour, Chief Operating Officer, Gravity Renewables, Inc., 1401 Walnut Street, Suite 420, Boulder, CO 80302; [phone]; [e-mail] and/or Celeste N. Fay, Regulatory Manager, Gravity Renewables, Inc., 5 Dartmouth Drive, Suite 104, Auburn, NH 03032; [phone]; [e-mail].

i. FERC Contact: Monir Chowdhury at [phone] or [e-mail].

j. Deadline for filing comments, recommendations, terms and conditions, and prescriptions: 60 days from the issuance date of this notice; reply comments are due 105 days from the issuance date of this notice.

The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file comments, recommendations, terms and conditions, and prescriptions using the Commission's eFiling system at http://www.ferc.gov/​docs-filing/​efiling.asp. Commenters can submit brief comments up to 6,000 characters, without prior registration, using the eComment system at http://www.ferc.gov/​docs-filing/​ecomment.asp. You must include your name and contact information at the end of your comments. For assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at [e-mail], [phone] (toll free), or [phone] (TTY). In lieu of electronic filing, please send a paper copy to: Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20426. The first page of any filing should include docket number P-3273-024.

The Commission's Rules of Practice require all intervenors filing documents with the Commission to serve a copy of that document on each person on the official service list for the project. Further, if an intervenor 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.

k. This application has been accepted and is ready for environmental analysis at this time.

l. The Chittenden Falls Hydropower Project consists of: (1) An approximately 4-foot-high, 320-foot-long concrete gravity dam, topped with 2-foot-high wooden flashboards, and having a dam crest elevation of 59.6 feet National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 (NGVD29); (2) a reservoir with a surface area of about 18 acres and a storage capacity of 63 acre-feet at a normal pool elevation of 61.6 feet NGVD29; (3) an 8-foot-wide, 22-foot-long intake structure on the east side of the dam connecting to an 8-foot-wide, 118-foot-long concrete and wooden power canal; (4) a 7.5-foot-diameter, 45-foot-long steel penstock that conveys water from the power canal to a powerhouse on the east side of the dam containing two turbine-generator units with a total rated capacity of 453 kilowatts (kW); (5) an 8-foot-wide, 10-foot-long intake structure on the west side of the dam connecting to a 6-foot-diameter, 62-foot-long steel penstock; (6) a powerhouse on the west side of the dam containing a single turbine-generator unit with a rated capacity of 300 kW; (7) two 480-volt, 40-foot-long generator leads connecting the east powerhouse to a transformer yard and a 2,300-volt, 400-foot-long generator lead connecting the west powerhouse to the transformer yard; and (8) appurtenant facilities.

The Chittenden Falls Project is operated in a run-of-river mode with an estimated average annual generation of 2,300 megawatt-hours between 2012 and 2018. Chittenden Falls Hydro proposes to continue to operate the project in run-of-river mode.

m. A copy of the application is available for review at the Commission in the Public Reference Room or may be viewed on the Commission's website at http://www.ferc.gov using the eLibrary link. Enter the docket number excluding the last three digits in the docket number field to access the document. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support. A copy is also available for inspection and reproduction at the address in item h above.

All filings must (1) bear in all capital letters the title COMMENTS, REPLY COMMENTS, RECOMMENDATIONS, TERMS AND CONDITIONS, or PRESCRIPTIONS; (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 submitting the filing; and (4) otherwise comply with the requirements of 18 CFR 385.2001 through 385.2005. All comments, recommendations, terms and conditions, or prescriptions must set forth their evidentiary basis and otherwise comply with the requirements of 18 CFR 4.34(b). Agencies may obtain copies of the application directly from the applicant. Each filing must be accompanied by proof of service on all persons listed on the service list prepared by the Commission in this proceeding, in accordance with 18 CFR 4.34 (b) and 385.2010.

You may also register online at http://www.ferc.gov/​docs-filing/​esubscription.asp to be notified via email of new filings and issuances related to this or other pending projects. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support.

n. A license applicant must file no later than 60 days following the date of issuance of this notice: (1) A copy of the water quality certification; (2) a copy of the request for certification, including proof of the date on which the certifying agency received the request; or (3) evidence of waiver of water quality certification.

o. Procedural schedule: The application will be processed according to the following schedule. Revisions to the schedule will be made as appropriate.

Milestone	Target date
Deadline for Filing Comments, Recommendations and Agency Terms and Conditions/Prescriptions	April 2020.
Deadline for Filing Reply Comments	June 2020.
Commission issues EA	October 2020.
Comments on EA Due	November 2020.

Dated: February 21, 2020.

Kimberly D. Bose,

Secretary.