Anglers, hunters and wildlife activists are organizing against a proposed pumped-water-storage hydroelectric project at Seminoe Reservoir in Carbon County. They object to the developer’s request to be exempted from seasonal wildlife restrictions during the project’s three-to-five year construct ion. Officials in Carbon and Natrona counties have also added to a chorus of concern that the massive $3 billion to $5 billion construction project threatens wildlife and recreational opportunities that support the local economies, including world-famous fisheries, important elk, mule deer habitat and sage grouse, as well as a vital bighorn sheep herd. “I’m all for energy development. I just think this is a really poor project that puts so many things at risk,” said Blake Jackson, a fishing guide and co-owner of Casper’s Ugly Bug Fly Shop.  Jackson helps organize the Friends of the North Platte group, which was formed to oppose the project. “They’re asking for all of those [seasonal wildlife stipulations] to be waived and we’re basically saying, ‘No,'” Jackson added. “Those are there for a good reason, and different people shouldn’t have to play by different rules. You need to make this safe before it’s considered a viable project.” An angler steps into the water at Miracle Mile on the North Platte River. (Dustin Bleizeffer/WyoFile) For its part, rPlus Hydro and its subsidiary Black Canyon Hydro say the facility will generate millions in local tax revenue and help “balance” intermittent renewable energy to provide more reliable power delivery on the grid. They propose building a 10,000-acre-foot reservoir in the Bennett Mountains overlooking Seminoe Reservoir near the dam — one of several large reservoirs on the North Platte River. Hydroelectric offset, county concerns “Pumped water storage” involves pumping water uphill during daytime “off-peak demand” hours when wind and solar power are plentiful and wholesale electricity is cheapest. The water is released to generate hydroelectricity during higher-demand hours in the evening. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC, is accepting comments on its draft environmental impact statement for the project through Jan. 2. Aspects of the project, according to some observers, may also undergo review and permitting by the Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation and, potentially, some state agencies. The Natrona County Board of Commissioners recently joined its counterparts in Carbon County in asking FERC to modify or deny the developer’s plan as proposed. “This project will have a substantial impact on the health, safety, welfare, custom, culture and socio-economic viability of not just Carbon County, but also Natrona County,” Commission Chair Dave North wrote in a Dec. 2 letter to FERC. “Hunting and fishing is a very important industry in the State of Wyoming and it is important to consider the impact this project will have on this industry.” This graphic depicts a pumped water storage system. (rPlus Hydro) Though elected officials in Wyoming are familiar with federal permitting processes, they rarely work with FERC, said Carbon County Board of Commissioners Vice Chair Sue Jones. She worries the agency might “fast-track” the approval process, which she believes would require an amendment to the Bureau of Land Management’s Rawlins Resource Management Plan. “We see $7 [million] to $9 million annually just from fishing at Seminoe,” Jones told WyoFile. “I have not encountered one person who has told me they’re for this. It’s an incredibly huge project with some serious environmental implications.”  rPlus Hydro and Black Canyon Hydro did not respond to WyoFile’s inquiries before press time. Game and fish officials push back Though it is still formulating its feedback to FERC regarding the draft environmental impact statement, the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, in earlier comments to the federal agency, has opposed the developer’s request for a long list of seasonal wildlife restriction variances. Bighorn sheep blend in with sagebrush below Seminoe Reservoir. (Dustin Bleizeffer/WyoFile) “We have recommended adherence to our timing stipulations [particularly for big game species], and they [rPlus Hydro] have been asking, for two years, for a variance,” Game and Fish Habitat Protection Program Supervisor Will Schultz told WyoFile.  “Something of that magnitude — [construction] for five years or greater — a blanket [variance] for the entire winter, that is not something that we support,” Schultz continued. “Especially given the importance of this particular bighorn sheep herd. But it would also apply to where there is overlap with crucial mule deer range.” The construction project, according to federal documents, includes blasting and a lot of hauling of dirt and rubble, which concerns Wyoming Wild Sheep Foundation Executive Director Katie Cheesbrough. “All of that is happening within crucial bighorn sheep habitat — their winter-range habitat,” Cheesbrough told WyoFile. “This is at a time during the winter when these sheep are conserving energy, and they’re in kind of a vulnerable position. This map depicts a proposed pumped water storage energy project at Seminoe Reservoir. (rPlus Hydro) “Bighorn sheep are susceptible to respiratory diseases,” she added. “If the air quality is also bad, that doesn’t help.” The Ferris-Seminoe bighorn sheep are the only herd in the state that has not tested positive for the respiratory pathogen mycoplasma ovipneumoniae, according to Cheesbrough, which is why the state has relied on the herd to supplement other bighorn sheep populations. “So it’s really important that we protect this herd, because it’s the only viable source herd in the state,” she said. Even when construction is complete, the continual transfer of water through the hydroelectric system threatens to increase turbidity and water temperatures — a significant threat to fish, particularly trout, said Jackson, the fishing guide. “We’re often near dangerous water temperature levels currently,” Jackson said, noting that trout are a cold-water species. “Then you also add sediment to the water, and the water warms up faster. It becomes a really big issue.” On its website, rPlus Hydro committed “to developing the project responsibly, including minimizing and mitigating impacts,” and acknowledged “the project is subject to stringent permitting and licensing requirements under the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.”Go to this FERC website to review and comment on the draft environmental impact statement for the project. The post Seminoe ‘pumped water storage’ project draws concern over threats to fisheries, wildlife in central Wyoming appeared first on WyoFile . ...read more read less