Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks, Fish Hatchery Bureau; Notice of Preliminary Determination of a Qualifying Conduit Hydropower Facility and Soliciting Comments and Motions To Intervene, 45921 [2018-19691]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
• Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 176 (Tuesday, September 11, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Page 45921]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-19691]



[[Page 45921]]

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CD18-11-000]


Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks, Fish Hatchery 
Bureau; Notice of Preliminary Determination of a Qualifying Conduit 
Hydropower Facility and Soliciting Comments and Motions To Intervene

    On August 30, 2018, the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife & 
Parks, Fish Hatchery Bureau, filed a notice of intent to construct a 
qualifying conduit hydropower facility, pursuant to section 30 of the 
Federal Power Act (FPA), as amended by section 4 of the Hydropower 
Regulatory Efficiency Act of 2013 (HREA). The proposed Bluewater Fish 
Hatchery Artesian Well Hydroelectric Project would have an installed 
capacity of 35 kilowatts (kW), and would be located on a 10-inch 
diameter pipeline that would take water from an artesian well to the 
Bluewater Spring, to be used for the fish hatchery. The project would 
be located near the Town of Bridger in Carbon County, Montana.
    Applicant Contact: Jay Pravecek, Chief, Fish Hatchery Bureau, 1420 
E 6th Avenue, Helena, MT 59620-0701.
    FERC Contact: Robert Bell, Phone No. (202) 502-6062; Email: 
[email protected].
    Qualifying Conduit Hydropower Facility Description: The proposed 
project would consist of: (1) A ten-inch PVC pipe in the pump house of 
the artesian well containing a single turbine with a total generating 
capacity of 35 kW; (2) a 37-foot-long, 10-inch-diameter PVC pipe 
connected to an existing, abandoned water line that will transport well 
water to the Bluewater Spring; and (3) appurtenant facilities. The 
proposed project would have an estimated annual generation of 306.6 
megawatt-hours.
    A qualifying conduit hydropower facility is one that is determined 
or deemed to meet all of the criteria shown in the table below.

      Table 1--Criteria for Qualifying Conduit Hydropower Facility
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               Satisfies
        Statutory provision                Description           (Y/N)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
FPA 30(a)(3)(A), as amended by      The conduit the facility           Y
 HREA.                               uses is a tunnel, canal,
                                     pipeline, aqueduct,
                                     flume, ditch, or similar
                                     manmade water conveyance
                                     that is operated for the
                                     distribution of water
                                     for agricultural,
                                     municipal, or industrial
                                     consumption and not
                                     primarily for the
                                     generation of
                                     electricity.
FPA 30(a)(3)(C)(i), as amended by   The facility is                    Y
 HREA.                               constructed, operated,
                                     or maintained for the
                                     generation of electric
                                     power and uses for such
                                     generation only the
                                     hydroelectric potential
                                     of a non-federally owned
                                     conduit.
FPA 30(a)(3)(C)(ii), as amended by  The facility has an                Y
 HREA.                               installed capacity that
                                     does not exceed 5
                                     megawatts.
FPA 30(a)(3)(C)(iii), as amended    On or before August 9,             Y
 by HREA.                            2013, the facility is
                                     not licensed, or
                                     exempted from the
                                     licensing requirements
                                     of Part I of the FPA.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Preliminary Determination: The proposed hydroelectric project will 
not interfere with the primary purpose of the conduit, which is to aid 
the Fish Hatchery Bureau's fish hatchery water supply system. 
Therefore, based upon the above criteria, Commission staff 
preliminarily determines that the proposal satisfies the requirements 
for a qualifying conduit hydropower facility, which is not required to 
be licensed or exempted from licensing.
    Comments and Motions To Intervene: Deadline for filing comments 
contesting whether the facility meets the qualifying criteria is 45 
days from the issuance date of this notice.
    Deadline for filing motions to intervene is 30 days from the 
issuance date of this notice.
    Anyone may submit comments or a motion to intervene in accordance 
with the requirements of Rules of Practice and Procedure, 18 CFR 
385.210 and 385.214. Any motions to intervene must be received on or 
before the specified deadline date for the particular proceeding.
    Filing and Service of Responsive Documents: All filings must (1) 
bear in all capital letters the ``COMMENTS CONTESTING QUALIFICATION FOR 
A CONDUIT HYDROPOWER FACILITY'' or ``MOTION TO INTERVENE,'' as 
applicable; (2) state in the heading the name of the applicant and the 
project number of the application to which the filing responds; (3) 
state the name, address, and telephone number of the person filing; and 
(4) otherwise comply with the requirements of sections 385.2001 through 
385.2005 of the Commission's regulations.\1\ All comments contesting 
Commission staff's preliminary determination that the facility meets 
the qualifying criteria must set forth their evidentiary basis.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ 18 CFR 385.2001-2005 (2017).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file 
motions to intervene and comments using the Commission's eFiling system 
at https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp. Commenters can submit 
brief comments up to 6,000 characters, without prior registration, 
using the eComment system at https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/ecomment.asp. You must include your name and contact information at the 
end of your comments. For assistance, please contact FERC Online 
Support at [email protected], (866) 208-3676 (toll free), or 
(202) 502-8659 (TTY). In lieu of electronic filing, please send a paper 
copy to: Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First 
Street NE, Washington, DC 20426. A copy of all other filings in 
reference to this application must be accompanied by proof of service 
on all persons listed in the service list prepared by the Commission in 
this proceeding, in accordance with 18 CFR 4.34(b) and 385.2010.
    Locations of Notice of Intent: Copies of the notice of intent can 
be obtained directly from the applicant or such copies can be viewed 
and reproduced at the Commission in its Public Reference Room, Room 2A, 
888 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20426. The filing may also be 
viewed on the web at https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/elibrary.asp using 
the ``eLibrary'' link. Enter the docket number (i.e., CD18-11) in the 
docket number field to access the document. For assistance, call toll-
free 1-866-208-3676 or email [email protected]. For TTY, call 
(202) 502-8659.

    Dated: September 5, 2018.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2018-19691 Filed 9-10-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6717-01-P