[Federal Register: May 12, 1999 (Volume 64, Number 91)] [Notices] [Page 25499-25500] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr12my99-93] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Notice of Scoping Meetings and Site Visit and Soliciting Scoping Comments May 6, 1999. Take notice that the following hydroelectric application has been filed with the Commission and is available for public inspection: a. Type of Application: New Major License. b. Project No.: 2634-007. c. Date Filed: April 28, 1998. d. Applicant: Great Northern Paper, Inc. e. Name of Project: Storage Project. f. Location: The four-reservoir project is located on Ragged Stream, Caucomgomoc Stream, the West Branch, and the South Branch of the Penobscot River in Somerset and Piscataquis Counties, Maine. g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act, 16 U.S.C. Secs. 791(a)- 825(r). h. Applicant Contact: Mr. Brian R. Stetson, Manager, Environmental Affairs, Great Northern Paper, Inc., One Katahdin Avenue, Millinocket, ME 04462, (207) 723-2664. i. FERC Contact: Any questions on this notice should be addressed to John Costello, E-Mail address, john.costello@ferc.fed.us, or telephone (202) 219-2914. j. Deadline for filing scoping comments: August 3, 1999. All documents (original and eight copies) should be filed with: David P. Boergers, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street, NE, Washington, DC 20426. The Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure require all intervenors filing documents with the Commission to serve a copy of that document on each person whose name appears 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. Status of environmental analysis: This application is not ready for environmental analysis at this time. l. Description of the Project: The Storage Project consists of four dams and associated storage reservoirs including Canada Falls Lake, Seboomook Lake, Caucomgomoc Lake, and Ragged Lake, located in the West Branch of the Penobscot River drainage basin. There are no hydroelectric generating facilities at the Storage Project developments. m. Locations of the application: A copy of the application is available for inspection and reproduction at the Commission's Public Reference Room, located at 888 First Street, NE, Room 2A, Washington, DC 20426, or by calling (202) 208-1371. This filing may be viewed on the web at http://www.ferc.fed.us/online/rims.htm (call 202-208-2222 for assistance). A copy is also available for inspection and reproduction at the address shown in item h. h. Scoping Process: The Commission intends to prepare an Environmental Assessment (EA) for the proposed relicensing of the Storage Project (FERC No. 2634) in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act. The EA will consider both site-specific and cumulative environmental impacts and reasonable alternatives to the proposed actions. Scoping Meetings The Commission will hold scoping meetings for the Storage Project, one in the daytime and one in the evening, to [[Page 25500]] help us identify the scope of issues to be addressed in the EA. The daytime scoping meeting will focus on resource agency concerns, while the evening scoping meeting is primarily for public input. All interested individuals, organizations, and agencies are invited to attend one or both of the meetings, and to assist the staff in identifying the scope of the environmental issues that should be analyzed in the EA. The times and locations of these meetings are as follows: Daytime Meeting Thursday, June 3, 1999, 1:00 p.m., Trail Side Restaurant at the Leisure Life Resort, Leisure Life Resort Road, Greenville, Maine Evening Meeting Thursday, June 3, 1999, 7:00 p.m., Trail Side Restaurant at the Leisure Life Resort, Leisure Life Resort Road, Greenville, Maine To help focus discussions, we will distribute a Scoping Document (SD1) outlining the subject areas to be addressed in the EA to parties on the Commission's mailing list. Copies of the SD1 also will be available at the scoping meetings. Site Visit The applicant and Commission staff will conduct a project site visit on Wednesday, June 2, 1999. We will meet at the public boat launch on Route 16 located approximately 2 miles west of Greenville, Maine at 7 a.m. If you would like to attend, please call Ed Speer, Great Northern Paper, Inc. at (207) 723-2698, no later than May 28, 1999. Objectives At the scoping meetings, the staff will: (1) summarize the environmental issues tentatively identified for analysis in the EA; (2) solicit from the meeting participants all available information, especially quantifiable data, on the resources at issue; (3) encourage statements from experts and the public on issues that should be analyzed in the EA, including viewpoints in opposition to, or in support of, the staff's preliminary views; (4) determine the resource issues to be addressed in the EA; and (5) identify those issues that require a detailed analysis, as well as those issues that do not require a detailed analysis. The meetings will be recorded by a stenographer and will become part of the formal record of the Commission's proceeding on the project. individuals presenting statements at the meetings will be asked to sign in before the meeting starts and to identify themselves clearly for the record. Individuals, organizations, and agencies with environmental expertise and concerns are encouraged to attend the meetings and to assist the staff in defining and clarifying the issues to be addressed in the EA. All questions concerning the scoping process should be directed to John Costello E-mail address, john.costello@ferc.fed.us, or telephone at (202) 219-2914. David P. Boergers, Secretary. [FR Doc. 99-11946 Filed 5-11-99; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6717-01-M