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

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