MONONGALIA COUNTY, W.Va. About 150 people attended the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Scoping Meeting Monday afternoon at The Cranberry.
The meetings provide an opportunity for members of the public to voice concerns relating to the National Environmental Policy Act as Eagle Creek Renewable Energy works to renew their Federal Energy Regulatory Commission license for the Lake Lynn Generation Project that will expire Nov. 30, 2024.
One of the major issues raised during the meeting is the 307 acres that are left out of the renewal application. Associate Director of Friends of the Cheat (FOC), Owen Mulkeen, read the explanation for the area that was included in the 1994 application and asked what changed?
“The proposed trail system and wildlife habitat and nature viewing areas constitute a reasonably coordinated plan that will help to preserve wildlife habitat and bring joy to the public,” Mulkeen said.
Jody Smet, Senior Vice President, Regulatory Affairs and Compliance with Eagle Creek Renewable Resources, explained that the future of that land will not be determined solely by her company and would go through another approval process.
“Three hundred seven acres that we’ve proposed to remove from the FERC project boundary,” Smet said. “The lands are not necessary for project operations and that’s typically what FERC’s regulations call for—what project lands and waters do you need to operate the project?”
Smet said the company could not use a portion or the entire 307 acres for development without navigating another federal approval process.
Smet said Cheat Lake Park, Cheat Haven & Tower Run Nature Viewing Area, Sunset Marina, and Tailwater Fishing Access are not included in the 307-acre area excluded from the license application.
“Our current FERC license tells us what we can and cannot permit without prior FERC approval,” Smet said. “So, if someone wants to come in and develop an 80-slip marina, we can’t approve that by ourselves; it has to go to FERC anyway.”
Some of the plans detailing plans and procedures, like the Resource Management Plan, Water Quality Management Plan, and Recreation Management Plan, are not required to be completed for up to one year after the license is renewed. Members of the public not only wanted the plans to be part of the license process, but they also wanted to provide input.
Smet said many of the plans are part of the current license and will be changed based on FERC input during the renewal process. Developing plans for operations to be included in the license outside of the approval process could lead to inconsistencies with FERC guidelines.
Executive Director of Mon River Trails Conservancy, Ella Belling, hopes there will be an opportunity to expand the trail network. Currently, there are 48 miles of trails in three counties, and the proposed expansion could connect the system with a regional network that extends to Pittsburgh and ultimately to Washington, D.C. Belling said the initial connection would be the Sheepskin Trail and the Cheat Lake Trail, which would use about one mile of property owned by Lake Lynn Generation, LLC, a subsidiary of Eagle Creek Renewable Resources.
“It’s part of a much larger plan for over 1,500 miles of connected rail trails across four states,” Belling said.
Ann Chester is a member of the Cheat Lake Environmental and Recreation Association and wants better maintenance for docks and other shoreline infrastructure during the peak use season.
“We’re asking for a recreation staff person to be on location during the primary boating and swimming season,” Chester said. “It’s not working now where the power company tries to manage these from a distance, but it just doesn’t work.”
The deadline to submit a written comment is Oct. 25, 2023 to Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426. All comments must use the reference P-2459-279.