Welcome to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) website for the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) review of proposed construction of the Devers–Palo Verde No. 2 (DPV2) Transmission Line Project. An application for this project was submitted to the CPUC on April 11, 2005. The application was determined to be complete and in compliance with CPUC requirements on September 30, 2005. The CPUC approved the DPV2 Project on January 25, 2007 in Decision D.07-01-040 and certified the EIR as being in compliance with the requirements of CEQA.

On May 14, 2008, SCE filed a Petition for Modification (PFM) of the existing Certificate for Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) approved per Decision D.07-01-040. SCE requested that the CPUC authorize SCE to construct DPV2 facilities in only the California portion of DPV2 and the Midpoint Substation near Blythe, California. The CPUC approved SCE’s PFM on November 20, 2009 in Decision D.09-11-007.

This site provides access to public documents and information relevant to the CEQA review process.

Focused Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Report

After the CPUC's 2009 Decision regarding the PFM, several large solar power projects were proposed in the Blythe area. Two of these projects, the Blythe Solar Power Project and the Genesis Solar Energy Project, have requested interconnection to the electricity grid at the Desert Southwest–Midpoint Substation. As a result, the solar developers and SCE developed a plan to expand the Midpoint Substation, now known as the Colorado River Substation, to allow the required space for generation tie lines to be interconnected with the SCE 500 kV transmission system. SCE will file a Permit to Construct application addressing the substation expansion. This expansion was not covered in the original EIR/EIS because the solar power projects had not yet been proposed.

During 2009 to 2010, the Blythe Solar Power Project and the Genesis Solar Energy Project have been evaluated under CEQA and NEPA by the BLM and the California Energy Commission. The environmental review documents addressed the Colorado River Substation expansion but they did not adequately cover all issues that the CPUC requires to be addressed in accordance with CEQA. Therefore, the CPUC has concluded that it will prepare a Focused Supplemental EIR to address only the specific issues not yet covered for its purposes by the previous environmental review.

A Notice of Preparation (NOP) was sent to interested agencies and members of the public in October 2010 and can be accessed here. The CPUC held a 30-day scoping period soliciting information regarding the topics that should be included in the Focused Supplemental EIR for the Colorado River Substation expansion. Copies of all letters received and a summary of the scoping process and scoping comments are included in a Scoping Report (December 2010), which can be accessed here.

Construction Progress and Mitigation Monitoring

Construction will begin once the CPUC issues Notices to Proceed for each segment. Issuance of Notices to Proceed will be contingent upon SCE compliance with pre-construction requirements as specified by the approved mitigation measures.

The CPUC in conjunction with SCE, BLM, USFS and other Responsible Agencies, are in the process of drafting a Mitigation Monitoring Compliance and Reporting Program (MMCRP) to ensure compliance with mitigation measures approved in the Final EIR/EIS, as well as with the terms and conditions associated with the BLM right-of-way. Once the MMCRP document is finalized, it will be found here.

A CPUC Environmental Monitor will be monitoring construction activities to ensure that they are conducted in accordance with the approved mitigation measures and permit conditions. Once construction begins, this site will hold all weekly reports documenting this monitoring activity. Reports on construction status and activities are posted here.

Background

SCE has filed an application with the CPUC to construct the Devers–Palo Verde No. 2 Transmission Line Project (DPV2). The CPUC is the CEQA lead agency and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management is the lead agency under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). This project was approved by the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) in February 2005.

The DPV2 Project as proposed by SCE includes a new 230-mile 500 kV line from the Harquahala Substation (in Arizona, near the Palo Verde nuclear power plant) to SCE's Devers Substation (in North Palm Springs, California). The 500 kV portion would follow the existing SCE 500 kV transmission line, Devers–Palo Verde No. 1 (DPV1).

The DPV2 Project also includes upgrades to an additional 50 miles of 230 kV transmission lines west of the Devers Substation. Forty miles of 230 kV transmission line from Devers Substation to San Bernardino Junction at the western end of San Timoteo Canyon would be reconfigured and two separate 230 kV corridors, from San Bernardino Junction to SCE's Mountain View Substation and from San Bernardino Junction to SCE's Vista Substation would be reconductored. Map 1-1 shows the project from Devers Substation to Harquahala Generation Station and Map 1-2 shows the segment west of Devers Substation.

Draft and Final Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement

The CPUC and BLM released the Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement (Draft EIR/EIS) for the proposed project on May 4, 2006.

The submittal period for public comments on the Draft EIR/EIS was extended from July 5, 2006 to August 11, 2006.

The Final Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement (Final EIR/EIS) was issued on October 24, 2006. The Final EIR/EIS consists of three volumes. Volumes I and II are completely re-printed from the Draft EIR/EIS. Changes made to the Draft EIR/EIS are marked in Volumes I and II: inserted text is underlined and deleted text is shown in strikeout. Volume III consists of all comments in the Draft EIR/EIS and responses to comments.

Over 475 pages of comments on the Draft EIR/EIS were submitted to the BLM and the CPUC, including transcripts from the July 2006 Public Participation Hearings.

NEPA Process and BLM Record of Decision

The BLM published a Notice of Availability of the Final EIR/EIS for DPV2 on March 15, 2007 in the Federal Register (Volume 72, Number 50; page 12185). If no changes to the Final EIR/EIS are warranted based on the comments, the BLM will prepare a Record of Decision (ROD), which documents the selected alternative and specific mitigation measures. The ROD will not be issued until the 30-day no-action period has lapsed following the publication of the Notice of Availability in the Federal Register.

Note that the Department of the Interior (DOI) Control No. has been changed in the Notice of Availability (NOA) from EPA OPEC Control No. DES-06-20 to the new DOI Control No. FES-06-48.

Other Documents Available

Notice of Preparation of an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) and Notice of Public Scoping Meetings (October 21, 2005)
Notice of Intent (December 7, 2005; Federal Register Vol. 70, No. 234)
Scoping Report (December 2005)
Addendum to the Scoping Report (February 2006)
Notice of Availability (October 24, 2006)
SCE’s Application and Proponent’s Environmental Assessment (April 11, 2005)

For Additional Information

The CPUC, through its Environmental Review Team, is conducting an environmental review of the project. The CPUC's Project Manager is: