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I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 1.0 001996 Initial Information Package Williams Fork Hydroelectric Project FERC Project No. 2204 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Denver Water The Denver Board of Water Commissioners (Denver Water) is a non-political entity with complete charge and control over the water works system and water treatment plants for supplying the City and County of Denver with water for all uses and purposes. The system is municipally owned, but the structure of the Board provides for an autonomous system, including its own personnel separate and apart from that of the general purpose government of Denver, and its own funds. Denver Water's day-to-day operation of the system consists of two separate but interrelated components: the water collection system and the treated water distribwion system. The water collection system includes all diversion, collection and transmission facilities that store and distribute raw water prior to treatment. The water collection system provides water to the treated water distribution system that, in turn, provides high-quality water at appropriate pressures to Denver Water's retail and contract customers. The entire system must be able to serve the daily and hourly demand variations typical of urban service areas. 1.2 Licensing The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), under the authority of the Federal Power Act, may issue licenses for up to 50 years for the construction, operation and maintenance of non-federal hydroelectric developments. Denver Water intends to file an application either for a new license or for an exemption from licensing for the Williams Fork Reservoir Hydroelectric Project, FERC No. 2204 (Project). The Project is a minor power project with an installed capacity of 3.15 megawatts (MW) and is currently operating under a license issued by the FERC on January I, 1957, as a municipal water supply project with incidental power generation. The existing license expires on December 31, 2006. Denver Water intends to continue to operate and maintain the Project, which is located approximately 100 road miles (161 kIn) west-northwest of Denver, in Grand County, Colorado(Figure 1.1.1). Except for on-site facility power demands, all the power currently generated by the Project is sold to Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, Inc. under a lO-year agreement that will expire in 2006 (see Section 4.5 - Williams Fork Power Plant). Denver Water has requested and received approval from the FERC to use the Alternative Licensing Process (ALP) for the relicensing of the Project, as allowed under FERC"s Final Rule issued on June 21, 2002 (Document No. 2291395). The ALP proposed by Denver Water is intended to expedite the licensing process by improving and facilitating conununication among the participants and combining the pre-filing consultation and environmental review processes.