Steuben Gas Storage Co.; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Thomas Corners Gas Storage Field Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

Summary of the Proposed Project

Steuben Gas Storage Company (Steuben) requests Commission

authorization to convert a depleted natural gas production field to

storage use. It proposes to construct and operate:

13 injection/withdrawal wells (11 new wells drilled from

one central location and two converted from existing gas production

wells);

One observation well;

0.6 mile of 4-inch-diameter well laterals;

0.3 mile of 12-inch-diameter well laterals;

A 3,284-horsepower compressor station;

6.48 miles of 12-inch-diameter gathering header including

a pipeline drip and storage tank; and

Dehydration facilities.

Steuben indicates that the proposed storage field, when fully

developed, would have a working gas capacity of 5,300,000 thousand

cubic feet of gas. Customers interested in using Steuben's proposed

storage service would have to arrange for their own transportation.

Steuben's existing facilities are interconnected with the facilities of

CNG Transmission Corporation (CNG) in the town of Woodhull, Steuben

County, New York. The 6.48 miles of gathering header would connect the

Thomas Corners Gas Storage Field to Steuben's existing facilities.

Steuben states that the storage facility would be developed in the

nearly depleted Thomas Corners gas production reservoir. It lies about

2,000 feet below the surface. The areal extent of the reservoir is

about 430 acres.

The location of the project facilities is show in appendix 1.\2\

\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, Room

3104, 941 North Capitol Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 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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Land Requirements for Construction

Steuben proposes to use a nominal 70-foot-wide right-of-way for

construction of the 6.48 miles of 12-inch-diameter pipeline. Following

construction, a 50-foot-wide easement would be permanently maintained;

the remaining 20 feet would be restored and allowed to revert to its

former use.

Additional working right-of-way width would be needed in areas of

steep side slopes and in agricultural areas where topsoil would be

segregated. Additional working space would also be needed adjacent to

road and stream crossings. About 60 acres would be required for

construction of the 12-inch diameter gathering header.

A total of 37 acres would be needed for construction of the Thomas

Corners Storage Field. All new injection/withdrawal wells would be

directionally drilled from one central pad area covering approximately

31 acres. The wells would be drilled at 150-foot centers around the

perimeter of the pad area. All of the 4- and 12-inch diameter well

laterals would be constructed within the central well pad area.

An additional 6-acre work space would be required adjacent to the

pad area for drilling, completion, maintenance operations, and

equipment staging. After construction is complete, this area would be

used for the dehydration facilities.

The proposed compressor station would be located on Steuben's

existing Adrian Compressor Station site.

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 taken into account 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.

The EA 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, fisheries and wetlands.

Vegetation and wildlife.

Endangered and threatened species.

Public safety.

Land use.

Cultural resources.

Hazardous waste.

Air quality and noise.

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

recommend that the Commission approve or not approve the project.

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

the environmental information provided by Steuben. Keep in mind that

this is a preliminary list. The list of issues may be added to,

subtracted from, or changed based on your comments and our analysis.

Issues are:

The proposed project would cross three perennial streams:

Mud Hollow Brook, the Canisteo River, and an unnamed tributary of the

Canisteo River.

About 32 acres of upland forest would be disturbed.

A new 3,284-horsepower compressor station would be

constructed adjacent to Steuben's existing Adrian Compressor Station

[[Page 12936]] which may increase existing sound levels.

Public Participation

You can make a difference by sending a letter addressing your

specific comments or concerns about the project. you should focus on

the potential environmental effects of the proposal, alternatives to

the proposal (including alternative routes), and measures to avoid or

lessen environmental impact. The more specific your comments, the more

useful they will be. Please follow the instructions below to ensure

that your comments are received and properly recorded:

Address your letter to: Lois Cashell, Secretary, Federal

Energy Regulatory Commission, 825 North Capitol St., N.E., Washington,

D.C. 20426;

Reference Docket No. CP95-119-000;

Send a copy of your letter to: Mr. Howard J. Wheeler, EA

Project Manager, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 825 North

Capitol St., N.E., Room 7312, Washington, D.C. 20426; and

Mail your comments so that they will be received in

Washington, D.C. on or before April 10, 1995.

If you wish to receive a copy of the EA, you should request one

from Mr. Wheeler at the above address.

Becoming an Intervenor

In addition to involvement in the EA scoping process, you may want

to become an official party to the proceeding or become an

``intervenor''. 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 copies of its

filings to all other parties. 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) attached

as appendix 2.

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 scoping comments considered.

Additional information about the proposed project is available from

Mr. Howard Wheeler, EA Project Manager, at (202) 208-2299.

Lois D. Cashell,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 95-5712 Filed 3-8-95; 8:45 am]

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