Western Area Power Administration May 9, 2016 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Western Area Power Administration (Western), a power marketing administration within the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and the San Luis & Delta-Mendota Water Authority (Authority), a California joint powers agency, have prepared a joint Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)/Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the San Luis Transmission Project (SLTP or Proposed Project). Western is the Federal lead agency under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and the Authority is the state lead agency under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) is a NEPA Cooperating Agency. The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) is a CEQA Responsible Agency. Western proposes to construct, own, operate, and maintain approximately 95 miles of new transmission lines within easements ranging from 125 to 250 feet wide through Alameda, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, and Merced Counties along the foothills of the western San Joaquin Valley. Western also would upgrade or expand its existing substations, make the necessary arrangements to upgrade or expand existing Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E) substations, or construct new substations to accommodate the interconnections of these new transmission lines. The Notice of Availability (NOA) of the Final EIS/EIR was published in the Federal Register on March 25, 2016 (81 FR 16175). After considering the environmental impacts, Western has decided to construct, operate, and maintain the transmission line and other project components within the corridors identified as the Agency Preferred Alternative in the Final EIS/EIR.