Florida Gas Transmission Company, LLC; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed 18-Inch Mainline Abandonment Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues, 2975-2977 [2018-01016]
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ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 14 / Monday, January 22, 2018 / Notices
Filed Date: 1/12/18.
Accession Number: 20180112–5161.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 2/2/18.
Docket Numbers: ER18–651–000.
Applicants: Arizona Public Service
Company.
Description: § 205(d) Rate Filing:
OATT Collation Filing to be effective 1/
12/2018.
Filed Date: 1/12/18.
Accession Number: 20180112–5184.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 2/2/18.
Docket Numbers: ER18–652–000.
Applicants: PJM Interconnection,
L.L.C.
Description: Tariff Cancellation:
Notice of Cancellation of ISA SA No.
4666, Queue No. Z2–038 to be effective
2/19/2018.
Filed Date: 1/16/18.
Accession Number: 20180116–5192.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 2/6/18.
Docket Numbers: ER18–653–000.
Applicants: Southern California
Edison Company.
Description: Tariff Cancellation:
Notice of Cancellation GIA & DSA SEPV
Kennedy Project SA Nos. 953–954 to be
effective 2/5/2018.
Filed Date: 1/16/18.
Accession Number: 20180116–5193.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 2/6/18.
Take notice that the Commission
received the following public utility
holding company filings:
Docket Numbers: PH18–3–000.
Applicants: LS Power Development,
LLC.
Description: LS Power Development,
LLC submits FERC 65–B Non-Material
Change in Fact of Waiver Notification.
Filed Date: 1/12/18.
Accession Number: 20180112–5193.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 2/2/18.
The filings are accessible in the
Commission’s eLibrary system by
clicking on the links or querying the
docket number.
Any person desiring to intervene or
protest in any of the above proceedings
must file in accordance with Rules 211
and 214 of the Commission’s
Regulations (18 CFR 385.211 and
385.214) on or before 5:00 p.m. Eastern
time on the specified comment date.
Protests may be considered, but
intervention is necessary to become a
party to the proceeding.
eFiling is encouraged. More detailed
information relating to filing
requirements, interventions, protests,
service, and qualifying facilities filings
can be found at: https://www.ferc.gov/
docs-filing/efiling/filing-req.pdf. For
other information, call (866) 208–3676
(toll free). For TTY, call (202) 502–8659.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
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Jkt 244001
Dated: January 16, 2018.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2018–01020 Filed 1–19–18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
[Docket No. CP18–33–000]
Florida Gas Transmission Company,
LLC; Notice of Intent To Prepare an
Environmental Assessment for the
Proposed 18-Inch Mainline
Abandonment Project and Request for
Comments on Environmental Issues
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 18-Inch Mainline Abandonment
Project involving construction and
operation of facilities by Florida Gas
Transmission Company, LLC (FGT) in
Miami-Dade County, Florida. The
Commission will use this EA in its
decision-making process to determine
whether the project is in the public
convenience and necessity.
This notice announces the opening of
the scoping process the Commission
will use to gather input from the public
and interested agencies on the project.
You can make a difference by providing
us with your specific comments or
concerns about the project. Your
comments should focus on the potential
environmental effects, reasonable
alternatives, and measures to avoid or
lessen environmental impacts. Your
input will help the Commission staff
determine what issues they need to
evaluate in the EA. To ensure that your
comments are timely and properly
recorded, please send your comments so
that the Commission receives them in
Washington, DC, on or before February
12, 2018.
If you sent comments on this project
to the Commission before the opening of
this docket on December 18, 2017, you
will need to file those comments in
Docket No. CP18–33–000 to ensure they
are considered as part of this
proceeding.
This notice is being sent to the
Commission’s current environmental
mailing list for this project. State and
local government representatives should
notify their constituents of this
proposed project and encourage them to
comment on their areas of concern.
If you are a landowner receiving this
notice, a pipeline company
PO 00000
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2975
representative may contact you about
the acquisition of an easement to
construct, operate, and maintain the
proposed facilities. The company would
seek to negotiate a mutually acceptable
agreement. However, if the Commission
approves the project, 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
where compensation would be
determined in accordance with state
law.
FGT provided landowners with a fact
sheet prepared by the FERC entitled An
Interstate Natural Gas Facility On My
Land? What Do I Need To Know? This
fact sheet addresses a number of
typically asked questions, including the
use of eminent domain and how to
participate in the Commission’s
proceedings. It is also available for
viewing on the FERC website
(www.ferc.gov).
Public Participation
For your convenience, there are three
methods you can use to submit your
comments to the Commission. The
Commission encourages electronic filing
of comments and has expert staff
available to assist you at (202) 502–8258
or FercOnlineSupport@ferc.gov. Please
carefully follow these instructions so
that your comments are properly
recorded.
(1) You can file your comments
electronically using the eComment
feature on the Commission’s website
(www.ferc.gov) under the link to
Documents and Filings. This is an easy
method for submitting brief, text-only
comments on a project;
(2) You can file your comments
electronically by using the eFiling
feature on the Commission’s website
(www.ferc.gov) under the link to
Documents and Filings. With eFiling,
you can provide comments in a variety
of formats by attaching them as a file
with your submission. New eFiling
users must first create an account by
clicking on eRegister. If you are filing a
comment on a particular project, please
select Comment on a Filing as the filing
type; or
(3) You can file a paper copy of your
comments by mailing them to the
following address. Be sure to reference
the project docket number (CP18–33–
000) with your submission: Kimberly D.
Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street
NE, Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426.
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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 14 / Monday, January 22, 2018 / Notices
Summary of the Proposed Project
FGT proposes to abandon in place a
1.3 mile portion of its 18-inch-diameter
mainline pipeline facilities in MiamiDade County, Florida, and remove an
aerial span to accommodate a county
road construction project. FGT states it
has not delivered gas through this
section of pipeline in more than three
years and has no current customers
served by this section; however, it
proposes to continue to maintain the
abandoned pipeline facilities for
potential future use.
The 18-Inch Mainline Abandonment
Project would consist of the following
activities:
—blow down 1 from the Turkey Point
take-off;
—clean the pipeline by pig 2 from
milepost (MP) 919.0 to MP 924.9;
—remove approximately 200 feet of the
18-inch-diameter mainline pipe,
including approximately 73 feet of
aerial pipeline span which crosses
Miami-Dade County Cutler Drain
Canal 100A parallel to the SW 136th
Street bridge in Miami;
—cut and cap the pipeline on each side
of the canal; and
—fill with nitrogen and abandon in
place the pipe and associated valves
from approximately MP 923.6 to MP
924.9.
The general location of the project
facilities is shown in appendix 1.3
Land Requirements for Construction
Removal of the facilities would
disturb about 0.65 acre of land, and an
additional 1.5 acres would be used for
a contractor yard. Following
construction, the disturbed areas would
be restored and revert to former uses.
FGT states that it would continue to
maintain the right-of-way for the
abandoned pipeline.
ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with NOTICES
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
1 A blow down is a controlled release of natural
gas.
2 A pig is a tool that the pipeline company inserts
into and pushes through the pipeline for cleaning
the pipeline, conducting internal inspections, or
other purposes.
3 The appendices referenced in this notice will
not appear in the Federal Register. Copies of
appendices were sent to all those receiving this
notice in the mail and are available at www.ferc.gov
using the link called eLibrary or from the
Commission’s Public Reference Room, 888 First
Street NE, Washington, DC 20426, or call (202) 502–
8371. For instructions on connecting to eLibrary,
refer to the last page of this notice.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
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Jkt 244001
Necessity. NEPA also requires us 4 to
discover and address concerns the
public may have about proposals. This
process is referred to as scoping. The
main goal of the scoping process is to
focus the analysis in the EA on the
important environmental issues. By this
notice, the Commission requests public
comments on the scope of the issues to
address in the EA. We will consider all
filed comments during the preparation
of the EA.
In the EA we will discuss impacts that
could occur as a result of the
construction and operation of the
proposed project including, but not
limited to, the following resources: land
use; water resources; vegetation and
wildlife; air quality and noise; and
cultural resources. We will also evaluate
any reasonable 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.
The EA will present our independent
analysis of the issues. The EA will be
available in the public record through
eLibrary. Depending on the comments
received during the scoping process, we
may also publish and distribute the EA
to the public for an allotted comment
period. To ensure we have the
opportunity to consider and address
your comments, please carefully follow
the instructions in the Public
Participation section, beginning on
page 2.
With this notice, we are asking
agencies with jurisdiction by law and/
or special expertise with respect to the
environmental issues of this project to
formally cooperate with us in the
preparation of the EA.5 Agencies that
would like to request cooperating
agency status should follow the
instructions for filing comments
provided under the Public Participation
section of this notice.
Consultations Under Section 106 of the
National Historic Preservation Act
In accordance with the Advisory
Council on Historic Preservation’s
implementing regulations for section
106 of the National Historic
Preservation Act, we are using this
notice to initiate consultation with the
applicable State Historic Preservation
Office (SHPO), and to solicit their views
and those of other government agencies,
interested Indian tribes, and the public
on the project’s potential effects on
4 We,
us, and our refer to the environmental staff
of the Commission’s Office of Energy Projects.
5 The Council on Environmental Quality
regulations addressing cooperating agency
responsibilities are at Title 40, Code of Federal
Regulations, part 1501.6.
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historic properties.6 We will define the
project-specific Area of Potential Effects
(APE) in consultation with the SHPO as
the project develops. On natural gas
facility projects, the APE at a minimum
encompasses all areas subject to ground
disturbance (examples include
construction right-of-way, contractor/
pipe storage yards, compressor stations,
and access roads). Our EA for this
project will document our findings on
the impacts on historic properties and
summarize the status of consultations
under section 106.
Environmental Mailing List
The environmental mailing list
includes federal, state, and local
government representatives and
agencies; elected officials;
environmental and public interest
groups; Native American Tribes; other
interested parties; and local libraries
and newspapers. This list also includes
all affected landowners (as defined in
the Commission’s regulations) who are
potential right-of-way grantors, whose
property may be used temporarily for
project purposes, or who own homes
within certain distances of aboveground
facilities, and anyone who submits
comments on the project. We will
update the environmental mailing list as
the analysis proceeds to ensure that we
send the information related to this
environmental review to all individuals,
organizations, and government entities
interested in and/or potentially affected
by the proposed project.
If we publish and distribute the EA,
copies will be sent to the environmental
mailing list for public review and
comment. If you would prefer to receive
a paper copy of the document instead of
the CD version or would like to remove
your name from the mailing list, please
return the attached Information Request
(appendix 2).
Becoming an Intervenor
In addition to involvement in the EA
scoping process, you may want to
become an ‘‘intervenor’’ which is an
official party to the Commission’s
proceeding. Intervenors play a more
formal role in the process and are able
to file briefs, appear at hearings, and be
heard by the courts if they choose to
appeal the Commission’s final ruling.
An intervenor formally participates in
the proceeding by filing a request to
intervene. Instructions for becoming an
6 The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation’s
regulations are at Title 36, Code of Federal
Regulations, part 800. Those regulations define
historic properties as any prehistoric or historic
district, site, building, structure, or object included
in or eligible for inclusion in the National Register
of Historic Places.
E:\FR\FM\22JAN1.SGM
22JAN1
Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 14 / Monday, January 22, 2018 / Notices
intervenor are in the ‘‘Document-less
Intervention Guide’’ under the ‘‘e-filing’’
link on the Commission’s website.
Motions to intervene are more fully
described at https://www.ferc.gov/
resources/guides/how-to/intervene.asp.
Additional Information
Additional information about the
project is available from the
Commission’s Office of External Affairs,
at (866) 208–FERC, or on the FERC
website at www.ferc.gov using the
eLibrary link. Click on the eLibrary link,
click on General Search and enter the
docket number, excluding the last three
digits in the Docket Number field (i.e.,
CP18–33). Be sure you have selected an
appropriate date range. For assistance,
please contact FERC Online Support at
FercOnlineSupport@ferc.gov or toll free
at (866) 208–3676, or for TTY, contact
(202) 502–8659. The eLibrary link also
provides access to the texts of formal
documents issued by the Commission,
such as orders, notices, and
rulemakings.
In addition, the Commission offers a
free service called eSubscription which
allows you to keep track of all formal
issuances and submittals in specific
dockets. This can reduce the amount of
time you spend researching proceedings
by automatically providing you with
notification of these filings, document
summaries, and direct links to the
documents. Go to www.ferc.gov/docsfiling/esubscription.asp.
Finally, public sessions or site visits
will be posted on the Commission’s
calendar located at www.ferc.gov/
EventCalendar/EventsList.aspx along
with other related information.
Dated: January 12, 2018.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2018–01016 Filed 1–19–18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with NOTICES
[Project No. 1494–438]
Grand River Dam Authority; Notice of
Intent To File License Application,
Filing of Pre-Application Document
(Pad), Commencement of Pre-Filing
Process, and Scoping; Request for
Comments on the Pad and Scoping
Document, and Identification of Issues
and Associated Study Requests
a. Type of Filing: Notice of Intent to
File License Application for a New
License and Commencing Pre-filing
Process.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:00 Jan 19, 2018
Jkt 244001
b. Project No.: 1494–438.
c. Dated Filed: February 1, 2017.
d. Submitted By: Grand River Dam
Authority (GRDA).
e. Name of Project: Pensacola
Hydroelectric Project.
f. Location: The project is located on
the Grand (Neosho) River in Craig,
Delaware, Mayes, and Ottawa Counties,
Oklahoma. No federal lands have been
identified within the project boundary.
g. Filed Pursuant to: 18 CFR part 5 of
the Commission’s Regulations.
h. Potential Applicant Contact: Dr.
Darrell Townsend, Assistant General
Manager, GRDA, 420 Highway 28,
Langley, OK 74359–0070; (918) 256–
0616 or dtownsend@grda.com.
i. FERC Contact: Rachel McNamara at
(202) 502–8340 or email at
rachel.mcnamara@ferc.gov.
j. Cooperating agencies: Federal, state,
local, and tribal agencies with
jurisdiction and/or special expertise
with respect to environmental issues
that wish to cooperate in the
preparation of the environmental
document should follow the
instructions for filing such requests
described in item o below. Cooperating
agencies should note the Commission’s
policy that agencies that cooperate in
the preparation of the environmental
document cannot also intervene. See 94
FERC 61,076 (2001).
k. With this notice, we are initiating
informal consultation with: (a) The U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service and/or NOAA
Fisheries under section 7 of the
Endangered Species Act and the joint
agency regulations thereunder at 50
CFR, Part 402 and (b) the State Historic
Preservation Officer, as required by
section 106, National Historic
Preservation Act, and the implementing
regulations of the Advisory Council on
Historic Preservation at 36 CFR 800.2.
l. With this notice, we are designating
GRDA as the Commission’s non-federal
representative for carrying out informal
consultation, pursuant to section 7 of
the Endangered Species Act and section
106 of the National Historic
Preservation Act.
m. GRDA filed with the Commission
a Pre-Application Document (PAD;
including a proposed process plan and
schedule), pursuant to 18 CFR 5.6 of the
Commission’s regulations.
n. A copy of the PAD is available for
review at the Commission in the Public
Reference Room or may be viewed on
the Commission’s website (https://
www.ferc.gov), using the ‘‘eLibrary’’
link. Enter the docket number,
excluding the last three digits in the
docket number field to access the
document. For assistance, contact FERC
Online Support at
PO 00000
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2977
FERCONlineSupport@ferc.gov, (866)
208–3676 (toll free), or (202) 502–8659
(TTY). A copy is also available for
inspection and reproduction at the
address in paragraph h.
Register online at https://
www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/
esubscription.asp to be notified via
email of new filing and issuances
related to this or other pending projects.
For assistance, contact FERC Online
Support.
o. With this notice, we are soliciting
comments on the PAD and
Commission’s staff Scoping Document 1
(SD1), as well as study requests. All
comments on the PAD and SD1, and
study requests should be sent to the
address above in paragraph h. In
addition, all comments on the PAD and
SD1, study requests, requests for
cooperating agency status, and all
communications to and from
Commission staff related to the merits of
the potential application must be filed
with the Commission.
The Commission strongly encourages
electronic filing. Please file all
documents using the Commission’s
eFiling system at https://www.ferc.gov/
docs-filing/efiling.asp. Commenters can
submit brief comments up to 6,000
characters, without prior registration,
using the eComment system at https://
www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/
ecomment.asp. You must include your
name and contact information at the end
of your comments. For assistance,
please contact FERC Online Support at
FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov. In lieu of
electronic filing, please send a paper
copy to: Secretary, Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street
NE, Washington, DC 20426. The first
page of any filing should include docket
number P–1494–438.
All filings with the Commission must
bear the appropriate heading: Comments
on Pre-Application Document, Study
Requests, Comments on Scoping
Document 1, Request for Cooperating
Agency Status, or Communications to
and from Commission Staff. Any
individual or entity interested in
submitting study requests, commenting
on the PAD or SD1, and any agency
requesting cooperating status must do so
by March 13, 2018.
p. We intend to prepare either an
environmental assessment (EA) or
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).
The meetings listed below will satisfy
the NEPA scoping requirements,
irrespective of whether an EA or EIS is
issued by the Commission.
Scoping Meetings
Commission staff will hold four
scoping meetings in the vicinity of the
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 14 (Monday, January 22, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2975-2977]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-01016]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. CP18-33-000]
Florida Gas Transmission Company, LLC; Notice of Intent To
Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed 18-Inch Mainline
Abandonment Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues
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 18-Inch Mainline Abandonment
Project involving construction and operation of facilities by Florida
Gas Transmission Company, LLC (FGT) in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The
Commission will use this EA in its decision-making process to determine
whether the project is in the public convenience and necessity.
This notice announces the opening of the scoping process the
Commission will use to gather input from the public and interested
agencies on the project. You can make a difference by providing us with
your specific comments or concerns about the project. Your comments
should focus on the potential environmental effects, reasonable
alternatives, and measures to avoid or lessen environmental impacts.
Your input will help the Commission staff determine what issues they
need to evaluate in the EA. To ensure that your comments are timely and
properly recorded, please send your comments so that the Commission
receives them in Washington, DC, on or before February 12, 2018.
If you sent comments on this project to the Commission before the
opening of this docket on December 18, 2017, you will need to file
those comments in Docket No. CP18-33-000 to ensure they are considered
as part of this proceeding.
This notice is being sent to the Commission's current environmental
mailing list for this project. State and local government
representatives should notify their constituents of this proposed
project and encourage them to comment on their areas of concern.
If you are a landowner receiving this notice, a pipeline company
representative may contact you about the acquisition of an easement to
construct, operate, and maintain the proposed facilities. The company
would seek to negotiate a mutually acceptable agreement. However, if
the Commission approves the project, 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 where compensation would be determined in accordance with
state law.
FGT provided landowners with a fact sheet prepared by the FERC
entitled An Interstate Natural Gas Facility On My Land? What Do I Need
To Know? This fact sheet addresses a number of typically asked
questions, including the use of eminent domain and how to participate
in the Commission's proceedings. It is also available for viewing on
the FERC website (www.ferc.gov).
Public Participation
For your convenience, there are three methods you can use to submit
your comments to the Commission. The Commission encourages electronic
filing of comments and has expert staff available to assist you at
(202) 502-8258 or [email protected]. Please carefully follow
these instructions so that your comments are properly recorded.
(1) You can file your comments electronically using the eComment
feature on the Commission's website (www.ferc.gov) under the link to
Documents and Filings. This is an easy method for submitting brief,
text-only comments on a project;
(2) You can file your comments electronically by using the eFiling
feature on the Commission's website (www.ferc.gov) under the link to
Documents and Filings. With eFiling, you can provide comments in a
variety of formats by attaching them as a file with your submission.
New eFiling users must first create an account by clicking on
eRegister. If you are filing a comment on a particular project, please
select Comment on a Filing as the filing type; or
(3) You can file a paper copy of your comments by mailing them to
the following address. Be sure to reference the project docket number
(CP18-33-000) with your submission: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary,
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Room 1A,
Washington, DC 20426.
[[Page 2976]]
Summary of the Proposed Project
FGT proposes to abandon in place a 1.3 mile portion of its 18-inch-
diameter mainline pipeline facilities in Miami-Dade County, Florida,
and remove an aerial span to accommodate a county road construction
project. FGT states it has not delivered gas through this section of
pipeline in more than three years and has no current customers served
by this section; however, it proposes to continue to maintain the
abandoned pipeline facilities for potential future use.
The 18-Inch Mainline Abandonment Project would consist of the
following activities:
--blow down \1\ from the Turkey Point take-off;
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ A blow down is a controlled release of natural gas.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
--clean the pipeline by pig \2\ from milepost (MP) 919.0 to MP 924.9;
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ A pig is a tool that the pipeline company inserts into and
pushes through the pipeline for cleaning the pipeline, conducting
internal inspections, or other purposes.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
--remove approximately 200 feet of the 18-inch-diameter mainline pipe,
including approximately 73 feet of aerial pipeline span which crosses
Miami-Dade County Cutler Drain Canal 100A parallel to the SW 136th
Street bridge in Miami;
--cut and cap the pipeline on each side of the canal; and
--fill with nitrogen and abandon in place the pipe and associated
valves from approximately MP 923.6 to MP 924.9.
The general location of the project facilities is shown in appendix
1.\3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ The appendices referenced in this notice will not appear in
the Federal Register. Copies of appendices were sent to all those
receiving this notice in the mail and are available at www.ferc.gov
using the link called eLibrary or from the Commission's Public
Reference Room, 888 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20426, or call
(202) 502-8371. For instructions on connecting to eLibrary, refer to
the last page of this notice.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Land Requirements for Construction
Removal of the facilities would disturb about 0.65 acre of land,
and an additional 1.5 acres would be used for a contractor yard.
Following construction, the disturbed areas would be restored and
revert to former uses. FGT states that it would continue to maintain
the right-of-way for the abandoned pipeline.
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
\4\ to discover and address concerns the public may have about
proposals. This process is referred to as scoping. The main goal of the
scoping process is to focus the analysis in the EA on the important
environmental issues. By this notice, the Commission requests public
comments on the scope of the issues to address in the EA. We will
consider all filed comments during the preparation of the EA.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ We, us, and our refer to the environmental staff of the
Commission's Office of Energy Projects.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the EA we will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of
the construction and operation of the proposed project including, but
not limited to, the following resources: land use; water resources;
vegetation and wildlife; air quality and noise; and cultural resources.
We will also evaluate any reasonable 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.
The EA will present our independent analysis of the issues. The EA
will be available in the public record through eLibrary. Depending on
the comments received during the scoping process, we may also publish
and distribute the EA to the public for an allotted comment period. To
ensure we have the opportunity to consider and address your comments,
please carefully follow the instructions in the Public Participation
section, beginning on page 2.
With this notice, we are asking agencies with jurisdiction by law
and/or special expertise with respect to the environmental issues of
this project to formally cooperate with us in the preparation of the
EA.\5\ Agencies that would like to request cooperating agency status
should follow the instructions for filing comments provided under the
Public Participation section of this notice.
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\5\ The Council on Environmental Quality regulations addressing
cooperating agency responsibilities are at Title 40, Code of Federal
Regulations, part 1501.6.
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Consultations Under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation
Act
In accordance with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation's
implementing regulations for section 106 of the National Historic
Preservation Act, we are using this notice to initiate consultation
with the applicable State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), and to
solicit their views and those of other government agencies, interested
Indian tribes, and the public on the project's potential effects on
historic properties.\6\ We will define the project-specific Area of
Potential Effects (APE) in consultation with the SHPO as the project
develops. On natural gas facility projects, the APE at a minimum
encompasses all areas subject to ground disturbance (examples include
construction right-of-way, contractor/pipe storage yards, compressor
stations, and access roads). Our EA for this project will document our
findings on the impacts on historic properties and summarize the status
of consultations under section 106.
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\6\ The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation's regulations
are at Title 36, Code of Federal Regulations, part 800. Those
regulations define historic properties as any prehistoric or
historic district, site, building, structure, or object included in
or eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic
Places.
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Environmental Mailing List
The environmental mailing list includes federal, state, and local
government representatives and agencies; elected officials;
environmental and public interest groups; Native American Tribes; other
interested parties; and local libraries and newspapers. This list also
includes all affected landowners (as defined in the Commission's
regulations) who are potential right-of-way grantors, whose property
may be used temporarily for project purposes, or who own homes within
certain distances of aboveground facilities, and anyone who submits
comments on the project. We will update the environmental mailing list
as the analysis proceeds to ensure that we send the information related
to this environmental review to all individuals, organizations, and
government entities interested in and/or potentially affected by the
proposed project.
If we publish and distribute the EA, copies will be sent to the
environmental mailing list for public review and comment. If you would
prefer to receive a paper copy of the document instead of the CD
version or would like to remove your name from the mailing list, please
return the attached Information Request (appendix 2).
Becoming an Intervenor
In addition to involvement in the EA scoping process, you may want
to become an ``intervenor'' which is an official party to the
Commission's proceeding. Intervenors play a more formal role in the
process and are able to file briefs, appear at hearings, and be heard
by the courts if they choose to appeal the Commission's final ruling.
An intervenor formally participates in the proceeding by filing a
request to intervene. Instructions for becoming an
[[Page 2977]]
intervenor are in the ``Document-less Intervention Guide'' under the
``e-filing'' link on the Commission's website. Motions to intervene are
more fully described at https://www.ferc.gov/resources/guides/how-to/intervene.asp.
Additional Information
Additional information about the project is available from the
Commission's Office of External Affairs, at (866) 208-FERC, or on the
FERC website at www.ferc.gov using the eLibrary link. Click on the
eLibrary link, click on General Search and enter the docket number,
excluding the last three digits in the Docket Number field (i.e., CP18-
33). Be sure you have selected an appropriate date range. For
assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at
[email protected] or toll free at (866) 208-3676, or for TTY,
contact (202) 502-8659. The eLibrary link also provides access to the
texts of formal documents issued by the Commission, such as orders,
notices, and rulemakings.
In addition, the Commission offers a free service called
eSubscription which allows you to keep track of all formal issuances
and submittals in specific dockets. This can reduce the amount of time
you spend researching proceedings by automatically providing you with
notification of these filings, document summaries, and direct links to
the documents. Go to www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/esubscription.asp.
Finally, public sessions or site visits will be posted on the
Commission's calendar located at www.ferc.gov/EventCalendar/EventsList.aspx along with other related information.
Dated: January 12, 2018.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2018-01016 Filed 1-19-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P
