Northern Natural Gas Company; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Peak Day 2000 Expansion Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

[Docket No. CP97-25-000]

Northern Natural Gas Company; Notice of Intent To Prepare an

Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Peak Day 2000 Expansion

Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

December 3, 1996.

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 Peak Day 2000 Expansion Project.\1\ This

EA will be used by the Commission in its decision-making process to

determine whether an environmental impact statement is necessary and

whether to approve the project.

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\1\ Northern Natural Gas 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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Summary of the Proposed Project

Northern Natural Gas Company (Northern) wants to expand the

capacity of its facilities in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Kansas to

transport an additional 267,161 million cubic feet per day of natural

gas to twenty-six of its customers. Northern seeks authority to

construct and operate:

Phase I Facilities (1997)

18.05 miles of 30-inch-diameter mainline loops in Hardin

County, Iowa and Rice County, Minnesota;

12.35 miles of 12-inch-diameter and 9.68 miles of 6-inch-

diameter branch line loops in Dakota, Scott, Wright, and Carver

Counties, Minnesota and Dickinson County, Iowa;

5.08 miles of 8-inch-diameter branch line replacement in

Carver County, Minnesota;

0.21 mile 6-mile 6-inch-diameter branch line tie-over in

Jackson County, Iowa;

two new compressor stations to provide about 11,634

horsepower (hp) of compression, and modification of six existing

compressor stations to provide an additional 16,368 hp of compression

in various counties in Minnesota, Iowa, Kansas, and Nebraska; and

three new town border stations (TBS) and modification of

31 existing TBS in Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, and Wisconsin.

Phase II Facilities (1998)

4.93 miles of 30-inch-diameter mainline loop in Washington

County, Minnesota; and

one new 13,037 hp compressor station Steele County,

Minnesota.

The general location of the project facilities and specific

locations for facilities on new sites are shown in appendix 1.\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, 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

Construction of the proposed facilities would require about 677.45

acres of land. Following construction, about 295.89 acres would be

maintained as new permanent right-of-way or aboveground facility sites.

The remaining 381.56 acres of land would be restored and allowed to

revert to its 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.

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

air quality and noise

hazardous waste

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 Northern.

Seven federally listed endangered or threatened species

could be present in the proposed project area;

Five of the proposed loops cross residential areas; and

A total of 6.3 acres of agricultural land, currently used

for production, would be converted to industrial use.

Public Participation

You can make a difference by sending a letter to the Secretary of

the Commission 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

[[Page 64876]]

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, 888 First St., N.E., Washington, DC 20426;

Reference Docket No. CP97-25-000;

Also, send a copy of your letter to: Ms. Amy Chang, EA Project

Manager, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First St., N.E., PR-

11.1, Washington, DC 20426; and

Mail your comments so that they will be received in Washington, DC

on or before January 9, 1997. If you wish to receive a copy of the EA,

you should request one from Ms. Chang 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) (see

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.

If you are interested in obtaining detailed maps of a specific

portion of this project, or procedural information, contact Ms. Amy

Chang, EA Project Manager, at (202) 208-1199.

Lois D. Cashell,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 96-31179 Filed 12-6-96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6717-01-M