Department of Energy 2010 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In order to implement recent amendments to the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 (EPCA), the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) proposes to amend its test procedures for residential dishwashers, dehumidifiers, and conventional cooking products (which include cooktops, ovens, and ranges) to provide for measurement of standby mode and off mode energy use by these products. The proposed amendments would incorporate into the DOE test procedures relevant provisions from the International Electrotechnical Commission's (IEC) Standard 62301, ``Household electrical appliancesMeasurement of standby power,'' First Edition 2005-06 (IEC Standard 62301 (First Edition)). DOE also proposes to adopt definitions of various modes of operation based on the relevant provisions from the IEC Standard 62301 ``Household electrical appliancesMeasurement of standby power,'' Second Edition Final Draft International Standard (IEC Standard 62301 (FDIS)). In addition, DOE proposes to adopt language to clarify application of these test procedure provisions for measuring standby mode and off mode power consumption in dishwashers, dehumidifiers, and conventional cooking products. Furthermore, the proposed amendments would add new calculations to determine annual energy consumption associated with the standby mode and off mode measured power. Finally, the amendments would modify existing energy consumption equations to integrate standby mode and off mode energy consumption into the calculation of overall annual energy consumption and annual operating cost of those products which already have definitions for such measures (dishwashers and conventional cooking products). DOE is also announcing a public meeting to discuss and receive comments on the issues presented in this notice.

In compliance with the requirements of section 3507 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission or FERC) has submitted the information collection described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review of the information collection requirements. Any interested person may file comments directly with OMB and should address a copy of those comments to the Commission as explained below. The Commission issued a Notice in the Federal Register (75 FR 57744, 09/22/2010) requesting public comments. FERC received no comments on the FERC-555 and has made this notation in its submission to OMB.

This notice announces an open meeting of the Biomass Research and Development Technical Advisory Committee under Section 9008(d) of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008. The Federal Advisory Committee Act requires that agencies publish these notices in the Federal Register to allow for public participation. This notice announces the meeting of the Biomass Research and Development Technical Advisory Committee.

NextEra Energy Resources (NextEra) applied to interconnect its proposed 150-megawatt (MW) Crowned Ridge Wind Energy Center Project (Project) with the Western Area Power Administration's (Western) existing Watertown Substation in Codington County, South Dakota. The proposed Project would be located in Codington and Grant counties, South Dakota. Western will prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) on the proposal to interconnect the Project in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) NEPA Implementing Procedures, and the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations for implementing NEPA. Western's need for agency action is precipitated by NextEra's application to interconnect with Western's power transmission system. Western needs to consider NextEra's interconnection request under its Open Access Transmission Service Tariff (Tariff). This EIS will address Western's Federal action of interconnecting the proposed Project to Western's transmission system, making changes within Western's existing Watertown Substation to physically connect NextEra's proposed Project, and making any necessary system modifications to accommodate the interconnection. By taking these actions, power generated by NextEra's proposed Project would use Western's transmission system to reach the market. Portions of NextEra's proposed Project may affect floodplains and wetlands, so this Notice of Intent (NOI) also serves as a notice of proposed floodplain or wetland action in accordance with DOE floodplain and wetland environmental review requirements.

DOE announces its decision to provide approximately $4.6 million appropriated under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Public Law 111-5 (Recovery Act), to the City of Tacoma, Washington (Tacoma), for the design and construction of certain components of the Cushman Hydroelectric Project in Mason County, Washington. These components include a new 3.6 megawatt (MW) powerhouse on the North Fork of the Skokomish River, an integral fish collection, handling, and sorting facility, and related transmission infrastructure. The environmental impacts from the proposed action were analyzed in the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (FERC's) 1996 Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Cushman Hydroelectric Project (FERC Project No. 460) (1996 FEIS). In a July 15, 2010, Order \1\ (FERC's 2010 Order), FERC lifted a stay on a 1998 license for the Cushman Hydroelectric Project and amended the license to include inter alia conditions for fish passage facilities and authorization to construct the powerhouse. FERC's 2010 Order includes the components of the Cushman Hydroelectric Project that DOE proposes to fund. FERC relied on the 1996 FEIS to fulfill its National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) obligations for the 1998 license as amended on July 15, 2010. DOE has adopted the 1996 FEIS and 2010 Order, together, as a final DOE EIS (DOE/EIS-0456).