[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 158 (Tuesday, August 17, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Page 44719]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-21283]
[[Page 44719]]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Project No. 309-PA]
Pennsylvania Electric Co.; GPU Generation, Inc.; Notice of
Scoping Meetings Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969 for an Applicant Prepared Environmental Assessment
August 11, 1999.
Pursuant to the Energy Policy Act of 1992, and as part of the
license application, the Pennsylvania Electric Company/GPU Generation,
Inc. (GPU) intends to prepare an Applicant Prepared Environmental
Assessment (APEA) to file along with the license application, with the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) for the Piney Project
No. 309. The license for the project expires on October 12, 2002.
In February 1998, GPU started the consultation process with
preparation and distribution of the Initial Information Package. This
was followed by an initial consultation meeting on March 10, 1998.
Study plans were subsequently drafted and reviewed, and field studies
commenced in January 1999.
Recently GPU discussed the APEA process for the relicensing of the
Piney Project with fish and wildlife agencies, and on June 24, 1998,
GPU requested Commission approval to enter into the alternative
licensing process. Notice of GPU's request was issued on July 15, 1999,
and the Commission has not acted on the request. As part of the APEA
process, GPU has prepared a Scoping Document I (SDI), which provides
information on the scoping process, APEA schedule, background
information, environmental issues, and proposed project alternatives.
The purpose of this notice is to: (1) Advise all parties as to the
proposed scope of the environmental analysis, including cumulative
effects, and to seek additional information pertinent to this analysis;
and (2) advise all parties of their opportunity for comment.
Scoping Process
The purpose of the scoping process is to identify significant
issues related to the proposed action and to determine what issues
should be addressed in the document to be prepared pursuant to the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). The SDI will be
circulated to enable appropriate federal, state, and local resource
agencies, Indian tribes, NGOs, and other interested parties to
participate in the scoping process. SDI provides a brief description of
the proposed action, project alternatives, the geographic and temporal
scope of a cumulative effects analysis, and a list of issues.
Scoping Meetings and Site Visit
GPU and Commission staff will conduct two scoping meetings. All
interested individuals, organizations, and agencies are invited to
attend and assist in identifying the scope of environmental issues that
should be analyzed in the APEA.
The scoping meetings will be held on August 26, 1999, at the
Clarion Holiday Inn in Clarion, Pennsylvania. The agency scoping
meeting will be held from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, and the public scoping
meeting will be held from 7:00 pm to 9:30 pm. The public is invited to
attend either or both meetings. For more details, interested parties
should contact Thomas Teitt of GPU at (814) 533-8788 or (717) 948-8177,
prior to the meeting date.
Objectives
At the scoping meetings, NEP and Commission staff will: (1)
summarize the environmental issues identified for analysis in the APEA;
(2) solicit from the meeting participants all available information,
especially quantified data, on the resources at issue; and (3)
encourage statements from experts and the public on issues that should
be analyzed in the APEA. Individuals, organizations, and agencies with
environmental expertise and concerns are encouraged to attend the
meetings and to assist in defining and clarifying the issues to be
addressed.
Meeting Procedures
The meeting will be conducted according to the procedures used at
Commission scoping meetings. Because this meeting will be a NEPA
scoping meeting, the Commission will not conduct another scoping
meeting when the application and APEA are filed with the Commission in
the Fall of 2000.
The meetings may be recorded by a stenographer or tape, and become
a part of the formal record of the Commission proceeding on the Piney
Project. Individuals presenting statements at the meetings will be
asked to identify themselves for the record. Speaking time allowed for
individuals will be determined before each meeting, based on the number
of persons wishing to speak and the approximate amount of time
available for the session. Persons choosing not to speak but wishing to
express an opinion, as well as speakers unable to summarize their
positions within their allotted time, may submit written statements for
inclusion in the public record no later than September 9, 1999.
All filings should contain an original and 8 copies. Failure to
file an original and 8 copies may result in appropriate staff not
receiving the benefit of your comments in a timely manner. All comments
should be submitted to the Office of the Secretary, Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20426,
and should clearly show the following captions on the first page: Piney
Project, FERC No. 309. A copy of each filing should also be sent to
Thomas R. Tiett, GPU Generation, Inc., 1001 Broad St., Johnstown, PA
15907.
Based on all written comments, a Scoping Document II (SDII) may be
issued. SDII will include a revised list of issues, based on the
scoping sessions.
For further information regarding the APEA scoping process, please
contact William Guey-Lee, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888
First Street, NE, Washington, DC 20426 at (202) 219-2809, or Thomas
Tiett (717) 948-8177.
Linwood A. Watson, Jr.,
Acting Secretary.
[FR Doc. 99-21283 Filed 8-16-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M
