Texas Eastern Transmission Corporation; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the CNG Lease Expansion Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP96-606-001]

Texas Eastern Transmission Corporation; Notice of Intent To

Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the CNG Lease Expansion Project

and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

January 22, 1999.

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 CNG Lease Expansion Project

involving construction and operation of the facilities by Texas Eastern

Transmission Corporation (Texas Eastern) in Westmoreland and Juniata

Counties, Pennsylvania.\1\ These facilities would consist of about 3.98

miles of 36-inch-diameter loop, aboveground facilities to connect the

loop to an adjacent existing pipeline; and modifications at an existing

compressor station. 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. The application and other

supplemental filings in this docket are available for viewing on the

FERC Internet website (www.ferc.fed.us). Click on the ``RIMS'' link,

select ``Docket #'' from the RIMS Menu, and follow the instructions.

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\1\ Texas Eastern'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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Similarly, the ``CIPS'' link on the FERC Internet website provides

access to the texts of formal documents issued by the Commission, such

as order, notices, and rulemakings. From the FERC Internet website,

click on the ``CIPS'' link, select ``Docket #'' from the CIPS menu, and

follow the instructions.

If you are a landowner receiving this notice, you may be contacted

by a pipeline company representative about the acquisition of an

easement to construct, operate, and maintain the proposed facilities.

The pipeline company 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, the pipeline

company 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 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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Summary of the Proposed Project

Texas Eastern wants to amend its certificate to change the

facilities necessary to provide CNG Transmission Corporation (CNG)

leased capacity in the CNG Lease Expansion Project. The facilities

would provide up to 19,500 decatherms per day (Dth/d) of leased

capacity to CNG. In addition, the facilities would provide up to 50,000

Dth/d of capacity on Texas Eastern's Penn-Jersey System. Texas Eastern

seeks authority to:

Construct 3.98 miles of 36-inch-diameter loop downstream

of the Delmont Compressor Station from milepost (MP) 2.90 to MP 6.88

and aboveground facilities to connect the loop to the adjacent existing

pipeline facilities in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania; and

Construct a 30-inch suction valve; remove a 12-inch valve;

and install remote control capability on another 12-inch valve at its

Perulack Compressor Station in Juniata County, Pennsylvania.

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

Land Requirements for Construction

Construction of the proposed facilities would require about 29.9

acres of land. Following construction, about 12.1 acres would be

maintained as new permanent right-of-way (ROW) and new aboveground

facility sites. The remaining 17.8 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

Cultutal resources

Air quality and noise

Hazardous waste

We will also evaluate possible alternatives to the proposed project

or portions of the project, and make recommendation 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

interests 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

[[Page 4411]]

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 public participation section on page 4 of this

notice.

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 Texas Eastern. This

preliminary list of issues may be changed based on your comments and

our analysis.

Three streams would be crossed.

Sixteen wetlands would be affected.

About 43 percent of the land that would be affected by the

project is forested.

One residence would be located within 36 feet of the

construction ROW near MP 3.71.

The project would cross about 0.13 mile of land owned by

the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

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 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., N.E.,

Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426;

Label one copy of the comments for the attention of the

Environmental Review and Compliance Branch, PR-11.2;

Reference Docket No. CP96-606-001; and

Mail your comments so that they will be received in

Washington, DC on or before February 22, 1999.

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 or on the FERC website (www.ferc.fed.us) using the ``RIMS''

link to information in this docket number. For assistance with access

to RIMS, the RIMS helpline can be reached at (202) 208-2222. Access to

the texts of formal documents issued by the Commission with regard to

this docket, such as orders and notices, is also available on the FERC

website using the ``CIPS'' link. For assistance with access to CIPS,

the CIPS helpline can be reached at (202) 208-2474.

David P. Boergers,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 99-1955 Filed 1-27-99; 8:45 am]

BILLING 6717-01-M