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Home Working
with Section 106 ACHP
Case Digest Fall
2003 Arizona: Surrender of the Childs
Irving Hydroelectric Project License, Yavapai and Gila Counties
Arizona:
Surrender of the Childs Irving Hydroelectric Project License, Yavapai and
Gila Counties
Agencies: Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission and U.S. Forest Service
In this case,
the license-holder of a National Register-listed hydroelectric project
negotiated a settlement agreement with several environmental groups
to tear down the facilities and restore the land to its natural
environment.
The facilities,
known as the Childs Irving Project, were built in the early 20th-century
and designated a National Historical Mechanical Engineering Landmark.
The settlement agreement was submitted to the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission as part of the licensees application to surrender
its license to operate the project.
The U.S. Forest
Service, which administers the lands occupied by the historic plants,
and the Arizona State Historic Preservation Officer expressed concern
about the properties removal. In a stunning reversal following
Section 106 negotiations, the plants license-holder agreed
to allow the Forest Service to manage the remaining historic property
and use it to teach the public about the history of hydroelectric
development in Fossil Creek.
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In 2000, an electric company, the Arizona Public Service Company, entered
into a settlement agreement with six environmental groups to surrender
its license for the Childs Irving Project and demolish the facilities
to restore the land to theYavapai and Gila Counties in Arizona.
Irving Hydroelectric Plant, Yavapai and Gila Counties,
AZ (photo courtesy of Phil Smithers, Arizona Public Service Company)
The property, which includes two hydroelectric plants completed in 1920,
is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and has been designated
a National Historical Mechanical Engineering Landmark by the American
Society of Mechanical Engineers. The elements that contribute to the historic
system include portions of both flumes, both hydroelectric plants, and
several peripheral buildings.
The property is located within the Coconino and Tonto National Forests.
The U.S. Forest Service, which administers the land, and the Arizona State
Historic Preservation Officer opposed the removal of the historic facilities
and were invited to participate in consultation during the settlement
discussions.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), which is responsible
for initiating Section 106 consultation for a license surrender, did not
do so until the proposed terms of the license surrenderand facilities
removalhad been agreed upon by the electric company and environmental
groups.
In April 2003, FERC notified the ACHP of the adverse effects of the proposed
demolition on the plants. The ACHP became a consulting party to the case
and advised FERC that more consultation was needed to address concerns
parties had with the settlement agreement.
In September 2003, several consulting parties met to discuss which facilities
should be kept for public interpretation. The electric company provided
them with a draft Historic Properties Management Plan (HPMP), with which
the ACHP generally concurred.
The proposed measures to mitigate the adverse effects of the plan on
the historic property include documenting it through the Historic American
Engineering Record, retaining the Childs Plant and several of its facilities,
and removing the Irving Plant and facilities. The Forest Service will
manage the remaining facilities for public interpretation. A Memorandum
of Agreement will be executed by the consulting parties and will include
a final HPMP.
Staff contact: Carol
Legard
Posted
October 28, 2003
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