[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 95 (Thursday, May 16, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28842-28844]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-11704]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Western Area Power Administration
Searchlight Wind Energy Project Record of Decision (DOE/EIS-0413)
AGENCY: Western Area Power Administration, DOE.
ACTION: Record of Decision.
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SUMMARY: Western Area Power Administration (Western), an agency within
the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), received a request from
Searchlight Wind Energy, LLC (Searchlight) to interconnect its proposed
Searchlight Wind Energy Project (Project) to Western's Davis-Mead 230-
kilovolt (kV) transmission line. The Project would be located in
southern Clark County, Nevada, near the town of Searchlight. On
December 14, 2012, the Notice of Availability of the Final
Environmental Impact Statement
[[Page 28843]]
(EIS) for Searchlight Wind Energy Project was published in the Federal
Register (77 FR 74479). The U.S. Department of Interior, Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) was the lead Federal agency for the EIS. Western was a
cooperating agency in preparation of the EIS. After considering the
environmental impacts, Western has decided to allow Searchlight's
request for interconnection to Western's transmission system on its
Davis-Mead transmission line and to construct, own, and operate a new
switching station to accommodate the interconnection.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information, please
contact Mr. Matt Blevins, Corporate Services Office, Western Area Power
Administration, A7400, P.O. Box 281213, Lakewood, CO 80228-8213,
telephone (720) 962-7261, fax (720) 962-7263, or email:
[email protected]. For general information on DOE's National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) review process, please contact
Carol M. Borgstrom, Director, Office of NEPA Policy and Compliance, GC-
54, U.S. Department of Energy, Washington, DC 20585, telephone (202)
586-4600 or (800) 472-2756.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Western is a Federal agency under the DOE
that markets and transmits wholesale electrical power through an
integrated 17,000-circuit mile, high-voltage transmission system across
15 western states. Western's Open Access Transmission Service Tariff
(Tariff) provides open access to its electric transmission system. In
reviewing interconnection requests, Western must ensure that existing
reliability and service is not degraded. Western's Large Generator
Interconnection Procedures provide for transmission and system studies
to ensure that system reliability and service to existing customers are
not adversely affected by new interconnections.
Interested parties were notified of the proposed Project and the
public scoping comment opportunity through a Notice of Intent published
in the Federal Register on December 16, 2008 (73 FR 76377). The BLM
published a Notice of Availability (NOA) of the Draft EIS in the
Federal Register on January 12, 2012 (77 FR 2999). The NOA also
announced a 90-day public comment period for receipt of comments on the
Draft EIS. On December 14, 2012, the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) published an NOA of the Final EIS for the Project in the
Federal Register (77 FR 74479).\1\ The BLM published its NOA for its
Record of Decision (ROD) on March 22, 2013, in the Federal Register (78
FR 17718). With the issuance of its ROD, BLM included errata to the
Final EIS, and its right-of-way authorization for Western's switching
station.
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\1\ The Final EIS can be found on the BLM Web site at: http://www.blm.gov/nv/st/en/fo/lvfo/blm_programs/energy/searchlight_wind_energy.html.
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The BLM was the lead Federal agency for the EIS. Western and the
U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service participated as
cooperating agencies on the EIS. After an independent review of the
Final EIS, Western has concluded that its needs are satisfied and has
adopted the Final EIS, including the errata sheet issued in BLM's ROD.
Proposed Federal Action
Western's proposed Federal action is to construct, own, and operate
a new switching station to interconnect the Project with Western's
transmission system. The new switching station would be on BLM-
administered land located just west of Western's existing Davis-Mead
230-kV transmission line, approximately 7.5 miles east of the town of
Searchlight, and approximately 150 feet north of a National Park
Service fee station on Cottonwood Cove Road.
Searchlight Proposed Project
Searchlight proposes to construct and operate a utility-scale wind
energy facility in an area encompassing approximately 18,949 acres on
BLM-administered lands. The wind energy generating facility would
generate up to 220 megawatts (MW) of electricity from wind turbine
generators (WTGs). The proposed Project includes a wind energy facility
and a 230-kV transmission tie-line. The proposed wind energy facility
would include 37.6 miles of improved and new access and service roads,
up to 96 WTGs, electrical collection lines, two step-up substations,
communications system, operations and maintenance building, and
meteorological monitoring towers. A new 230-kV single-circuit
electrical transmission tie-line would be constructed between the
Project and Western's proposed switching station at its existing Davis-
Mead transmission line. Facilities associated with the proposed Project
would permanently occupy approximately 160 acres.
Description of Alternatives
With issuance of its ROD, the BLM authorized Searchlight to
construct, operate and maintain, and decommission an approximately 200-
MW wind energy facility on BLM-administered lands within the same
location as described under the proposed Project. This alternative was
BLM's preferred alternative and would involve the construction of up to
87 WTGs that would provide up to 200 MW of electricity. Under this
alternative, 8.6 miles of road widening and improvement would be
required, and 16.3 miles of new roads would be constructed. Facilities
associated with this alternative would permanently occupy approximately
152 acres. Western would construct the new switching station; the same
as Western proposed Federal action, and Searchlight would construct the
transmission tie-line as described under the proposed Project.
Initially, the BLM considered two additional alternatives: A 161
WTG Layout Alternative and a 140 WTG Layout Alternative. The 161 WTG
Alternative was Searchlight's original proposal developed to maximize
the power generation potential of the site. The 140 WTG Alternative was
developed to reduce impacts on visual resources and air traffic safety
in the area. However, based on public scoping meeting input, agency
discussions, and further analyses both of these alternatives were
rejected based on the potential for environmental impacts and technical
and economic considerations and eliminated from further analysis.
Western considered three additional alternatives for siting the
proposed switching station, but eliminated these sites from further
analysis for technical reasons. Western's primary selection criteria
was to locate the switching station close to the Davis-Mead
transmission line and meet the BLM resource planning requirements,
including siting the switching station outside of special management
designation lands, except for a 0.5-mile area adjacent to a federally-
designated highway.
Western has identified the No Action Alternative as its
environmentally preferred alternative. Under this alternative, Western
would deny the interconnection request and not modify its transmission
system to interconnect the proposed Project with its transmission
system. Under this alternative, there would be no modifications to
Western's transmission system, and thus no new environmental impacts.
Mitigation Measures
For the wind facility component of the proposed Project,
Searchlight has committed to best management practices and design
features addressed as Applicant's Proposed Measures in the
[[Page 28844]]
EIS. In addition, the wind energy portion of the project would adhere
to BLM wind energy development program policies and best management
practices. Searchlight will abide by the Biological Opinion issued by
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and as conditioned by BLM in its
right-of-way authorization for the proposed Project. Western will abide
by the Biological Opinion as it pertains to Western's switching station
and as conditioned by BLM in its right-of-way authorization to Western.
In compliance with the National Historic Preservation Act, BLM has
executed a Programmatic Agreement with the Nevada State Historic
Preservation Office and Searchlight (as an invited signatory). Western
is a concurring party to the Programmatic Agreement.
For Western's proposed switching station, Western requires its
construction contractors to implement standard environmental protection
provisions. These provisions are provided in Western's Construction
Standard 13 (included as an appendix in the Final EIS) and will be
applied to the proposed switching station. In addition, specific
mitigation measures for the switching station are addressed in the
Final EIS and BLM's Record of Decision (ROD), and include requirements
for site environmental clearances prior to construction, desert
tortoise fencing around the switching station and preparation of a
worker environmental awareness program per the Biological Opinion
issued for the proposed Project, use of flat tone colors for the
switching station intended to blend with the surrounding environment,
developing a Memorandum of Understanding to address mitigation for the
switching station, and surveying the boundaries of the switching
station.
With this decision, Western is adopting the specific mitigation
measures that apply to its action and will issue a Mitigation Action
Plan before any construction takes place. The plan will address the
adopted mitigation measures. When completed, the Mitigation Action Plan
will be made available to the public. The mitigation measures in the
Final EIS and the BLM ROD reflect all practicable means to avoid or
minimize environmental harm from the proposed Project and Western's
proposed action.
Comments on the Final EIS
The National Park Service provided comments on the Final EIS to the
BLM in a letter dated January 10, 2013, requesting the inclusion of
additional mitigation addressing the visual impacts of Western's
proposed switching station. In response, the BLM has added mitigation
in its ROD that includes developing a Memorandum of Understanding to
address mitigation of the switching station. This mitigation will be
incorporated into BLM's right-of-way authorization for the switching
station. Western has adopted this mitigation and will abide by
mitigation stipulations provided by BLM in its right-of-way
authorization for the switching station.
The National Parks Conservation Association (Association) submitted
comments on the Final EIS to the BLM in a letter dated January 14,
2013. The Association noted that its comments on the Draft EIS were
omitted from the Final EIS. Its comments on the Draft EIS noted that
the proposed switching station, an industrial facility with chain link
fence, would be built next to Lake Mead National Recreation Area's
newly constructed Cottonwood Cove Visitor Entrance Station, negatively
impacting visitor experience to the National Recreation Area. The
Association also questioned the location of the proposed switching
station in relation to the Piute-Eldorado Valley Area of Critical
Environmental Concern and a 100-year floodplain. Western has adopted
BLM's Final EIS errata addressing the Association's comments on the
Draft EIS.
In its January 14, 2013, letter, the Association also requested
that the siting of the switching station along with the station's
construction methods and materials be addressed by convening a meeting
that includes high-level representatives from Duke Energy, Western, the
National Park Service, BLM, and the Association. BLM has added
mitigation to its ROD to address the visual impacts of the switching
station. Western has adopted this mitigation and will abide by
mitigation stipulation provided by BLM in its right-of-way
authorization.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Nevada Department of
Wildlife, the Desert Conversation Program, an individual, and an
official of Save the Eagles International also provided comments on the
Final EIS. However, none of these comments involved Western's
participation or its proposed switching station.
Based on a review of the comments provided on the Final EIS related
to Western's switching station, Western has determined that the
comments do not present any significant new circumstances or
information relevant to environmental concerns and bearing on the
Project or its impacts, and a Supplemental EIS is not required.
Decision
Western's decision is to allow Searchlight's request for
interconnection to Western's transmission system at its Davis-Mead
transmission line, and to construct, own, and operate a new switching
station.\2\ Western's decision to grant this interconnection request
satisfies the agency's statutory mission and Searchlight's objectives
while minimizing harm to the environment. Full implementation of this
decision is contingent upon Searchlight obtaining all other applicable
permits and approvals as well as executing an interconnection agreement
in accordance with Western's Tariff.
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\2\ On November 16, 2011, DOE's Acting General Counsel restated
the delegation to Western's Administrator all the authorities of the
General Counsel respecting environmental impact statements.
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This decision is based on the information contained in the
Searchlight Wind Energy Project Final EIS, comments received on Draft
EIS but not specifically addressed in the Final EIS, and comments
received on the Final EIS. This ROD was prepared pursuant to the
requirements of the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations for
Implementing NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500-1508) and DOE's Procedures for
Implementing NEPA (10 CFR part 1021).
Dated: May 6, 2013.
Mark A. Gabriel,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2013-11704 Filed 5-15-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P