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Home My WebLink About05.21.25 Board Correspondence - FW_ Delegated Order issued in FERC P-619-164From:Clerk of the Board To:Clerk of the Board; Connelly, Bill; Cook, Holly; Cook, Robin; Durfee, Peter; Jessee, Meegan; Kimmelshue, Tod; Kitts, Melissa; Lee, Lewis; Little, Melissa; Pickett, Andy; Ritter, Tami; Stephens, Brad J.; Sweeney, Kathleen; Teeter, Doug; Zepeda, Elizabeth; Loeser, Kamie Cc:Nuzum, Danielle Subject:Board Correspondence - FW: Delegated Order issued in FERC P-619-164 Date:Wednesday, May 21, 2025 9:33:22 AM Please see Board Correspondence - -----Original Message----- From: 'FERC eSubscription' <eSubscription@ferc.gov> Sent: Wednesday, May 21, 2025 8:36 AM Subject: Delegated Order issued in FERC P-619-164 .ATTENTION: This message originated from outside Butte County. Please exercise judgment before opening attachments, clicking on links, or replying.. On 5/21/2025, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Washington D.C., issued this document: Docket(s): P-619-164 Lead Applicant: Pacific Gas and Electric Company Filing Type: Delegated Order Description: Order Granting Extension of Time to Complete Gravel Augmentation Pursuant to Section 401 Water Quality Certification Condition 14 and Forest Service 4(e) Condition 41 re Pacific Gas & Electric Company's et al. Bucks Creek Project under P-619. 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Comments and Suggestions can be sent to this email address: mailto:FERCOnlineSupport@Ferc.gov UNITED ST AT ES OF AMERICA FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION Pacific Gas & Electric Company and City of Santa Clara Project No.619-164 ORDER GRANTING EXTENSION OF TIME TO COMPLETE GRAVEL AUGMENTATION PURSUANT TO SECTION 401 WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION CONDITION 14 AND FOREST SERVICE 4(E) CONDITION 41 (Issued May 21, 2025) 1.On December 2, 2024, and on March 26, 2025, Pacific Gas & Electric Company and the City of Santa Clara (licensees), licensees for the Bucks Creek Hydroelectric Project No. 619,1 filed a request for an extension of time with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) to complete their gravel augmentation as part of the Gravel Augmentation Plan (Plan). The Plan is required by California State Water Resources Control Board (California SW RCB)Section 401 Water Quality Certification (WQC) condition 14 and U.S. Forest Service (Forest Service)4(e) condition 41 of the project license.The project is located on Bucks, Grizzly, and Milk Ranch creeks, tributaries of the North Fork Feather River,in Plumas County, California. The project occupies federal land within the Plumas National Forest,managed by the Forest Service. 2.Section 401 WQC condition 14 and Forest Service 4(e) condition 41 requires the licensees to implement the Plan as filed with the Commission on September 20, 2019. License Article 401(a) approved the Plan and incorporated it into the project license. In part, the Plan requires gravel augmentation at two locations:(1) Bucks Creek downstream of Lower Bucks Dam Spillway, upstream of the right bank mass wasting site; and (2)Grizzly Creek downstream of the Grizzly Creek gaging weir. Prior to gravel placement, the Plan requires baseline monitoring to be conducted. The licensees requested an extension of time to complete the baseline monitoring, which the Commission approved on January 16, 2024. The licensees reported that they completed the baseline surveys in a July 30, 2024 filing. The Plan details that gravel placement will first occur in License Year 2 and continue on a schedule thereafter as specified in Table 1 of the Plan. 1 Order Issuing New License (179 FERC ¶ 61,202), issued June 16, 2022. Document Accession #: 20250521-3041 Filed Date: 05/21/2025 Project No. 619-164 -2 - 3.After consultation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the licensees state that they have determined that they are required to obtain a Section 404 permit under the Clean Water Act. Based upon the estimated length of time needed to obtain the 404 permit, the licensees determined it was not feasible to obtain the 404 permit in time to complete the gravel augmentation planned for License Year 2. Rather, they expect that they can obtain the permit and place the gravel according to the Plan by October 31, 2025 (License Year 3). Subsequent gravel augmentations would continue as scheduled in the Plan (the next placement to occur in License Year 6). 4.The licensees presented their extension of time request to the resource agencies via email dated November 7, 2024. The Forest Service provided a letter of concurrence for the extension on November 15, 2024, without modification. On March 24, 2025,2 the California SWRCB provided their conditional approval of the extension of time request; however, required that if gravel augmentation occurs after the issuance of the May Bulletin 120 and the bulletin determines that the 2024 –2025 winter season is a wet water year type as defined by WQC condition 7,that the licensees shall complete another baseline monitoring topographic survey to account for any significant changes to the selected sites topography. The California SWRCB also required that the results of the topographic survey be provided to its Deputy Director prior to gravel augmentation. 5.The licensees’request for extension of time is reasonable. The California SWRCB requirement for an additional topographic survey, if the prior winter season was found to be a wet water year,is also reasonable, as high-volume flows would likely render the findings of any previous baseline surveys moot and be of little use to inform gravel placement. To keep the Commission apprised, the licensees should also file notification with the Commission, within 30 days of completion, that the first gravel placements for License Year 3 have been completed. As such, the licensees’request, as modified,is reasonable and should be approved. The Director orders: (A)Pacific Gas & Electric Company and the City of Santa Clara’s (licensees) request, filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) on December 2, 2024 and March 26, 2025, for an extension of time until October 31, 2025 to complete the first phase of gravel placement under their Gravel Augmentation Plan, pursuant to State Water Resources Control Board Section 401 Water Quality Certification condition 14 and U.S. Forest Service 4(e) condition 41 for the Bucks Creek Hydroelectric Project No. 619 is approved,as modified by paragraph (B) below. (B)Should the first gravel placement occur after the issuance of the California Department of Water Resources’ May Bulletin 120,and the bulletin determines that the 2 Filed by the licensee on March 26, 2025. Document Accession #: 20250521-3041 Filed Date: 05/21/2025 Project No. 619-164 -3 - 2024 –2025 winter season was a ‘wet’ water year as defined by Water Quality Certification condition 7 of the license, the licensees must complete another baseline topographic survey of the gravel augmentation sites and provide a report of the topographic survey results to California State Water Resources Control Board’s Deputy Director prior to gravel placement. The licensees must also file notification with the Commission, within 30 days of completion,that the first gravel placements for License Year 3 have been completed,and include documentation that they provided the topographic results report to the Deputy Director, should the additional survey have been performed due to a wet water year type determination. (C)This order constitutes final agency action. Any party may file a request for rehearing of this order within 30 days from the date of its issuance, as provided in § 313(a) of the Federal Power Act, 16 U.S.C. § 825l, and the Commission’s regulations at 18 C.F.R. § 385.713 (2024). The filing of a request for rehearing does not operate as a stay of the effective date of this order, or of any other date specified in this order. The licensees’failure to file a request for rehearing shall constitute acceptance of this order. Andrea Claros, Chief Aquatic Resources Branch Division of Hydropower Administration and Compliance Document Accession #: 20250521-3041 Filed Date: 05/21/2025 Document Content(s) P-619-164_Gravel Placement EOT.docx .......................................1Document Accession #: 20250521-3041 Filed Date: 05/21/2025