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Home My WebLink About05.28.2024 Board Correspondence - FW_ DOCKET CHANGE- Motion_Notice of Intervention submitted in FERC P-77-316,et al. by Tetrick Ranch,et al.From:Clerk of the Board To:Bennett, Robin; Clerk of the Board; Connelly, Bill; Cook, Holly; Cook, Robin; Durfee, Peter; Jessee, Meegan; Kimmelshue, Tod; Kitts, Melissa; Lee, Lewis; Pickett, Andy; Ritter, Tami; Stephens, Brad J.; Sweeney, Kathleen; Teeter, Doug; Zepeda, Elizabeth; Loeser, Kamie Cc:Nevers, Dawn Subject:Board Correspondence - FW: DOCKET CHANGE- Motion/Notice of Intervention submitted in FERC P-77-316,et al. by Tetrick Ranch,et al. Date:Wednesday, May 29, 2024 9:00:50 AM Please see Board correspondence - -----Original Message----- From: 'FERC eSubscription' <eSubscription@ferc.gov> Sent: Tuesday, May 28, 2024 4:18 PM Subject: DOCKET CHANGE- Motion/Notice of Intervention submitted in FERC P-77-316,et al. by Tetrick Ranch,et al. .ATTENTION: This message originated from outside Butte County. Please exercise judgment before opening attachments, clicking on links, or replying.. On 7/13/2023, the following Filing was submitted to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Washington D.C.: Filer: Tetrick Ranch Abbott Ditch Users Docket(s): P-77-316 P-96-050 P-137-216 P-175-030 P-233-245 P-606-041 P-803-119 P-1061-105 P-1121-137 P-1354-133 P-1962-221 P-1988-102 P-2105-129 P-2106-077 P-2130-125 P-2310-252 P-2661-094 P-2687-189 P-2735-102 P-14531-002 P-2107-051 P-619-175 Lead Applicant: Pacific Gas and Electric Company Filing Type: Motion/Notice of Intervention Description: Motion to Intervene of Tetrick Ranch et al. under P-77 et al. To view the document for this Filing, click here https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://elibrary.ferc.gov/eLibrary/filelist?accession_num=20230713- 5074__;!!KNMwiTCp4spf!D-e66Onr7aTgrw7uLvGpF- zbubppnsDhDym1DEAihl_RQE0XGm8FL_cyICbZWc2Sazqw8XUtOXPLT2u96Q9iwxzeI81rka5CZpln$ To modify your subscriptions, click here: https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://ferconline.ferc.gov/eSubscription.aspx__;!!KNMwiTCp4spf!D- e66Onr7aTgrw7uLvGpF- zbubppnsDhDym1DEAihl_RQE0XGm8FL_cyICbZWc2Sazqw8XUtOXPLT2u96Q9iwxzeI81rkbj501GM$ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Please do not respond to this email. Online help is available here: https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://www.ferc.gov/efiling-help.asp__;!!KNMwiTCp4spf!D-e66Onr7aTgrw7uLvGpF- zbubppnsDhDym1DEAihl_RQE0XGm8FL_cyICbZWc2Sazqw8XUtOXPLT2u96Q9iwxzeI81rkYnJkyrC$ or for phone support, call 866-208-3676. Tetrick Ranch and the ADU’s Motion to Intervene PG&E and Pacific Generation’s Application to Transfer Licenses 1 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION ______________________________ ) Project Nos. 77-316, 96-050, 137-216, Pacific Gas & Electric Company ) 175-030, 233-245, 606-041, 619-175, Pacific Generation ) 803-119, 1061-105, 1121-137, 1354-033, Kilarc-Cow Creek Project ) 1962-221, 1988-102, 2105-129, 2106-077, ______________________________) 2107-051, 2130-125, 2310-252, 2661-094, 2687-189, 2735-102, and 14531-002 TETRICK RANCH AND THE ABBOTT DITCH USERS’ MOTION TO INTERVENE IN PACIFIC GAS & ELECTRIC COMPANY AND PACIFIC GENERATION, LLC’S APPLICATION FOR TRANSFER OF LICENSES Pursuant to Rule 214 of Commission Practice and Procedure, see 18 C.F.R. § 385.214, Tetrick Ranch and the Abbott Ditch Users (ADU) hereby move to intervene in response to the “Notice of Application for Transfer of Licenses and Soliciting Comments, Motions to Intervene, and Protests,” eLibrary no. 20230613-3042 (June 13, 2023) (Notice). According to the Notice, Pacific Gas and Electric Co. (PG&E) seeks to transfer the licenses for substantially all its licensed hydropower projects, including the Kilarc-Cow Creek Project, to its subsidiary, Pacific Generation, LLC (Pacific Generation). The proposed transaction is “part of a broader corporate restructuring to facilitate raising equity capital for PG&E’s utility needs. The transferee will be required by the Commission to comply with all the requirements of the licenses as though it were the original licensee.” Notice, p. 2. As described below, Tetrick Ranch and the Abbott Ditch Users (collectively, Intervenors) are primarily interested in the proposed transaction as it relates to the Kilarc-Cow Creek Project (P-606). Despite their clear interests in the proposed transfer of ownership and license for the Kilarc-Cow Creek Project, PG&E did not provide advance notice or seek to consult with Tetrick Ranch or the ADU prior to filing the Application for transfer of licenses. Document Accession #: 20230713-5074 Filed Date: 07/13/2023 Tetrick Ranch and the ADU’s Motion to Intervene PG&E and Pacific Generation’s Application to Transfer Licenses 2 I. STATEMENT OF INTERESTS Tetrick Ranch and the ADU own land surrounding the South Cow Creek Powerhouse and penstock of the Kilarc-Cow Creek Project and hold judicially decreed water rights at points of diversion located downstream of the Cow Creek development via Hooten Gulch. They seek to intervene in this proceeding to protect their interests in FERC’s decision on the proposed future ownership and regulation of that Project. Tetrick Ranch and the ADU are already parties to the Commission’s proceeding on PG&E’s pending application to surrender the license for the Kilarc-Cow Creek Project, see eLibrary no. 20090713-5165 (July 13, 2009). A. Tetrick Ranch Steve and Bonnie Tetrick are the owners of Tetrick Ranch, the property that surrounds the South Cow Creek development of Project No. 606. It is a working ranch and receives water from the Project’s water conveyance system via Hooten Gulch, a channel that conveys water from the Cow Creek development tailrace back to South Cow Creek. Hooten Gulch has become a year-round riparian habitat for wildlife and has become a sustaining feature for the domestic livestock maintained on Tetrick Ranch since the construction of the Cow Creek development in the early 1900s. Tetrick Ranch, like the ADU and PG&E, hold water rights to South Cow Creek that are defined by and subject to a water rights decree entered in 1969 that adjudicated the Cow Creek Stream System (see In re the Determination of the Rights of the Various Claimants to the Water of Cow Creek Stream System Excepting Clover Creek, Oak Run Creek and North Cow Creek in Document Accession #: 20230713-5074 Filed Date: 07/13/2023 Tetrick Ranch and the ADU’s Motion to Intervene PG&E and Pacific Generation’s Application to Transfer Licenses 3 Shasta County California (Decree)).1 The Decree provides, among other things, that “each and every party to this action ... [is] perpetually enjoined and restrained ... from doing anything, directly or indirectly, that will obstruct or interfere with any right of another adjudged and decreed herein.” Id. at 190. Tetrick Ranch is also party to several land use agreements with PG&E, which grant PG&E limited permissions to use Tetrick Ranch for specific Project purposes. B. Abbott Ditch Users The ADU are an informal association of property owners adjacent to Tetrick Ranch. The members of the ADU include the following individuals and families: Donna Abbott, Robyn Caldwell, Marcie Farrell and family, Richard T. Jones, Erik and Kristien Poole, Richard W. Sabanovich, Karen L. Sabanovich, and Christin A. Holden. Each member of the ADU has water rights to South Cow Creek for agricultural operations and domestic consumptive purposes; and like Tetrick Ranch (and for the same time period), the ADU’s water rights have been delivered from PG&E’s Cow Creek development to the ADU’s adjudicated (see Decree) point of diversion via Hooten Gulch. II. STATEMENT OF POSITION Tetrick Ranch and the ADU, as adjacent landowners and downstream water rights holders, have significant interests in the Commission’s decision on whether to approve the transfer of PG&E’s license for the Kilarc-Cow Creek and 21 other projects to a newly formed 1 Cow Creek Adjudication, Decree of the Superior Court for Shasta County, Cal., In re the Determination of the Rights of the Various Claimants to the Water of Cow Creek Stream System Excepting Clover Creek, Oak Run Creek and North Cow Creek in Shasta County California, No. 38577 (entered Aug. 25, 1969, in Book 89 of Judgments, 484), available at https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/waterrights/board_decisions/adopted_orders/judgments/docs/cowcreek_jd.pdf (last accessed Jul. 12, 2023). Document Accession #: 20230713-5074 Filed Date: 07/13/2023 Tetrick Ranch and the ADU’s Motion to Intervene PG&E and Pacific Generation’s Application to Transfer Licenses 4 subsidiary. The Commission should not approve the Application until PG&E and Pacific Generation have demonstrated that the proposed transfer would not adversely impact adjacent landowners’ interests, including water delivery, land use, and the environment. With specific regard to the Kilarc-Cow Creek Project, the Commission should not approve transfer of the now-long expired license unless and until Pacific Generation has demonstrated its capacity to safely and effectively accomplish license surrender and project decommissioning, without adverse impacts on landowner interests or the environment. In deciding whether to approve the transfer, the Commission should also consider whether the proposed transfer of the license would further delay or otherwise interfere with the license surrender and project decommissioning. The surrender proceeding has been pending for more than a decade. Tetrick Ranch and the ADU have been adversely affected by the extended period of uncertainty regarding the Project’s future and their reliance on the year-round water flows that have been delivered from the Cow Creek development tailrace since before 1907. Tetrick Ranch and ADU initially opposed decommissioning due to the potential impacts to their water rights and use and enjoyment of their properties under PG&E’s proposed decommissioning plan. They subsequently filed a decommissioning alternative for consideration by the Commission, PG&E, and other parties that would provide for delivery of their water rights in accordance with the Cow Creek Decree via a substitute water conveyance system following decommissioning of the Cow Creek development.2 This alternative, or “Technical Solution,” would reduce the impacts of 2 For discussion of alternatives, see Tetrick Ranch and Abbott Ditch Users’ Response to Notice of Petition for Declaratory Order, Intervention, and Notice of Substitution of Counsel (Jun. 21, 2019), eLibrary no. 20190621- 5190; Tetrick Ranch and Abbott Ditch Users’ Comments on the Supplemental Environmental Assessment for the Document Accession #: 20230713-5074 Filed Date: 07/13/2023 Tetrick Ranch and the ADU’s Motion to Intervene PG&E and Pacific Generation’s Application to Transfer Licenses 5 decommissioning on Tetrick Ranch and the ADU. The alternative would also provide additional suitable perennial freshwater habitat for salmon and steelhead trout at a critical area of transition in the Cow Creek watershed.3 Tetrick Ranch and the ADU have made several and various requests to meet with Commission staff and PG&E to discuss this alternative, specifically, and potential, comprehensive resolution of all outstanding issues related to the impacts of decommissioning on landowners on mutually acceptable terms, more broadly. They remain interested in meeting to try to finally reach closure on decommissioning. In sum, Tetrick Ranch and the ADU have a strong interest in the Commission’s approval of license surrender and decommissioning on terms consistent with their proposed alternative sooner than later. III. REQUEST FOR SERVICE Tetrick Ranch and the ADU request that the following representatives be added to the service list for the proceeding(s) on the Application to Transfer Licenses: Steve and Bonnie Tetrick Tetrick Ranch 27500 S. Cow Creek Road Millville, CA 96062-9708 steve@glenbrookcap.com (303) 550-3810 Richard Roos-Collins Julie Gantenbein Water and Power Law Group PC 2140 Shattuck Ave., Suite 801 Berkeley, CA 94704 rrcollins@waterpowerlaw.com jgantenbein@waterpowerlaw.com office@waterpowerlaw.com (510) 296-5590 Donna Abbott c/o Ken and Lori Newsom P.O. Box 851 Robyn Caldwell 27206 South Cow Creek Road Millville, CA 6062 Kilarc-Cow Creek Project (P-606) and Request for Technical Conference (Jan. 18, 2022), eLibrary no. 20220118- 5159; and Tetrick Ranch and Abbott Ditch Users’ Supplemental Comments in Support of Further Consideration of Alternative Mitigation Measures and Request for Technical Conference (Mar. 23, 2022), eLibrary no. 20220323- 5185. 3 Tetrick Ranch and Abbott Ditch Users’ Comments on the Supplemental Environmental Assessment for the Kilarc-Cow Creek Project (P-606) and Request for Technical Conference (Jan. 18, 2022), eLibrary no. 20220118- 5159, pp. 9-15. Document Accession #: 20230713-5074 Filed Date: 07/13/2023 Tetrick Ranch and the ADU’s Motion to Intervene PG&E and Pacific Generation’s Application to Transfer Licenses 6 Palo Cedro, CA 96073 newsom@snowcrest.com (530)547-3376 robyncaldwell@gmail.com (530) 515-8558 Marcille Farrell 26888 South Cow Creek Road Millville, CA 96062 farrellranch@frontiernet.net (530) 547-4229 Christin A. Holden 26948 South Cow Creek Road Millville, CA 96062 christina@reddingoutboardcenter.com (530) 722-8843 Richard and Dana Jones 26966 South Cow Creek Road Millville, CA 96062 dj4678@frontiernet.net (530) 547-4678 Erik Poole Abbott Ditch Users 26526 S Cow Creek Road Millville, CA 96062 epoole@gmail.com (530) 547-5464 Rick and Karen Sabanovich 26299 South Cow Creek Road Millville, CA 96062 lvtreez@aol.com (530) 547-5418 IV. CONCLUSION Tetrick Ranch and the ADU respectfully request the Commission grant this Motion to Intervene and consider these comments on the Application. They are available to meet with PG&E and Commission staff to discuss the proposed license transfer’s impacts on Tetrick Ranch and the ADU’s property and water rights, and the terms of specific land use agreements that would need to be assigned to Pacific Generation to effectuate license transfer. Dated: July 13, 2023 Respectfully submitted, ___________________________ Richard Roos-Collins Julie Gantenbein, WATER AND POWER LAW GROUP PC Document Accession #: 20230713-5074 Filed Date: 07/13/2023 Tetrick Ranch and the ADU’s Motion to Intervene PG&E and Pacific Generation’s Application to Transfer Licenses 7 2140 Shattuck Ave., Ste. 801 Berkeley, CA 94704-1229 (510) 296-5588 rrcollins@waterpowerlaw.com jgantenbein@waterpowerlaw.com office@waterpowerlaw.com Attorneys for TETRICK RANCH and ABBOTT DITCH USERS ___________________________ Steve Tetrick Tetrick Ranch 27500 S Cow Creek Rd Millville, CA. 96062 steve@glenbrookcap.com ___________________________ Erik Poole Abbott Ditch Users 26526 S Cow Creek Road Millville, CA 96062 epoole@gmail.com Document Accession #: 20230713-5074 Filed Date: 07/13/2023 Tetrick Ranch and the ADU’s Motion to Intervene PG&E and Pacific Generation’s Application to Transfer Licenses 8 DECLARATION OF SERVICE Pacific Gas and Electric Company and Pacific Generation, LLC, Project Nos. 77-316, 96- 050, 137- 216, 175-030, 233-245, 606-041, 619-175, 803-119, 1061-105, 1121-137, 1354-133, 1962-221, 1988-102, 2105-129, 2106-077, 2107-051, 2130-125, 2310-252, 2661-094, 2687-189, 2735-102, and 14531-002 I, Emma Roos-Collins, declare that I today served the attached “Tetrick Ranch and Abbott Ditch Users’ Motion to Intervene in Pacific Gas & Electric Company and Pacific Generation, LLC’s Application for Transfer of Licenses” by electronic mail to each person with a valid email address on the official service list compiled by the Secretary for this proceeding. Dated: July 13, 2023 By: _________________________ Emma Roos-Collins, WATER AND POWER LAW GROUP, PC 2140 Shattuck Ave., Suite 801 Berkeley, CA 94704 (510) 296-5591 office@waterpowerlaw.com Document Accession #: 20230713-5074 Filed Date: 07/13/2023 Document Content(s) 2023-07-13.Tetrick.ADU.MOI.pdf ............................................1Document Accession #: 20230713-5074 Filed Date: 07/13/2023