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Home My WebLink About04.30.2024 Board Correspondence - FW_ Environmental and Recreational Compliance Report submitted in FERC P-2107-000 by Pacific Gas and Electric Company,et al.From:Clerk of the Board To:Bennett, Robin; Clerk of the Board; Connelly, Bill; Cook, Holly; Cook, Robin; Durfee, Peter; Hancock, LeAnne; Jessee, Meegan; Kimmelshue, Tod; Kitts, Melissa; Lee, Lewis; McDonnell, Susan; Pickett, Andy; Ritter, Tami; Stephens, Brad J.; Sweeney, Kathleen; Teeter, Doug; Zepeda, Elizabeth; Loeser, Kamie Cc:Nevers, Dawn Subject:Board Correspondence - FW: Environmental and Recreational Compliance Report submitted in FERC P-2107-000 by Pacific Gas and Electric Company,et al. Date:Tuesday, April 30, 2024 4:45:59 PM Please see Board correspondence - -----Original Message----- From: 'FERC eSubscription' <eSubscription@ferc.gov> Sent: Tuesday, April 30, 2024 11:35 AM Subject: Environmental and Recreational Compliance Report submitted in FERC P-2107-000 by Pacific Gas and Electric Company,et al. .ATTENTION: This message originated from outside Butte County. Please exercise judgment before opening attachments, clicking on links, or replying.. On 4/30/2024, the following Filing was submitted to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Washington D.C.: Filer: Pacific Gas and Electric Company PG&E Corporation (as Agent) Docket(s): P-2107-000 Lead Applicant: Pacific Gas and Electric Company Filing Type: Environmental and Recreational Compliance Report Description: Pacific Gas and Electric Company submits Forest Service, et al. concurrences re Revised Fish and Benthic Macroinvertebrate Plan in response to FERC's 04/08/2024 Additional Information Request re the Poe Hydroelectric Project under P-2107. To view the document for this Filing, click here https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://elibrary.ferc.gov/eLibrary/filelist? accession_num=20240430-5232__;!!KNMwiTCp4spf!C4YPaGK5pHBHJmDcyMpm_j-hJ55EIza320VzTJFXj- fvkzlnSxzQcBvcjHJd1O-94wQRyntfGmmA9BDWgUb1gwPdwQyWpojYdirD$ To modify your subscriptions, click here: https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://ferconline.ferc.gov/eSubscription.aspx__;!!KNMwiTCp4spf!C4YPaGK5pHBHJmDcyMpm_j- hJ55EIza320VzTJFXj-fvkzlnSxzQcBvcjHJd1O-94wQRyntfGmmA9BDWgUb1gwPdwQyWpvXl4u6P$ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Please do not respond to this email. Online help is available here: https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://www.ferc.gov/efiling-help.asp__;!!KNMwiTCp4spf!C4YPaGK5pHBHJmDcyMpm_j- hJ55EIza320VzTJFXj-fvkzlnSxzQcBvcjHJd1O-94wQRyntfGmmA9BDWgUb1gwPdwQyWpgfuZCGp$ or for phone support, call 866-208-3676. Power Generation 300 Lakeside Drive Oakland, CA 94612 Mailing Address: P.O. Box 28209 Oakland, CA 94604 April 30, 2024 Via Electronic Submittal (E-File) Debbie-Anne Reese , Secretary Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 888 First Street, NE Washington, DC 20426 RE: Poe Hydroelectric Project, FERC No. 2107-CA Revised Poe Bypass Reach Fish and Benthic Macroinvertebrate Plan Response to Additional Information Request Dear Secretary Ree se: This letter presents the California State Water Resource Control Board’s (SWRCB) and United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service (Forest Service) concurrence of the revised Poe Bypass Reach Fish and Benthic Macroinvertebrate Plan (Plan) for Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s (PG&E) Poe Hydroelectric Project, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) No. 2107. PG&E filed a revised Plan with FERC for approval on February 28, 2024. FERC requested documentation of coordination and concurrence with the SWRCB and Forest Service on April 8, 2024. This letter provides that documentation. PG&E respectfully requests FERC’s approval of the Plan by June 30, 2024 , so that the revised Plan is approved prior to the commencement of the 2024 fish and ben thic macroinvertebrate monitoring. The SWRCB and Forest Service concurrences are provided in Enclosure 1. If you have questions or comments regarding this matter, please contact Sky Ramirez-Doble, license coordinator for PG&E, at (530) 250-7002. Sincerely, Matt hew Joseph Supervisor, Hydro License Management Enclosure: 1. Forest Service and SWRCB concurrences of the Poe Bypass Reach Fish and Benthic Macroinvertebrate Monitoring Plan cc: via email w/enclosure Nathan Fish, SWRCB – Nathan.Fish@waterboards.ca.gov Jessica Dyke, SWRCB – Jessica.Dyke@waterboards.ca.gov Kurt Sable, Forest Service – kurt.sable@usda.gov Lori Cayo, Forest Service - lori.cayo@usda.gov Erika Brenzovich, Forest Service - erika.brenzovich@usda.gov Dawn Alvarez, Forest Service - dawn.alvarez@usda.gov Leigh Bartoo, USFWS - Aondrea_Bartoo@fws.gov Beth Lawson, CDFW - Beth.Lawson@wildlife.ca.gov Michael Maher, CDFW – Michael.Maher@wildlife.ca.gov Document Accession #: 20240430-5232 Filed Date: 04/30/2024 ENCLOSURE 1 Document Accession #: 20240430-5232 Filed Date: 04/30/2024 State Water Resources Control Board April 15, 2024 Mr. Sky Ramirez-Doble Hydro License Coordinator, Power Division Pacific Gas and Electric Company Sent via Email: S9RV@pge.com Poe Hydroelectric Project Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Project No. 2107 Butte County North Fork Feather River APPROVAL OF REVISED FISH AND BENTHIC MACROINVERTEBRATE MONITORING PLAN Dear Mr. Ramirez-Doble: On October 31, 2023, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) submitted a revised Fish and Benthic Macroinvertebrate Monitoring Plan (Fish and BMI Plan) to the State Water Resources Control Board’s (State Water Board) Deputy Director of the Division of Water Rights (Deputy Director) for review and consideration of approval. The Plan is required per Condition 9 (Poe Bypass Reach Biological Monitoring) of the Poe Hydroelectric Project (Project) water quality certification (certification)0F 1. Background Condition 9 of the certification requires PG&E to develop a biological monitoring plan for fish, benthic macroinvertebrates (BMI), and amphibians in consultation with staff from the State Water Board, United States Forest Service, California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), and United States Fish and Wildlife Service (collectively the Resource Agencies). During early consultation, PG&E and Resource Agencies staff agreed to develop two plans to meet this requirement: (1) Fish and BMI Plan (approved by the Deputy Director on March 6, 2020); and (2) Poe Amphibian Monitoring Plan (approved by the Deputy Director on October 15, 2020). The purpose of the biological monitoring plans is to identify the impact of new license flows to fish, BMI, and amphibian populations in the Project area. 1 The Project certification was issued by the State Water Board Executive Director on December 28, 2017. On December 17, 2018, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued a new license to PG&E for the Project. The new license incorporates the State Water Board’s Project certification. Document Accession #: 20240430-5232 Filed Date: 04/30/2024 Mr. Sky Ramirez-Doble - 2 - April 15, 2024 On February 9, 2022, PG&E began discussions with Resource Agencies staff to revise the Fish and BMI Plan to include changes to monitoring locations, methods, and schedule. PG&E distributed a draft revised Fish and BMI Plan to the Resource Agencies on June 15, 2023. Resource Agencies staff provided no comments. On July 6, 2023, PG&E submitted a temporary variance request to modify 2023 fish and BMI monitoring consistent with the revised Fish and BMI Plan. PG&E received concurrences from Resource Agencies staff on the 2023 fish and BMI monitoring variance. The Deputy Director approved the temporary variance for 2023 on September 15, 2023. Proposed Revisions PG&E’s proposed revisions to the Fish and BMI Plan are summarized below: • Shift monitoring for one year from 2020 – 2022 to 2021 – 2023 due to the 2020 North Complex Fire. • Move the Poe Dam fish and BMI monitoring location to Flea Valley Creek and the Stag Creek BMI monitoring location to Yellow Creek as the current monitoring locations are unsafe and/or inaccessible due to fire damage. • Extend the monitoring window from September 15 – October 15 to September 15 – October 31 to provide scheduling flexibility, with the goal of completing monitoring by the end of September. • Change fish length classifications from two-inch increments (i.e., 0 – 2 inches, 2 – 4 inches, etc.) to five-inch increments (i.e., 0 – 5 inches, 5 – 10 inches, etc.). This will allow monitoring crews to identify fish size classification more accurately during snorkel surveys. Five-inch increments will still allow PG&E to comply with the purpose of fish monitoring in the Fish and BMI Plan (i.e., determine the presence of multiple year classes and fish abundance). • Discontinue the Target Riffle Composite (TRC) protocol for BMI sampling. In 2022, CDFW audited PG&E’s BMI sampling methodology and recommended discontinuing use of the TRC protocol. The TRC protocol was required by the California Stream Bioassessment Procedure, the former standard BMI monitoring program. The program was replaced by the Surface Water Ambient Monitoring Program (SWAMP). The SWAMP Reach Wide Benthos protocol, which is required by the Fish and BMI Plan approved on March 6, 2020, and retained in the revised Fish and BMI Plan, includes riffle sampling such that use of the TRC protocol is unnecessary. Approval State Water Board staff have reviewed the revised Fish and BMI Plan and find that it complies with Condition 9 of the Project certification. The revised Fish and BMI Plan is hereby approved. PG&E shall file this approval with the Federal Energy Regulatory Document Accession #: 20240430-5232 Filed Date: 04/30/2024 Mr. Sky Ramirez-Doble - 3 - April 15, 2024 Commission. Any future revisions shall be submitted to the Deputy Director for review and consideration of approval. If you have questions regarding this letter, please contact Jessica Dyke, Project Manager, by email to: Jessica.Dyke@waterboards.ca.gov or by phone call to: (916) 341-5448. Written correspondence or inquiries should be mailed to: State Water Resources Control Board Division of Water Rights – Water Quality Certification Program Attn: Jessica Dyke P.O. Box 2000 Sacramento, CA 95812-2000 Sincerely, Erik Ekdahl, Deputy Director Division of Water Rights ec: Ms. Debbie-Ann Reese, Acting Secretary Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Via e-file to Docket for P-2107 Dawn Alvarez, Regional Hydropower Assistance United States Forest Service Dawn.Alvarez@usda.gov Erika Brenzovich, Recreation & Lands Program Manager United States Forest Service Erika.Brenzovich@usda.gov Leigh Bartoo, Fish and Wildlife Biologist United States Fish and Wildlife Service Aondrea_Bartoo@fws.gov Beth Lawson, Senior Hydraulic Engineer California Department of Fish and Wildlife Beth.Lawson@wildlife.ca.gov Michael Maher, Region 2 FERC Coordinator California Department of Fish and Wildlife Michael.Maher@wildlife.ca.gov Tracey Ferguson, Planning Director Plumas County traceyferguson@countyofplumas.com Document Accession #: 20240430-5232 Filed Date: 04/30/2024 Mr. Sky Ramirez-Doble - 4 - April 15, 2024 Kamie Loeser, Director of Water and Resource Conservation Butte County KLoeser@buttecounty.net Dave Steindorf, California Hydropower Specialist American Whitewater Dave@americanwhitewater.org Chris Shutes, FERC Projects Director California Sportfishing Protection Alliance blancapaloma@msn.com Document Accession #: 20240430-5232 Filed Date: 04/30/2024 From:Sable, Kurt - FS, CA To:Ramirez-Doble, Sky Cc:Brenzovich, Erika - FS, CA Subject:RE: Poe Hydroelectric Project—Revised Fish and BMI Monitoring Plan Date:Friday, March 29, 2024 4:09:16 PM Attachments:image001.png image002.png image003.png image004.png CAUTION: EXTERNAL SENDER! This email was sent from an EXTERNAL source. Do you know this person? Are you expecting this email? Are you expecting any links or attachments? If suspicious, do not click links, open attachments, or provide credentials. Don't delete it. Report it by using the "Report Phish" button. Mr. Ramirez-Doble, The Plumas National Forest has no issues with the revisions to the Poe Bypass Reach Fish and Benthic Macroinvertebrate Plan. The Forest agrees with the comments supplied by the State Waterboard and appreciate that PG&E incorporated those. Kurt Sable, MS (he/his) Hydropower Coordinator / Hydrologist Regional Hydropower Assistance Team Forest Service Pacific Southwest Region, Public Services C: 530-616-1823 kurt.sable@usda.gov 159 Lawrence St. Quincy, CA 95971 www.fs.fed.us Caring for the land and serving people From: Ramirez-Doble, Sky <S9RV@pge.com> Sent: Friday, March 29, 2024 3:33 PM To: Sable, Kurt - FS, CA <kurt.sable@usda.gov> Subject: RE: Poe Hydroelectric Project—Revised Fish and BMI Monitoring Plan Hi Kurt, This request was emailed to the Forest Service supervisor on October 31, 2023 (attached). The SWRCB provided some comments, PG&E addressed them and provided the Forest Service the updated versions of the plan on February 26, 2024. If you have any questions, please let me know. Document Accession #: 20240430-5232 Filed Date: 04/30/2024 With gratitude, Sky Ramirez-Doble He/Him/His Hydro License Coordinator | Power Generation Pacific Gas & Electric Company c: (530) 250-7002 e: s9rv@pge.com From: Sable, Kurt - FS, CA <kurt.sable@usda.gov> Sent: Tuesday, March 5, 2024 4:01 PM To: Ramirez-Doble, Sky <S9RV@pge.com> Subject: RE: Poe Hydroelectric Project—Revised Fish and BMI Monitoring Plan CAUTION: EXTERNAL SENDER! This email was sent from an EXTERNAL source. Do you know this person? Are you expecting this email? Are you expecting any links or attachments? If suspicious, do not click links, open attachments, or provide credentials. Don't delete it. Report it by using the "Report Phish" button. Hi Sky, This was sent in October for review? Over due?? From: Ramirez-Doble, Sky <S9RV@pge.com> Sent: Monday, February 26, 2024 1:45 PM To: Dyke, Jessica@Waterboards <Jessica.Dyke@Waterboards.ca.gov>; Fisch, Nathan@Waterboards <Nathan.Fisch@waterboards.ca.gov>; Alvarez, Dawn - FS, CA <dawn.alvarez@usda.gov>; Brenzovich, Erika - FS, CA <erika.brenzovich@usda.gov>; Cayo, Lori - FS, CA <lori.cayo@usda.gov>; Sable, Kurt - FS, CA <kurt.sable@usda.gov> Cc: Reyes, Catalina <CERh@pge.com>; McCready, Chadwick <COMM@pge.com> Subject: FW: Poe Hydroelectric Project—Revised Fish and BMI Monitoring Plan Hi everyone, Would you mind providing me a status update on the response to PG&E’s Poe Bypass Reach Fish and Benthic Macroinvertebrate Plan (Plan)? For the Forest Service’s information, the SWRCB has some comments, see below, PG&E addressed them in the attached version of the Plan. With gratitude, Sky Ramirez-Doble He/Him/His Hydro License Coordinator | Power Generation Pacific Gas & Electric Company c: (530) 250-7002 e: s9rv@pge.com Document Accession #: 20240430-5232 Filed Date: 04/30/2024 From: Ramirez-Doble, Sky Sent: Wednesday, December 13, 2023 8:27 AM To: 'Dyke, Jessica@Waterboards' <Jessica.Dyke@Waterboards.ca.gov> Cc: McCready, Chadwick <COMM@pge.com> Subject: RE: Poe Hydroelectric Project—Revised Fish and BMI Monitoring Plan Hi Jessica, I’m looking forward to working with you too. PG&E has addressed the SWRCB’s comments in the attached plans. Please review the changes and provide concurrence. Once we receive this concurrence, we’ll file it with FERC and include the attached versions. If you have any questions or comments, please let me know. With gratitude, Sky Ramirez-Doble He/Him/His Hydro License Coordinator | Power Generation Pacific Gas & Electric Company c: (530) 250-7002 e: s9rv@pge.com From: Dyke, Jessica@Waterboards <Jessica.Dyke@Waterboards.ca.gov> Sent: Monday, December 4, 2023 2:53 PM To: Ramirez-Doble, Sky <S9RV@pge.com> Subject: Poe Hydroelectric Project—Revised Fish and BMI Monitoring Plan CAUTION: EXTERNAL SENDER! This email was sent from an EXTERNAL source. Do you know this person? Are you expecting this email? Are you expecting any links or attachments? If suspicious, do not click links, open attachments, or provide credentials. Don't delete it. Report it by using the "Report Phish" button. Hello Sky, I’m looking forward to working with you on the Poe Hydroelectric Project as I take over for Savannah Downey! Before we respond to PG&E’s Oct. 31 request for concurrence of the revised Poe Bypass Reach Fish and BMI Monitoring Plan, I’d like to address some minor inconsistencies in the revised plan to make sure that the purposes of the proposed changes are correct and memorialized. Table 3-2, which lists Poe Bypass Reach BMI community monitoring sites, shows that Yellow Creek was added to the unregulated reach sites to replace the Stag Creek site. However, the Document Accession #: 20240430-5232 Filed Date: 04/30/2024 last two sentences of the paragraph in Section 3.2 BMI Monitoring Sites do not mention Yellow Creek, the third unregulated monitoring site. Please add a sentence to this paragraph to briefly mention the addition of Yellow Creek and why it was chosen. Figure 3-2, which shows general locations of BMI monitoring sites in regulated reaches, has labels the same as the fish population monitoring sites shown in Figure 3-1 instead of the BMI site codes that end in “B.” Can you please update or clarify the labels on Fig. 3-2? Figure 3-3, which shows general locations of BMI monitoring sites in unregulated reaches, shows names of the sites instead of site codes as in Figs. 3-1 and 3-2. Best to be consistent and use site codes in Fig. 3-3 as well or update all three tables to have site names instead of codes or both names and codes. Let me know if you have any questions or concerns with these comments. Thank you, Sky! Best, Jessica --- Jessica Dyke (she/her) Environmental Scientist Water Quality Certification Program State Water Resources Control Board Jessica.Dyke@waterboards.ca.gov (916) 341-5448 You can read about PG&E’s data privacy practices at PGE.com/privacy. This electronic message contains information generated by the USDA solely for the intended recipients. Any unauthorized interception of this message or the use or disclosure of the information it contains may violate the law and subject the violator to civil or criminal penalties. If you believe you have received this message in error, please notify the sender and delete the email immediately. Document Accession #: 20240430-5232 Filed Date: 04/30/2024 Document Content(s) PGE20240430_2107_Fish_and_BMI_Plan_R2C_AIR.pdf ...........................1Document Accession #: 20240430-5232 Filed Date: 04/30/2024