LIHI Certificate #32 - Newton Falls Project, St. Lawrence County, New York
Portland, Maine (February 29, 2008) The LIHI Governing Board today certified the Newton Falls Hydropower Project. The Board's decision, which was unanimous, recognizes that the Newton Falls Hydropower Project has avoided or reduced the Project's environmental impacts pursuant to the Low Impact Hydropower Institute's criteria.
Background
On November 1, 2007, Brookfield Power submitted an application to certify their Newton Falls Hydro Project (FERC# 7000) with the LIHI. The Newton Falls Project is located on the Oswegatchie River, in the town of Clifton, St. Lawrence County, New York. The Oswegatchie River is navigable from its mouth on the St. Lawrence River at Ogdenbury, to Cranberry Lake (about River mile 110), including the reach of the river in which the project is located (about river mile 98). The 2.22-megawatt (MW) Newton Falls Hydroelectric Project generates approximately 9,500,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity annually.
SUMMARY
Facility location: The Newton Falls Project is located on the Oswegatchie River, in the town of Clifton, St. Lawrence County, New York. Installed capacity: 2.22 MW Applicant: Brookfield Power Applicant contact: Tom Skutnik, Project Manager, 225 Greenfield Parkway Suite 201, Liverpool, NY 13088 (315) 413-2789
The existing Newton Falls Project consists of the Upper Development and the Lower Development.
The Upper Development includes:
(a) a 600-foot-long, 40-foot-high concrete gravity dam, including
(i) a 114-foot-long non-overflow section that forms the left abutment of the dam,
(ii) a 42-foot-long floodgate structure with four 8-foot-wide by 7-foot-high gate openings,
(iii) a 58-foot-long spillway with a height of 21 feet and 2.3-foot-high flashboards (crest elevation of 1,421.0 feet National Geodetic Vertical Datum [NGVD]),
(iv) a 36-foot-long by 45-foot-wide by 25-foot-high intake structure, having trashracks with 2-inch clear bar spacing, and
(v) a 315-foot-long non-overflow section that forms the right abutment of the dam;
(b) a powerhouse containing three Leffel Type "Z" turbine-generator units that have a combined installed capacity of 1,540 kW and a combined hydraulic capacity of 464 cubic feet per second (cfs);
(c) a 1,200-foot-long, 9-foot-diameter woodstave penstock with a rive ted steel surge tank;
(d) a 375-foot-long 2.3-kilovolt (kV) transmission line;
(e) a reservoir with a surface area of 650 acres and 5,930 acre-feet of gross storage capacity;
(f) a 35-foot-wide, 250-foot-long tailrace; and (g) appurtenant facilities.
The Lower Development includes:
(a) a 350-foot-long, 28-foot-high concrete gravity dam, including
(i) 120-foot-long spillway with a height of 25 feet and 1.5-foot-high flashboards (crest elevation of 1,372.5 feet NGVD) and
(ii) a 75-foot-long by 20-foot-wide by 15-foot-high intake structure, having trashracks with 2-inch clear bar spacing;
(b) a powerhouse containing a Leffel Type "Z" turbine-generator unit has an installed capacity of 680 kW and a hydraulic capacity of 486 cfs;
(c) a 2,200-foot-long, 2.3-kV transmission line;
(d) a reservoir with a surface area of 9 acres and 115 acre-feet of gross storage capacity;
(e) a 30-foot-wide, 200-foot-long tailrace; and
(f) appurtenant facilities.
REGULATORY BACKGROUND
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued the original license for the project to Newton Falls Paper Mill, Inc., on February 28, 1984 with an expiration date of January 31, 2004. The Commission approved the transfer of the license to NFH on September 28, 2001 and it approved the transfer of the license to Orion Power New York GP II, Inc. (Orion Power) on September 12, 2002 Orion Power proposed no new construction or new capacity at the project.
On January 30, 2002, Newton Falls Holdings, L.L.C. (NFH) filed an application for a new license to continue operation and maintenance of the 2.22-megawatt (MW) Newton Falls Hydroelectric Project No. 7000.
THE SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT
The Settlement incorporates agreements reached among the parties to the Settlement (Parties) with regard to the Upper and Lower Developments. The stated goal of the Settlement was to provide for the continued operation of the developments with appropriate long-term environmental and recreational protection and mitigation measures. The Parties provide in the Settlement recommended terms and conditions for the resolution of operational, fisheries, wildlife, water quality, and recreational issues applicable to the issuance of a new license and a water quality certificate (WQC) for the Newton Falls Hydroelectric Project.
Section 1 of the Settlement states the effective date of the agreement, the agreement's continued effectiveness throughout the term of the license, and the purpose of settlement. Section 1 also provides a set of definitions and conventions and stipulates the Parties intent to support issuance of a license consistent with the terms of the agreement.
Section 1.2 of the Settlement states the Parties' intent that the license condition provisions of Section 3 of the Settlement be included in numbered license articles. However, Commission policy requires placing provisions (such as the Section 3 provisions) that are mandatory license provisions (here, because they are included as requirements of the water quality certification for the project) verbatim in appendices, and incorporating the provisions by reference in ordering paragraphs.Nevertheless, the provisions are incorporated in numbered license articles for the purpose of adding basic requirements to enable the Commission to enforce the provisions. However, these articles do not purport to, and indeed cannot, alter or override mandatory conditions, but rather are meant to be complementary to them.
Section 2 of the Settlement states the Parties' agreement to support the issuance of a new license with a 40 year term, and proposes a condition reserving the Commission's authority to require the construction, operation, and maintenance of such fishways as may prescribed by Interior. Pursuant to Section 2, the Parties propose to establish the project boundary of the Upper Development at elevation 1424.0 feet National Geodetic Vertical Datum (NGVD). The Parties propose to establish the project boundary of the Lower Development at elevation 1375.5 feet NGVD.
Section 3 of the Settlement sets forth proposed impoundment fluctuation ranges,
flashboard heights, fish protection bypass flows, minimum flows for the Lower Development, fish protection measures to facilitate downstream fish movement, and
measures to improve public access and enhance recreational opportunities at the project. Also, in Section 3, the prospective licensee agrees to develop a stream flow and water level monitoring plan.
In the EA, FERC evaluated the measures proposed in the Settlement and concluded that the measures would adequately protect and enhance fishery, recreational, and other resources affected by the project.