[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 152 (Wednesday, August 7, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38616-38617]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-16852]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 77-285]


Mendocino County Inland Water Agency and Power Commission; Sonoma 
County Water Agency; California Trout, Inc.; County of Humboldt, 
California

Notice of Continuation of Relicensing Proceeding

    On June 28, 2019, Mendocino County Inland Water Agency and Power 
Commission; Sonoma County Water Agency; California Trout, Inc.; and the 
County of Humboldt, California (NOI Parties) filed a Notice of Intent 
(NOI) to File an Application for a New License for the Potter Valley 
Project.
    The 9.4-megawatt project is located on the Eel River and the East 
Branch Russian River in Mendocino and Lake Counties, California, about 
15 miles northeast of the city of Ukiah. Project features include Lake 
Pillsbury, a 2,300-acre storage reservoir impounded by Scott Dam; 106-
acre Van Arsdale Reservoir, impounded by the Cape Horn Diversion Dam; 
and a tunnel and penstock across a natural divide to the project's 
powerhouse located in the headwaters of the Russian River Basin.
    The Potter Valley Project is currently licensed to the Pacific Gas 
and Electric Company (PG&E) and the license expires on April 14, 2022. 
On April 6, 2017, PG&E filed a NOI to relicense the project and a pre-
application document (PAD) and initiated the pre-filing steps of the 
Integrated Licensing Process (ILP). On January 25, 2019, PG&E filed a 
notice of withdrawal of its NOI and PAD, indicating it was 
discontinuing its efforts to relicense the project. The withdrawal 
became effective on February 11, 2019. On March 1, 2019, the Commission 
issued a Notice Soliciting Applications, establishing a deadline of 120 
days from the date of the notice (i.e., July 1, 2019) for interested 
applicants, other than PG&E, to file NOIs, PADs, and requests to 
complete the pre-filing stages of the licensing process.
    The NOI Parties propose to continue the ILP initiated by PG&E. 
According to the proposed pre-filing process plan and schedule, the NOI 
Parties propose to complete a feasibility study in April 2020, consult 
on the need for additional studies, and file \1\ a final license 
application by April 14, 2022.
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    \1\ The NOI Parties are proxies for a new Regional Entity that 
ultimately would be the license applicant for the project. The 
Regional Entity has not yet been formed under California law, but 
once formed the Regional Entity would supplant the NOI Parties in 
this ILP proceeding.

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[[Page 38617]]

    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 of the National Historic 
Preservation Act, and the implementing regulations of the Advisory 
Council on Historic Preservation at 36 CFR part 800.
    With this notice, we are designating the NOI Parties 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.
    Questions concerning this notice should be directed to Alan 
Mitchnick at (202) 502-6074 or alan.mitchnick@ferc.gov.

    Dated: August 1, 2019.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2019-16852 Filed 8-6-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P


