Chignik moves to surrender the federal license on its long-dormant hydro plant

Residents of Chignik have until Sept. 10 to tell federal regulators what they think about the city's plan to give up the federal license on its long-dormant hydroelectric project — a plant on Indian Creek that hasn't generated power since about 2012.

The city wants out of federal oversight so it can build a replacement under state jurisdiction instead. In its application to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Chignik argued that surrendering the old license and "developing a replacement water supply line and hydroelectric facility, under state jurisdiction, is in the best interest of the community." The Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium and the Lake and Peninsula Borough are backing the replacement work financially, though the filings don't say what it will cost or when it would come online.

The transition looks likely to clear its federal hurdles. Commission staff determined in January that the redeveloped project wouldn't need a federal license at all, and a staff environmental assessment released this month concluded that giving up the license wouldn't significantly affect the environment. That's a staff finding, not the commission's final word — that decision is still to come, and the assessment also weighs alternatives.