[Federal Register: October 9, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 196)]

[Notices]               

[Page 62950-62951]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr09oc02-26]                         



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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE



Rural Utilities Service



 

Southern Intertie Project; Notice of Availability of a Record of 

Decision



AGENCY: Rural Utilities Service, USDA.



ACTION: Notice of availability of a record of decision.



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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the Rural Utilities Service (RUS), 

has issued a Record of Decision (ROD) for the Southern Intertie 

Project. The decision of RUS is that the National Environmental Policy 

Act process is satisfied with respect to a request for financing 

assistance from Golden Valley Electric Association (GVEA) for its share 

of the cost of constructing the Southern Intertie Project. The project 

being proposed by the Intertie Participants Group (IPG), of which GVEA 

is a member, is the construction of a 138 kilovolt (kV) transmission 

line between the Kenai Peninsula and Anchorage, Alaska. The 

construction of the project will be undertaken in accordance with the 

FEIS.



FOR INFORMATION CONTACT: Lawrence R. Wolfe, Senior Environmental 

Protection Specialist, Engineering and Environmental Staff, USDA Rural 

Utilities Service, Stop 1571, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., 

Washington, DC 20250-1571, telephone (202) 720-1784, fax (202) 720-

0820. The e-mail address is: lwolfe@rus.usda.gov.



SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The RUS preferred alternative, the Tesoro 

Route, would connect the Bernice Lake Substation on the Kenai Peninsula 

with the Pt. Woronzof Substation in Anchorage. This alternative would 

parallel the Tesoro Pipeline from the Captain Cook State Recreational 

Area to Pt. Possession (Route A). At Pt. Possession three options are 

available to cross the Turnagain Arm and terminate at the Pt. Woronzof 

Substation. Route Option B crosses the Turnagain Arm via Fire Island to 

the Pt. Woronzof Substation. Route Option C crosses the Turnagain Arm 

directly from Pt. Possession to a landing at the Pt. Woronzof 

Substation. Route Option D would cross the Turnagain Arm from Pt. 

Possession to Pt. Campbell. From the Pt. Campbell landing, this 

alternative would continue to parallel the Tesoro pipeline through 

Kincaid Park and



[[Page 62951]]



terminate at the Pt. Woronzof Substation (Route Option N).

    As stated in the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS), the 

RUS preferred alternative route between Pt. Possession and Anchorage is 

Route Option D/N. However, RUS considers both Route Options B and C 

acceptable alternatives.

    Notices of availability of the FEIS were published in the Federal 

Register on July 10, 2002, at 67 FR 45701, by RUS and on July 12, 2002, 

at 67 FR 46185 by EPA. The 30-day comment period ended on August 12, 

2002. Comments were received from 2 agencies and 5 non-profit 

organizations. No new issues or concerns were identified in these 

comments.

    The RUS is the lead Federal agency in the environmental review 

process. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the U.S. Army 

Corps of Engineers (USACE) are serving as cooperating agencies. The 

USFWS' ROD was issued on September 11, 2002. The USACE's ROD is 

pending.

    Agencies, persons, and organizations on the FEIS mailing list will 

receive a copy of each agency's ROD. The RUS' ROD is available online 

at http://www.usda.gov/rus/water/ees/eis.htm. The USFWS' ROD is 

available online at http://www.r7.fws.gov/compatibility/completed/

kenai/kenai.cfm.



    Dated: October 2, 2002.

Blaine D. Stockton,

Assistant Administrator, Electric Program, Rural Utilities Service.

[FR Doc. 02-25703 Filed 10-8-02; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410-15-P