General Timeline:

• FirstLight submitted its initial application to the FERC, see Executive Summary of December 2020 Application.
• FERC asked for additional information and asked clarifying questions.
• Amendments were made to the application.
• FirstLight requested that FERC not proceed with issuing a “Ready for Environmental Analysis” (REA) determination, so that Settlement Talks could take place.
• The Settlement Talks went on for years, and are  done now, even though some topics were never finished.
• FERC granted FirstLight a delay until March 31 2023 to submit a “final” Settlement Agreement.
• This only sort of happened.
• Two Settlement Agreements were submitted, one for Flows and Fish Passage, and one for Recreation.  There never were any for Erosion or Cultural Heritage.

• FERC  issued the REA notices on February 22, 2024.

•  This starts a 60 day comment period for the public to comment to the FERC.  Then FirstLight will have 30 days to respond to those comments.
• FirstLight also gets 60 days to file the application with MassDEP for a Water Quality Certificate under Section 401 of the federal Clean Water Act, sometimes called “a 401”.
• Then MassDEP has 12 months to respond.

For current status see sidebar on this page.  See Updates.

What are Settlement Talks?

Interested Parties (FirstLight, federal and state agencies, non-profits, local towns) who were willing to sign a non-disclosure agreement were invited into “the room where it happens” to try to hash out details of what any new license might look like.   Greening Greenfield was not involved in these talks.  These talks were to negotiate detailed terms regarding flow and erosion controls; fish protections, habitat, and migration patterns; protections for other aquatic life and riparian habitat; recreational provisions; and more.  They were or are private talks in order to allow the players the space and ability to understand each other’s positions.  We don’t know those details, and Greening Greenfield is not the right entity to ask.

It was the goal of these Settlement Talks to improve FirstLight’s hydro applications.  Although in theory they could have resulted in a agreement signed by all parties, MassDEP said they would not sign anything before the public process has even begun, not all Participants in the Settlement Talks signed the 3/31 Settlement Agreement (notably, CT River Conservancy did not), and the final, signed Settlement Agreement did not cover everything the groups were trying to hash out, including erosion controls to the full group’s full satisfaction.

Before the Settlement Agreements, there were “AIP”s  which stands for “Agreement in Principle”. Because the Settlement Agreements supersede the AIPs, we’re not re-hashing that stage.

There have been Two Settlement Agreements signed by First Light and some (not all) of the negotiating parties.  These are available here along with Comments/Objections by other parties.

• Flows and Fish Passage was submitted 3/31/23 and according to FirstLight, it “is the end product of the Parties’ work on: (1) fish passage, (2) flows for fishery, ecological conservation and recreation purposes, and (3) protected, threatened and endangered species, and as to the Parties, addresses all outstanding issues for the relicensing of the Projects on those topics (“Topics within the Scope of this Agreement”)”
• Recreation

But there was never agreement on Erosion, and there was never final agreement on Cultural Heritage, both of which topics had extensive negotiations.  We do not know what happens with this impasse.

MassDEP is not a signatory, as stated above.  Nor is the FERC.  The parties who are, now have their hands mostly tied.  Those of us who are not, may try to make improvements.  FirstLight states clearly that if there are any changes made to what was negotiated, including their request that the license be a full 50 years, then it doesn’t have to honor anything in the Settlement Agreement.  Such an agreement is full of compromises.  But is it the best that can be done?

The Public Process

• The comment periods on the two Settlement Agreements have passed.
• The FERC issued the Ready for Environmental Analysis, and there is another opportunity for Public Comment to the FERC, for 60 days. Here is how you submit comments to the FERC.

• When the MassDEP has its one-year process to issue a Water Quality Certificate (the 401) there will be multiple public meetings, hearings, informal and formal comment periods.  What is anticipated has changed from time to time, but the most up to date information will be on the state’s web page for the 401.
• To be notified when state hearings will take place, subscribe to the MassDEP email list for this project.
• Greening Greenfield will post UPDATES when we hear of new opportunities for public input.