Public Hearing Notice: NHDES Application #2023-02605

The New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services Wetlands Bureau (NHDES) is providing notice of a public hearing scheduled for February 16, 2024, commencing at 2:00 p.m. The hearing will be held at NHDES, Room 208C located at 29 Hazen Drive in Concord, NH. 

The purpose of this public hearing is to receive public comments regarding NHDES application #2023-02605, submitted by Eversource Energy, requesting to replace 67 structures (in wetlands) and overhead wires along its existing S136 transmission line and proposes 1,244,658 square feet (28.57 acres) of temporary impacts (1,017,700 square feet of impacts to scrub-shrub wetlands and 226,958 square feet of impact to emergent wetlands) and 2,760 square feet of permanent impacts to wetlands. Approximately 12.1 acres of the temporary impacts and 1,240 square feet of the permanent impacts are proposed within Priority Resource Areas and 14.5 acres of the temporary impacts are proposed within Histosol Wetlands. The proposed project extends from Whitefield through Jefferson, Randolph and Gorham, to Berlin, and includes impacts to Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge (Whitefield). 

The public hearing will be digitally recorded and made part of NHDES application #2023-02605.

Members of the public may submit written comments to be included in this application hearing as follows:
•    Email: WetlandsApplicationPublicComments@des.nh.gov.
•    First-class mail: NHDES, 29 Hazen Drive, PO Box 95, Concord, NH 03302-0095.
•    Hand-delivered during this application hearing.

All written comments must include NHDES application #2023-02605, to ensure the written comments are included in the record of this application hearing.

Prior to the conclusion of the hearing, a party may request the record be left open for a specified length of time for the filing of information not available at the hearing. Otherwise, the record will be closed at the end of the hearing.

The file will be made available for review at the offices of NHDES, 29 Hazen Drive, Concord, NH during regular business hours of 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. To schedule an appointment to review the file, submit a request to filereview@des.nh.gov.