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http://www.ferc.gov/industries/hydropower/enviro/eis/09-25-06.asp
Hydropower -
Environmental Impact Statements (EISs)
Draft
Environmental Impact Statement for
relicensing of the Klamath
Hydroelectric Project No. 2082-027
Issued: September 25, 2006
Commission staff prepared a Draft
Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS)
for relicensing of PacifiCorp’s
161-megawatt Klamath Hydroelectric
Project, located primarily on the
Klamath River in Klamath County,
Oregon and Siskiyou County,
California. On average, the project
generates 716,820 megawatt-hours of
electricity annually. The project
occupies 219 acres of lands of the
United States, which are administered
by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and
the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.
The existing project consists of eight
developments, seven of which are
located on the Klamath River.
PacifiCorp proposes to decommission
the upstream-most East Side and West
Side developments and to remove the
Keno development, which has no
generating facilities, from the
project. The remaining project
developments on the main stem of the
Klamath River are J.C. Boyle, Copco
No. 1, Copco No. 2, and Iron Gate. The
proposed project also includes the
existing Fall Creek development,
located on a Klamath River tributary.
In this DEIS, Commission staff
assessed the environmental and
economic effects of:
- Continuing to operate the
project with no changes or
enhancements (no-action
alternative);
- Operating the project as
proposed by PacifiCorp (PacifiCorp’s
proposal);
- Operating the project as
proposed by PacifiCorp with
additional or modified environmental
measures (staff alternative);
- Staff alternative with
conditions filed by the Department’s
of the Interior and Commerce; and
- Retirement of the Iron Gate and
Copco No. 1 developments with
additional or modified measures for
the remaining developments.
The staff alternative incorporates
most of PacifiCorp's proposed
environmental measures, some with
certain modifications. The staff
alternative also includes 31
environmental measures additional to
those proposed by PacifiCorp,
including:
- Implementation of an anadromous
fish restoration plan, including
design of fishways at project
reaches targeted for restoration;
and
- Implementation of an adaptive
spawning gravel augmentation program
in the J.C. Boyle bypassed reach and
downstream of Iron Gate dam.
Based on our detailed analysis of the
environmental benefits and costs
associated with the four alternatives
considered in detail in this draft EIS,
we conclude that the best alternative
for the Klamath Hydroelectric Project
would be to issue a new license
consistent with the environmental
measures specified in the Staff
Alternative.
Comments must be filed by November 24,
2006.
Comments on this DEIS can be
eFiled.
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