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AEA files plan for Susitna hydro studies Proposed plan includes 58 studies into the potential environmental impacts of dam and power plant at Watana on the Susitna River Alan Bailey Petroleum News
In another significant step towards the construction of a major hydroelectric power plant at Watana on the Susitna River, south of the Alaska Range, the Alaska Energy Authority, or AEA, has submitted a proposed environmental studies plan to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (known as FERC).
“Over the last year we’ve worked closely with stakeholders and listened to the public in drafting this robust study plan,” said Wayne Dyok, the manager of the Susitna-Watana project, when announcing the filing of the plan with FERC on July 16. “We’re committed to delivering cost-effective, reliable energy solutions that meet the urgent needs of Alaskans in a responsible manner. This plan is a significant step in that direction.”
Design concept The design concept for the project is a dam 2,700 feet long and 700 feet high at Watana, to create a 39-mile long reservoir. A 600-megawatt or perhaps larger hydro power plant at the dam would be tied into the Alaska Railbelt electricity grid, probably producing an average of about 250 megawatts of power during the winter months when power demand in the region is especially high.
Hydro electricity from the Susitna-Watana project could diversify the means of power generation in the Railbelt, reducing the region’s dependence on natural gas from Cook Inlet and helping meet a state goal of meeting 50 percent of the state’s power needs from renewable sources.
With the environmental impacts of such a large hydroelectric system certain to be significant, the environmental studies proposed in AEA’s newly published plan form a key component of the procedure for obtaining a license from FERC for the project — information obtained from the studies will be used in developing any necessary environmental protection measures that will be included in the terms of the FERC license.
58 studies AEA proposes 58 individual studies addressing issues within 11 environmental categories.
Under the first of these categories, investigators will characterize the geology and soils of the project area.
A series of studies relating to water resources will address questions such as water quality, the structure of the Susitna River below the planned dam and ice processes in the river during the winter.
Other studies will investigate the potential impacts of changes in the river flow resulting from operation of the dam on the natural habitats provided by the river for vegetation, fish and other wildlife. And a series of studies will characterize those habitats and the fish populations, assessing the feasibility of enabling fish passage in the river after dam construction. Studies will analyze sport and commercial fish harvests downstream of the dam site, as well as assessing any possible impacts of changes in the river habitat on Cook Inlet beluga whales.
Studies will characterize various natural and other resources potentially impacted by the dam, including wildlife such as moose, bears, caribou, Dall’s sheep, raptors and waterbirds; vegetation and wildlife habitat, including wetlands; recreational and aesthetic resources; subsistence resources; and socioeconomic and transportation resources, including potential health impacts and air quality.
Finally, two studies will address safety concerns associated with the dam. One of these studies will investigate how the dam would handle maximum flood levels during periods of high precipitation, while the other study will assess seismic hazards.
Public review Interested parties have 90 days to comment on AEA’s proposed plan. Public comments must be filed with FERC by Oct. 15 — AEA will attempt, as needed, to resolve any issues raised through a series of meetings scheduled for the second half of October. By Nov. 14 AEA will submit to FERC a revised study plan, with public comments on the revised plan then due by Nov. 29.
FERC will subsequently issue its version of the study plan by Dec. 14. There will then be an opportunity for federal agencies to question the plan, with FERC resolving any challenges to the plan by March.
Studies carried out under the final version of the plan are then expected to be completed by the end of 2014, although studies of river ice processes will likely take until March 2015. AEA plans to submit its application for a FERC license by mid-September 2015.
In March FERC held scoping meetings in Alaska in preparation for an assessment of the project under the National Environmental Policy Act, in expectation of preparing an environmental impact statement for the hydro project after AEA applies for the FERC license.
Assuming that the FERC licensing proceeds as planned, AEA anticipates design and construction of the Watana-Susitna facility to be completed at the end of 2023. For further information about the project see the project website at www.susitna-watanahydro.org.
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