Since 2008, Idaho Power has worked collaboratively with agencies, property owners and other stakeholders as the Boardman to Hemingway (B2H) Project moves through federal and state permitting.
The Bureau of Land Management’s federal Record of Decision (ROD) is expected in the spring. After the ROD, Idaho Power will work to gain approval from the Oregon Energy Facility Siting Council (EFSC) for siting portions of the project in Oregon. The next major milestone, an amended Application for Site Certificate (ASC), will occur in the state permitting process. This application will detail how the project will meet Oregon’s specific standards, incorporating field data Idaho Power has been gathering and continue to gather. Land surveys and fieldwork on biological, visual, and cultural resources will inform refinements to tower locations, access roads and related facilities documented in the application.
Idaho Power also will continue working closely with landowners and other local stakeholders through ongoing meetings and conversations, and more formally through the state process. After gaining early input during project scoping periods in 2008 and 2010, the Oregon EFSC process will offer a public hearing and contested case proceeding before a Site Certificate for the project may be issued.
