[Federal Register: January 30, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 20)]
[Notices]
[Page 4505-4507]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr30ja04-48]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. CP93-541-013]
Young Gas Storage Company, Ltd.; Notice of Intent to Prepare an
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Young Storage Project and
Request for Comments on Environmental Issues
January 23, 2004.
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 Young Storage Project
involving construction and operation of facilities by Young Gas Storage
Company, Ltd (Young) in Morgan County, Colorado.\1\ These facilities
would consist of:
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\1\ Young's application was filed with the Commission under
section 7 of the Natural Gas Act and part 157 of the Commission's
regulations.
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3 horizontally drilled injection/withdrawal
wells (Wells 43, 44, and 45);
Facilities associated with each well that
include a surface wellhead and associated filters/separators, orifice
meter, catalytic heater, and methanol injection/storage tanks with
concrete footers;
600 feet of 6-inch-diameter steel gas pipeline;
1,090 feet of 4-inch-diameter steel gas
pipeline;
1,090 feet of 2-inch-diameter poly instrument
pipeline; and
1,090 feet of 2-inch-diameter fiberglass
drainline pipeline.
This EA will be used by the Commission in its decision-making
process to determine whether the project is in the public convenience
and necessity.
If you are a landowner receiving this notice, you may be contacted
by a pipeline company representative about the acquisition of an
easement to construct, operate, and maintain the proposed facilities.
The pipeline company would seek to negotiate a mutually acceptable
agreement. However, if the project is approved by the Commission, that
approval conveys with it the right of eminent domain. Therefore, if
easement negotiations fail to produce an agreement, the pipeline
company could initiate condemnation proceedings in accordance with
State law.
A fact sheet prepared by the FERC entitled ``An Interstate Natural
Gas Facility On My Land? What Do I Need To Know?'' was attached to the
project notice Young provided to landowners. 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
available for viewing on the FERC Internet Web site (http://www.ferc.gov
).
Summary of the Proposed Project
Young has analyzed the operation of the Young Storage Field and
determined that water has been displaced and produced from the storage
field during the 8 years of its operation. This has increased the pore
space available for gas storage. The increased space has caused storage
pressures to decrease below the pressure contemplated when the field
was designed. The storage field has also expanded into areas that
cannot be effectively drained by the existing wells. The reduced
pressure and reservoir expansion have reduced deliverability from the
field.
Young wants to drill there injection/withdrawal wells to better
access certain areas within the existing Young Storage Field. It would
also construct pipeline and related facilities to connect these new
wells to its existing storage field pipeline system. The storage
capacity and withdrawal capability of the Young Storage Field would not
be increased above the presently certificated volumes (10 billion cubic
feet and 198,813 thousand cubic feet per day, respectively) by
construction and operation of the proposed facilities. Young also
proposes to expand the protection zone for the storage field.
[[Page 4506]]
Young would also reclassify two existing injection/withdrawal wells
(Wells 24 and 39) as observation wells.
Young also proposes to conduct a reservoir testing program to
evaluate the possibility of increasing gas deliverability from the
storage field as it drills the proposed new injection/withdrawal wells.
The location of the project facilities is shown in appendix 1.\2\
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\2\ The appendices referenced in this notice are not being
printed in the Federal Register. Copies are available on the
Commission's Internet Web site (http://www.ferc.gov) at the
``eLibrary'' link or from the Commission's Public Reference and
Files Maintenance Branch at (202) 502-8371. For instructions on
connecting to eLibrary refer to the last page of this notice.
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Land Requirements for Construction
Construction of the proposed facilities would require about 6.8
acres of land. Following construction, about 2.2 acres would be
maintained for operation of the new facilities. The remaining 4.6 acres
of land would be restored and allowed to revert to its former use.
The EA Process
The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires the
Commission to take into account the environmental impacts that could
result from an action whenever it considers the issuance of a
Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity. NEPA also requires us
\3\ 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 of intent, the Commission requests
public comments on the scope of the issues it will address in the EA.
All comments received are considered during the preparation of the EA.
State and local government representatives are encouraged to notify
their constituents of this proposed action and encourage them to
comment on their areas of concern.
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\3\ ``We'', ``us'', and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff
of the Office of Energy Projects (OEP).
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The EA will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of the
construction and operation of the proposed project under these general
headings:
Geology and soils;
Land use;
Ground water;
Cultural resources;
Vegetation and wildlife;
Air quality and noise;
Endangered and threatened species;
Public safety.
We will not discuss impacts to the following resource areas since
they are not present in the project area, or would not be affected by
the proposed facilities.
Surface water;
Wetlands;
Fisheries;
Residential areas;
Federal, State, or local parks, forests, trails,
scenic highways, wild and scenic rivers, nature preserves, wildlife
refuges, wilderness areas, game management areas, or other designated
natural, recreational, or scenic areas registered as natural landmarks;
Native American reservations, or
Coastal zone management areas.
We will also evaluate possible alternatives to the proposed project
or portions of the project, and make recommendations on how to lessen
or avoid impacts on the various resource areas.
Our independent analysis of the issues will be in the EA. Depending
on the comments received during the scoping process, the EA may be
published and mailed to Federal, State, and local agencies, public
interest groups, interested individuals, affected landowners,
newspapers, libraries, and the Commission's official service list for
this proceeding. A comment period will be allotted for review if the EA
is published. We will consider all comments on the EA before we make
our recommendations to the Commission.
To ensure your comments are considered, please carefully follow the
instructions in the public participation section below.
Currently Identified Environmental Issues
We have already identified several issues that we think deserve
attention based on a preliminary review of the proposed facilities and
the environmental information provided by Young. This preliminary list
of issues may be changed based on your comments and our analysis.
A total of 6.77 acres of agricultural land and
pasture would be affected by the project.
Three horizontally drilled wells would be
constructed.
Public Participation
You can make a difference by providing us with your specific
comments or concerns about the project. By becoming a commentor, your
concerns will be addressed in the EA and considered by the Commission.
You should focus on the potential environmental effects of the
proposal, alternatives to the proposal including alternative well
locations and pipeline routes, and measures to avoid or lessen
environmental impact. The more specific your comments, the more useful
they will be. Please carefully follow these instructions to ensure that
your comments are received in time and properly recorded:
Send an original and two copies of your letter
to: Magalie R. Salas, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission,
888 First St., NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426.
Label one copy of the comments for the attention
of Gas Branch 2.
Reference Docket No. CP93-541-013.
Mail your comments so that they will be received
in Washington, DC on or before February 23, 2004.
Please note that we are continuing to experience delays in mail
deliveries from the U.S. Postal Service. As a result, we will include
all comments that we receive within a reasonable time frame in our
environmental analysis of this project. However, the Commission
strongly encourages electronic filing of any comments or interventions
or protests to this proceeding. See 18 CFR 385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the
instructions on the Commission's Web site at http://www.ferc.gov under
the ``e-Filing'' link and the link to the User's Guide. Before you can
file comments you will need to create a free account which can be
created on-line.
We may mail the EA for comment. If you are interested in receiving
it, please return the Information Request (appendix 4). If you do not
return the Information Request, you will be taken off the mailing list.
Becoming an Intervenor
In addition to involvement in the EA scoping process, you may want
to become an official party to the proceeding known as an
``intervenor''. Intervenors play a more formal role in the process.
Among other things, intervenors have the right to receive copies of
case-related Commission documents and filings by other intervenors.
Likewise, each intervenor must provide 14 copies of its filings to the
Secretary of the Commission and must send a copy of its filings to all
other parties on the Commission's service list for this proceeding. If
you want to become an intervenor you must file a motion to intervene
according to rule 214 of the Commission(s rules of practice and
procedure (18 CFR 385.214) (see appendix 2).\4\ Only
[[Page 4507]]
intervenors have the right to seek rehearing of the Commission's
decision.
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\4\ Interventions may also be filed electronically via the
Internet in lieu of paper. See the previous discussion on filing
comments electronically.
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Affected landowners and parties with environmental concerns may be
granted intervenor status upon showing good cause by stating that they
have a clear and direct interest in this proceeding which would not be
adequately represented by any other parties. You do not need intervenor
status to have your environmental comments considered.
Environmental Mailing List
An effort is being made to send this notice to all individuals,
organizations, and government entities interested in and/or potentially
affected by the proposed project. This includes all landowners who are
potential right-of-way grantors, whose property may be used temporarily
for project purposes, or who own homes within distances defined in the
Commission's regulations of certain aboveground facilities. By this
notice we are also asking governmental agencies, especially those in
appendix 3, to express their interest in becoming cooperating agencies
for the preparation of the EA.
Additional Information
Additional information about the project is available from the
Commission's Office of External Affairs, at 1-866-208-FERC or on the
FERC Internet Web site (http://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. Be sure you have selected an appropriate date range. For
assistance with eLibrary, the eLibrary helpline can be reached at 1-
866-208-3676, TTY (202) 502-8659, or at FERConlinesupport@ferc.gov. The
eLibrary link on the FERC Internet Web site also provides access to the
texts of formal documents issued by the Commission, such as orders,
notices, and rulemakings.
In addition, the Commission now 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 http://www.ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm.
Finally, public meetings or site visits will be posted on the
Commission's calendar located at http://www.ferc.gov/Event Calendar/
EventsList.aspx along with other related information.
Magalie R. Salas,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E4-163 Filed 1-29-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P