Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Empire Pipeline, Inc. Empire North Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues, 16847-16849 [2018-07924]
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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 74 / Tuesday, April 17, 2018 / Notices
Commission, 888 First Street NE,
Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502–
6260, susanna.ehrlich@ferc.gov
Logistical Information: Sarah McKinley,
Office of External Affairs, Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission, 888
First Street NE, Washington, DC
20426, (202) 502–8368,
sarah.mckinley@ferc.gov.
Dated: April 10, 2018.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2018–07923 Filed 4–16–18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
Dated: April 11, 2018.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
Combined Notice of Filings
[FR Doc. 2018–07998 Filed 4–16–18; 8:45 am]
Take notice that the Commission has
received the following Natural Gas
Pipeline Rate and Refund Report filings:
daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with NOTICES
Filings Instituting Proceedings
Docket Numbers: RP18–228–001.
Applicants: Rockies Express Pipeline
LLC
Description: Compliance filing
Compliance to RP18–228 Monthly
FL&U Postings to be effective 4/19/2018.
Filed Date: 4/10/18.
Accession Number: 20180410–5148.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/16/18.
Docket Numbers: RP18–694–000.
Applicants: Rockies Express Pipeline
LLC..
Description: § 4(d) Rate Filing: Errata
to RP18–228, Seneca Lateral to be
effective 4/19/2018.
Filed Date: 4/10/18.
Accession Number: 20180410–5151.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/16/18.
Docket Numbers: RP18–695–000.
Applicants: Transcontinental Gas
Pipe Line Company.
Description: § 4(d) Rate Filing: NonConforming—Dalton (Cartersville, GA)
to be effective 6/1/2018.
Filed Date: 4/10/18.
Accession Number: 20180410–5199.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/23/18.
Docket Numbers: RP18–696–000.
Applicants: El Paso Natural Gas
Company, L.L.C.
Description: § 4(d) Rate Filing:
Negotiated Rate Update Filing (TGS Apr
18) to be effective 4/11/2018.
Filed Date: 4/10/18.
Accession Number: 20180410–5221.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/23/18.
The filings are accessible in the
Commission’s eLibrary system by
clicking on the links or querying the
docket number.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:20 Apr 16, 2018
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.
Jkt 244001
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
16847
Persons unable to file electronically
should submit an original and 5 copies
of the protest or intervention to the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission,
888 First Street NE, Washington, DC
20426.
This filing is accessible on-line at
https://www.ferc.gov, using the
‘‘eLibrary’’ link and is available for
review in the Commission’s Public
Reference Room in Washington, DC.
There is an ‘‘eSubscription’’ link on the
website that enables subscribers to
receive email notification when a
document is added to a subscribed
docket(s). For assistance with any FERC
Online service, please email
FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov, or call
(866) 208–3676 (toll free). For TTY, call
(202) 502–8659.
Comment Date: 5:00 p.m. Eastern time
on May 7, 2018.
Dated: April 10, 2018.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2018–07927 Filed 4–16–18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
[Docket No. OR18–20–000]
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Notice of Petition for Declaratory
Order; Marathon Pipe Line LLC, MPLX
Ozark Pipe Line LLC
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
Take notice that on April 6, 2018,
pursuant to Rule 207(a)(2) of the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission’s
(Commission) Rules of Practice and
Procedure, 18 CFR 385.207(a)(2) (2017),
Marathon Pipe Line LLC and MPLX
Ozark Pipe Line LLC filed a joint
petition for a declaratory order seeking
approval of certain terms and conditions
in the transportation services agreement,
related to a joint expansion project, all
as more fully explained in the petition.
Any person desiring to intervene or to
protest this filing must file in
accordance with Rules 211 and 214 of
the Commission’s Rules of Practice and
Procedure (18 CFR 385.211, 385.214).
Protests will be considered by the
Commission in determining the
appropriate action to be taken, but will
not serve to make protestants parties to
the proceeding. Any person wishing to
become a party must file a notice of
intervention or motion to intervene, as
appropriate. Such notices, motions, or
protests must be filed on or before the
comment date. Anyone filing a motion
to intervene or protest must serve a copy
of that document on the Petitioner.
The Commission encourages
electronic submission of protests and
interventions in lieu of paper using the
‘‘eFiling’’ link at https://www.ferc.gov.
Notice of Intent To Prepare an
Environmental Assessment for the
Proposed Empire Pipeline, Inc. Empire
North Project and Request for
Comments on Environmental Issues
PO 00000
Frm 00025
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
[Docket No. CP18–89–000]
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 Empire North Project involving
construction and operation of facilities
by Empire Pipeline, Inc. (Empire) in
Tioga County, Pennsylvania and in
Ontario, Yates, Schuyler, Chemung, and
Steuben Counties, New York. 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
E:\FR\FM\17APN1.SGM
17APN1
16848
Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 74 / Tuesday, April 17, 2018 / Notices
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 May 10,
2018.
If you sent comments on this project
to the Commission before the opening of
this docket on February 16, 2018, you
will need to file those comments in
Docket No. CP18–89–000 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.
Empire 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).
daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with NOTICES
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;
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:20 Apr 16, 2018
Jkt 244001
(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 (CP18–89–
000) with your submission: Kimberly D.
Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street
NE, Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426.
Summary of the Proposed Project
Empire proposes to construct and
operate gas compression facilities in
Tioga County, Pennsylvania and in
Ontario, New York. The Empire North
Project would provide about 205 million
cubic feet per day of incremental firm
transportation capacity. The Empire
North Project would consist of the
following facilities:
• A new 21,000 horsepower (hp)
compressor station in Jackson
Township, Tioga County, Pennsylvania;
• a new 32,000 hp compressor station
in the Town of Farmington, Ontario
County, New York;
• modifications of the existing
regulator valves and station piping and
installation of metering facilities at the
existing New Victor Regulator Station in
Ontario County, New York;
• minor modifications to the existing
Jackson Meter and Regulator Station in
Jackson Township, Tioga County,
Pennsylvania; and
• upgrading the maximum allowable
operating pressure of the Empire
Connector Pipeline (ECP) from 1,290
pounds per square inch gauge (psig) to
1,440 psig. The ECP is an existing 76.6mile-long, 24-inch-diameter pipeline
that runs from Victor, New York to
Corning, New York in in Ontario, Yates,
Schuyler, Chemung, and Steuben
Counties, New York.
The general location of the project
facilities is shown in appendix A.1
1 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.
PO 00000
Frm 00026
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Land Requirements for Construction
Construction of the proposed facilities
would disturb about 50.4 acres of land
for the aboveground facilities. Following
construction, Empire would maintain
about 17.5 acres for permanent
operation of the project’s facilities; the
remaining acreage would be restored
and revert to former uses.
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 2 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 under these general
headings:
• Geology and soils;
• water resources, fisheries, and
wetlands;
• vegetation and wildlife;
• endangered and threatened species;
• cultural resources;
• land use;
• socioeconomics;
• air quality and noise;
• public safety; and
• cumulative impacts.
We will also evaluate 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. We will consider all comments
on the EA before making our
recommendations to the Commission.
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.
2 ‘‘We,’’ ‘‘us,’’ and ‘‘our’’ refer to the
environmental staff of the Commission’s Office of
Energy Projects.
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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 74 / Tuesday, April 17, 2018 / Notices
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.3 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
Offices (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.4 We will
define the project-specific Area of
Potential Effects (APE) in consultation
with the SHPOs 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
daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with NOTICES
The environmental mailing list
includes federal, state, and local
government representatives and
agencies; elected officials; 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
3 The Council on Environmental Quality
regulations addressing cooperating agency
responsibilities are at Title 40, Code of Federal
Regulations, Part 1501.6.
4 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.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
21:16 Apr 16, 2018
Jkt 244001
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 of the EA 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).
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
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., CP18–89). 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.
Frm 00027
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
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: April 10, 2018.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2018–07924 Filed 4–16–18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
Becoming an Intervenor
PO 00000
16849
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
Sunshine Act Meeting Notice
The following notice of meeting is
published pursuant to section 3(a) of the
government in the Sunshine Act (Pub.
L. 94–409), 5 U.S.C. 552b:
AGENCY HOLDING MEETING: Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission.
DATE AND TIME:
April 19, 2018, 10:00
a.m.
Room 2C, 888 First Street NE,
Washington, DC 20426.
PLACE:
STATUS:
Open.
Agenda.
* Note—Items listed on the agenda
may be deleted without further notice.
MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED:
CONTACT PERSON FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Telephone
(202) 502–8400.
For a recorded message listing items
struck from or added to the meeting, call
(202) 502–8627.
This is a list of matters to be considered
by the Commission. It does not include a
listing of all documents relevant to the items
on the agenda. All public documents,
however, may be viewed on line at the
Commission’s website at https://
ferc.capitolconnection.org/ sing the eLibrary
link, or may be examined in the
Commission’s Public Reference Room.
E:\FR\FM\17APN1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 74 (Tuesday, April 17, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16847-16849]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-07924]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. CP18-89-000]
Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the
Proposed Empire Pipeline, Inc. Empire North 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 Empire North Project involving
construction and operation of facilities by Empire Pipeline, Inc.
(Empire) in Tioga County, Pennsylvania and in Ontario, Yates, Schuyler,
Chemung, and Steuben Counties, New York. 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
[[Page 16848]]
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 May 10, 2018.
If you sent comments on this project to the Commission before the
opening of this docket on February 16, 2018, you will need to file
those comments in Docket No. CP18-89-000 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.
Empire 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
(CP18-89-000) with your submission: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary,
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Room 1A,
Washington, DC 20426.
Summary of the Proposed Project
Empire proposes to construct and operate gas compression facilities
in Tioga County, Pennsylvania and in Ontario, New York. The Empire
North Project would provide about 205 million cubic feet per day of
incremental firm transportation capacity. The Empire North Project
would consist of the following facilities:
A new 21,000 horsepower (hp) compressor station in Jackson
Township, Tioga County, Pennsylvania;
a new 32,000 hp compressor station in the Town of
Farmington, Ontario County, New York;
modifications of the existing regulator valves and station
piping and installation of metering facilities at the existing New
Victor Regulator Station in Ontario County, New York;
minor modifications to the existing Jackson Meter and
Regulator Station in Jackson Township, Tioga County, Pennsylvania; and
upgrading the maximum allowable operating pressure of the
Empire Connector Pipeline (ECP) from 1,290 pounds per square inch gauge
(psig) to 1,440 psig. The ECP is an existing 76.6-mile-long, 24-inch-
diameter pipeline that runs from Victor, New York to Corning, New York
in in Ontario, Yates, Schuyler, Chemung, and Steuben Counties, New
York.
The general location of the project facilities is shown in appendix
A.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ 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
Construction of the proposed facilities would disturb about 50.4
acres of land for the aboveground facilities. Following construction,
Empire would maintain about 17.5 acres for permanent operation of the
project's facilities; the remaining acreage would be restored and
revert to former uses.
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
\2\ 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.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ ``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 under these
general headings:
Geology and soils;
water resources, fisheries, and wetlands;
vegetation and wildlife;
endangered and threatened species;
cultural resources;
land use;
socioeconomics;
air quality and noise;
public safety; and
cumulative impacts.
We will also evaluate 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. We
will consider all comments on the EA before making our recommendations
to the Commission. 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.
[[Page 16849]]
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.\3\ 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.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ The Council on Environmental Quality regulations addressing
cooperating agency responsibilities are at Title 40, Code of Federal
Regulations, Part 1501.6.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
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 Offices (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.\4\ We will define the project-specific Area of
Potential Effects (APE) in consultation with the SHPOs 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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\4\ 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; 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 of the EA 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 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-
89). 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: April 10, 2018.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2018-07924 Filed 4-16-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P
