Exelon Generation Company, LLC; Notice of Intent To File License Application, Filing of Pre-Application Document, Commencement of Licensing Proceeding, and Scoping; Request for Comments on the PAD and Scoping Document, and Identification of Issues and Associated Study Requests, 23177-23178 [E9-11461]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
• Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 94 (Monday, May 18, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23177-23178]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-11461]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 405-087]


Exelon Generation Company, LLC; Notice of Intent To File License 
Application, Filing of Pre-Application Document, Commencement of 
Licensing Proceeding, and Scoping; Request for Comments on the PAD and 
Scoping Document, and Identification of Issues and Associated Study 
Requests

May 11, 2009.
    a. Type of Filing: Notice of Intent to File License Application for 
a New License and Commencing Licensing Proceeding.
    b. Project No.: 405-087.
    c. Date Filed: March 12, 2009.
    d. Submitted by: Exelon Generation Company, LLC.
    e. Name of Project: Conowingo Hydroelectric Project.
    f. Location: On the Susquehanna River, in Harford and Cecil 
Counties, Maryland and Lancaster and York Counties, Pennsylvania. The 
project does not occupy any federal lands.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: 18 CFR Part 5 of the Commission's 
Regulations.
    h. Potential Applicant Contact: Colleen Hicks, Manager, Regulatory 
and Licensing, Hydro, Exelon Power, 300 Exelon Way, Kennett Square, PA 
19348, at (610) 765-6791 or e-mail at Colleen.Hicks@exeloncorp.com and 
A. Karen Hill, Vice President, Federal Regulatory Affairs, Exelon 
Corporation, 101 Constitution Avenue, Suite 400E, Washington, DC 20001, 
at (202) 347-8092 or e-mail at Karen.Hill@exeloncorp.com.
    i. FERC Contact: John Smith at (202) 502-8972 or e-mail at 
john.smith@ferc.gov.
    j. Cooperating agencies: Federal, State, local, and tribal agencies 
with jurisdiction and/or special expertise with respect to 
environmental issues that wish to cooperate in the preparation of the 
environmental document should follow the instructions for filing such 
requests described in item o below. Cooperating agencies should note 
the Commission's policy that agencies that cooperate in the preparation 
of the environmental document cannot also intervene. See, 94 FERC ] 
61,076 (2001).
    k. With this notice, we are initiating informal consultation with: 
(a) The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and/or NOAA Fisheries under 
section 7 of the Endangered Species Act and the joint agency 
regulations thereunder at 50 CFR Part 402; and (b) the State Historic 
Preservation Officer, as required by Section 106, National Historical 
Preservation Act, and the implementing regulations of the Advisory 
Council on Historic Preservation at 36 CFR 800.2.
    l. With this notice, we are designating Exelon Generation Company, 
LLC as the Commission's non-federal representative for carrying out 
informal consultation, pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species 
Act and Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act.
    m. Exelon Generation Company, LLC filed a Pre-Application Document 
(PAD; including a proposed process plan and schedule) with the 
Commission, pursuant to 18 CFR 5.6 of the Commission's regulations.
    n. A copy of the PAD is available for review at the Commission in 
the Public Reference Room or may be viewed on the Commission's Web site 
(https://www.ferc.gov), using the eLibrary link. Enter the docket 
number, excluding the last three digits in the docket number field to 
access the document. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support at 
FERCONlineSupport@ferc.gov or toll free at 1-866-208-3676, or for TTY, 
(202) 502-8659. A copy is also available for inspection and 
reproduction at the address in paragraph h.
    Register online at https://ferc.gov/docs-filing/esubscription.asp to 
be notified via e-mail of new filing and issuances related to this or 
other pending projects. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support.
    o. With this notice, we are soliciting comments on the PAD and 
Scoping Document issued May 11, 2009, as well as study requests. All 
comments on the PAD and Scoping Document, and study requests should be 
sent to the address above in paragraph h. In addition, all comments on 
the PAD and Scoping Document, study requests, requests for cooperating 
agency status, and all communications to and from Commission staff 
related to the merits of the potential application (original and eight 
copies) must be filed with the Commission at the following address: 
Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 
First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426. All filings with the 
Commission must include on the first page, the project name (Conowingo 
Hydroelectric Project) and number (P-405-087), and bear the heading 
Comments on Pre-Application Document, Study Requests, Comments on 
Scoping Document, Request for Cooperating Agency Status, or 
Communications to and from Commission Staff. Any individual or entity 
interested in submitting study requests, commenting on the PAD or 
Scoping Document, and any agency requesting cooperating status must do 
so by July 10, 2009.
    Comments on the PAD and Scoping Document, study requests, requests 
for cooperating agency status, and other permissible forms of 
communications with the Commission may be filed electronically via the 
Internet in lieu of paper. The Commission strongly encourages 
electronic filings. See 18 CFR 385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the instructions 
on the Commission's Web site (https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/ferconline.asp) under the e-filing link. For a simpler method of 
submitting text only comments, click on ``Quick Comment.''
    p. Although our current intent is to prepare an environmental 
assessment (EA), there is the possibility that an Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS) will be required. Nevertheless, this meeting will 
satisfy the NEPA scoping requirements, irrespective of whether an EA or 
EIS is issued by the Commission.

Scoping Meetings

    Commission staff will hold two scoping meetings in the vicinity of 
the project at the time and place noted below. The daytime meeting will 
focus on resource agency, Indian tribes, and non-governmental 
organization concerns, while the evening meeting is primarily for 
receiving input from the public. We invite all interested individuals, 
organizations, and agencies to attend one or both of the meetings, and 
to assist staff in identifying particular study needs, as well as the

[[Page 23178]]

scope of environmental issues to be addressed in the environmental 
document. The times and locations of these meetings are as follows:

Evening Scoping Meeting

    Date: Thursday June 11, 2009.
    Time: 7 p.m.
    Location: Darlington Fire Station, 2600 Castleton Road, Darlington, 
Maryland.
    Phone: Barbara Evans at (410) 638-3762.

Daytime Scoping Meeting

    (Joint meeting with Muddy Run Pumped Storage Project [Project No. 
2355-011])
    Date: Friday June 12, 2009.
    Time: 10 a.m.
    Location: Darlington Fire Station, 2600 Castleton Road, Darlington, 
Maryland.
    Phone: Barbara Evans at (410) 638-3762.
    The Scoping Document, which outlines the subject areas to be 
addressed in the environmental document, was mailed to the individuals 
and entities on the Commission's mailing list. Copies of the Scoping 
Document will be available at the scoping meetings, or may be viewed on 
the Web at https://www.ferc.gov, using the eLibrary link. Follow the 
directions for accessing information in paragraph n. Based on all oral 
and written comments, a revised Scoping Document may be issued which 
may include a revised process plan and schedule, as well as a list of 
issues, identified through the scoping process.

Site Visit

    The potential applicant and Commission staff will conduct a site 
visit of the project on Thursday June 11, 2009, starting at 9 a.m. All 
participants should meet at the Conowingo Visitor's Center at 4948 
Conowingo Road, Darlington, Maryland 21034. Transportation will be 
provided by Exelon Generation Company, LLC or participants may use 
their own transportation. Anyone needing transportation or with 
questions about the site visit should contact Ms. Colleen Hicks at 
Exelon Generation Company, LLC at (610) 765-6791 on or before June 3, 
2009.

Meeting Objectives

    At the scoping meetings, staff will: (1) Initiate scoping of the 
issues; (2) review and discuss existing conditions and resource 
management objectives; (3) review and discuss existing information and 
identify preliminary information and study needs; (4) review and 
discuss the process plan and schedule for pre-filing activity that 
incorporates the time frames provided for in Part 5 of the Commission's 
regulations and, to the extent possible, maximizes coordination of 
federal, state, and tribal permitting and certification processes; and 
(5) discuss the appropriateness of any federal or state agency or 
Indian tribe acting as a cooperating agency for development of an 
environmental document.
    Meeting participants should come prepared to discuss their issues 
and/or concerns. Please review the PAD in preparation for the scoping 
meetings. Directions on how to obtain a copy of the PAD and Scoping 
Document are included in item n. of this document.

Meeting Procedures

    The meetings will be recorded by a stenographer and will become 
part of the formal record of the Commission proceeding on the project.

Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E9-11461 Filed 5-15-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P