🌊NMFS Notice on Marine Mammals and Hilcorp Alaska Oil Operations
NMFS has received a request from the Hilcorp Alaska, LLC (Hilcorp) for authorization to take small numbers of marine mammals incidental to oil and gas activities in Cook Inlet, Alaska, over the course of five years from the date of issuance. Pursuant to regulations implementing the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is announcing receipt of Hilcorp's request for the development and implementation of regulations governing the incidental taking of marine mammals. NMFS invites the public to provide information, suggestions, and comments on Hilcorp's application and request.
Learn More🌲Withdrawal Notice for Idaho Panhandle National Forest Noxious Weed Project
The Idaho Panhandle National Forest is withdrawing its Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Noxious Weed Treatment Project. The original NOI was published on pages 70954-70955 of the Federal Register on November 16, 2011. The Forest plans to complete an Environmental Assessment (EA) to determine if there are significant effects warranting the preparation of an EIS.
Learn More🐋Regulations on Marine Mammal Taking for Oil and Gas Activities
In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), as amended, its implementing regulations, and NMFS' MMPA regulations for taking marine mammals incidental to geophysical surveys related to oil and gas activities in the Gulf of America, originally published as "Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Geophysical Surveys Related to Oil and Gas Activities in the Gulf of Mexico," notification is hereby given that a Letter of Authorization (LOA) has been issued to WesternGeco for the take of marine mammals incidental to geophysical survey activity in the Gulf of America (GOA).
Learn More⚡Notice of Environmental Impact for Hydroelectric Projects in Maine
The Department of Energy released the final environmental impact statement for the Shawmut, Weston, Lockwood, and Hydro-Kennebec hydroelectric projects located on the Kennebec River in Maine. The statement outlines the analysis of licensing proposals and includes views from various stakeholders, emphasizing public participation in the regulatory process.
Learn More🌿Scoping Notice for Southern Natural Gas and Tennessee Gas Projects
The regulatory notice from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) outlines the opening of a scoping process for the South System Expansion 4 and Mississippi Crossing projects. It invites public comments on environmental issues while detailing construction plans and land requirements for the associated pipeline expansions. Public scoping sessions will be conducted to gather input and address concerns regarding potential impacts.
Learn More⚛️NRC Approves Exemption for Constellation Energy on Spent Fuel Storage
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an environmental assessment (EA) and a finding of no significant impact (FONSI) for an exemption request submitted by Constellation Energy Generation, LLC (CEG) that would permit Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station (PB) Units 2 and 3 to load seven 89 multi-purpose canisters (MPC) at the PB independent spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI) in a near-term loading campaign beginning in June 2025, including the use of the HI-TRAC VW transfer cask (HI-TRAC) during loading and transport operations, where the terms, conditions, and specifications in Certificate of Compliance (CoC) No. 1032, Amendment No. 1, Revision No. 1, are not met.
Learn More🐬Proposed Authorization for Marine Mammal Harassment in Lubec Project
NMFS has received a request from Maine Department of Transportation (ME DOT) for authorization to take marine mammals incidental to Lubec Harbor Project in Lubec, Maine. Pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is requesting comments on its proposal to issue an incidental harassment authorization (IHA) to incidentally take marine mammals during the specified activities. NMFS is also requesting comments on a possible one-time, 1-year renewal that could be issued under certain circumstances and if all requirements are met, as described in Request for Public Comments at the end of this notice. NMFS will consider public comments prior to making any final decision on the issuance of the requested MMPA authorization and agency responses will be summarized in the final notice of our decision.
Learn More⚡TVA's Decision on New Caledonia Gas Plant EIS
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) has decided to adopt the Preferred Alternative identified in its Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS; Document ID EISX-455-00-000-1734008442) for the construction of the New Caledonia Gas (NCG) Plant. TVA's Preferred Alternative, Alternative B, involves the construction and operation of an approximately 500 megawatts (MW), dual fuel, simple cycle, frame combustion turbine (CT) facility on the NCG Plant property. Alternative B will achieve the purpose and need to support continued load growth within TVA's seven-state service territory in a way that is consistent with the recommendations in the 2019 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP). The CTs are needed to provide dispatchable generation capacity to ensure that TVA can reliably meet required year- round generation, maximum capacity system demands, planning reserve margin targets, and comply with a primary objective under the TVA Act that power be sold at rates as low as feasible. The addition of CT units to the fleet supports meeting the growing demand for electricity and enhances system flexibility to integrate distributed resources and renewables such as solar generation. As the amount of solar generation in the TVA generation portfolio continues to increase, flexibility of the remainder of the fleet becomes even more important.
Learn More🛢️Notice of Scoping for Natural Gas Pipeline Project in Texas
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has initiated a scoping process to gather public comments on environmental issues related to the Gulf Coast Storage Expansion Project. This project, proposed by the Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America, aims to enhance natural gas storage capacity and address public and environmental concerns through a comprehensive review process.
Learn More🌊Deepwater Port License Application for Blue Marlin LLC Overview
The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and the Maritime Administration announce the start of the comment period and the public meeting for the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the BMOP LLC (BMOP) deepwater port license application for the export of oil from the United States to nations abroad. The BMOP application proposes the ownership, construction, operation, and eventual decommissioning of an offshore oil export deepwater port that would be located within and adjacent to the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) in West Cameron Lease Blocks (WC) 509 and 508 and East Cameron (EC) Block 263. Following the existing Stingray pipeline, the DWP will be approximately 99 statute miles off the coast of Cameron Parish, Louisiana, with an approximate water depth of 162 feet. The deepwater port would allow for loading Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) and other sized crude oil cargo carriers via a Catenary Anchor Leg Mooring (CALM).
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