82 FR 12811 - Gulf South Pipeline Company, LP; Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Assessment for the Amended Coastal Bend Header Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 43 (March 7, 2017)

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 43 (Tuesday, March 7, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12811-12813]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-04379]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP17-62-000]


Gulf South Pipeline Company, LP; Notice of Intent To Prepare a 
Supplemental Environmental Assessment for the Amended Coastal Bend 
Header Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) will prepare an environmental assessment (EA) that will 
discuss the environmental impacts of the amendment to the Coastal Bend 
Header Project (Project) involving construction and operation of 
facilities by Gulf South Pipeline Company, LP (Gulf South) in 
southeastern Texas. The Commission will use this EA in its decision-
making process to determine whether the amendment to the Project is in 
the public convenience and necessity.
    This notice announces the opening of the scoping process the 
Commission will use to gather input from the public and interested 
agencies on the Project. Your input during the scoping process will 
help the Commission staff determine what issues need to be evaluated in 
the EA. Your comments should focus on the potential environmental 
effects, reasonable alternatives, and measures to avoid or lessen 
environmental impacts. Please note that the scoping period will close 
on March 31, 2017.
    Further details on how to submit written comments are in the Public 
Participation section of this notice. If you sent comments on this 
project to the Commission before the opening of this docket on November 
5, 2014, you will need to file those comments in Docket No. CP17-62-000 
to ensure they are considered as part of this proceeding.
    This notice is being sent to the Commission's current environmental 
mailing list for this Project and includes landowners affected by the 
amended Project. State and local government officials are asked to 
notify their constituents of this planned Project and encourage them to 
comment on their areas of concern.
    A fact sheet prepared by the FERC entitled ``An Interstate Natural 
Gas Facility on My Land? What Do I Need to Know?'' is available for 
viewing on the FERC Web site (www.ferc.gov). This fact sheet addresses 
a number of typically asked questions, including the use of eminent 
domain and how to participate in the Commission's proceedings.

Public Participation

    You can make a difference by providing us with your specific 
comments or concerns about the Project. Your comments should focus on 
the potential environmental effects, reasonable alternatives, and 
measures to avoid or minimize environmental impacts. The more specific 
your comments, the more useful they will be. To ensure that your 
comments are timely and properly recorded, please send your comments so 
the Commission receives them in Washington, DC on or before March 31, 
2017.
    For your convenience, there are three methods you can use to submit 
your comments to the Commission. In all instances, please reference the 
Project docket number (CP17-62-000) 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 located on the Commission's Web site (www.ferc.gov) under the 
link to Documents and Filings. This is an easy method for interested 
persons to submit brief, text-only comments on a project;
    2. You can file your comments electronically using the eFiling 
feature located 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.'' You must select the type of filing you are making. If 
you are filing a comment on a particular project, please select 
``Comment on a Filing''; or
    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.

Summary of the Planned Project and Proposed Amendment

    On June 12, 2015, Gulf South Pipeline Company, LP (Gulf South) 
filed an application with the FERC for the Coastal Bend Header Project 
(Project), pursuant to Section 7(c) of the Natural Gas Act and Part 157 
of the Commission's regulations for a Certificate of Public Convenience 
and Necessity (Certificate) in Docket No. CP15-517-000. The EA for the 
Project

[[Page 12812]]

was placed into the public record on January 29, 2016. On June 20, 
2016, the Commission issued an Order Issuing Certificate (Order) to 
Gulf South authorizing the Project, and Gulf South accepted the Order 
on June 21, 2016 pursuant to Section 157.20(a) of the Commission's 
Regulations.
    Gulf South has been authorized to construct 64 miles of 36-inch 
diameter pipeline in Wharton and Brazoria Counties, Texas, a new 
compressor station in Wharton County along the new pipeline, and two 
new compressor stations and upgrades at two compressor stations along 
Gulf South's existing Index 129 pipeline in Fort Bend, Harris, Polk, 
and Sabine Counties, Texas. The new pipeline would enable delivery of 
1.54 billion cubic feet per day (bcf/d) of natural gas to the proposed 
Freeport Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Export Terminal near Freeport, 
Texas. Gulf South's planned in-service date for Project facilities is 
spring 2018.
    On September 25, 2015, Gulf South filed a Stipulation and Agreement 
of Settlement in its recent rate case, in Docket No. RP15-65-000 
(Settlement), which was approved by the Commission on December 18, 
2015. In order to accommodate volumes associated with the Project and 
volumes associated with contractual modifications by Gulf South's 
existing shipper, CenterPoint Energy Resources Corporation, in the 
Settlement that occurred after the filing of the Project, Gulf South 
was required to increase the size of the currently certificated gas-
fired turbine compressor unit at its Magasco Compressor Station in 
Sabine County, Texas.
    On February 22, Gulf South filed a Section 7(c) application to 
amend its Order issued by the Commission on June 20, 2016. In this 
amendment, Gulf South now seeks Commission authorization to incorporate 
a modification to the compressor unit to be installed at the Magasco 
Compressor Station, which is located along Gulf South's Index 129 
legacy system. Gulf South is proposing to install a Solar Titan 130 
compressor unit, rather than a Solar Mars 100 compressor unit as 
proposed in the June 2015 FERC application and approved in the June 20, 
2016 Order. The Solar Titan 130 compressor unit is capable of 
generating approximately 20,482 brake-horsepower (bhp) of compression, 
which is an increase of approximately 4,734 bhp compared to the 
previously authorized Solar Mars 100 compressor unit. Gulf South also 
proposes to modify the emergency generator from an 800 bhp unit to a 
691 bhp unit.
    The location of the Magasco Compressor Station and the approved 
pipeline facilities are depicted in the figures in Appendix 1.\1\
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    \1\ The appendices referenced in this notice are not being 
printed in the Federal Register. Copies of appendices were sent to 
all those receiving this notice in the mail and are available at 
www.ferc.gov using the link called ``eLibrary'' or from the 
Commission's Public Reference Room, 888 First Street NE., 
Washington, DC 20426, or call (202) 502-8371. For instructions on 
connecting to eLibrary, refer to the last page of this notice.
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Land Requirements for Construction

    Gulf South does not propose any additional modifications to the 
station yard piping and ancillary equipment that would be installed 
along with the compressor unit. Therefore, there would be no change in 
land requirements for the Project.

The EA Process

    The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires the 
Commission to take into account the environmental impacts that could 
result from an action whenever it considers the issuance of a 
Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity. NEPA also requires us 
\2\ to discover and address concerns the public may have about 
proposals. This process is referred to as scoping. The main goal of the 
scoping process is to focus the analysis in the EA on the important 
environmental issues. By this notice, the Commission requests public 
comments on the scope of the issues to address in the EA. All comments 
received will be considered during the preparation of the EA.
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    \2\ ``Us,'' ``we,'' and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff 
of the Commission's Office of Energy Projects.
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    In the EA we will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of 
the construction and operation of the planned Project under these 
general headings:
     Geology and soils;
     water resources;
     wetlands and vegetation;
     fish and wildlife including migratory birds;
     threatened and endangered species;
     land use, recreation, and visual resources;
     air quality and noise;
     cultural resources;
     reliability and safety; and
     cumulative environmental impacts.
    We will also evaluate reasonable alternatives to the proposed 
Project modification including the no action alternative, and make 
recommendations on how to minimize or avoid impacts on affected 
resources.
    The supplemental EA will present our independent analysis of the 
issues. The EA will be available in the public record through eLibrary. 
Depending on the comments received during the scoping process, we may 
also publish and distribute the EA to the public for an allotted 
comment period. We will consider all comments on the EA before making 
our recommendations to the Commission. To ensure we have the 
opportunity to consider and address your comments, please carefully 
follow the instructions in the Public Participation section beginning 
on page 5.
    With this notice, we are asking agencies with jurisdiction by law 
and/or special expertise with respect to the environmental issues 
related to this Project to formally cooperate with us in the 
preparation of the EA.\3\ Agencies that would like to request 
cooperating agency status should follow the instructions for filing 
comments provided under the Public Participation section of this 
notice.
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    \3\ The Council on Environmental Quality regulations addressing 
cooperating agency responsibilities are at Title 40, Code of Federal 
Regulations, Part 1501.6.
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Consultations Under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation 
Act

    In accordance with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation's 
regulations for Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, 
we are using this notice to initiate consultation with the Texas 
Historical Commission which has been given the role of the State 
Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO) for Texas, and to solicit the 
SHPO's view and those of other government agencies, interested Indian 
tribes, and the public on the Project's potential effects on historic 
properties.\4\ We will define the Project-specific Area of Potential 
Effects in consultation with the SHPO as the Project is further 
developed. Our environmental document for the Project will document our 
findings of the impacts on historic properties and summarize the status 
of consultations under Section 106.
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    \4\ The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation regulations 
are at Title 36, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 800. Those 
regulations define historic properties as any prehistoric or 
historic district, site, building, structure, or object included in 
or eligible for inclusion in the National Register for Historic 
Places.
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Currently Identified Environmental Issues

    The proposed increase of 4,734 bhp in compression at Magasco 
Compressor Station would have a potential impact on air quality and 
noise emissions.

Environmental Mailing List

    The environmental mailing list includes federal, state, and local 
government representatives and

[[Page 12813]]

agencies; elected officials; environmental and public interest groups; 
Native American Tribes; other interested parties; and local libraries 
and newspapers. This list also includes all identified landowners who 
own homes within one-half-mile of the Magasco Compressor Station, and 
anyone who submits comments on the Project. We will update the 
environmental mailing list as the analysis proceeds to ensure that we 
send the information related to this environmental review to all 
individuals, organizations, and government entities interested in and/
or potentially affected by the proposed Project.
    When an EA is published for distribution, copies will be sent to 
the environmental mailing list for public review and comment. If you 
would prefer to receive a paper copy of the document instead of the CD 
version, or would like to remove your name from the mailing list, 
please return the attached Information Request (Appendix 2).

Becoming an Intervenor

    In addition to involvement in the supplemental EA scoping process, 
you may want to become an ``intervenor,'' which is an official party to 
the Commission's proceeding. Intervenors play a more formal role in the 
process and are able to file briefs, appear at hearings, and be heard 
by the courts if they choose to appeal the Commission's final ruling. 
An intervenor formally participates in the proceeding by filing a 
request to intervene. Instructions for becoming an intervenor are in 
the User's Guide under the ``e-filing'' link on the Commission's Web 
site.

Additional Information

    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, 
excluding the last three digits in the Docket Number field (i.e., CP17-
62). 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, or 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 which 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 filings, document summaries, and direct links to the 
documents. Go to www.ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm.
    Finally, Gulf South has established a Web site for the Project at 
http://www.gulfsouthpl.com/ExpansionProjects.aspx?id=4294967425. The 
Web site includes a description of the Project, permitting schedules 
and calendars, frequently asked questions and responses, and links to 
related press releases and news articles. You can also request 
additional information directly from Gulf South at (844) 211-6282 or by 
clicking on the following link on the Gulf South Web site that will 
take you to an online submittal form: http://www.gulfsouthpl.com/ExpansionProjects.aspx?ekfrm=4294967452.

    Dated: March 1, 2017.
Kimberly D. Bose,
 Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2017-04379 Filed 3-6-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6717-01-P