LIHI Pending Application --- (FERC No. 2816) North Hartland Hydroelectric Project, Ottauquechee River, Windsor County, Vermont.

North Hartland Hydropower Project (FERC No. 2816)

(September 30, 2009) - LIHI received a comment letter from the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources. Because of staffing constraints we were unable to upload the Agency's letter until October 4, 2009. The comment period for this project ends October 18, 2009.

The Agency of Natural Resources provides the following comments related to North Hartland, LLC's application for certification.

The hydroelectric facility is operated in a water quality certification and federal license both issued in 1981. A water quality certification amendment (Appendix 4-2 of the LIHI application) was issued on July 20, 2009 to address a change in the reservoir water level operating band for this peaking project. The scope of review was limited to the effects that change (which had already happened) would have on water quality. The Department of Environmental Conservation did not include other issues within the scope of review, specifically the downstream flow regime. For hydropeaking, the project causes significant downstream flow fluctuations on an almost daily basis. Neither the impact of these fluctuations nor the sufficiency of the minimum flow were recognized and properly addressed by the Department when it certified the project in 1981. In fact, as stated in Finding 11 of the certification amendment, the reservoir and downstream reach of the Ottauquechee River are now on Vermont's priority waters list:

The 2008 Department List of Priority Waters Outside the Scope of Clean Water Act Section 303(d) includes North Hartland Reservoir and the downstream 0.9-mile segment of the Ottauquechee River as Part F surface waters altered by flow regulation, in this case primarily related to hydropeaking and deficient minimum flows. The reservoir is considered to not fully support the designated uses of aquatic biota and secondary contact recreation. The river segment is considered to not fully support aesthetics, aquatic biota, and secondary contact recreation. The Department's current plan is to address the lack of full use support as part of the relicensing process, which should terminate in 2021. The Department may, however, opt to address use support earlier through a petition to FERC under Article 15 of the license (Form L-2 standard articles).

The LIHI application filed by North Hartland, LLC contends that the facility passes the LIHI flow criteria under Category A.1, citing the certification amendment in support. It is incorrect to use the amended certification as a foundation for flow compliance as the project flow regime was not reviewed as part of the amendment process. Given that it is not conforming with a resource agency flow recommendation made after 1986, the next test is A.2: whether it meets ABF standards or the Montana method good habitat condition. The facility only maintains a minimum flow equivalent to 7Q10 (23 cfs). Summer ABF would be 110 cfs; Montana method's value (30% ADF) would be 124 cfs. Lastly, the A.3 test is whether the application has documentation from a resource agency that it has demonstrated the flow regime as "appropriately protective of fish, wildlife, and water quality". I do not believe that such a demonstration has ever been done.

The criteria (A.2 and A.3) do not specifically address peaking. It should be noted that this facility is licensed to operate, without ramping or any other constraints, between 23 cfs and 970 cfs. The artificial flow change is over forty fold, and it can occur rapidly.

In conclusion, the Agency of Natural Resources does not believe that the flow criteria are met.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment.

><{{{˜> Jeffrey R. Cueto, P.E., Chief Hydrologist

><{{{˜> VT Department of Environmental Conservation

><{{{˜> Dam Safety and Hydrology Section

><{{{˜> Facilities Engineering Division, Laundry Bldg.

><{{{˜> 103 South Main Street, Waterbury, VT 05671-0511

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(October 9, 2009) - LIHI received the following comment letter from David Deen:

Dear Fred:

I finally went and looked at the North Hartland hydro site FERC No. 2816. I do not think that this project meets the criteria for Low Impact certification. The water that moves from the face of the USACE dam to the generation station moves through a black steel tube. There is virtually no flow in the river itself other than what I would consider leakage from around the structure. According to the State of Vermont the distance is .9 miles and for that entire length of river it is a dead river for lack of any meaningful flow that would support the aquatic life in the river. CRWC hopes that LIHI will not certify this facility.

Sincerely

David L. Deen River Steward

Connecticut River Watershed Council
David L. Deen River Steward
PO Box 206
Saxtons River, VT 05154
802-869-2792
FAX 802-869-1103
ddeen@ctriver.org
http://www.ctriver.org

Portland, Maine (August 18, 2009) – The Low Impact Hydropower Institute (LIHI) announced today that North Hartland, LLC ("Applicant") has submitted an application for certification of the North Hartland Hydroelectric Project ("NHL" or "Project") which is located at the North Hartland Dam, owned and operated by the US Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) on the Ottauquechee River, in Windsor County,Vermont. The Project operates under a license from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ("FERC") issued November 24, 1981.

Project Description

The North Hartland Project is located at the US Army Corps of Engineers' North Hartland Dam on the Ottauquechee River in Windsor, County, Vermont. The Project uses an existing outlet conduit at the Dam, and consists of: (1) the existing outlet which was lined with a 12-foot diameter steel pipe; (2) a 470-foot-long extension of the existing outlet connecting to two 7.5-foot diameter penstocks; (3) a powerhouse containing two 2,000 kW generating units; (4) a 12-foot diameter gated bypass outlet works branching from the penstock upstream from the powerhouse; (5) a 4.16/12.5kv switchyard; (6) a 12.5 kv transmission line.

The Vermont Department of Forests and Parks operates the Quechee State Park and Recreation Area at the upper end of the reservoir. Recreational facilities at the reservoir are maintained by the ACOE and include a picnic area, baseball field, boat launching ramp, and a nature trail. The Applicant installed an informational sign near the parking area to illustrate the hydro project.

The North Hartland Project was licensed in 1981and operated until 1996, when

the licensee, Vermont Electric Generation & Transmission Cooperative, Inc. (VEGT) , ceased project operations and filed for bankruptcy. In 1999, VEGT, by and through its bankruptcy trustee, sold the project to North Hartland, LLC, and in 2000 the Commission approved the transfer of the project license from the trustee to North Hartland. The transfer became effective in May 2005, when title to the properties under license were transferred to North Hartland. As licensed, the project is comprised of an outlet conduit at the federal dam, a penstock leading from the outlet to the project powerhouse, a tailrace, a few thousand feet of primary transmission line, and ancillary facilities.

The Project Boundary encompasses the entire length of the project's primary line. A primary line is the line that is essential for and used solely to transmit power from the licensed project to a load center.The North Hartland Project's primary line constitutes roughly one mileof licensee-owned line and a six-mile-long segment of three-phase circuit transmissionline owned by Central Vermont and connecting the project to Central Vermont'sdistribution system at its Quechee substation.

PUBLIC COMMENT

We encourage public comments on this application. Specifically, we are interested in knowing whether you think the North Hartland Project meets our LIHI criteria. Review the program and criteria in greater detail and then review the North Hartland Project application. Comments that are directly tied to specific LIHI criteria (flows, water quality, fish passage, etc) will be most helpful, but all comments will be considered.

Comments may be submitted to the Institute by e-mail (preferred) at info@lowimpacthydro.org with " North Hartland Project comments" in the subject line; by fax at (206) – 984-3086; or by mail addressed to LIHI, 34 Providence Street, Portland, ME, 04103. Comments must be received at the Institute on or before 5 pm Eastern time on October 18, 2009 to be considered. All comments will be posted to the web site and the applicant will have an opportunity to respond. Any response will also be posted.

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