Viking Gas Transmission Company; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed 1999 Expansion Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 198 (Wednesday, October 14, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55113-55115]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-27432]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. CP98-761-000]


Viking Gas Transmission Company; Notice of Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed 1999 Expansion Project and 
Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

October 7, 1998.
    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 construction and operation of 
the facilities proposed in the Viking Gas Transmission Company's 1999 
Expansion Project.\1\ This EA will be used by the Commission in its 
decision-making process to determine whether the project is in the 
public convenience and necessity.
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    \1\ Viking Gas Transmission Company's application was filed with 
the Commission under Section 7 of the Natural Gas act and Part 157 
of the Commission's regulations.
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    If you are a landowner receiving this notice, you may be contacted 
by a Viking Gas Transmission Company (Viking) representative about the 
acquisition of an easement to construct, operate, and maintain the 
proposed facilities. Viking would seek to negotiate a mutually 
acceptable agreement. However, if the project is approved by the 
Commission, that approval conveys with it the right of eminent domain. 
Therefore, if easement negotiations fail to produce an agreement, 
Viking could initiate condemnation proceedings in accordance with state 
law. A fact sheet addressing a number of typically asked questions, 
including the use of eminent domain, is attached to this notice as 
appendix 2.\2\
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    \2\ The appendices referenced in this notice are not being 
printed in the Federal Register. Copies are available from the 
Commission's Public Reference and Files Maintenance Branch, 888 
First Street, N.E., Washington, DC 20426, or call (202) 208-1371. 
Copies of the appendices were sent to all those receiving this 
notice in the mail.
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Summary of the Proposed Project

    Viking proposes to construct the 1999 Expansion Project to provide 
firm winter capacity to serve new loads at various delivery points and 
to increase system reliability and flexibility for existing Viking 
shippers. Viking seeks authority to construct and operate:
    1. Five loops of 24-inch-diameter pipeline totaling 45.0 miles as 
follows:
    a. Hallock Loop--about 8.2 miles long, extending from milepost (MP) 
2202-1+0.0 \3\ to MP 2202-1+8.2 in Kittson and Marshall Counties, 
Minnesota;
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    \3\ Viking's mileposting resets to 0.0 at each mainline valve. 
Therefore, each pipeline section between Viking's mainline valves is 
mileposted independently. For example: MP 2202-1-8.2 denotes a 
physical location 8.2 miles downstream of mainline valve number 
2201-1.
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    b. Angus Loop--about 8.3 miles long, extending from MP 2204-1+11.8 
to MP 2204-1+20.1 in Polk County, Minnesota;
    c. Ada Loop--about 10.1 miles long, extending from MP 2208-1+0.0 to 
MP 2208-1+10.1 in Clay County, Minnesota;
    d. Frazee Loop--about 7.4 miles long, extending from MP 2210-1+0.0 
to MP 2210-1+7.4 in Otter Tail County, Minnesota; and
    e. Staples Loop--about 11.0 miles long,\4\ extending from MP 
2213-1+9.9 to MP 2213-1+21.0 in Morrison County, Minnesota;
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    \4\ The numerical discrepancy is due to rounding.
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    2. Minor permanent aboveground ancillary facilities:

[[Page 55114]]

    a. The installation of four mainline valves with crossover 
assemblies at MPs 2204-1+20.1, 2208-1+0.0, 2210-1+0.0, and 2213-1+21.0 
in Polk, Clay, Otter Tail, and Morrison Counties, respectively, 
Minnesota;
    b. The construction of four crossover valve assemblies at MPs 
2202-1+8.2, 2208-1+10.1, 2210-1+7.4, and 2213-1+9.9 in Marshall, Clay, 
Otter Tail, and Morrison Counties, respectively, Minnesota;
    c. The removal of one existing cross-over valve site at MP 
2204-1+11.8 in Polk County, Minnesota;
    d. The installation of two pipeline drip assemblies at MP 
2204-1+11.9 in Polk County and 2213-1+11.9 in Morrison County, 
Minnesota;
    e. The construction of taps for emergency tie-overs at three 
existing meter stations at MPs 2208-1+4.6, 2213-1+14.9, and 2213-1+20.8 
in Clay and Morrison Counties, Minnesota; and
    f. The construction of the new Perham Meter station at MP 
2210-1+0.0 in Otter Tail County, Minnesota.
    The locations of the project facilities are show in appendix 1.\2\ 
If you are interested in obtaining procedural information, please write 
to the Secretary of the Commission.

Land Requirements for Construction

    Viking proposes to use a right-of-way width of 90 feet for 
construction, with provisions for temporary extra work areas as 
necessary for waterbody, highway, and railroad crossings. The proposed 
loops would be installed about 20 feet west or southwest of Kining's 
existing pipeline. the construction right-of-way would extend 90 feet 
from the existing Viking pipeline which is centered in the existing 75-
foot-wide right-of-way. Therefore, about 52.5 feet of the construction 
right-of-way would be temporary workspace. All of the proposed pipeline 
and aboveground facilities would be located within Viking's existing 
permanent right-of-way. The proposed City of Perham Meter Station would 
be constructed within the existing fence line of Viking's Frazee 
Compressor Station. No new permanent right-of-way will be required for 
the project.
    Construction of the proposed facilities, including the use of 
temporary extra work areas, would disturb a total of about 513 acres of 
land. About 206 acres of these lands are existing permanent right-of-
way. The remaining 307 acres of land disturbed for the project would be 
allowed to revert to their former use.

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 
to discover and address concerns the public may have about proposals. 
We call this ``scoping''. The main goal of the scoping process is to 
focus the analysis in the EA on the important environmental issues. By 
this Notice of Intent, the Commission requests public comments on the 
scope of the issues it will address in the EA. All comments received 
are considered during the preparation of the EA. State and local 
government representatives are encouraged to notify their constituents 
of this proposed action and encourage them to comment on their areas of 
concern.

Currently Identified Environmental Issues

    The EA will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of the 
construction and operation of the proposed project under the general 
headings listed below. We have already identified several issues that 
we think deserve attention based on a preliminary review of the 
proposed facilities and the environmental information provided by 
Viking. This preliminary list of issues may be changed based on your 
comments and our analysis.

    •  Soils.

--Topsoil preservation
--Erosion control and right-of-way restoration
--Potential saline soil along Hallock Loop

    •  Water Resources.

--Potential dewatering of saline water from trench
--Project proximity to known wellhead protection area
--Crossing perennial waterbodies and drainage ditches

    •  Vegetation and Wildlife

--Effect of facility construction and operation on wildlife and 
fisheries habitat, including state-listed threatened animal and plant 
species and their habitats
--Impact on forested wetlands
--Effects on leased and owned Federal waterfowl production areas and 
state wildlife management areas

    •  Cultural Resources.

--Effect on historic and prehistoric sites
--Native American and tribal concerns

    •  Land Use.

--Impact on crop production
--Crossing of Federal and state land
--Consistency with local land use plans
--Revegetation of specialized areas
--Crossing irrigation systems on the Frazee Loop
--Visual effect of aboveground facilities

    •  Air Quality and Noise.

--Effect on local air quality and noise environment

    •  Public Safety

--Assessment of hazards associated with natural gas pipelines

    •  Cumulative Impact

--Assessment of the combined effect of the proposed project with other 
projects which have been or may be proposed in the same region and 
similar time frame

    We will also evaluate possible 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.
    Our independent analysis of the issues will be in the EA. Depending 
on the comments received during the scoping process, the EA may be 
published and mailed to Federal, state, and local agencies, public 
interest groups, interested individuals, affected landowners, 
newspapers, libraries, and the Commission's official service list for 
this proceeding. A comment period will be allotted for review if the EA 
is published. We will consider all comments on the EA before we make 
our recommendations to the Commission.
    To ensure your comments are considered, please carefully follow the 
instructions in the following public participation section.

Public Participation

    You can make a difference by providing us with your specific 
comments or concerns about the project. By becoming a commentor, your 
concerns will be addressed in the EA and considered by the Commission. 
You should focus on the potential environmental effects of the 
proposal, alternatives to the proposal (including alternative locations 
and routes), and measures to avoid or lessen environmental impact. The 
more specific your comments, the more useful they will be. Please 
carefully follow these instructions to ensure that your comments are 
received in time and properly recorded:
    •  Send two copies of your letter to: David P. Boergers, 
Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First St., NE., 
Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426;

[[Page 55115]]

    •  Label one copy of the comments for the attention of the 
Environmental Review and Compliance Branch, PR-11.1.
    •  Reference Docket No. CP98-761-000; and
    •  Mail your comments so that they will be received in 
Washington, DC on or before November 9, 1998.

Becoming an Intervenor

    In addition to involvement in the EA scoping process, you may want 
to become an official party to the proceeding known as an 
``intervenor''. Intervenors play a more formal role in the process. 
Among other things, intervenors have the right to receive copies of 
case-related Commission documents and filings by other intervenors. 
Likewise, each intervenor must provide 14 copies of its filings to the 
Secretary of the Commission and must send a copy of its filings to all 
other parties on the Commission's service list for this proceeding. If 
you want to become an intervenor you must file a motion to intervene 
according to Rule 214 of the Commission's Rules of Practice and 
Procedure (18 CFR 385.214) (see appendix 3). Only intervenors have the 
right to seek rehearing of the Commission's decision.
    The date for filing timely motions to intervene in this proceeding 
has passed. Therefore, parties now seeking to file late interventions 
must show good cause, as required by section 385.214(b)(3), why this 
time limitation should be waived. Environmental issues have been viewed 
as good cause for late intervention. You do not need intervenor status 
to have your environmental comments considered.
    Additional information about the proposed project is available from 
Mr. Paul McKee of the Commission's Office of External Affairs at (202) 
208-1088.
David P. Boergers,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 98-27432 Filed 10-13-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M