Commission staff prepared a draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the proposed 240-megawatt Mineville Energy Storage Project (Mineville Project) No. 12635-002.
On February 13, 2015, Moriah Hydro Corporation (Moriah Hydro) filed an application for the Mineville Project, a closed-loop pumped storage project located in a decommissioned subterranean mine complex in the Town of Moriah, Essex County, New York. No federal lands would be occupied by the project.
The primary issues associated with licensing the project are the effects of project construction and operation on local seismicity and subsidence; local groundwater levels; groundwater and surface water quality; erosion and sedimentation control; wildlife and wildlife habitat; threatened and endangered species, including Indiana bat and northern long-eared bat; and cultural resources.
In the draft EIS, Commission staff recommends the staff alternative, which includes most of Moriah Hydro’s proposed measures, other recommendations made by state and federal agencies, and some additional measures developed by staff.
The deadline to comment on the draft EIS is August 19, 2019.