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Lake McConaughy measures three miles wide and more than 20 miles long, and covers 30,500 <br />acres. In addition to providing an average of 285,200 acre feet of water each year, lake water <br />serves hydropower, flat water recreation, and graundwater recharge for wells. <br />During summer months, NI'PD moves beyond its role as electricity distributor and uses <br />McConaughy storage rights it holds to serve seven imgation systems operated by mutual <br />companies located between Brady ;and Kearney, altogether providing surface irrigation water to <br />about 75,000 acres of farmland. <br />By the 1980's NPPD had evolved into the largest electric utility in Nebraska including <br />among its generating units four ste;am plants, one nuclear facility, nine hydro plants, three diesel <br />plants, and three combustion turbirte plants. Three hydro plants--Jeffrey, Johnson No. 1 and <br />Johnson No. 2--each with a capacit:y of 18,OOOKW, are remotely operated from central control in <br />Gothenburg. With the addition of -the 50,000 KW Kingsley Dam unit, also operated at <br />Gothenburg, Platte river water generates up to 104,OOOKW of electricity for CNPPID and NPPD.. <br />Today NPPD is responsible for opf;ration of all power facilities of CNPPID, including Kingsley <br />Hydro at Lake McConaughy. <br />Whooping crane critical habitat is located at the downstream end of the CNPPID/NPPD <br />project area. Riverine habitat has been dramatically impacted by the complex of river works that <br />have controlled and diverted flows, that have moderated annual fluctuations, and constricted <br />channels. <br />Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) <br />The Federal Energy Regula.tory Commission (FERC), created in 1977 as the successor to <br />the Federal Power Commission, re;views permits for about 2,600 hydropower dams in the United <br />States. Created by Congress in 1920 to promote and regulate private development of hydropower <br />facilities, the original Federal Power Act was a signal achievement of progressive American <br />politics. It established a detailed rf;gulatory review process to insure that citizens of the future <br />could have discretion in deciding terms and conditions for granting new licenses-or even whether <br />to grant them at all. The Federal Power Act, through the Commission, authorized private <br />enterprises to own and operate power projects on public waterways subject to conditions specified <br />in project licenses that had maximum terms of 50 years. Congress was careful to create no vested <br />right to relicensing. FERC now re,gulates the operation of most non-federal hydropower <br />capacity-about 20,000 megawatts ?(Western Water Policy Review Advisory Commission, 1997). <br />FERC must give equal consideration to fish, wildlife, recreation and other uses along with <br />power during its licensing decisior.i. In 1986, Congress directed FERC, to include conditions that <br />protect, mitigate and enhance fish ;and wildlife based on USFWS recommendations. FERC is <br />required to consult with federal, st:ate and local resource agencies in its licensing decision, and <br />under NEPA is obliged to prepare an environmental impact statement. About two-thirds of <br />licenses for non-federal hydropower capacity in the West expire between 1997 and 2010. <br />Original licenses were issued for CNPPID and NPPD operations in 1937. They expired, <br />25