• Home
• Introduction
• Project Description
• Project Location
• Application and Proponent’s Environmental Assessment
• Data Requests and Responses
• Draft IS/MND
• Final IS/MND
• Availability of Final IS/MND
• Commission Decision
• Additional Information

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STATE OF CALIFORNIA
PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION

Pacific Gas and Electric Company
Sanger Substation Expansion Project

(Application No. A.15-09-012)

Last Update: July 17, 2017

Introduction

Welcome to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) website for the environmental review of proposed Sanger Substation Expansion Project. The proposed project will expand Pacific Gas & Electric’s (PG&E) existing Sanger Substation to accommodate a new breaker-and-a-half (BAAH) bus configuration. The substation is located southeast of the City of Fresno in unincorporated Fresno County, at the northwest corner of the intersection of East Jensen Avenue and South McCall Avenue. The application for the Permit to Construct (PTC) was submitted on September 30, 2015 (A. 15-09-012). This site provides access to public documents and information relevant to the CEQA review process. Additional project information and documentation will be posted as it becomes available.

Project Description

Sanger Substation, which was built in 1920, is integral to the Central Valley 115 kV transmission system because it serves as a strategic hub for routing Fresno’s hydro- and natural gas-generated electricity to the Manchester, Barton, Airways, California, Malaga, McCall, and Reedley substations. Sanger Substation’s twelve 115 kV power lines have the capacity to carry approximately 200 MW of generation annually, providing a critical energy path between Fresno metropolitan north and south areas. Sanger Substation will be expanded onto approximately 7 acres adjacent to and generally north and west of the existing substation.

PG&E is proposing to expand the existing Sanger Substation in unincorporated Fresno County, California, to contain a new breaker-and-a-half bus configuration. As proposed by PG&E, the project includes:

• Substation Expansion: PG&E would install equipment including circuit breakers, switches/disconnects, steel support structures for disconnect switches, bus supports and Capacitor Coupling Voltage Transformer equipment, two Modular Protection Automation Control (MPAC) buildings, and a microwave tower for communications. PG&E would also elevate the existing transfer bus and make alterations to interconnect reconfigured power lines.
• Substation Equipment Removal: PG&E would remove obsolete circuit breakers, switches, steel support structures, and the concrete control building at the existing substation.
• Power Line Reconfiguration: PG&E would rearrange existing power lines leading to the substation by removing existing lattice steel towers (LSTs) and wood poles and installing tubular steel poles (TSPs) in a different alignment. Existing power lines would be relocated to change their angle.
• Existing Substation Changes: On transformer bank 1, PG&E would remove wood poles that support a temporary line from the dead end structure and would replace them with a new TSP to terminate the new 115kV line for bank 1. On transformer bank 3, PG&E would relocate the existing dead end structure to terminate at the new 115kV line for bank 3 using new TSPs.
• Telecommunications Receiver: PG&E would install two antenna dishes on an existing microwave tower at the Fence Meadow Repeater Station.

The proposed project would increase reliability of electric service by upgrading the equipment at the existing substation to be in conformance with PG&E internal design standards as well as industry standards.

Project Location

The proposed project is located in unincorporated Fresno County, approximately 2 miles west of Sanger, California and approximately 3 miles southeast of Fresno. The existing Sanger Substation occupies an approximately 4.5-acre parcel at the northwest corner of East Jensen Avenue and South McCall Avenue. The expansion would cover approximately 7-acres adjacent to and generally north and west of the existing substation. The surrounding area is predominately agriculture and the existing substation is surrounded by vineyards and row crops. The closest rural residence is 200 feet north of the proposed expanded substation.

Application and Proponent’s Environmental Assessment

PG&E filed an application (A.15-09-012) for a PTC and Proponent’s Environmental Assessment (PEA) on September 30, 2015. The PEA provides information to begin the independent environmental review process conducted by the CPUC.

• PG&E Application (5.3 MB)
• PEA (23.7 MB)
• PEA Appendices
  • Appendix A - Affected Properties
  • Appendix B - Electric and Magnetic Fields Discussion
  • Appendix C - Air Quality and Greenhouse Gas Supplemental Information
  • Appendix D - Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC) Correspondence
  • Appendix E - List ot Preparers

Deficiencies, Data Requests, and Responses

The CPUC is currently reviewing the application and PEA to identify additional data needed from the Applicant to complete the environmental review process. The CPUC submitted data requests to the applicant for specific information to support the environmental review process. Those requests and the Applicant’s responses are included below.

CPUC Report/Request	PG&E’s Response	Attachments
Deficiency Report No. 1 (Submitted 10/30/2015)	Deficiency Response No. 1 (Received 11/30/2015)	Attachments A to F (Received 11/30/2015)
Deficiency Report No. 2 (Submitted 12/11/2015)	Deficiency Response No. 2 (Received 01/07/2016)	Attachments A to C (16.5 MB) (Received 01/07/2016)
PEA Completeness Letter (Submitted 01/26/2016)
Data Request No. 1 (Submitted 02/04/2016)	Applicant’s Response to Data Request #1 (Received 03/04/2016) Additional Applicant Response to Data Request #1	Attachment A – Revised Visual Simulation VP7 Attachment B – EDR Radius Map Report with GeoCheck Attachment C – California Environmental Reporting System (CERS) Submittal Summary Attachment D – Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) Plan Attachment E – Revised Table 3.16-3: Estimated Truck Trips
Data Request No. 2 (Submitted 04/15/2016)	Applicant’s Response to Data Request #2 (Received 04/29/2016)	Attachment A – General Arrangement Illustration
Data Request No. 3 (Submitted 05/03/2016)	Applicant’s Response to Data Request #3 (Received 05/13/2016)	Attachment A – Response to #1 Revised Figure 2-4 & Typical Microwave Tower Schematic Response Data Request No. 1 - Q39 Revised Visual Simulations
Data Request No. 4 (Submitted 06/02/2016)	Applicant’s Response to Data Request #4 (Received 06/08/2016)

Draft IS/MND

On January 20, 2017, the CPUC released a Notice of Intent (NOI) to adopt a Mitigated Negative Declaration (MND) for the Sanger Substation Expansion Project. Links to view the Draft IS/MND are provided below:

• Draft IS/MND (Chapters 1 to 6) (205 MB)
• Draft IS/MND Appendices (9.4 MB)

The Draft IS/MND was circulated on January 20, 2017 through February 20, 2017.

The following comments were received on the Draft IS/MND:

Written Comments Received on the Draft IS/MND
Name	Affiliation	Date Received
Robert Pennell Tribal Cultural Resources Director	Table Mountain Rancheria Tribal Government Office	January 31, 2017
Christina Monfette, Planner	Development Services Division County of Fresno	February 17, 2017
Michael Calvillo Senior Land Planner	Pacific Gas & Electric Company	February 20, 2017

Final IS/MND

The Final IS/MND consists of a single volume with the Mitigated Negative Declaration statement to be adopted by the CPUC, and the Initial Study, which evaluates the potential significance of project impacts. The Initial Study also contains the Mitigation, Monitoring, Reporting, and Compliance Plan to be approved by the CPUC. A new chapter (Chapter 7) has been added to the Initial Study that presents the written comments received during the public review period, and written responses to those comments. The Final IS/MND is available electronically by clicking the link below:

• Final IS/MND (Chapters 1 to 7)
• Final IS/MND Appendices

Availability of Final IS/MND

Hardcopies of the Final IS/MND will be available for review at the following Fresno County Public Library locations:

Fresno County Public Library, Fresno Branch 2420 Mariposa Street Fresno, CA 93721 (559) 600-7323

Fresno County Public Library, Sanger Branch 1812 Seventh Street Sanger, CA 93657 (559) 875-2435

Copies of the Final IS/MND on CD may be requested by e mail at Sanger.CPUC@ene.com or by calling at 1 (844) 433-2844. The CPUC also has a limited number of hard copies of the complete Final IS/MND document available to the public upon request at the above addresses and numbers.

Commission Decision

On July 13, 2017 the Commission voted and granted PG&E a Permit to Construct the Sanger Substation Expansion Project, with mitigation measures identified in the Final MND (Decision 17-07-008). The mitigation measures and applicant-proposed measures (APMs) described in the Final MND were adopted by the CPUC as conditions of project approvals. A Notice of Determination was submitted to the State Clearinghouse (SCH #2017012039). The Commission Decision (Decision 17-07-008) can be viewed here.

Additional Information

Additional information will be posted as it becomes available. The CPUC, through its Environmental Review Team, in conducting an environmental review of the project. To request additional information, ask a question, or be added to the project mailing list, please contact:

Voicemail:	1 (844) 433-2844 (toll free)
Fax:	(415) 396-5326
U.S. Mail or Courier:	Billie Blanchard California Public Utilities Commission c/o Ecology and Environment, Inc. 505 Sansome Street Suite 300 San Francisco, CA 94111
Email:	Sanger.CPUC@ene.com