Viking Gas Transmission Company; Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Viking 1997 Expansion Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

[Docket No. CP97-93-000]

Viking Gas Transmission Company; Notice of Intent to Prepare an

Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Viking 1997 Expansion Project

and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

January 21, 1997.

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, about 29.4 miles of 24-inch diameter loop, 23,500

horsepower (hp) of compression, and a meter station, proposed in the

Viking 1997 Expansion Project.\1\ This EA will be used by the

Commission in its decisionmaking process to determine whether an

environmental impact statement is necessary and whether to approve the

project.

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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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Summary of the Proposed Project

Viking Gas Transmission Company (Viking) wants to expand the

capacity of its facilities in Minnesota to transport an additional

61,300 dekatherms per day of natural gas to various customers including

a municipal utility, a local distribution company, marketers, and other

end users. Viking seeks authority to construct and operate the

following facilities in Minnesota:

9.1 miles of loop in Kittson County;

11.9 miles of loop in Polk County;

7.1 miles of loop in Norman and Clay Counties;

The Perham Meter Station in Otter Tail County;

Piping and valves at various existing facilities;

Crossover assemblies at the end of each new loop;

4,700 horsepower (hp) of compression at each of the

following existing compressor stations:

--Angus Compressor Station in Polk County;

--Ada Compressor Station in Norman County;

--Frazee Compressor Station in Otter Tail County;

--Staples Compressor Station in Todd County; and

--Milaca Compressor Station in Mille Lacs County

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

If you are interested in obtaining detailed maps of a specific portion

of the project, or procedural information, contact the Project Manager

identified at the end of this notice.

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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 loops would require about 355 acres of land,

including about 302 acres of existing right-of-way. No new permanent

right-of-way would be required for this proposal. All construction at

the compression stations would take place within the existing fenced

yard. The new Perham Meter Station would require about 0.3 acre of

land. Following construction, all areas would be restored and allowed

to revert to their former use, except for the Perham Meter Station.

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, official 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 Viking. This preliminary list

of issues may be changed based on your comments and our analysis.

A total of 345.3 acres of agricultural land, of which 341

acres contains prime farmland soils, would be disturbed by

construction.

The impact of noise on residences near the five compressor

stations.

Public Participation

You can make a difference by sending a letter addressing your

specific

[[Page 3891]]

comments or concerns about the project. You should focus on the

potential environmental effects of the proposal, alternatives to the

proposal (including alternative locations/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. CP97-93-000;

Send a copy of your letter to: Ms. Laura Turner, 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 February 24, 1997.

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

Ms. Turner 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.

Docket No. CP97-93-000

You do not need intervenor status to have your scoping comments

considered.

Additional procedural information about the proposed project is

available from Ms. Laura Turner, Project Manager, at (202) 208-0916.

Lois D. Cashell,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 97-1828 Filed 1-24-97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6717-01-M