# Armstrong Energy Resources; Notice of Public Scoping Meetings > Briefs, arguments, decisions, and more. URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/fr%3A97-3037 ## Record - **Collection:** Federal Register - **Document type:** Notice - **Published:** February 7, 1997 - **Citation:** 62 FR 5812 ## Text DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Project No. 11499-000 Tennessee] Armstrong Energy Resources; Notice of Public Scoping Meetings February 3, 1997. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) are reviewing a proposal from Armstrong Energy Resources to construct and operate the 1,500-megawatt Laurel Branch Pumped [[Page 5813]] Storage Project No. 11499. The Laurel Branch Project would be located in Bledsoe County, Tennessee, seven miles northeast of Dunlap, Tennessee. Since the July 1996 Scoping Document I was issued for Armstrong Energy Resources' (AER) proposed Laurel Branch Project No. 11499 and Reynolds Creek Project No. 11500, AER has decided not to pursue the Reynolds Creek Project. AER, by letter filed January 9, 1997 with the FERC, has withdrawn its proposal, and surrendered its preliminary permit for the Reynolds Creek Pumped Storage Project No. 11500. AER, in deciding to pursue only the Laurel Branch Project, has also defined the preferred transmission line corridor and alternative corridors for the project and reduced the initial project boundary. FERC and TVA staff will not prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) only for the Laurel Branch Project in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). FERC will be a cooperating agency, with the TVA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, in the preparation of the EIS. Under the joint cooperative EIS process, scoping and draft EIS preparation will occur prior to the filing of a final license application with FERC. Participation by interested agencies and members of the public in the early initiation of the NEPA process is essential because this process will not be repeated upon the filing of a final license application. The EIS will objectively consider both site-specific and cumulative environmental impacts of the project and reasonable alternatives. It will also address economic, financial and engineering analysis. A draft EIS will be circulated to all interested parties for review. Comments will also be requested. FERC and TVA will also hold a joint public meeting to elicit comments on the draft EIS. All comments filed on the draft EIS will be analyzed by staff and will be considered in a final EIS. The staffs' conclusions and recommendations will be presented to the Tennessee Valley Authority, the Corps of Engineers, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for consideration in reaching final permit and licensing decisions, respectively. Scoping Process The first scoping meeting was held at the Bledsoe High School in Pikeville, Tennessee, on August 6, 1996. FERC and TVA will jointly conduct a second public scoping meeting for Armstrong Energy Resources' revised proposal on March 4, 1997. The second public scoping meeting will be held at Sequatchie County High School on the west side of Highway #28 in Dunlap, Tennessee. The March 4 meeting will focus on the proposed changes to Laurel Branch Project and the proposed transmission corridor and alternative corridors. Prior to the formal public meeting, an Information Open House will be held from 5:00 pm to 6:30 pm. The formal public meeting will be held from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm, CDT, with registration beginning at 5:00 pm. It will not be necessary for participants to stay for the whole meeting in order to have their comments recorded. During both the Information Open House or the Public Meeting, oral comments can be recorded in a private setting. Anyone needing sign language interpretation or other special arrangements, please contact Ruth Horton at (423) 632-8521 no later than February 29, 1997. The Information Open House is an informal opportunity for questions and information about the overall project scope and environmental review process. the public meeting is a formal meeting where a panel of representatives from the cooperating agencies will receive public comments concerning the proposed project and transmission corridors. The meeting will be recorded by a stenographer and will become a part of the formal record of the FERC and TVA proceeding. Individuals presenting statements at the meetings will be asked to sign in before the meeting starts and to clearly identify themselves for the record. To help focus discussions at the meetings, we have prepared a Revised Scoping Document I to reflect changes in AER's proposal and to provide information on (1) the proposed transmission corridor and alternative corridors; (2) the proposed Laurel Branch Project; (3) the environmental review process to be followed; and (4) preliminary issues to be addressed. The Revised Scoping Document I will be mailed to agencies and interested individuals. Revised Scoping Document I will also be available at the scoping meeting. At the scoping meeting, FERC and TVA staff will: (1) identify preliminary environmental issues related to the proposed project and the proposed transmission facilities; (2) identify preliminary resource issues that are not important and do not require detailed analysis; (3) identify reasonable alternatives to be addressed in the EIS; (4) solicit from the meeting participants all available information, especially quantified data, on the resource issues; and (5) encourage statements from experts and the public on issues that should be analyzed in the EIS, including points of view in opposition to, or in support of, the staffs' preliminary views. We are interested in your thoughts on the issues to be addressed, especially the proposed transmission line corridor and alternative corridors. Your comments previously expressed on Scoping Document I relative to the Laurel Branch Project will be considered and need not be repeated for the Revised Scoping Document I. Persons choosing not to speak at the meetings, but who have views on the issues or information relevant to the issues, may submit written statement for inclusion in the public record at the meetings. In addition, written scoping comments may be filed with the Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street, NE, Washington, D.C. 20425, and with Linda Oxendine, Senior Specialist, Tennessee Valley Authority, 400 West Summit Hill Drive, WT8C-K, Knoxville, TN 37902. All written correspondence should be filed no later than March 31, 1997, in order to be included in the final scoping document, and clearly show the following captions on the first page: Laurel Branch Pumped Storage Project, FERC Project No. 11499-000. For Further Information on This Process, please contact Eddie R. Crouse, FERC, (202) 219-2794, or Linda Oxendine, TVA, (423) 632-3440. Lois D. Cashell, Secretary. [FR Doc. 97-3037 Filed 2-6-97; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6717-01-M --- Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/fr%3A97-3037. Public record. Not legal advice.