80 FR 44093 - Magnolia LNG, LLC; Kinder Morgan Louisiana Pipeline LLC; Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Magnolia LNG and Lake Charles Expansion Projects

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Federal Register Volume 80, Issue 142 (July 24, 2015)

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 142 (Friday, July 24, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44093-44094]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2015-18105]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket Nos. CP14-347-000; CP14-511-000]


Magnolia LNG, LLC; Kinder Morgan Louisiana Pipeline LLC; Notice 
of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the 
Proposed Magnolia LNG and Lake Charles Expansion Projects

    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) has prepared a draft environmental impact statement (EIS) 
for the Magnolia LNG Project proposed by Magnolia LNG, LLC (Magnolia) 
and the Lake Charles Expansion Project proposed by Kinder Morgan 
Louisiana Pipeline LLC (Kinder Morgan) in the above-referenced dockets. 
The Magnolia LNG Project would include construction and operation of a 
liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal that would include various 
liquefaction, LNG distribution, and appurtenant facilities. The Lake 
Charles Expansion Project would include reconfiguration of Kinder 
Morgan's existing pipeline system in order to accommodate Magnolia's 
request for natural gas service at the LNG terminal site. The projects 
would provide an LNG export capacity of 1.08 billion cubic feet per day 
of natural gas.
    The draft EIS assesses the potential environmental effects of 
construction and operation of the Magnolia LNG and Lake Charles 
Expansion Projects in accordance with the requirements of the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The FERC staff concludes that approval 
of the proposed projects would result in limited adverse environmental 
impacts; however, these impacts would be reduced to less-than-
significant levels with the implementation of Magnolia's and Kinder 
Morgan's proposed mitigation and the additional measures recommended in 
the draft EIS.
    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Department 
of Energy, U.S. Department of Transportation, and U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency participated as cooperating agencies in the 
preparation of the draft EIS. Cooperating agencies have jurisdiction by 
law or special expertise with respect to resources potentially affected 
by a proposal and participate in the NEPA analysis. Although the 
cooperating agencies provided input on the conclusions and 
recommendations presented in the draft EIS, the agencies will present 
their own conclusions and recommendations in their respective records 
of decision or determinations for the projects.
    The draft EIS addresses the potential environmental effects of the 
construction, modification, and operation of the following facilities 
associated with the two projects:
     A new LNG terminal that includes three liquefaction 
trains, two LNG storage tanks, liquefaction and refrigerant units, 
safety and control systems, and associated infrastructure;
     LNG truck loading facilities;
     LNG carrier and barge loading facilities;
     one new meter station;
     one new 32,000 horsepower compressor station;
     approximately 40 feet of 36-inch-diameter feed gas line to 
supply natural gas to the LNG terminal from Kinder Morgan's existing 
natural gas transmission pipeline;
     a new 1.2-mile-long, 36-inch-diameter low pressure natural 
gas header pipeline;
     a new 700-foot-long, 24-inch-diameter high pressure 
natural gas header pipeline;
     modifications at six existing meter stations; and
     construction of miscellaneous auxiliary and appurtenant 
facilities.
    The FERC staff mailed copies of the draft EIS to federal, state, 
and local government representatives and agencies; elected officials; 
environmental and public interest groups; Native American tribes; 
potentially affected landowners; other interested individuals and non-
governmental organizations; newspapers and libraries in the project 
area; and parties to these proceedings. Paper copy versions of this EIS 
were mailed to those specifically requesting them; all others received 
a compact disk version. In addition, the draft EIS is available for 
public viewing on the FERC's Web site (www.ferc.gov) using the eLibrary 
link. A limited number of hardcopies are available for distribution and 
public inspection at: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Public 
Reference Room, 888 First Street NE., Room 2A, Washington, DC 20426, 
(202) 502-8371.
    Any person wishing to comment on the draft EIS may do so. To ensure 
consideration of your comments on the proposal in the final EIS, it is 
important that the Commission receive your comments on or before 
September 8, 2015.
    For your convenience, there are four methods you can use to submit 
your comments to the Commission. In all instances, please reference the 
project docket number(s) (CP14-347-000 and

[[Page 44094]]

CP14-511-000) with your submission. The Commission encourages 
electronic filing of comments and has expert staff available to assist 
you at (202) 502-8258 or [email protected].
    (1) You can file your comments electronically using the eComment 
feature on the Commission's Web site (www.ferc.gov) under the link to 
Documents and Filings. This is an easy method for submitting brief, 
text-only comments on a project.
    (2) You can file your comments electronically by using the eFiling 
feature on the Commission's Web site (www.ferc.gov) under the link to 
Documents and Filings. With eFiling, you can provide comments in a 
variety of formats by attaching them as a file with your submission. 
New eFiling users must first create an account by clicking on 
``eRegister.'' If you are filing a comment on a particular project, 
please select ``Comment on a Filing'' as the filing type.
    (3) You can file a paper copy of your comments by mailing them to 
the following address: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC 
20426.
    (4) In lieu of sending written or electronic comments, the 
Commission invites you to attend a public comment meeting its staff 
will conduct in the project area to receive comments on the draft EIS. 
We encourage interested groups and individuals to attend and present 
oral comments on the draft EIS. A transcript of the meeting will be 
available for review in eLibrary under the project docket numbers. The 
meeting will begin at 7:00 p.m. and is scheduled as follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
               Date                               Location
------------------------------------------------------------------------
September 3, 2015.................  Historic Cash and Carry Building,
                                     801 Enterprise Boulevard, Lake
                                     Charles, Louisiana 70601, (337) 310-
                                     0405.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Any person seeking to become a party to the proceeding must file a 
motion to intervene pursuant to Rule 214 of the Commission's Rules of 
Practice and Procedures (Title 18 Code of Federal Regulations Part 
385.214).\1\ Only intervenors have the right to seek rehearing of the 
Commission's decision. The Commission grants affected landowners and 
others with environmental concerns intervenor status upon showing good 
cause by stating that they have a clear and direct interest in this 
proceeding that no other party can adequately represent. Simply filing 
environmental comments will not give you intervenor status, but you do 
not need intervenor status to have your comments considered.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ See the previous discussion on the methods for filing 
comments.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Questions?

    Additional information about the project is available from the 
Commission's Office of External Affairs, at (866) 208-FERC, or on the 
FERC Web site (www.ferc.gov) using the eLibrary link. Click on the 
eLibrary link, click on ``General Search,'' and enter the docket 
number(s) excluding the last three digits in the Docket Number field 
(i.e., CP14-347 and CP14-511). Be sure you have selected an appropriate 
date range. For assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at 
[email protected] or toll free at (866) 208-3676; for TTY, 
contact (202) 502-8659. The eLibrary link also provides access to the 
texts of formal documents issued by the Commission, such as orders, 
notices, and rulemakings.
    In addition, the Commission offers a free service called 
eSubscription that allows you to keep track of all formal issuances and 
submittals in specific dockets. This can reduce the amount of time you 
spend researching proceedings by automatically providing you with 
notification of these filings, document summaries, and direct links to 
the documents. Go to www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/esubscription.asp.

    Dated: July 17, 2015.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2015-18105 Filed 7-23-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6717-01-P