Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 220 / Wednesday, November 15, 2006 / Notices

Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 220 / Wednesday, November 15, 2006 / Notices

and how to participate in the FERC’s

proceedings.

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory

Commission

[Docket No. PF06–35–000]

Columbia Gas Transmission

Corporation; Notice of Intent To

Prepare an Environmental Assessment

for the Proposed Eastern Market

Expansion Project and Request for

Comments on Environmental Issues

rmajette on PROD1PC67 with NOTICES1

November 7, 2006.

The staff of the Federal Energy

Regulatory Commission (FERC or

Commission) will prepare an

environmental assessment (EA) that will

discuss the environmental impacts of

Columbia Gas Transmission

Corporation’s (Columbia) planned

Eastern Market Expansion Project

located in certain counties in West

Virginia, Virginia, and Ohio.

This notice announces the opening of

the scoping process we will use to

gather input from the public and

interested agencies on the project. Your

input will help the Commission staff

determine which issues need to be

evaluated in the EA. Please note that the

scoping period will close on December

11, 2006.

This notice is being sent to affected

landowners; federal, state, and local

government representatives and

agencies; environmental and public

interest groups; Native American tribes;

other interested parties in this

proceeding; and local libraries and

newspapers. We encourage government

representatives to notify their

constituents of this planned project and

encourage them to comment on their

areas of concern.

If you are a landowner receiving this

notice, you may be contacted by a

Columbia representative about the

acquisition of an easement to construct,

operate, and maintain the proposed

facilities. Columbia 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, Columbia could initiate

condemnation proceedings in

accordance with state law.

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 Internet website (http://

www.ferc.gov). This fact sheet addresses

a number of typically asked questions,

including the use of eminent domain

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15:00 Nov 14, 2006

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Summary of the Proposed Project

The planned Eastern Market

Expansion Project consists of:

(a) Expanding the existing Crawford

Storage Field in Fairfield and Hocking

Counties, Ohio;

(b) Expanding the existing Coco

Storage Field in Kanawha County, West

Virginia;

(c) Installing an additional 12,600

horsepower at four existing compressor

stations in West Virginia; and

(d) Constructing three sections of 26to 36-inch-diameter pipeline loop

totaling about 15.5 miles in Clay and

Randolph Counties, West Virginia and

Warren, Clarke, and Fauquier Counties,

Virginia.

A general overview map of the major

project facilities is provided in

Appendix 1.1

Columbia indicates that these

facilities would provide an additional

97,050 dekatherms per day of storage

deliverability and associated firm

pipeline transportation capacity to four

local gas distribution companies in the

Mid-Atlantic region.

Columbia anticipates filing an

application with the FERC in March

2007. If approved, Columbia would seek

approval to begin construction by April

1, 2008, with a proposed in-service date

of April 1, 2009.

Land Requirements

Construction of the project facilities

would disturb about 327 acres of land.

Following construction, about 272 acres

of the total would be retained for the

operation of the pipeline and the

aboveground facilities. Columbia

currently plans to use a nominal rightof-way (ROW) width of 75 feet to

construct its pipelines, with occasional

increases in width for additional

workspace at waterbody, wetland, road,

and railroad crossings. For operation of

the pipeline facilities, Columbia plans

to use a 70-foot-wide permanent ROW.

Temporary extra workspaces may also

be required in areas with site-specific

constraints, such as side-slope

construction and areas needed for pipe

storage and equipment yards. The well

connect lines at the Coco and Crawford

Storage Fields would require a ROW

width of 50 feet for construction, with

1 The appendices referenced in this notice are not

being printed in the Federal Register. Copies are

available on the Commission’s Web site (excluding

maps) at the ‘‘eLibrary’’ link or from the

Commission’s Public Reference Room or call (202)

502–8371. For instructions on connecting to

eLibrary refer to the end of this notice. Copies of

the appendices were sent to all those receiving this

notice in the mail.

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66513

the same width maintained as

permanent ROW for operation. For new

well installation at the Coco and

Crawford Storage Fields, a 400-foot-by400-foot work area would be utilized

while for reconditioned wells a 300foot-by-300-foot work area would be

used. After installation, a 300-footradius buffer would be associated with

each well.

Currently Identified Environmental

Issues

We have already identified several

issues that we think deserve attention

based on a preliminary review of the

proposed facilities and information

provided by Columbia. This list of

issues may be changed based on your

comments and our analysis:

• Impacts on residential areas;

• The effect of blasting on

groundwater;

• Potential noise impacts associated

with construction and operation;

• Difficult ROW restoration in areas

of side-slope construction; and

• Impact on visual resources due to

vegetation clearing to create a new

ROW.

The EA Process

The FERC will be the lead federal

agency for the preparation of the EA.

The document will satisfy the

requirements of the National

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The

Eastern Market Expansion Project is in

the preliminary design state.

For this project, the FERC staff has

initiated its NEPA review prior to

receiving the application. The purpose

of the Commission’s Pre-Filing Process

is to involve interested stakeholders

early in project planning and to identify

and resolve issues before an application

is filed with the FERC. A docket number

(PF06–35–000) has been established to

place information filed by Columbia,

and related documents issued by the

Commission, into the public record.

Once a formal application is filed with

the FERC, a new docket number will be

established.

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. 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 of Intent, we are requesting

public comments on the scope of the

issues that should be addressed in the

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Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 220 / Wednesday, November 15, 2006 / Notices

rmajette on PROD1PC67 with NOTICES1

EA. We will consider all comments

received during scoping in the

preparation of the EA.

Staff’s independent analysis and

evaluation of the issues will be included

in the EA. The EA will also include

possible alternatives to the proposed

project or portions of the project, and

will make recommendations on how to

lessen or avoid impacts on the various

resource areas of concern. Depending on

the comments received during the

scoping process, the EA may be

published and mailed to federal, state,

and local agencies; elected officials;

environmental and public interest

groups; other interested parties; affected

landowners; Native American tribes;

libraries, and newspapers; and the

Commission’s official service list for

this proceeding. A 30-day comment

period will be allotted for review of the

EA, if it is published.

FERC staff will be involved in

discussions with other jurisdictional

agencies to identify their issues and

concerns. These agencies include the

National Park Service; U.S. Fish and

Wildlife Service (West Virginia,

Virginia, and Ohio Field Offices); U.S.

Army Corps of Engineers (Huntington,

Pittsburgh, and Norfolk Districts); West

Virginia Department of Environmental

Protection; West Virginia Department of

Natural Resources; West Virginia State

Historic Preservation Office (SHPO);

Virginia Marine Resource Commission;

Virginia Department of Conservation

and Recreation; Virginia Department of

Environmental Quality; Virginia Game

and Inland Fisheries; Virginia SHPO;

Ohio Environmental Protection Agency;

Ohio Department of Natural Resources;

and Ohio SHPO. By this notice, we are

asking these and other federal, state, and

local agencies with jurisdiction and/or

special expertise with respect to

environmental issues to formally enter

cooperating agency status with us in the

preparation of the EA. Agencies that

would like to request cooperating status

should follow the instructions for filing

comments provided below.

Public Participation

You can make a difference by

providing us with your specific

comments or concerns about the

proposal. Your comments should focus

on the potential environmental effects,

reasonable alternatives, 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 an original and two copies of

your letter to: Magalie R. Salas,

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15:00 Nov 14, 2006

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Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory

Commission, 888 First St., NE., Room

1A, Washington, DC 20426;

• Label one copy of the comments for

the attention of Gas Branch 1, DG2E;

• Reference Docket No. PF06–35–000

on the original and both copies; and

• Mail your comments so that they

will be received in Washington, DC on

or before December 11, 2006.

Please note that the Commission

encourages electronic filing of

comments. See 18 Code of Federal

Regulations 385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the

instructions on the Commission’s

Internet website at http://www.ferc.gov

under the ‘‘eFiling’’ link and the link to

the User’s Guide. Before you can file

comments you will need to create an

account by clicking on ‘‘Login to File’’

and then ‘‘New User Account.’’ You will

be asked to select the type of filing you

are making. This filing is considered a

‘‘Comment on Filing’’.

When Columbia submits its

application for authorization to

construct and operate the Eastern

Market Expansion Project, the

Commission will publish a Notice of

Application in the Federal Register and

will establish a deadline for interested

persons to intervene in the proceeding.

Because the Commission’s Pre-Filing

Process occurs before an application to

begin a proceeding is officially filed,

petitions to intervene during this

process are premature and will not be

accepted by the Commission.

Environmental Mailing List

The determination of whether to

distribute the EA for public comment

will be based on the response to this

notice. If the EA is published and you

are interested in receiving it, please

return the Information Request

(Appendix 2).

Availability of Additional Information

Additional information about the

project is available from the

Commission’s Office of External Affairs

at 1–866–208 FERC (3372) or on the

FERC Internet Web site (http://

www.ferc.gov). Using the ‘‘eLibrary’’

link, select ‘‘General Search’’ from the

eLibrary menu, enter the selected date

range and a docket number field (i.e.,

PF06–35–000), and follow the

instructions. Searches may also be done

using the phrase ‘‘Eastern Market

Expansion Project’’ in the Text Search

field. For assistance with access to

eLibrary, the helpline can be reached at

1–866–208–3676, TTY (202) 502–8659,

or at FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov. The

eLibrary link on the FERC Internet Web

site also provides access to the texts of

formal documents issued by the

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Commission, such as orders, notices,

and rule makings.

In addition, the FERC now 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. To register for this service,

go to the eSubscription link in the FERC

Internet Web site.

Public meetings or site visits will be

posted on the Commission’s calendar

located at http://www.ferc.gov/

EventCalendar/EventsList.aspx along

with other related information.

Magalie R. Salas,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. E6–19219 Filed 11–14–06; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6717–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory

Commission

[Project No. 12447–001]

Fort Dodge Hydroelectric Development

Company; Notice of Application Ready

for Environmental Analysis and

Soliciting Comments,

Recommendations, Terms and

Conditions, and Prescriptions

November 7, 2006.

Take notice that the following

hydroelectric license application has

been filed with the Commission and is

available for public inspection.

a. Type of Application: Original

Minor License.

b. Project No.: P–12447–001.

c. Date Filed: March 21, 2006.

d. Applicant: Fort Dodge

Hydroelectric Development Company.

e. Name of Project: Fort Dodge Mill

Dam Hydroelectric Project.

f. Location: Located on the Des

Moines River in Webster County, Iowa.

This project would not occupy Federal

lands.

g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power

Act 16 U.S.C. 791(a)–825(r).

h. Applicant Contact: Thomas J.

Wilkinson, Jr., Fort Dodge Hydroelectric

Development Company, 1800 1st Ave.

NE., Ste. 200, Cedar Rapids, IA 52402;

(319) 364–0171.

i. FERC Contact: Patrick Murphy,

(202) 502–8755,

patrick.murphy@ferc.gov.

j. Deadline for filing comments,

recommendations, terms and

conditions, and prescriptions: 60 days

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