[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 77 (Friday, April 23, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21724-21726]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-08520]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Project No. 4784-106]


Topsham Hydro Partners Limited Partnership; Notice of Application 
Accepted for Filing, Soliciting Motions To Intervene and Protests, 
Ready for Environmental Analysis, and Soliciting Comments, 
Recommendations, Preliminary Terms and Conditions, and Preliminary 
Fishway Prescriptions

    Take notice that the following hydroelectric application has been 
filed with the Commission and is available for public inspection.
    a. Type of Application: New Major License.
    b. Project No.: 4784-106.
    c. Date filed: August 31, 2020.
    d. Applicant: Topsham Hydro Partners Limited Partnership.
    e. Name of Project: Pejepscot Hydroelectric Project.
    f. Location: On the Androscoggin River in Sagadahoc, Cumberland, 
and Androscoggin Counties in the village of Pejepscot and the town of 
Topsham, Maine. The project does not affect federal lands.
    g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power Act 16 U.S.C. 791(a)-825(r).
    h. Applicant Contact: Mr. Tom Uncher, Vice President, Topsham Hydro 
Partners Limited Partnership, 339B Big Bay Rd, Queensbury, NY 12804, 
Telephone: 1-518-743-2018, Thomas.Uncher@brookfieldrenewable.com.
    i. FERC Contact: Ryan Hansen, Telephone (202) 502-8074, and email 
ryan.hansen@ferc.gov.
    j. Deadline for filing motions to intervene and protests, comments, 
recommendations, preliminary terms and conditions, and preliminary 
prescriptions: 60 days from the issuance date of this notice; reply 
comments are due 105 days from the issuance date of this notice.
    The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file 
motions to intervene, protests, comments, recommendations, preliminary 
terms and conditions, and preliminary

[[Page 21725]]

fishway prescriptions using the Commission's eFiling system at http://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 http://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 
FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov, (866) 208-3676 (toll free), or (202) 502-
8659 (TTY). In lieu of electronic filing, you may submit a paper copy. 
Submissions sent via the U.S. Postal Service must be addressed to: 
Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 
First Street NE, Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426. Submissions sent via 
any other carrier must be addressed to: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, 
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 12225 Wilkins Avenue, Rockville, 
Maryland 20852. The first page of any filing should include docket 
number P-4784-106.
    The Commission's Rules of Practice require all intervenors filing 
documents with the Commission to serve a copy of that document on each 
person on the official service list for the project. Further, if an 
intervenor files comments or documents with the Commission relating to 
the merits of an issue that may affect the responsibilities of a 
particular resource agency, they must also serve a copy of the document 
on that resource agency.
    k. This application has been accepted for filing and is now ready 
for environmental analysis.
    l. Project Description: The existing Pejepscot Project consists of: 
(1) A 560-foot-long, 47.5-foot-high rock and gravel-filled, timber crib 
dam that is topped with a 5-foot-thick reinforced concrete slab; (2) a 
spillway consisting of five, 96-foot-long by 3-foot-high steel bascule 
gates; (3) a 225-acre, 3 mile-long reservoir at an elevation of 67.5 
feet mean sea level (MSL); (4) a 97-foot-wide, 146-foot-long brick 
masonry and concrete original powerhouse integral with the dam and 
containing three horizontal Francis turbine-generator units with a 
combined rated capacity of approximately 1.58 megawatts (MW); (5) a 60-
foot-wide by 115-foot-long concrete newer powerhouse also integral with 
the dam southeast of the original powerhouse and containing a Kaplan 
turbine and a generator with a rated capacity of approximately 12.3 MW; 
(6) a vertical lift upstream fish passage facility consisting of a 20-
foot-long, 7-foot-wide steel hopper with a sloping bottom and an 8-
inch-wide, 8-foot-high V-trap inlet, a 6-foot-wide, 8-foot-high, 110-
foot-long metal flume, four attraction pumps with a combined capacity 
of 160 cubic feet per second (cfs) and a viewing window; (7) a 
downstream fish passage facility consisting of two 4-foot-wide steel 
entry weirs with grizzly racks that pass fish through a 30-inch-
diameter, 185-foot-long and a 24-inch-diameter, 60-foot-long outlet 
pipe; (8) a tailrace with a bulkhead-like gate that discharges water 
into the Androscoggin River approximately 25 feet downstream of the 
powerhouses; (9) two 900-foot-long, 15-kilovolt cable connections to 
substations located north and south of the powerhouses, respectively; 
and (10) appurtenant facilities.
    The project is operated in a run-of-river mode with an average 
annual generation of 68.5 megawatt-hours.
    m. In addition to publishing the full text of this document in the 
Federal Register, the Commission provides all interested persons an 
opportunity to view and/or print the contents of this document via the 
internet through the Commission's website at http://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 (i.e., P-
4784). At this time, the Commission has suspended access to the 
Commission's Public Reference Room, due to the proclamation declaring a 
National Emergency concerning the Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19), 
issued by the President on March 13, 2020. For assistance, contact FERC 
Online Support.
    n. Anyone may submit comments, a protest, or a motion to intervene 
in accordance with the requirements of Rules of Practice and Procedure, 
18 CFR 385.210, .211, and .214. In determining the appropriate action 
to take, the Commission will consider all protests or other comments 
filed, but only those who file a motion to intervene in accordance with 
the Commission's Rules may become a party to the proceeding. Any 
comments, protests, or motions to intervene must be received on or 
before the specified comment date for the particular application.
    All filings must (1) bear in all capital letters the title 
``PROTEST'', ``MOTION TO INTERVENE'', ``COMMENTS,'' ``REPLY COMMENTS,'' 
``RECOMMENDATIONS,'' ``PRELIMINARY TERMS AND CONDITIONS,'' or 
``PRELIMINARY FISHWAY PRESCRIPTIONS;'' (2) set forth in the heading the 
name of the applicant and the project number of the application to 
which the filing responds; (3) furnish the name, address, and telephone 
number of the person protesting or intervening; and (4) otherwise 
comply with the requirements of 18 CFR 385.2001 through 385.2005. All 
comments, recommendations, terms and conditions or prescriptions must 
set forth their evidentiary basis and otherwise comply with the 
requirements of 18 CFR 4.34(b). Agencies may obtain copies of the 
application directly from the applicant. A copy of any protest or 
motion to intervene must be served upon each representative of the 
applicant specified in the particular application. 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.
    o. Procedural Schedule:
    The application will be processed according to the following 
revised Hydro Licensing Schedule. Revisions to the schedule may be made 
as appropriate.
    (For projects with draft and final NEPA documents):

------------------------------------------------------------------------
              Milestone                           Target date
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Filing of recommendations,             June 2021.
 preliminary terms and conditions,
 and preliminary fishway
 prescriptions.
Commission issues Draft EA or EIS....  December 2021.
Comments on Draft EA or EIS..........  January 2022.
Modified Terms and Conditions........  March 2022.
Commission Issues Final EA or EIS....  June 2022.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    p. Final amendments to the application must be filed with the 
Commission no later than 30 days from the issuance date of this notice.
    q. The applicant must file no later than 60 days following the date 
of issuance of this notice: (1) A copy of the water quality 
certification; (2) a copy of the request for certification, including 
proof of the date on which the certifying agency received the request; 
or (3) evidence of waiver of water quality certification. Please note 
that the certification request must comply with 40 CFR 121.5(b), 
including documentation that a pre-filing meeting request was submitted 
to the certifying authority at least 30 days prior to submitting the 
certification request. Please also note that the certification request 
must be sent to the certifying authority and to the Commission 
concurrently.


[[Page 21726]]


    Dated: April 19, 2021.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2021-08520 Filed 4-22-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P


