TURNERS FALLS HYDROELECTRIC PROJECT
AND
NORTHFIELD MOUNTAIN PUMPED STORAGE PROJECT
RECREATION SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT
On June 13, 2023, FirstLight Power (FirstLight) filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) a Recreation Settlement Agreement (Agreement) for the Turners Falls Hydroelectric Project (Turners Falls Project, FERC No. 1889) and Northfield Mountain Pumped Storage Project (Northfield Mountain Project, FERC No. 2485). FirstLight MA Hydro LLC and Northfield Mountain LLC (collectively FirstLight) own and operate the Turners Falls Project and Northfield Mountain Project, respectively.
Outdoor recreation is vital to the Franklin County economy playing a major role in shaping the regions identity. The recreation facilities provided by FirstLight under the FERC Licenses for the Turners Falls and Northfield Mountain Projects are an important part of the regional network of recreational assets. Conditions in the Agreement will enhance the network of recreation assets through the construction of new recreation sites, upgrades to existing sites, placement of conservation restrictions on FirstLight lands abutting the Connecticut River and coordinated programmatic efforts to deliver sustained benefits to both residents and visitors to the region.
Signatories to the Agreement include FirstLight, National Park Service, Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, Franklin Regional Council of Governments, Towns of Erving, Gill, Montague and Northfield, Massachusetts, Access Fund, American Whitewater, Appalachian Mountain Club, Crab Apple Whitewater, Inc., New England FLOW, Western Massachusetts Climbing Coalition and Zoar Outdoor.
A healthy, easy-to-access river, with abundant recreation opportunities, will greatly enhance life for all those who call Franklin County home and will attract new visitors to the area. FirstLight also strives to provide equitable access to its recreational facilities for residents, disabled and underserved populations. To augment the visitor experience, FirstLight will install historical and interpretive cultural signage at key locations in consultation with local Tribes and town officials. These changes will positively impact recreation for both residents and visitors to the communities of Northfield, Erving, Montague, and Gill.
The Recreation Management Plan, developed as part of the Agreement, lays out the blueprint to improve and/or add several recreation facilities including:
In the interest of conserving the natural beauty around the Projects and to safeguard the long-term use of the area, FirstLight will place conservation restrictions on over 761 acres of its lands along the Connecticut River. In consultation with Montague, FirstLight will also evaluate Cabot Camp for opportunities to preserve the historic structures or repurpose the property for recreation, should preservation not be possible. And, going forward, to promote the recreational use of the Project areas, FirstLight will provide real-time and forecasted data on water levels and flows on a publicly available website.
Gomez and Sullivan is proud to have supported this Agreement through the development of conceptual plans and cost estimates for many of the recreation features described above. Gomez and Sullivan’s GIS mapping resources were used extensively to assist stakeholders with understanding the geographic interaction of the Recreation Management Plan elements and mapping lands subject to conservation restrictions. Gomez and Sullivan staff participated in the negotiations and helped to facilitate dialogue among the Parties.
Gomez and Sullivan previously announced that on March 31, 2023, FirstLight filed a Flows and Fish Passage Settlement Agreement with FERC to resolve relicensing issues associated with migratory fish passage, and project operations relative to flows and water level management.
Gomez and Sullivan would like to congratulate our colleagues at FirstLight and signatories on this momentous achievement. For more information on this Agreement please contact Mark Wamser at mwamser@gomezandsullivan.com.
