Final EIS for Grant Lake hydro published
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FERC has documented an evaluation of environmental impacts & development alternatives for proposed Kenai Peninsula hydropower system
Alan Bailey Petroleum News
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has issued a final environmental impact statement for the proposed development of a hydropower system at Grant Lake on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula. The agency is proposing that the development should proceed, but with some adjustments to the development and operations plans.
Kenai Hydro LLC, a subsidiary of the Alaska Electric and Energy Cooperative, the business entity that operates power generation and transmission facilities as a part of Homer Electric Association, is proposing to build the hydropower system to help meet Homer Electric’s goal for the use of renewable energy in the utility’s power generation mix.
Grant Lake is an L-shaped water body in the hills above and to the east of the Seward Highway, where the highway runs through the valley of Moose Pass, with Grant Creek flowing from Grant Lake into Lower Trail Lake, just south of the southern end of Upper Trail Lake. Construction of the 5-megawatt hydro facility would involve diverting water from Grant Lake through a tunnel to a powerhouse near the outlet of Grant Creek canyon, a natural rock canyon.
Concerns raised The project has raised numerous concerns about possible impacts on the Kenai River watershed. The historic Iditarod Trail from Seward to Nome also passes through the project area, a situation that has required discussions over any conflicts with the trail route.
The EIS comments that the proposed power plant would meet part of Alaska’s power requirements while also providing some resource diversity.
“We conclude that power from the Grant Lake project would help meet a need for power in the Railbelt region in both the short- and the long-term,” the EIS says. “As a renewable resource, the project may provide power that displaces generation from non-renewable sources. Displacing the operation of non-renewable facilities may avoid some power plant emissions, thus creating an environmental benefit.”
Cumulative impacts But FERC also recognized some cumulative environmental impacts that would result from the implementation of this project in addition to existing activities in the basin of the Kenai River on the Kenai Peninsula. Those activities include mining in the Grant Creek watershed, the operation of the Cooper Lake hydroelectric project on a tributary of the Kenai River, and a proposal by the National Forest Service to construct a section of the Iditarod Trail in the area of the proposed hydropower system.
And clearly the system would have impacts on the natural environment in which it would be built. However, the EIS also comments that, while salmon and other fish species spawn in the lower reaches of Grant Creek, impassible falls in the creek prevent anadromous fish from reaching Grant Lake.
In assessing the project FERC considered the project, as proposed by Kenai Hydro, and two alternatives involving modification to that proposal, as recommended by FERC staff. FERC also considered a no-action alternative, in which the development would not be allowed to move forward.
Staff recommendations Among the staff recommendations are a suggestion not to include a fishery monitoring plan that Kenai Hydro had proposed, and a view that construction of the hydropower system would not require a rerouting of the Iditarod Trail. Other recommendations include modifications to the construction plans, changes to the procedures for plant operation and modification to the plan for taking account of historic properties.
FERC is recommending that the project should proceed, based on Kenai Hydro’s plan with some staff modifications and additional measures.
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