82 FR 14890 - Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company, LLC; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed St. James Supply Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 55 (March 23, 2017)
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 55 (March 23, 2017)
| Page Range | 14890-14892 | |
| FR Document | 2017-05781 |
[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 55 (Thursday, March 23, 2017)] [Notices] [Pages 14890-14892] From the Federal Register Online [www.thefederalregister.org] [FR Doc No: 2017-05781] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. CP17-58-000] Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company, LLC; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed St. James Supply 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 St. James Supply Project involving construction and operation of facilities by Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company, LLC (Transco) in St. James, Pointe Coupee, and St. Helena Parishes, Louisiana. The Commission will use this EA in its decision-making process to determine whether 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. 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 lessen environmental impacts. Your input will help the Commission staff determine what issues they need to evaluate in the EA. To ensure that your comments are timely and properly recorded, please send your comments so that the Commission receives them in Washington, DC on or before April 14, 2017. If you sent comments on this project to the Commission before the opening of this docket on February 6, 2017, you will need to file those comments in Docket No. CP17-58-000 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. State and local government representatives should notify their constituents of this proposed project and encourage them to comment on their areas of concern. If you are a landowner receiving this notice, a pipeline company representative may contact you about the acquisition of an easement to construct, operate, and maintain the proposed facilities. The company would seek to negotiate a mutually acceptable agreement. However, if the Commission approves the project, that approval conveys with it the right of eminent domain. Therefore, if easement negotiations fail to produce an agreement, the pipeline company could initiate condemnation proceedings where compensation would be determined in accordance with state law. Transco provided landowners with a fact sheet prepared by the FERC entitled ``An Interstate Natural Gas Facility On My Land? What Do I Need To Know?'' 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. It is also available for viewing on the FERC Web site (www.ferc.gov). Public Participation For your convenience, there are three methods you can use to submit your comments to the Commission. The Commission encourages electronic filing of comments and has expert staff available to assist you at (202) 502-8258 or [email protected]. Please carefully follow these instructions so that your comments are properly recorded. (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; or (3) You can file a paper copy of your comments by mailing them to the following address. Be sure to reference the project docket number (CP17-58-000) with your submission: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy [[Page 14891]] Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426. Summary of the Proposed Project The St. James Supply Project would deliver 161,500 dekatherms per day of firm transportation capacity from Transco's existing mainline Compressor Station 65 in St. Helena Parish, Louisiana to the planned Yuhuang Chemical Plant in St. James Parish, Louisiana. Transco would use its existing Southeast Lateral Pipeline (SELA) to deliver gas to the chemical plant. Proposed construction would provide bi-directional flow of natural gas on the SELA pipeline and a secondary source of natural gas to the chemical plant using an existing interconnection on Transco's mainline with the Texas Eastern Transmission Company Pipeline in Pointe Coupee Parish, Louisiana. The St. James Supply Project would consist of the following facilities:0.7 mile of 20-inch-diameter pipeline; one new pig receiver site; \1\ --------------------------------------------------------------------------- \1\ A ``pig'' is a tool that the pipeline company inserts into and pushes through the pipeline for cleaning the pipeline, conducting internal inspections, or other purposes. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- two new meter and regulating (M&R) stations (Old River Road and Cajun Road M&R Stations); a new interconnection to the chemical plant site; one new valve and piping to tie the Old River Road M&R Station into the SELA pipeline; and piping and valve modifications at existing Transco Compressor Stations 63 and 65. The general location of the project facilities is shown in appendix 1.\2\ --------------------------------------------------------------------------- \2\ The appendices referenced in this notice will not appear 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. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Land Requirements for Construction Construction of the proposed facilities would disturb about 77.8 acres of land for the aboveground facilities and the pipeline. Following construction, Transco would maintain about 12.0 acres for permanent operation of the project's facilities; the remaining acreage would be restored and revert to former uses. 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 \3\ 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. We will consider all filed comments during the preparation of the EA. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- \3\ ``We,'' ``us,'' and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff of the Commission's Office of Energy Projects. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- In the EA we will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of the construction and operation of the proposed project under these general headings: Geology and soils; water resources and wetlands; fisheries, vegetation, and wildlife; endangered and threatened species; land use; cultural resources; air quality and noise; public safety; and cumulative impacts. We will also evaluate reasonable alternatives to the proposed project or portions of the project, and make recommendations on how to lessen or avoid impacts on the various resource areas. The 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 2. With this notice, we are asking agencies with jurisdiction by law and/or special expertise with respect to the environmental issues of this project to formally cooperate with us in the preparation of the EA.\4\ 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. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- \4\ The Council on Environmental Quality regulations addressing cooperating agency responsibilities are at Title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 1501.6. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Consultations Under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act In accordance with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation's implementing regulations for section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, we are using this notice to initiate consultation with the applicable State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), and to solicit their views and those of other government agencies, interested Indian tribes, and the public on the project's potential effects on historic properties.\5\ We will define the project-specific Area of Potential Effects (APE) in consultation with the SHPO as the project develops. On natural gas facility projects, the APE at a minimum encompasses all areas subject to ground disturbance (examples include construction right-of-way, contractor/pipe storage yards, compressor stations, and access roads). Our EA for this project will document our findings on the impacts on historic properties and summarize the status of consultations under section 106. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- \5\ The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation's 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 of Historic Places. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Environmental Mailing List The environmental mailing list includes federal, state, and local government representatives and agencies; elected officials; environmental and public interest groups; Native American Tribes; other interested parties; and local libraries and newspapers. This list also includes all affected landowners (as defined in the Commission's regulations) who are potential right-of-way grantors, whose property may be used temporarily for project purposes, or who own homes within certain distances of aboveground facilities, 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. If we publish and distribute the EA, 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). [[Page 14892]] Becoming an Intervenor In addition to involvement in the 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 ``Document-less Intervention Guide'' under the ``e-filing'' link on the Commission's Web site. Motions to intervene are more fully described at http://www.ferc.gov/resources/guides/how-to/intervene.asp. 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 at 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- 058). 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 these filings, document summaries, and direct links to the documents. Go to www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/esubscription.asp. Finally, public sessions or site visits will be posted on the Commission's calendar located at www.ferc.gov/EventCalendar/EventsList.aspx along with other related information. Dated: March 17, 2017. Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary. [FR Doc. 2017-05781 Filed 3-22-17; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6717-01-P
![14890 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 55 / Thursday, March 23, 2017 / Notices
concrete-lined power shaft penstock; (5) Enter the docket number (P–14813) in notify their constituents of this
a 1,420-foot-long 30-foot-diameter, the docket number field to access the proposed project and encourage them to
concrete-lined, power tunnel penstock document. For assistance, contact FERC comment on their areas of concern.
that will split into three 16-foot- Online Support. If you are a landowner receiving this
diameter penstocks approximately 450- Dated: March 16, 2017. notice, a pipeline company
foot-long, that will extend to the Kimberly D. Bose, representative may contact you about
powerhouse; (6) an underground the acquisition of an easement to
Secretary.
powerhouse/pump station, containing construct, operate, and maintain the
three reversible pump-turbine [FR Doc. 2017–05792 Filed 3–22–17; 8:45 am]
proposed facilities. The company would
generating units, with a total generating BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
seek to negotiate a mutually acceptable
capacity of 600 megawatts; (7) a 6,620 agreement. However, if the Commission
foot-long tailrace tunnel to; the existing approves the project, that approval
Corps Lake Dardanelle as its lower DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
conveys with it the right of eminent
reservoir; (8) an intake/outlet structure domain. Therefore, if easement
Federal Energy Regulatory
located on the south shore of Lake negotiations fail to produce an
Commission
Dardanelle; (9) a 8,000-foot-long, 500- agreement, the pipeline company could
kilovolt overhead transmission line [Docket No. CP17–58–000] initiate condemnation proceedings
from the powerhouse to (10) a proposed where compensation would be
substation at the point of Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line determined in accordance with state
interconnection with an existing utility Company, LLC; Notice of Intent To law.
transmission line. The proposed project Prepare an Environmental Assessment
Transco provided landowners with a
would have an annual energy generation for the Proposed St. James Supply
fact sheet prepared by the FERC entitled
of 640,000 megawatt-hours. Project and Request for Comments on
‘‘An Interstate Natural Gas Facility On
Applicant Contact: Curtis Warner, Environmental Issues
My Land? What Do I Need To Know?’’
Arkansas Electric Cooperative This fact sheet addresses a number of
The staff of the Federal Energy
Corporation, 1 Cooperative Way, Little typically asked questions, including the
Regulatory Commission (FERC or
Rock, Arkansas 72209; phone (501) 570– use of eminent domain and how to
Commission) will prepare an
2462. participate in the Commission’s
FERC Contact: Chris Casey, environmental assessment (EA) that will
discuss the environmental impacts of proceedings. It is also available for
christiane.casey@ferc.gov, (202) 502–
the St. James Supply Project involving viewing on the FERC Web site
8577.
Deadline for filing comments, motions construction and operation of facilities (www.ferc.gov).
to intervene, competing applications by Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Public Participation
(without notices of intent), or notices of Company, LLC (Transco) in St. James,
intent to file competing applications: 60 Pointe Coupee, and St. Helena Parishes, For your convenience, there are three
days from the issuance of this notice. Louisiana. The Commission will use methods you can use to submit your
Competing applications and notices of this EA in its decision-making process comments to the Commission. The
intent must meet the requirements of 18 to determine whether the project is in Commission encourages electronic filing
CFR 4.36. Comments, motions to the public convenience and necessity. of comments and has expert staff
intervene, notices of intent, and This notice announces the opening of available to assist you at (202) 502–8258
competing applications may be filed the scoping process the Commission or efiling@ferc.gov. Please carefully
electronically via the Internet. See 18 will use to gather input from the public follow these instructions so that your
CFR 385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the and interested agencies on the project. comments are properly recorded.
instructions on the Commission’s Web You can make a difference by providing (1) You can file your comments
site http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/ us with your specific comments or electronically using the eComment
efiling.asp. Commenters can submit concerns about the project. Your feature on the Commission’s Web site
brief comments up to 6,000 characters, comments should focus on the potential (www.ferc.gov) under the link to
without prior registration, using the environmental effects, reasonable Documents and Filings. This is an easy
eComment system at http:// alternatives, and measures to avoid or method for submitting brief, text-only
www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/ lessen environmental impacts. Your comments on a project;
ecomment.asp. You must include your input will help the Commission staff (2) You can file your comments
name and contact information at the end determine what issues they need to electronically by using the eFiling
of your comments. For assistance, evaluate in the EA. To ensure that your feature on the Commission’s Web site
please contact FERC Online Support at comments are timely and properly (www.ferc.gov) under the link to
FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov or toll recorded, please send your comments so Documents and Filings. With eFiling,
free at 1–866–208–3676, or for TTY, that the Commission receives them in you can provide comments in a variety
(202) 502–8659. Although the Washington, DC on or before April 14, of formats by attaching them as a file
Commission strongly encourages 2017. with your submission. New eFiling
electronic filing, documents may also be If you sent comments on this project users must first create an account by
paper-filed. To paper-file, mail an to the Commission before the opening of clicking on ‘‘eRegister.’’ If you are filing
original and five copies to: Kimberly D. this docket on February 6, 2017, you a comment on a particular project,
will need to file those comments in please select ‘‘Comment on a Filing’’ as
sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES
Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street Docket No. CP17–58–000 to ensure they the filing type; or
NE., Washington, DC 20426. are considered as part of this (3) You can file a paper copy of your
More information about this project, proceeding. comments by mailing them to the
including a copy of the application, can This notice is being sent to the following address. Be sure to reference
be viewed or printed on the ‘‘eLibrary’’ Commission’s current environmental the project docket number (CP17–58–
link of Commission’s Web site at http:// mailing list for this project. State and 000) with your submission: Kimberly D.
www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/elibrary.asp. local government representatives should Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy
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![14892 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 55 / Thursday, March 23, 2017 / Notices
Becoming an Intervenor DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY its environmental assessment (EA) and
place it into the Commission’s public
In addition to involvement in the EA Federal Energy Regulatory record (eLibrary) for this proceeding; or
scoping process, you may want to Commission issue a Notice of Schedule for
become an ‘‘intervenor’’ which is an Environmental Review. If a Notice of
[Docket No. CP17–71–000]
official party to the Commission’s Schedule for Environmental Review is
proceeding. Intervenors play a more ANR Storage Company; Notice of issued, it will indicate, among other
formal role in the process and are able Request Under Blanket Authorization milestones, the anticipated date for the
to file briefs, appear at hearings, and be Commission staff’s issuance of the final
heard by the courts if they choose to Take notice that on March 7, 2017
ANR Storage Company (ANR Storage), environmental impact statement (FEIS)
appeal the Commission’s final ruling. or EA for this proposal. The filing of the
700 Louisiana Street, Houston, Texas
An intervenor formally participates in EA in the Commission’s public record
77002–2700, filed in Docket No. CP17–
the proceeding by filing a request to 71–000 a prior notice request pursuant for this proceeding or the issuance of a
intervene. Instructions for becoming an to sections 157.205 and 157.216 of the Notice of Schedule for Environmental
intervenor are in the ‘‘Document-less Commission’s regulations under the Review will serve to notify federal and
Intervention Guide’’ under the ‘‘e-filing’’ Natural Gas Act (NGA) and ANR state agencies of the timing for the
link on the Commission’s Web site. Storage’s authorization in Docket No. completion of all necessary reviews, and
Motions to intervene are more fully CP82–523–000, 21 FERC ¶ 62,109 the subsequent need to complete all
described at http://www.ferc.gov/ (1982), for authorization to abandon one federal authorizations within 90 days of
resources/guides/how-to/intervene.asp. injection/withdrawal (I/W) well at its the date of issuance of the Commission
Cold Springs 12 Storage Field in staff’s FEIS or EA.
Additional Information
Kalkaska County, Michigan, all as more
fully set forth in the application which Persons who wish to comment only
Additional information about the
is on file with the Commission and open on the environmental review of this
project is available from the
to public inspection. The filing may also project should submit an original and
Commission’s Office of External Affairs,
be viewed on the web at http:// two copies of their comments to the
at (866) 208–FERC, or on the FERC Web
www.ferc.gov using the ‘‘eLibrary’’ link. Secretary of the Commission.
site at www.ferc.gov using the
Enter the docket number excluding the Environmental commenter’s will be
‘‘eLibrary’’ link. Click on the eLibrary
last three digits in the docket number placed on the Commission’s
link, click on ‘‘General Search’’ and
field to access the document. For environmental mailing list, will receive
enter the docket number, excluding the assistance, please contact FERC Online copies of the environmental documents,
last three digits in the Docket Number Support at and will be notified of meetings
field (i.e., CP17–058). Be sure you have FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov or toll associated with the Commission’s
selected an appropriate date range. For free at (866) 208–3676, or TTY, contact environmental review process.
assistance, please contact FERC Online (202) 502–8659. Environmental commenter’s will not be
Support at FercOnlineSupport@ferc.gov Any questions concerning this required to serve copies of filed
or toll free at (866) 208–3676, or for application may be directed to Linda documents on all other parties.
TTY, contact (202) 502–8659. The Farquhar, Manager, Project However, the non-party commentary,
eLibrary link also provides access to the Determinations & Regulatory will not receive copies of all documents
texts of formal documents issued by the Administration, ANR Storage Company, filed by other parties or issued by the
Commission, such as orders, notices, 700 Louisiana Street, Suite 700,
Commission (except for the mailing of
and rulemakings. Houston, Texas, 77002–2700, at (832)
environmental documents issued by the
In addition, the Commission offers a 320–5685 or fax (832) 320–6685 or
linda_farquhar@transcanada.com. Commission) and will not have the right
free service called eSubscription which to seek court review of the
Any person or the Commission’s staff
allows you to keep track of all formal may, within 60 days after issuance of Commission’s final order.
issuances and submittals in specific the instant notice by the Commission, The Commission strongly encourages
dockets. This can reduce the amount of file pursuant to Rule 214 of the electronic filings of comments, protests,
time you spend researching proceedings Commission’s Procedural Rules (18 CFR and interventions via the internet in lieu
by automatically providing you with 385.214) a motion to intervene or notice of paper. See 18 CFR 385.2001(a) (1) (iii)
notification of these filings, document of intervention and pursuant to section and the instructions on the
summaries, and direct links to the 157.205 of the regulations under the Commission’s Web site (www.ferc.gov)
documents. Go to www.ferc.gov/docs- NGA (18 CFR 157.205), a protest to the under the ‘‘e-Filing’’ link. Persons
filing/esubscription.asp. request. If no protest is filed within the unable to file electronically should
Finally, public sessions or site visits time allowed therefore, the proposed submit an original and 5 copies of the
will be posted on the Commission’s activity shall be deemed to be protest or intervention to the Federal
calendar located at www.ferc.gov/ authorized effective the day after the Energy Regulatory Commission, 888
EventCalendar/EventsList.aspx along time allowed for filing a protest. If a
First Street NE., Washington, DC 20426.
with other related information. protest is filed and not withdrawn
within 30 days after the allowed time Dated: March 16, 2017.
Dated: March 17, 2017.
sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES
for filing a protest, the instant request Kimberly D. Bose,
Kimberly D. Bose, shall be treated as an application for Secretary.
Secretary. authorization pursuant to section 7 of [FR Doc. 2017–05793 Filed 3–22–17; 8:45 am]
[FR Doc. 2017–05781 Filed 3–22–17; 8:45 am] the NGA.
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
Pursuant to section 157.9 of the
Commission’s rules, 18 CFR 157.9,
within 90 days of this Notice the
Commission staff will either: Complete
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Document Created: 2017-03-23 02:45:56
Document Modified: 2017-03-23 02:45:56
| Category | Regulatory Information | |
| Collection | Federal Register | |
| sudoc Class | AE 2.7: GS 4.107: AE 2.106: | |
| Publisher | Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration | |
| Section | Notices | |
| FR Citation | 82 FR 14890 |
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