CWA Section 404 Permit Application Alternatives Analysis Report
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APPENDIX B CWA Section 404 Permit Application Alternatives Analysis Report CHAMPLAIN HUDSON POWER EXPRESS HVDC TRANSMISSION PROJECT UPDATED LEAST ENVIRONMENTALLY DAMAGING PRACTICABLE ALTERNATIVE EVALUATION CHAMPLAIN HUDSON POWER EXPRESS, INC. Albany, New York USACE Application 2009-01089-EYA July 3, 2013 CHAMPLAIN HUDSON POWER EXPRESS HVDC TRANSMISSION PROJECT UPDATED LEAST ENVIRONMENTALLY DAMAGING PRACTICAL ALTERNATIVE EVALUATION TABLE OF CONTENTS Section Title Page No. LIST OF ACRONYMS .................................................................................................... v EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ........................................................................................... ES-1 1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................ 1-1 1.1 Project Background .................................................................................................. 1-1 1.1.1 Original Project ............................................................................................. 1-2 1.1.2 New York Regional Interconnection ............................................................ 1-3 1.1.3 New York State Article VII Settlement Process ........................................... 1-5 1.1.4 Impacts of Revised Routing on Costs ........................................................... 1-7 1.2 Project Purpose ......................................................................................................... 1-8 1.3 Project Need .............................................................................................................. 1-8 1.3.1 State Energy Policy ....................................................................................... 1-8 1.3.2 Greenhouse Gases ............................................................................................ 1-9 1.3.3 Transmission Congestion............................................................................ 1-10 1.4 Geographic Requirements ...................................................................................... 1-12 2 PROPOSED PROJECT ......................................................................................... 2-1 2.1 Proposed Project Route ............................................................................................. 2-1 2.2 Proposed Project Construction Techniques .............................................................. 2-6 2.2.1 Underwater Installation Methods ................................................................. 2-6 2.2.1.1 Jet Plow/Water Jetting .................................................................... 2-7 2.2.1.2 Plowing ......................................................................................... 2-11 2.2.1.3 Conventional Dredging ................................................................ 2-11 2.2.1.4 Infrastructure Crossing ................................................................. 2-12 2.2.2 Terrestrial Installation Methods .................................................................. 2-14 2.2.2.1 Initial Clearing Operations & Stormwater and Erosion Controls 2-15 2.2.2.2 Trench Excavation ........................................................................ 2-16 2.2.2.3 Cable Installation .......................................................................... 2-17 2.2.2.4 Backfilling .................................................................................... 2-18 2.2.2.5 Restoration and Re-vegetation ..................................................... 2-19 2.2.2.6 Wetland Crossings ........................................................................ 2-19 2.2.2.7 Overland Infrastructure/Waterway Crossings .............................. 2-21 2.2.3 Horizontal Directional Drilling Installation Methods ................................. 2-21 i TABLE OF CONTENTS (cont.) Section Title Page No. 3 ALTERNATIVES ANALYSIS METHODOLOGY ..................................................... 3-1 3.1 USACE Requirements for LEDPA Analysis ........................................................... 3-1 3.2 Alternatives Analysis Evaluation Criteria ................................................................ 3-2 3.2.1 Evaluation of Cost ........................................................................................ 3-3 3.2.2 Evaluation of Logistics ................................................................................. 3-5 3.2.3 Evaluation of Existing Technology .............................................................. 3-7 4 NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SERVICE ALTERNATIVES ............ 4-1 4.1 Existing Technology ................................................................................................. 4-1 4.2 Hudson River Western Rail Line Route ................................................................... 4-2 4.3 Harlem River Rail Route ........................................................................................ 4-21 4.4 Hell Gate Bypass Route .......................................................................................... 4-28 5 U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS ALTERNATIVES .......................................... 5-1 5.1 Existing Technology ................................................................................................. 5-1 5.2 Overland Using Existing Rights-of-Way .................................................................. 5-1 5.2.1 West of Adirondack Park ................................................................................. 5-2 5.2.2 East of Hudson River .................................................................................. 5-11 6 OTHER ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED ............................................................... 6-1 6.1 Overhead Alternative ................................................................................................ 6-1 6.1.1 Overhead Installation .................................................................................... 6-1 6.1.2 Overland Using Existing Power Line Routes Alternatives .......................... 6-3 6.2 Demand Side Management ....................................................................................... 6-9 6.3 Other New Generation Sources .............................................................................. 6-10 6.4 No Build.................................................................................................................. 6-11 7 CONCLUSION .................................................................................................... 7-1 ii CHAMPLAIN HUDSON POWER EXPRESS HVDC TRANSMISSION PROJECT UPDATED LEAST ENVIRONMENTALLY DAMAGING PRACTICAL ALTERNATIVE EVALUATION LIST OF FIGURES Figure Title Page No. 2-1 PROPOSED PROJECT ROUTE ............................................................................ 2-5 4-1 HUDSON RIVER WESTERN RAIL LINE ............................................................. 4-3 4-2 HARLEM RIVER RAIL ROUTE ........................................................................ 4-23 4-3 HELLGATE BYPASS ROUTE ........................................................................... 4-29 5-1 EXISTING RAILROAD LINES ............................................................................ 5-3 5-2 WEST OF ADIRONDACK PARK EXISTING RIGHTS-OF-WAY ALTERNATIVE ...... 5-4 5-3 EAST OF HUDSON RIVER EXISTING RIGHTS-OF-WAY ALTERNATIVE ............ 5-13 5-4 ILLUSTRATIVE OVERLAND NEW POWER LINE ALTERNATIVE ....................... 5-23 6-1 EXISTING TRANSMISSION LINES AS SHOWN ON TIGER FILES .......................... 6-4 6-2 ALTERNATIVE USING EXISTING TRANSMISSION LINES .................................... 6-5 iii CHAMPLAIN HUDSON POWER EXPRESS HVDC TRANSMISSION PROJECT UPDATED LEAST ENVIRONMENTALLY DAMAGING PRACTICAL ALTERNATIVE EVALUATION LIST OF TABLES Table Title Page No. 3-1 ALTERNATIVE ANALYSIS CRITERIA ................................................................ 3-2 3-2 CONSTRUCTION COSTS PER MW FOR PROJECT AND COMPARISONS ............... 3-5 4-1 PROPOSED PROJECT AND HUDSON RIVER WESTERN RAIL ROUTE ................ 4-21 5-1 PROPOSED PROJECT AND WEST OF ADIRONDACK PARK OVERLAND ROUTE . 5-11 5-2 PROPOSED PROJECT AND EAST OF HUDSON RIVER ROUTE ........................... 5-20 5-3 PROPOSED PROJECT AND NEW POWER LINE TRANSMISSION ROUTE ............. 5-25 6-1 PROPOSED PROJECT AND NEW POWER LINE TRANSMISSION ROUTE ............... 6-8 iv List of Acronyms AC ......................................................Alternating current Article VII ..........................................Article VII of New York State Public Service Law Astoria-Rainey Cable .........................Proposed set of HVAC cables from the Astoria Annex substation, which would be located within the streets of New York City for approximately three miles to Con Edison’s Rainey Substation BMP ...................................................Best Management Practices Manual Certificate ...........................................Article VII Certificate of Environmental Compatibility and Public Need CHPEI ................................................Champlain Hudson Power Express, Inc. CO2 .....................................................Carbon dioxide Con Edison .........................................Consolidated Edison Company of New York, Inc. Corps or USACE................................U.S. Army Corps of Engineers CP .......................................................Canadian Pacific Railway CSX ....................................................CSX