83 FR 7030 - Midship Pipeline Company, LLC Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Midcontinent Supply Header Interstate Pipeline Project

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 33 (February 16, 2018)

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 33 (Friday, February 16, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7030-7031]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-03203]


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

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP17-458-000]


Midship Pipeline Company, LLC Notice of Availability of the Draft 
Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Midcontinent Supply 
Header Interstate Pipeline Project

    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) has prepared a draft environmental impact statement (EIS) 
for the Midcontinent Supply Header Interstate Pipeline Project, 
proposed by Midship Pipeline Company, LLC (Midship Pipeline) in the 
above-referenced docket. Midship Pipeline requests authorization to 
construct and operate approximately 233.6 miles of new pipeline, three 
compressor stations, a booster station, and accompanying facilities 
that would deliver an additional 1.44 billion standard cubic feet per 
day of year-round firm transportation capacity from Kingfisher County, 
Oklahoma to existing natural gas pipelines near Bennington, Oklahoma 
for transport to growing Gulf Coast and Southeast Markets.
    The draft EIS assesses the potential environmental effects of the 
construction and operation of the project in accordance with the 
requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act. The FERC staff 
concludes that approval of the project would result in some adverse 
environmental impacts; however, these impacts would be reduced to less-
than-significant levels with the implementation of Midship Pipeline's 
proposed mitigation and the additional measures recommended in the 
draft EIS.
    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency participated as a 
cooperating agency in the preparation of the 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. The U.S. Environmental Protection 
Agency provided input to the conclusions and recommendations presented 
in the draft EIS.
    The draft EIS addresses the potential environmental effects of the 
construction and operation of the following proposed project facilities 
in Oklahoma:
     199.6 miles of new 36-inch-diameter natural gas pipeline 
in Kingfisher, Canadian, Grady, Garvin, Stephens, Carter, Johnston, and 
Bryan Counties;
     20.4 miles of new 30-inch-diameter pipeline lateral in 
Kingfisher County;
     13.6 miles of 16-inch-diameter pipeline lateral in 
Stephens, Carter, and Garvin Counties;
     three new compressor stations and one new booster station 
in Canadian, Garvin, Bryan, and Stephens Counties; and
     seven new receipt meters, two new receipt taps, four new 
delivery meters, and appurtenant facilities.

Distribution and Comments on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement

    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 in the project area. 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 website (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 April 
2, 2018.
    For your convenience, there are four methods you can use to submit 
your comments to the Commission. The Commission will provide equal

[[Page 7031]]

consideration to all comments received, whether filed in written form 
or provided verbally. 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 website (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 website (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. Be sure to reference the project docket number 
(CP17-458-000) with your submission: 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 one of the public comment sessions its 
staff will conduct in the project area to receive comments on the draft 
EIS, scheduled as follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
             Date and time                           Location
------------------------------------------------------------------------
March 12, 2018, 4:00-8:00 pm...........  Donald W. Reynolds Community
                                          Center, 1515 W. Main Street,
                                          Durant, OK 74701, (580) 924-
                                          3486.
March 13, 2018, 4:00-8:00 pm...........  Ardmore Convention Center, 2401
                                          N. Rockford Road, Ardmore, OK
                                          73401, (580) 226-2862.
March 14, 2018, 4:00-8:00 pm...........  Elmore City Community Center,
                                          104 S. Main Street, Elmore
                                          City, OK 73433, (580) 788-
                                          2345.
March 15, 2018, 4:00-8:00 pm...........  Redlands Community College,
                                          1300 S. Country Club Road, El
                                          Reno, OK 73036, (405) 262-
                                          2552.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    There will not be a formal presentation by Commission staff at any 
of the public comment sessions, although a format outline handout will 
be made available. Each comment sessions is scheduled from 4:00 p.m. to 
8:00 p.m. (central time zone). If you wish to speak, the Commission 
staff will hand out numbers in the order of your arrival; distribution 
of numbers will be discontinued at 7:00 p.m. However, if no additional 
numbers have been handed out and all individuals who wish to provide 
comments have had an opportunity to do so, staff may conclude the 
session at 7:00 p.m.
    The primary goal of the public comment sessions is to have you 
identify the specific environmental issues and concerns with the draft 
EIS. Individual verbal comments will be recorded on a one-on-one basis 
with a Court Reporter (with FERC staff or representative present) and 
become part of the public record for this proceeding. If a significant 
number of people are interested in providing verbal comments in the 
one-on-one settings, a time limit of 5 minutes may be implemented for 
each commentor. Transcripts of all comments from the sessions will be 
placed into the docket for the project, which are accessible for public 
viewing on the FERC's website (at www.ferc.gov) through our eLibrary 
system. This format is designed to receive the maximum amount of verbal 
comments, in a convenient way during the timeframe allotted.
    Commission staff will be available at each venue of the public 
sessions to answer questions about our environmental review process. It 
is important to note that written comments mailed to the Commission and 
those submitted electronically are reviewed by staff with the same 
scrutiny and consideration as the verbal comments given at the public 
sessions.
    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 of the 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 website (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-
458). 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: February 9, 2018.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2018-03203 Filed 2-15-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P