Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) and To Conduct Scoping and To Initiate Consultation Under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act for the Proposed TransCanada Keystone XL Pipeline Proposed To Extend From Phillips, MT (the Border Crossing) to Steele City, NE, 36032-36034 [2012-14803]
Download as PDF
<![CDATA[
36032
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 116 / Friday, June 15, 2012 / Notices
Type of Request: Revision of an OMBapproved information collection.
Number of
respondents
Collection method
Frequency of
response
Average
burden per
response
(minutes)
Estimated total
annual burden
(hours)
HA–4632 (paper) .............................................................................................
Electronic Records Express ............................................................................
20,000
180,000
1
1
15
15
5,000
45,000
Total ..........................................................................................................
200,000
........................
........................
50,000
2. Representative Payee Report–
Special Veterans Benefits—20 CFR
408.665—0960–0621. Title VIII of the
Social Security Act allows for payment
of monthly Social Security benefits to
qualified World War II veterans residing
outside the United States. An SSA-
appointed representative payee may
receive and manage the monthly
payment for the beneficiary’s use and
benefit. SSA uses Form SSA–2001–F6 to
determine if the payee is using the
benefits properly on behalf of the
beneficiary. Respondents are persons or
organizations who act on behalf of
beneficiaries receiving Special Veterans
Benefits and living outside the United
States.
Type of Request: Revision of an OMBapproved information collection.
Collection method
Number of
respondents
Frequency of
response
Average
burden per
response
(minutes)
Estimated
Total Annual
Burden (hours)
SSA–2001–F6 ..................................................................................................
100
1
10
17
Dated: June 12, 2012.
Faye Lipsky,
Reports Clearance Director, Office of
Regulations and Reports Clearance, Social
Security Administration.
[FR Doc. 2012–14646 Filed 6–14–12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4191–02–P
DEPARTMENT OF STATE
[Public Notice 7924]
Notice of Intent To Prepare a
Supplemental Environmental Impact
Statement (SEIS) and To Conduct
Scoping and To Initiate Consultation
Under Section 106 of the National
Historic Preservation Act for the
Proposed TransCanada Keystone XL
Pipeline Proposed To Extend From
Phillips, MT (the Border Crossing) to
Steele City, NE
Department of State.
Notice.
AGENCY:
ACTION:
TransCanada Keystone
Pipeline, L.P. (TransCanada) has
applied to the United States Department
of State for a Presidential Permit
authorizing the construction, operation,
and maintenance of facilities at the
border of the United States for the
importation of crude oil from a foreign
country (Canada). Authorization is
being requested in connection with
TransCanada’s proposed international
pipeline project (the revised Keystone
XL Project), which is designed to
transport crude oil from the Western
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SUMMARY:
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Canadian Sedimentary Basin and the
Williston Basin to existing pipeline
facilities near Steele City, Nebraska for
onward transport to markets in the
Texas Gulf Coast area. The Department
of State receives and considers
applications for Presidential Permits for
such energy-related pipelines pursuant
to authority delegated to it by the
President under Executive Order 13337
of April 30, 2004 (69 FR 25299), as
amended. To issue a Permit, the
Department of State must find that
issuance would serve the national
interest. In the course of processing
such applications, the Department
consults extensively with concerned
Federal and State agencies, and invites
public comment in arriving at its
determination.
The Department of State previously
evaluated potential impacts resulting
from construction, operation, and
maintenance of a longer pipeline that
would have terminated in the Port
Arthur and east Houston areas of Texas.
The Final Environmental Impact
Statement for that proposed project was
issued on August 26, 2011. On January
18, 2012, the Department announced its
determination that the project—as
presented and analyzed at that time—
did not serve the national interest.
Archived documents can be found at
www.keystonepipeline-xl.state.gov/
archive/index.htm.
TransCanada has submitted a new
Presidential Permit application with a
revised proposed route that extends
from the Canadian border in Phillips
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
County, Montana to Steele City,
Nebraska and avoids the Sand Hills
region of Nebraska. The Nebraska
Department of Environmental Quality
has identified the Sand Hills region and
is currently evaluating the potential
impacts associated with the proposed
new route(s). The Department of State
has entered into a Memorandum of
Understanding with the Nebraska
Department of Environmental Quality to
facilitate coordination and cooperation
between the State and the Federal
government. TransCanada has indicated
to the Department of State that it has
decided to proceed with construction of
a pipeline from Cushing, Oklahoma to
the Gulf Coast of Texas, which had been
included as part of the Keystone XL
project in the previous application, as
an independent project. Thus,
TransCanada did not include the
proposed pipeline from Cushing to the
Gulf Coast as part of the project in the
revised Presidential Permit application.
With respect to the application
submitted by TransCanada, the
Department of State has concluded,
consistent with the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of
1969, that the issuance of the new
Presidential Permit would constitute a
major Federal action that may have a
significant impact upon the
environment. For this reason,
Department of State intends to prepare
a Supplement to the Final
Environmental Impact Statement dated
August 26, 2011, to address reasonably
foreseeable impacts from the proposed
E:\FR\FM\15JNN1.SGM
15JNN1
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 116 / Friday, June 15, 2012 / Notices
action and alternatives. Additionally the
Department of State has determined that
it will undertake a review of the
potential issuance of the Presidential
Permit consistent with Section 106 of
the National Historic Preservation Act
and is consequently initiating the
appropriate consultation. Consultation
will be conducted with State Historic
Preservation Officers, Indian tribes, and
the Advisory Council on Historic
Preservation, and other consulting
parties, as appropriate, to determine the
locations (if any) of potential sites for
inclusion on the National Register of
Historic Places as well as the potential
eligibility and findings of effect for
cultural resources identified within the
Keystone XL Area of Potential Effect.
The purpose of this Notice of Intent
(NOI) is to inform the public about the
proposed action, announce plans for
scoping opportunities, invite public
participation in the scoping process,
and solicit public comments for
consideration in establishing the scope
and content of the SEIS.
Department of State invites
interested agencies, organizations, and
members of the public to submit
comments or suggestions to assist in
identifying significant environmental
issues, measures that might be adopted
to reduce environmental impacts, and in
determining the appropriate scope of
the SEIS. The public scoping period
starts with the publication of this Notice
in the Federal Register on June 15, 2012
and will continue until July 30, 2012.
Written, electronic, and oral comments
will be given equal weight and State
will consider all comments received or
postmarked by July 30, 2012 in defining
the scope of the SEIS. Comments
received or postmarked after that date
may be considered to the extent
practicable.
Public scoping opportunities are
designed to provide opportunities to
offer comments on the proposed project.
Interested individuals and groups are
encouraged to present comments on the
environmental issues they believe
should be addressed in the SEIS. Again,
written comments are considered with
equal weight in the process relative to
those received in the public scoping
meeting.
During this public scoping period, the
Department of State also plans to use
the scoping process to help identify
consulting parties and historic
preservation issues for consideration
under Section 106 of the National
Historic Preservation Act and its
implementing regulations (36 CFR part
800).
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DATES:
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Written comments or
suggestions on the scope of the EIS
should be addressed to: Genevieve
Walker, OES/ENV Room 2657, U.S.
Department of State, Washington, DC
20520. Comments may be submitted
electronically to https://
www.keystonepipeline-XL.state.gov.
Public comments will be posted on the
Web site identified below.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
information on the proposed project or
to receive a copy of the draft SEIS when
it is issued, contact Genevieve Walker at
the address listed in the ADDRESSES
section of this notice by electronic or
regular mail as listed above, or by
telephone (202) 647–6849 or by fax at
(202) 647–5947.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
ADDRESSES:
Project Description
TransCanada proposes to construct
and operate a crude oil pipeline and
related facilities from an oil supply hub
near Hardisty, Alberta, Canada to the
northernmost point of the existing
Keystone Pipeline Cushing Extension at
Steele City, Nebraska. The pipeline is
anticipated to be 1,179 miles long (329
miles of that are in Canada) and has an
initial capacity of 830,000 barrels per
day. To connect the Canadian and U.S.
portions of the pipeline project,
TransCanada must first obtain a
Presidential Permit from the Department
of State authorizing the construction,
operation, and maintenance of the
pipeline and related facilities at the
international border.
The SEIS Process
The Department of State, consistent
with NEPA, will take into account the
environmental impacts that could result
from the approval of a Presidential
Permit authorizing construction,
operation, and maintenance of pipeline
facilities for the importation of crude oil
to be located at the international border
of the United States and Canada. The
Department of State will use the SEIS to
assess the environmental impacts that
could result if TransCanada is granted a
Presidential permit for the revised
Keystone XL Pipeline Project. The SEIS
will supplement the August 26, 2011
FEIS, by including information and
analysis about potential impacts
associated with the new proposed
route(s) within Nebraska, as well as
about any other subjects that may need
to be updated because there exists
significant new circumstances or
information relevant to environmental
concerns bearing on the proposed action
or its impacts. The Department of State
will select a Third-Party Contractor to
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
36033
help prepare the SEIS. The SEIS will be
prepared under the direction of the
Department of State and will be
reviewed by the cooperating agencies.
In the SEIS, the Department of State
will discuss impacts that could occur as
a result of the construction and
operation of the revised proposed
project under these general headings:
• Geology and soils;
• Water resources;
• Fish, wildlife, and vegetation;
• Threatened and endangered
species;
• Cultural resources;
• Land use, recreation and special
interest areas;
• Visual resources;
• Air quality and noise;
• Socioeconomics;
• Environmental Justice; and,
• Reliability and safety.
In the SEIS, the Department of State
will also evaluate reasonable
alternatives, including a ‘‘no action
alternative,’’ to the proposed project or
portions of the project and make
recommendations on how to lessen or
avoid impacts on affected resources.
The Department of State’s
independent analysis of the issues will
be included in a draft SEIS. The draft
SEIS will be published and mailed to
relevant Federal, State, and local
government agencies, elected officials,
environmental and public interest
groups, Indian tribes, affected
landowners, commenters, local libraries,
newspapers, and other interested
parties. You are encouraged to become
involved in this process and provide
your specific comments or concerns
about the proposed project. By
becoming a commenter, your concerns
will be considered by the Department of
State and addressed appropriately in the
SEIS. Parties interested in being
involved in Section 106 consultation
should also contact the Department of
State.
The Department of State will consider
all timely comments on the draft SEIS
and revise the document, as necessary,
before issuing a final SEIS.
Project details and environmental
information on the Keystone XL Project
application for a Presidential Permit,
including associated maps are
downloadable from a Web site that is
being established for this purpose:
https://www.keystonepipelineXL.state.gov. This Web site is expected
to be operational on or about June 15,
2012. This Web site will accept public
comments for the record.
Information on the Department of
State Presidential Permit process can
also be found at the above Internet
address.
E:\FR\FM\15JNN1.SGM
15JNN1
36034
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 116 / Friday, June 15, 2012 / Notices
A TransCanada hosted project Web
site is also available at https://
www.transcanada.com/keystone.html.
The Keystone XL Project toll-free
number is 1–866–717–7473 (United
States and Canada).
Dated: June 13, 2012.
Genevieve Walker,
NEPA Director, Bureau of Oceans and
International Environmental and Scientific
Affairs/Office of Environmental Policy, U.S.
Department of State.
[FR Doc. 2012–14803 Filed 6–14–12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4710–09–P
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Office of the Secretary
Notice of Funding Availability for the
Small Business Transportation
Resource Center Program
Department of Transportation
(DOT), Office of the Secretary of
Transportation (OST), Office of Small
and Disadvantaged Business Utilization
(OSDBU).
ACTION: Notice of Funding Availability.
AGENCY:
The Department of
Transportation (DOT), Office of the
Secretary (OST), Office of Small and
Disadvantaged Business Utilization
(OSDBU) announces the opportunity
for: (1) Business centered communitybased organizations; (2) transportationrelated trade associations; (3) colleges
and universities; (4) community
colleges; or (5) chambers of commerce,
registered with the Internal Revenue
Service as 501 C(6) or 501 C(3) taxexempt organizations, to compete for
participation in OSDBU’s Small
Business Transportation Resource
Center (SBTRC) program in the Central
Region.
OSDBU will enter into Cooperative
Agreements with these organizations to
provide outreach to the small business
community in their designated region
and provide financial and technical
assistance, business training programs,
business assessment, management
training, counseling, marketing and
outreach, and the dissemination of
information, to encourage and assist
small businesses to become better
prepared to compete for, obtain, and
manage DOT funded transportationrelated contracts and subcontracts at the
federal, state and local levels.
Throughout this notice, the term ‘‘small
business’’ will refer to: 8(a), small
disadvantaged businesses (SDB),
disadvantaged business enterprises
(DBE), women owned small businesses
(WOSB), HubZone, service disabled
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SUMMARY:
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veteran owned businesses (SDVOB), and
veteran owned small businesses
(VOSB). Throughout this notice,
‘‘transportation-related’’ is defined as
the maintenance, rehabilitation,
restructuring, improvement, or
revitalization of any of the nation’s
modes of transportation.
Funding Opportunity Number:
USDOT–OST–OSDBU–SBTRC2012–10.
Catalog of Federal Domestic
Assistance (CFDA) Number: 20.910
Assistance to small and disadvantaged
businesses.
Type of Award: Cooperative
Agreement Grant.
Award Ceiling: $150,000.
Award Floor: $100,000.
Program Authority: DOT is authorized
under 49 U.S.C. 332(b)(4), (5) & (7) to
design and carry out programs to assist
small disadvantaged businesses in
getting transportation-related contracts
and subcontracts; develop support
mechanisms, including management
and technical services, that will enable
small disadvantaged businesses to take
advantage of those business
opportunities; and to make
arrangements to carry out the above
purposes.
DATES: Complete Proposals must be
electronically submitted to OSDBU via
email on or before July 16, 2012, 5:00
p.m. Eastern Standard Time. Proposals
received after the deadline will be
considered non-responsive and will not
be reviewed. The applicant is advised to
request delivery receipt notification for
email submissions. DOT plans to give
notice of award for the competed region
on or before August 13, 2012.
ADDRESSES: Applications must be
electronically submitted to OSDBU via
email at SBTRC@dot.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
further information concerning this
notice, contact Ms. Patricia Martin, U.S.
Department of Transportation, Office of
Small and Disadvantaged Business
Utilization, 1200 New Jersey Avenue
SE. W56–462, Washington, DC 20590.
Telephone: 1–800–532–1169. Email:
patricia.martin@dot.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
1.1 Background
1.2 Program Description and Goals
1.3 Description of Competition
1.4 Duration of Agreements
1.5 Authority
1.6 Eligibility Requirements
2. Program Requirements
2.1 Recipient Responsibilities
2.2 Office of Small and Disadvantaged
Business Utilization Responsibilities
3. Submission of Proposals
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Frm 00097
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
3.1 Format for Proposals
3.2 Address, Number of Copies, Deadline
for Submission
4. Selection Criteria
4.1 General Criteria
4.2 Scoring of Applications
4.3 Conflicts of Interest
Format for Proposals—Appendix A
Full Text of Announcement
1. Introduction
1.1 Background
The DOT established OSDBU in
accordance with Public Law 95–507, an
amendment to the Small Business Act
and the Small Business Investment Act
of 1958.
The mission of OSDBU at DOT is to
ensure that the small and disadvantaged
business policies and goals of the
Secretary of Transportation are
developed and implemented in a fair,
efficient and effective manner to serve
small and disadvantaged businesses
throughout the country. The OSDBU
also administers the provisions of Title
49, Section 332, the Minority Resource
Center (MRC) which includes the duties
of advocacy, outreach and financial
services on behalf of small and
disadvantaged business and those
certified under CFR 49 parts 23 and/or
26 as Disadvantaged Business
Enterprises (DBE) and the development
of programs to encourage, stimulate,
promote and assist small businesses to
become better prepared to compete for,
obtain and manage transportationrelated contracts and subcontracts.
The Regional Partnerships Division of
OSDBU, through the SBTRC program,
allows OSDBU to partner with local
organizations to offer a comprehensive
delivery system of business training,
technical assistance and dissemination
of information, targeted towards small
business transportation enterprises in
their regions.
1.2 Program Description and Goals
The national SBTRC program utilizes
Cooperative Agreements with chambers
of commerce, trade associations,
educational institutions and businesscentered community based
organizations to establish SBTRCs to
provide business training, technical
assistance and information to DOT
grantees and recipients, prime
contractors and subcontractors. In order
to be effective and serve their target
audience, the SBTRCs must be active in
the local transportation community in
order to identify and communicate
opportunities and provide the required
technical assistance. SBTRCs must
already have, or demonstrate the ability
to, establish working relationships with
the state and local transportation
E:\FR\FM\15JNN1.SGM
15JNN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 116 (Friday, June 15, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36032-36034]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-14803]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF STATE
[Public Notice 7924]
Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact
Statement (SEIS) and To Conduct Scoping and To Initiate Consultation
Under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act for the
Proposed TransCanada Keystone XL Pipeline Proposed To Extend From
Phillips, MT (the Border Crossing) to Steele City, NE
AGENCY: Department of State.
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: TransCanada Keystone Pipeline, L.P. (TransCanada) has applied
to the United States Department of State for a Presidential Permit
authorizing the construction, operation, and maintenance of facilities
at the border of the United States for the importation of crude oil
from a foreign country (Canada). Authorization is being requested in
connection with TransCanada's proposed international pipeline project
(the revised Keystone XL Project), which is designed to transport crude
oil from the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin and the Williston Basin
to existing pipeline facilities near Steele City, Nebraska for onward
transport to markets in the Texas Gulf Coast area. The Department of
State receives and considers applications for Presidential Permits for
such energy-related pipelines pursuant to authority delegated to it by
the President under Executive Order 13337 of April 30, 2004 (69 FR
25299), as amended. To issue a Permit, the Department of State must
find that issuance would serve the national interest. In the course of
processing such applications, the Department consults extensively with
concerned Federal and State agencies, and invites public comment in
arriving at its determination.
The Department of State previously evaluated potential impacts
resulting from construction, operation, and maintenance of a longer
pipeline that would have terminated in the Port Arthur and east Houston
areas of Texas. The Final Environmental Impact Statement for that
proposed project was issued on August 26, 2011. On January 18, 2012,
the Department announced its determination that the project--as
presented and analyzed at that time--did not serve the national
interest. Archived documents can be found at www.keystonepipeline-xl.state.gov/archive/index.htm.
TransCanada has submitted a new Presidential Permit application
with a revised proposed route that extends from the Canadian border in
Phillips County, Montana to Steele City, Nebraska and avoids the Sand
Hills region of Nebraska. The Nebraska Department of Environmental
Quality has identified the Sand Hills region and is currently
evaluating the potential impacts associated with the proposed new
route(s). The Department of State has entered into a Memorandum of
Understanding with the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality to
facilitate coordination and cooperation between the State and the
Federal government. TransCanada has indicated to the Department of
State that it has decided to proceed with construction of a pipeline
from Cushing, Oklahoma to the Gulf Coast of Texas, which had been
included as part of the Keystone XL project in the previous
application, as an independent project. Thus, TransCanada did not
include the proposed pipeline from Cushing to the Gulf Coast as part of
the project in the revised Presidential Permit application.
With respect to the application submitted by TransCanada, the
Department of State has concluded, consistent with the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, that the issuance of the new
Presidential Permit would constitute a major Federal action that may
have a significant impact upon the environment. For this reason,
Department of State intends to prepare a Supplement to the Final
Environmental Impact Statement dated August 26, 2011, to address
reasonably foreseeable impacts from the proposed
[[Page 36033]]
action and alternatives. Additionally the Department of State has
determined that it will undertake a review of the potential issuance of
the Presidential Permit consistent with Section 106 of the National
Historic Preservation Act and is consequently initiating the
appropriate consultation. Consultation will be conducted with State
Historic Preservation Officers, Indian tribes, and the Advisory Council
on Historic Preservation, and other consulting parties, as appropriate,
to determine the locations (if any) of potential sites for inclusion on
the National Register of Historic Places as well as the potential
eligibility and findings of effect for cultural resources identified
within the Keystone XL Area of Potential Effect. The purpose of this
Notice of Intent (NOI) is to inform the public about the proposed
action, announce plans for scoping opportunities, invite public
participation in the scoping process, and solicit public comments for
consideration in establishing the scope and content of the SEIS.
DATES: Department of State invites interested agencies, organizations,
and members of the public to submit comments or suggestions to assist
in identifying significant environmental issues, measures that might be
adopted to reduce environmental impacts, and in determining the
appropriate scope of the SEIS. The public scoping period starts with
the publication of this Notice in the Federal Register on June 15, 2012
and will continue until July 30, 2012. Written, electronic, and oral
comments will be given equal weight and State will consider all
comments received or postmarked by July 30, 2012 in defining the scope
of the SEIS. Comments received or postmarked after that date may be
considered to the extent practicable.
Public scoping opportunities are designed to provide opportunities
to offer comments on the proposed project. Interested individuals and
groups are encouraged to present comments on the environmental issues
they believe should be addressed in the SEIS. Again, written comments
are considered with equal weight in the process relative to those
received in the public scoping meeting.
During this public scoping period, the Department of State also
plans to use the scoping process to help identify consulting parties
and historic preservation issues for consideration under Section 106 of
the National Historic Preservation Act and its implementing regulations
(36 CFR part 800).
ADDRESSES: Written comments or suggestions on the scope of the EIS
should be addressed to: Genevieve Walker, OES/ENV Room 2657, U.S.
Department of State, Washington, DC 20520. Comments may be submitted
electronically to https://www.keystonepipeline-XL.state.gov. Public
comments will be posted on the Web site identified below.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information on the proposed
project or to receive a copy of the draft SEIS when it is issued,
contact Genevieve Walker at the address listed in the ADDRESSES section
of this notice by electronic or regular mail as listed above, or by
telephone (202) 647-6849 or by fax at (202) 647-5947.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Project Description
TransCanada proposes to construct and operate a crude oil pipeline
and related facilities from an oil supply hub near Hardisty, Alberta,
Canada to the northernmost point of the existing Keystone Pipeline
Cushing Extension at Steele City, Nebraska. The pipeline is anticipated
to be 1,179 miles long (329 miles of that are in Canada) and has an
initial capacity of 830,000 barrels per day. To connect the Canadian
and U.S. portions of the pipeline project, TransCanada must first
obtain a Presidential Permit from the Department of State authorizing
the construction, operation, and maintenance of the pipeline and
related facilities at the international border.
The SEIS Process
The Department of State, consistent with NEPA, will take into
account the environmental impacts that could result from the approval
of a Presidential Permit authorizing construction, operation, and
maintenance of pipeline facilities for the importation of crude oil to
be located at the international border of the United States and Canada.
The Department of State will use the SEIS to assess the environmental
impacts that could result if TransCanada is granted a Presidential
permit for the revised Keystone XL Pipeline Project. The SEIS will
supplement the August 26, 2011 FEIS, by including information and
analysis about potential impacts associated with the new proposed
route(s) within Nebraska, as well as about any other subjects that may
need to be updated because there exists significant new circumstances
or information relevant to environmental concerns bearing on the
proposed action or its impacts. The Department of State will select a
Third-Party Contractor to help prepare the SEIS. The SEIS will be
prepared under the direction of the Department of State and will be
reviewed by the cooperating agencies.
In the SEIS, the Department of State will discuss impacts that
could occur as a result of the construction and operation of the
revised proposed project under these general headings:
Geology and soils;
Water resources;
Fish, wildlife, and vegetation;
Threatened and endangered species;
Cultural resources;
Land use, recreation and special interest areas;
Visual resources;
Air quality and noise;
Socioeconomics;
Environmental Justice; and,
Reliability and safety.
In the SEIS, the Department of State will also evaluate reasonable
alternatives, including a ``no action alternative,'' to the proposed
project or portions of the project and make recommendations on how to
lessen or avoid impacts on affected resources.
The Department of State's independent analysis of the issues will
be included in a draft SEIS. The draft SEIS will be published and
mailed to relevant Federal, State, and local government agencies,
elected officials, environmental and public interest groups, Indian
tribes, affected landowners, commenters, local libraries, newspapers,
and other interested parties. You are encouraged to become involved in
this process and provide your specific comments or concerns about the
proposed project. By becoming a commenter, your concerns will be
considered by the Department of State and addressed appropriately in
the SEIS. Parties interested in being involved in Section 106
consultation should also contact the Department of State.
The Department of State will consider all timely comments on the
draft SEIS and revise the document, as necessary, before issuing a
final SEIS.
Project details and environmental information on the Keystone XL
Project application for a Presidential Permit, including associated
maps are downloadable from a Web site that is being established for
this purpose: https://www.keystonepipeline-XL.state.gov. This Web site
is expected to be operational on or about June 15, 2012. This Web site
will accept public comments for the record.
Information on the Department of State Presidential Permit process
can also be found at the above Internet address.
[[Page 36034]]
A TransCanada hosted project Web site is also available at https://www.transcanada.com/keystone.html. The Keystone XL Project toll-free
number is 1-866-717-7473 (United States and Canada).
Dated: June 13, 2012.
Genevieve Walker,
NEPA Director, Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and
Scientific Affairs/Office of Environmental Policy, U.S. Department of
State.
[FR Doc. 2012-14803 Filed 6-14-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4710-09-P
