81 FR 45471 - Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Nexus Gas Transmission Project and Texas Eastern Appalachian Lease Project
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 135 (July 14, 2016)
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 135 (July 14, 2016)
| Page Range | 45471-45472 | |
| FR Document | 2016-16662 |
[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 135 (Thursday, July 14, 2016)] [Notices] [Pages 45471-45472] From the Federal Register Online [www.thefederalregister.org] [FR Doc No: 2016-16662] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Nexus Gas Transmission Project and Texas Eastern Appalachian Lease Project ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Docket No. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ NEXUS Gas Transmission, LLC............... CP16-22-000 Texas Eastern Transmission, LP............ CP16-23-000 DTE Gas Company........................... CP16-24-000 Vector Pipeline L.P....................... CP16-102-000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or Commission) has prepared a draft environmental impact statement (EIS) for the NEXUS Gas Transmission (NGT) Project and Texas Eastern Appalachian Lease (TEAL) Project (jointly referred to as ``Projects''), proposed by NEXUS Gas Transmission, LLC (NEXUS) and Texas Eastern Transmission, LP (Texas Eastern) in the above-referenced dockets. NEXUS and Texas Eastern request authorization to construct a new Greenfield pipeline and expand an existing pipeline system from the Appalachian Basin to deliver 1.5 million dekatherms per day to consuming markets in Northern Ohio, Southeastern Michigan, and Ontario, Canada. DTE Gas Company and Vector Pipeline L.P. are requesting approval to lease capacity on their systems to NEXUS. The draft EIS assesses the potential environmental effects of the construction and operation of the Projects in accordance with the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act. The FERC staff concludes that approval of the Projects would result in some adverse environmental impacts; however, most of these impacts would be reduced to less-than-significant levels with the implementation of NEXUS's and Texas Eastern's proposed mitigation measures and the additional recommendations in the draft EIS. Some of the route alternatives suggested during scoping would affect landowners that have not been part of the FERC's environmental scoping process, as further discussed on page 5. Therefore, by this letter we are notifying these parties of our evaluation and requesting comments about the following alternative routes presented in section 3 of the draft EIS: City of Green Route Alternative, Chippewa Lake C Route Variation, and Reserve Avenue Route Variation. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 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 the proposal and participate in the National Environmental Policy Act analysis. Although the FWS and EPA provided input to the conclusions and recommendations presented in the draft EIS, the FWS and EPA will each present its own conclusions and recommendations in its respective record of decision or determination for the Projects. The draft EIS addresses the potential environmental effects of the construction and operation of both the NGT and TEAL Projects. The NGT Project consists of about 255.9 miles of pipeline composed of the following facilities:208.9 miles of new 36-inch-diameter natural gas pipeline in Ohio; 47 miles of new 36-inch-diameter natural gas pipeline in Michigan; associated equipment and facilities. The TEAL Project would include two main components: 4.4 miles of new 36-inch-diameter loop pipeline in Ohio; 0.3 mile of new 30-inch-diameter interconnecting pipeline Ohio; and associated equipment and facilities. The Projects' proposed aboveground facilities include five new compressor stations in Ohio; additional compression and related modifications to one existing compressor station in Ohio; five new metering and regulating stations in Ohio; one new metering and regulating station in Michigan; and minor modifications at existing aboveground facilities at various locations across Ohio. 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 and other interested individuals and groups; and newspapers and libraries near the Projects. Paper copy versions of this draft EIS were mailed to those specifically requesting them; all others received a CD 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 copies 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 August 29, 2016. For your convenience, there are four methods you can use to submit your comments to the Commission. In all instances, please reference the Projects' docket numbers (CP16-22-000 for the NGT Project and CP16-23- 000 for the TEAL Project) 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 [[Page 45472]] 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: Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr., Deputy 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 one of the public comment meetings its staff will conduct in the Project areas to receive comments on the draft EIS. We \1\ encourage interested groups and individuals to attend and present oral comments on the draft EIS at any of the meeting locations provided on page 4. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- \1\ ``We,'' ``us,'' and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff of the FERC's Office of Energy Projects. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- There will not be a formal start of the meeting nor a formal presentation by Commission staff, but FERC staff will be available to answer your questions about the environmental review process. You may arrive at any time after 5:00 p.m. and we will stop taking comments at 10:00 p.m. Eastern Time Zone. The primary goal is to have your verbal environmental comments on the draft EIS documented in the public record. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Date Location ------------------------------------------------------------------------ August 10, 2016................... Swanton High School, 604 North Main Street, Swanton, OH 43558, (419) 826-3045. August 11, 2016................... Tecumseh Center for the Arts, 400 North Maumee Street, Tecumseh, MI 49286, (517) 423-6617. August 15, 2016................... Quality Inn, Fremont, 3422 Port Clinton Road, Fremont, OH 43420, (419) 332-0601. August 16, 2016................... Elyria High School Performing Arts Center, 601 Middle Avenue, Elyria, OH 44035, (440) 284-5209. August 17, 2016................... Wadsworth High School--James A. Mcilvaine Performing Arts Center, 625 Broad Street, Wadsworth, OH 44281, (330) 335-1369. August 18, 2016................... Green High School, 1474 Boettler Road, Uniontown, OH 44685, (330) 896-7575. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Verbal comments will be recorded by court reporter(s) and transcriptions will be placed into the docket for the Projects and made available for public viewing on FERC's eLibrary system (see page 5 for instructions on using eLibrary). It is important to note that verbal comments hold the same weight as written or electronically submitted comments. If a significant number of people are interested in providing verbal comments, a time limit of 3 to 5 minutes may be implemented for each commenter to ensure all those wishing to comment have the opportunity to do so within the designated meeting time. Time limits will be strictly enforced if they are implemented. 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).\2\ 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. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- \2\ See the previous discussion on the methods for filing comments. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Route Alternatives As indicated on page 1, some landowners are receiving this draft EIS because their property has been identified as potentially being affected by certain route alternatives recommended or being considered by FERC staff to avoid or lessen environmental impacts along NEXUS's proposed pipeline route in several locations. Refer to discussions in section 3.3.3 of the draft EIS for the City of Green Route Alternative, section 3.4.10 for the Chippewa Lake C Route Variation, and section 3.4.12 for the Reserve Avenue Route Variation. Please note that while staff has recommended the use of the last two listed alternatives, a decision whether or not to recommend the use of the City of Green Route Alternative has not been made. The Commission staff wants to ensure that all potentially affected landowners have the opportunity to participate in the environmental review process, thus staff is soliciting comments to assist with the environmental analysis of these route alternatives, which will be presented in the final EIS. Questions? Additional information about the Projects 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 excluding the last three digits in the Docket Number field (i.e., CP16- 22). 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 to subscribe. Dated: July 8, 2016. Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr., Deputy Secretary. [FR Doc. 2016-16662 Filed 7-13-16; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6717-01-P
![Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 135 / Thursday, July 14, 2016 / Notices 45471
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 7/26/16. Commission) has prepared a draft construction and operation of both the
Docket Numbers: ER16–2142–000. environmental impact statement (EIS) NGT and TEAL Projects. The NGT
Applicants: Southwest Power Pool, for the NEXUS Gas Transmission (NGT) Project consists of about 255.9 miles of
Inc. Project and Texas Eastern Appalachian pipeline composed of the following
Description: § 205(d) Rate Filing: 3220 Lease (TEAL) Project (jointly referred to facilities:
Westar, ITC Great Plains & Mid-Kansas as ‘‘Projects’’), proposed by NEXUS Gas • 208.9 miles of new 36-inch-
Interconnection Agreement to be Transmission, LLC (NEXUS) and Texas diameter natural gas pipeline in Ohio;
effective 7/6/2016. Eastern Transmission, LP (Texas • 47 miles of new 36-inch-diameter
Filed Date: 7/7/16. Eastern) in the above-referenced natural gas pipeline in Michigan;
Accession Number: 20160707–5080. dockets. NEXUS and Texas Eastern • associated equipment and facilities.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 7/28/16. request authorization to construct a new The TEAL Project would include two
Docket Numbers: ER16–2143–000. Greenfield pipeline and expand an main components:
Applicants: PacifiCorp. existing pipeline system from the • 4.4 miles of new 36-inch-diameter
Description: § 205(d) Rate Filing: BPA Appalachian Basin to deliver 1.5 loop pipeline in Ohio;
NITSA (SE Idaho Area) Rev 1 to be million dekatherms per day to • 0.3 mile of new 30-inch-diameter
effective 7/1/2016. consuming markets in Northern Ohio, interconnecting pipeline Ohio; and
Filed Date: 7/7/16. Southeastern Michigan, and Ontario, • associated equipment and facilities.
Accession Number: 20160707–5114. Canada. DTE Gas Company and Vector The Projects’ proposed aboveground
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 7/28/16. Pipeline L.P. are requesting approval to facilities include five new compressor
The filings are accessible in the lease capacity on their systems to stations in Ohio; additional
Commission’s eLibrary system by NEXUS. compression and related modifications
clicking on the links or querying the The draft EIS assesses the potential to one existing compressor station in
docket number. environmental effects of the Ohio; five new metering and regulating
Any person desiring to intervene or construction and operation of the stations in Ohio; one new metering and
protest in any of the above proceedings Projects in accordance with the regulating station in Michigan; and
must file in accordance with Rules 211 requirements of the National minor modifications at existing
and 214 of the Commission’s Environmental Policy Act. The FERC aboveground facilities at various
Regulations (18 CFR 385.211 and staff concludes that approval of the locations across Ohio.
385.214) on or before 5:00 p.m. Eastern Projects would result in some adverse The FERC staff mailed copies of the
time on the specified comment date. environmental impacts; however, most draft EIS to federal, state, and local
Protests may be considered, but of these impacts would be reduced to government representatives and
intervention is necessary to become a less-than-significant levels with the agencies; elected officials;
party to the proceeding. implementation of NEXUS’s and Texas environmental and public interest
eFiling is encouraged. More detailed Eastern’s proposed mitigation measures groups; Native American tribes;
information relating to filing and the additional recommendations in potentially affected landowners and
requirements, interventions, protests, the draft EIS. other interested individuals and groups;
service, and qualifying facilities filings Some of the route alternatives and newspapers and libraries near the
can be found at: http://www.ferc.gov/ suggested during scoping would affect Projects. Paper copy versions of this
docs-filing/efiling/filing-req.pdf. For landowners that have not been part of draft EIS were mailed to those
other information, call (866) 208–3676 the FERC’s environmental scoping specifically requesting them; all others
(toll free). For TTY, call (202) 502–8659. process, as further discussed on page 5. received a CD version. In addition, the
Dated: July 07, 2016. Therefore, by this letter we are notifying draft EIS is available for public viewing
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr., these parties of our evaluation and on the FERC’s Web site (www.ferc.gov)
Deputy Secretary. requesting comments about the using the eLibrary link.
[FR Doc. 2016–16574 Filed 7–13–16; 8:45 am]
following alternative routes presented in A limited number of copies are
section 3 of the draft EIS: City of Green available for distribution and public
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
Route Alternative, Chippewa Lake C inspection at: Federal Energy Regulatory
Route Variation, and Reserve Avenue Commission, Public Reference Room,
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Route Variation. 888 First Street NE., Room 2A,
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502–8371.
Federal Energy Regulatory (FWS) and U.S. Environmental Any person wishing to comment on
Commission Protection Agency (EPA) participated as the draft EIS may do so. To ensure
cooperating agencies in the preparation consideration of your comments on the
Notice of Availability of the Draft of the draft EIS. Cooperating agencies proposal in the final EIS, it is important
Environmental Impact Statement for have jurisdiction by law or special that the Commission receive your
the Proposed Nexus Gas Transmission expertise with respect to resources comments on or before August 29, 2016.
Project and Texas Eastern potentially affected by the proposal and For your convenience, there are four
Appalachian Lease Project participate in the National methods you can use to submit your
Environmental Policy Act analysis. comments to the Commission. In all
Docket No. Although the FWS and EPA provided instances, please reference the Projects’
input to the conclusions and docket numbers (CP16–22–000 for the
asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
NEXUS Gas Transmission, CP16–22–000
recommendations presented in the draft NGT Project and CP16–23–000 for the
LLC.
Texas Eastern Trans- CP16–23–000 EIS, the FWS and EPA will each present TEAL Project) with your submission.
mission, LP. its own conclusions and The Commission encourages electronic
DTE Gas Company ............. CP16–24–000 recommendations in its respective filing of comments and has expert staff
Vector Pipeline L.P ............. CP16–102–000 record of decision or determination for available to assist you at (202) 502–8258
the Projects. or efiling@ferc.gov.
The staff of the Federal Energy The draft EIS addresses the potential (1) You can file your comments
Regulatory Commission (FERC or environmental effects of the electronically using the eComment
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![45472 Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 135 / Thursday, July 14, 2016 / Notices
feature on the Commission’s Web site a comment on a particular project, interested groups and individuals to
(www.ferc.gov) under the link to please select ‘‘Comment on a Filing’’ as attend and present oral comments on
Documents and Filings. This is an easy the filing type. the draft EIS at any of the meeting
method for submitting brief, text-only (3) You can file a paper copy of your locations provided on page 4.
comments on a project. comments by mailing them to the There will not be a formal start of the
(2) You can file your comments following address: Nathaniel J. Davis, meeting nor a formal presentation by
electronically by using the eFiling Sr., Deputy Secretary, Federal Energy Commission staff, but FERC staff will be
feature on the Commission’s Web site Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street available to answer your questions
(www.ferc.gov) under the link to NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426. about the environmental review process.
Documents and Filings. With eFiling, (4) In lieu of sending written or You may arrive at any time after 5:00
you can provide comments in a variety electronic comments, the Commission p.m. and we will stop taking comments
of formats by attaching them as a file invites you to attend one of the public at 10:00 p.m. Eastern Time Zone. The
with your submission. New eFiling comment meetings its staff will conduct primary goal is to have your verbal
users must first create an account by in the Project areas to receive comments environmental comments on the draft
clicking on ‘‘eRegister.’’ If you are filing on the draft EIS. We 1 encourage EIS documented in the public record.
Date Location
August 10, 2016 .............................. Swanton High School, 604 North Main Street, Swanton, OH 43558, (419) 826–3045.
August 11, 2016 .............................. Tecumseh Center for the Arts, 400 North Maumee Street, Tecumseh, MI 49286, (517) 423–6617.
August 15, 2016 .............................. Quality Inn, Fremont, 3422 Port Clinton Road, Fremont, OH 43420, (419) 332–0601.
August 16, 2016 .............................. Elyria High School Performing Arts Center, 601 Middle Avenue, Elyria, OH 44035, (440) 284–5209.
August 17, 2016 .............................. Wadsworth High School—James A. Mcilvaine Performing Arts Center, 625 Broad Street, Wadsworth, OH
44281, (330) 335–1369.
August 18, 2016 .............................. Green High School, 1474 Boettler Road, Uniontown, OH 44685, (330) 896–7575.
Verbal comments will be recorded by Route Alternatives ‘‘General Search,’’ and enter the docket
court reporter(s) and transcriptions will As indicated on page 1, some number excluding the last three digits in
be placed into the docket for the landowners are receiving this draft EIS the Docket Number field (i.e., CP16–22).
Projects and made available for public because their property has been Be sure you have selected an
viewing on FERC’s eLibrary system (see identified as potentially being affected appropriate date range. For assistance,
page 5 for instructions on using by certain route alternatives please contact FERC Online Support at
eLibrary). It is important to note that recommended or being considered by FercOnlineSupport@ferc.gov or toll free
verbal comments hold the same weight FERC staff to avoid or lessen at (866) 208–3676; for TTY, contact
as written or electronically submitted environmental impacts along NEXUS’s (202) 502–8659. The eLibrary link also
comments. If a significant number of proposed pipeline route in several provides access to the texts of formal
people are interested in providing locations. Refer to discussions in section documents issued by the Commission,
verbal comments, a time limit of 3 to 5 3.3.3 of the draft EIS for the City of such as orders, notices, and
minutes may be implemented for each Green Route Alternative, section 3.4.10 rulemakings.
commenter to ensure all those wishing for the Chippewa Lake C Route In addition, the Commission offers a
to comment have the opportunity to do Variation, and section 3.4.12 for the free service called eSubscription that
so within the designated meeting time. Reserve Avenue Route Variation. Please allows you to keep track of all formal
Time limits will be strictly enforced if note that while staff has recommended
issuances and submittals in specific
they are implemented. the use of the last two listed
dockets. This can reduce the amount of
Any person seeking to become a party alternatives, a decision whether or not
to recommend the use of the City of time you spend researching proceedings
to the proceeding must file a motion to by automatically providing you with
Green Route Alternative has not been
intervene pursuant to Rule 214 of the notification of these filings, document
made. The Commission staff wants to
Commission’s Rules of Practice and summaries, and direct links to the
ensure that all potentially affected
Procedures (Title 18 Code of Federal documents. Go to www.ferc.gov/docs-
landowners have the opportunity to
Regulations Part 385.214).2 Only filing/esubscription.asp to subscribe.
participate in the environmental review
intervenors have the right to seek process, thus staff is soliciting Dated: July 8, 2016.
rehearing of the Commission’s decision. comments to assist with the
The Commission grants affected Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
environmental analysis of these route
landowners and others with Deputy Secretary.
alternatives, which will be presented in
environmental concerns intervenor the final EIS. [FR Doc. 2016–16662 Filed 7–13–16; 8:45 am]
status upon showing good cause by BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
stating that they have a clear and direct Questions?
interest in this proceeding that no other Additional information about the
asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
party can adequately represent. Simply Projects is available from the
filing environmental comments will not Commission’s Office of External Affairs,
give you intervenor status, but you do at (866) 208–FERC, or on the FERC Web
not need intervenor status to have your site (www.ferc.gov) using the eLibrary
comments considered. link. Click on the eLibrary link, click on
1 ‘‘We,’’ ‘‘us,’’ and ‘‘our’’ refer to the 2 See the previous discussion on the methods for
environmental staff of the FERC’s Office of Energy filing comments.
Projects.
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Document Created: 2016-07-14 01:54:53
Document Modified: 2016-07-14 01:54:53
| Category | Regulatory Information | |
| Collection | Federal Register | |
| sudoc Class | AE 2.7: GS 4.107: AE 2.106: | |
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| Section | Notices | |
| FR Citation | 81 FR 45471 |
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