81 FR 87648 - Environmental Impact Statement for Cumberland Fossil Plant Coal Combustion Residual Management

TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 233 (December 5, 2016)

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) intends to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to address the potential environmental effects associated with management of coal combustion residual (CCR) material produced at the Cumberland Fossil Plant (CUF) located near Cumberland City, Stewart County, Tennessee. The purpose of the proposed EIS is to address long-term management of CCR produced at CUF. The project will help TVA comply with state and federal regulatory requirements related to CCR production and management, including the requirements of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA's) CCR Rule and Effluent Limitations Guidelines. TVA will evaluate the potential environmental impacts of construction and operation of a new bottom ash dewatering facility and options for management and disposal of dry CCR produced at CUF. TVA will also evaluate closure of the Bottom Ash and the Main Ash Impoundments. TVA will develop and evaluate various alternatives to these actions, including the No Action Alternative. Public comments are invited concerning both the scope of the review and environmental issues that should be addressed.

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 233 (Monday, December 5, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 87648-87649]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2016-29082]


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TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY


Environmental Impact Statement for Cumberland Fossil Plant Coal 
Combustion Residual Management

AGENCY: Tennessee Valley Authority.

ACTION: Notice of intent.

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SUMMARY: The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) intends to prepare an 
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to address the potential 
environmental effects associated with management of coal combustion 
residual (CCR) material produced at the Cumberland Fossil Plant (CUF) 
located near Cumberland City, Stewart County, Tennessee. The purpose of 
the proposed EIS is to address long-term management of CCR produced at 
CUF. The project will help TVA comply with state and federal regulatory 
requirements related to CCR production and management, including the 
requirements of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA's) CCR Rule 
and Effluent Limitations Guidelines.
    TVA will evaluate the potential environmental impacts of 
construction and operation of a new bottom ash dewatering facility and 
options for management and disposal of dry CCR produced at CUF. TVA 
will also evaluate closure of the Bottom Ash and the Main Ash 
Impoundments. TVA will develop and evaluate various alternatives to 
these actions, including the No Action Alternative. Public comments are 
invited concerning both the scope of the review and environmental 
issues that should be addressed.

DATES: Comments on the scope of the EIS must be received on or before 
January 6, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent to Ashley Pilakowski, NEPA 
Compliance Specialist, 400 West Summit Hill Dr., WT 11D, Knoxville, TN 
37902-1499. Comments also may be submitted online at: www.tva.gov/nepa.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Other related questions should be sent 
to Ashley A. Pilakowski, NEPA Compliance Specialist, Tennessee Valley 
Authority, at 865-632-2256 or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice is provided in accordance with 
the regulations promulgated by the Council on Environmental Quality (40 
CFR parts 1500 to 1508) and TVA's procedures implementing the National 
Environmental Policy Act (http://www.tva.com/environment/reports/pdf/tvanepa_procedures.pdf.)

TVA Power System and CCR Management

    TVA is a corporate agency and instrumentality of the United States 
created by and existing pursuant to the TVA Act of 1933 that provides 
electricity for business customers and local power distributors. TVA 
serves more than 9 million people in parts of seven southeastern 
states. TVA receives no taxpayer funding, deriving virtually all of its 
revenues from sales of electricity. In addition to operating and 
investing its revenues in its electric system, TVA provides flood 
control, navigation and land management for the Tennessee River system 
and assists local power companies and state and local governments with 
economic development and job creation.
    Historically, TVA has managed its CCRs in wet impoundments or dry 
landfills. Currently, CUF consumes an average of 5.6 million tons of 
coal per year, generates approximately 16 billion kilowatt-hours of 
electricity a year (enough to supply 1.1 million homes), and produces 
approximately 1.3 million tons of CCR a year which are managed in an 
existing fly ash stack, gypsum ash stack, Bottom Ash Impoundment and 
Main Ash Impoundment. CUF sells approximately 75% of the CCRs produced 
(725,000 tons gypsum and 275,000 tons of fly ash) annually for 
beneficial reuse as raw manufacturing material.
    In July 2009, the TVA Board of Directors passed a resolution for 
staff to review TVA practices for storing CCRs at its generating 
facilities, including CUF, which resulted in a recommendation to 
convert the wet ash management system at CUF to a dry storage system. 
On April 17, 2015, the EPA published the final Disposal of CCRs from 
Electric Utilities rule, also known as the CCR Rule.
    In June 2016, TVA issued a Final Programmatic Environmental Impact 
Statement (PEIS) that analyzed methods for closing CCR impoundments TVA 
fossil plants and identified specific screening and evaluation factors 
to help frame its evaluation of closures at its other facilities. A 
Record of Decision was released in July 2016 that would allow future 
environmental reviews of qualifying CCR impoundment closures to tier 
from the PEIS.
    This EIS is intended to tier from the 2016 PEIS to evaluate the 
closure alternatives for the existing CCR Bottom Ash Impoundment and 
Main Ash Impoundment. The EIS will also evaluate construction and 
operation of a new bottom ash dewatering facility and management of dry 
CCR in a new lined CCR landfill meeting Tennessee Department of 
Environment and Conservation criteria. This project supports TVA's 
Board of Directors July 2009 resolution and subsequent recommendation 
to convert the wet ash management system at CUF to dry storage.

Alternatives

    In addition to a No Action Alternative, this EIS will address 
alternatives that have reasonable prospects of providing a solution to 
the management and disposal of CCRs generated at CUF. TVA has 
determined that either the construction of a new on-site landfill or 
hauling CCR to an existing offsite permitted landfill are the most 
reasonable alternatives to address the need for dry CCR disposal. A new 
dewatering facility would dry bottom ash prior to disposal. TVA will 
consider closure alternatives for the Bottom Ash Impoundment and the 
Main Ash Impoundment in accordance with and consistent with TVA's PEIS 
and EPA's CCR Rule.
    No decision has been made about CCR management at CUF beyond the 
current operations. TVA is preparing this EIS to inform decision 
makers, other agencies and the public about the potential for 
environmental impacts associated with the long-term management of CCR 
generated at CUF.

Proposed Resources and Issues To Be Considered

    This EIS will identify the purpose and need of the project and will 
contain descriptions of the existing environmental and socioeconomic 
resources within the area that could be affected by management of CCR 
at CUF. Evaluation of potential environmental impacts to these 
resources will include, but not be limited to, water quality, aquatic 
and terrestrial ecology, threatened and endangered species, wetlands, 
land use, historic and archaeological resources, as well as solid and 
hazardous waste, safety, socioeconomic and environmental

[[Page 87649]]

justice issues. The final range of issues to be addressed in the 
environmental review will be determined, in part, from scoping comments 
received. The preliminary identification of reasonable alternatives and 
environmental issues in this notice is not meant to be exhaustive or 
final.

Public Participation

    TVA is interested in an open process and wants to hear from the 
community, interested agencies and special interest groups about the 
scope of resources and issues they would like to be considered in this 
EIS.
    The public is invited to submit comments on the scope of this EIS 
no later than the date identified in the DATES section of this notice. 
Federal, state and local agencies such as the U.S. Army Corps of 
Engineers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Tennessee Department of 
Environmental Conservation and the Tennessee State Historic 
Preservation Officer also are invited to provide comments.
    After consideration of comments received during the scoping period, 
TVA will develop and distribute a document that will summarize public 
and agency comments that were received and identify the schedule for 
completing the EIS process. Following analysis of the issues, TVA will 
prepare a draft EIS for public review and comment. In making its final 
decision, TVA will consider the analyses in this EIS and substantive 
comments that it receives. A final decision on proceeding with 
construction and operation of a bottom ash dewatering facility, 
management and final disposal of CCR and closure of the Bottom Ash 
Impoundment and Main Ash Impoundment will depend on a number of 
factors. These include results of the EIS, requirements of the CCR 
Rule, engineering and risk evaluations and financial considerations.
    TVA anticipates holding a community meeting near the plant after 
releasing the Draft EIS. Meeting details will be posted on TVA's Web 
site. TVA expects to release the Draft EIS in summer of 2017.

    Dated: November 28, 2016.
M. Susan Smelley,
Director, Environmental Permitting and Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2016-29082 Filed 12-2-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 8120-08-P