[Federal Register: August 16, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 157)]
[Notices]
[Page 48180-48182]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr16au05-101]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Coast Guard
[USCG-2005-21863]
Letter of Recommendation; Proposed Broadwater LNG Project, Long
Island Sound
AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.
ACTION: Request for comments; notice of public meeting.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the requirements in Title 33 Code of
Federal Regulations (CFR), Section 127.009, the U.S. Coast Guard
Captain of the Port (COTP) Long Island Sound, is preparing a Letter of
Recommendation as to the suitability of Long Island Sound for liquefied
natural gas (LNG) marine traffic. This Letter of Recommendation will
encompass the marine safety and security aspects associated with the
proposed Broadwater LNG facility. The letter of recommendation is in
response to a Letter of Intent submitted by Broadwater Energy, a joint
venture of Shell Oil and TransCanada Corporation, to construct and
operate an offshore floating, storage and regasification unit (FSRU)
for liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the New York State waters of Long
Island Sound. Because the proposed facility would be located in state
waters, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is the lead
Federal agency for this proposed project. The COTP Long Island Sound is
soliciting written comments and related material, and will join FERC at
four public meetings seeking comments, pertaining specifically to
maritime safety and security aspects of the proposed LNG facility. In
preparation for issuance of a letter of recommendation and the
completion of certain other regulatory mandates, the COTP Long Island
Sound will consider comments received from the public as input into the
Coast Guard's assessment of potential waterway safety and port security
issues associated with the proposed facility.
DATES: All written comments and related material must reach the Coast
Guard on or before October 7, 2005. In addition, four public meetings
will be held regarding this proposal, on the following dates and
locations:
September 13, 2005, at Stony Brook University, Charles B.
Wang Center, RT 25A, Stony Brook, NY;
September 14, 2005, at Shoreham-Wading River Middle School
(Albert Prodell Middle School), 100 Randall Road, Shoreham, NY;
September 20, 2005, at E. Lyme High School, 30
Chesterfield Road, East Lyme, CT; and
September 21, 2005, at Branford High School, 185 East Main
Street, Branford, CT;
All four public meetings will be held from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. The
comment period associated with the public meeting will remain open
until October 7, 2005.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Coast Guard docket
number USCG-2005-21863, to the Docket Management Facility at the U.S.
Department of Transportation. Comments submitted to the Coast Guard
should relate to the marine safety and security aspects associated with
the proposed Broadwater LNG facility. To avoid duplication, please use
only one of the following methods:
1. Web site: http://dms/dot/gov.
2. Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of
Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590-0001.
3. Fax: (202) 493-2251.
4. Delivery: Room PL-401 on the Plaza level of the Nassif Building,
400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.,
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The telephone number is
(202) 366-9329.
5. Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
You may also submit comments relating to the maritime safety and
security of the proposed facility to Commanding Officer, U.S. Coast
Guard Sector Long Island Sound. All comments received by Sector Long
Island Sound will be forwarded to the Docket Management Facility.
Duplicate copies of comments submitted to the Docket Management
Facility need not be submitted to the COTP Long Island Sound. COTP Long
Island Sound will review and consider all comments submitted to the
Docket Management Facility as well as those received directly.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions on this notice,
contact LT Andrea Logman at Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound by one
of the methods listed below:
(1) Phone at (203) 468-4429;
(2) E-mail at alogman@sectorlis.uscg.mil; or
(3) Fax to (203) 468-4445.
If you have questions on viewing or submitting material to the
docket, call Andrea M. Jenkins, Program Manager, Docket Operations,
telephone (202) 366-0271.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Request for Written Comments
We encourage you to submit written comments and related material
pertaining specifically to marine safety and security aspects
associated with the proposed Broadwater LNG facility. If you do so,
please include your name and address, identify the docket number for
this notice (USCG-2005-21863) and give the reason for each comment. You
may also submit your comments and related material by mail,
electronically or hand delivery, as described in ADDRESSES, or you may
send them by fax or e-mail using the contact information under FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. To avoid confusion and duplication, please
submit your comments and material by only one means.
If you submit comments by mail or hand delivery, submit them in an
unbound format, no larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable for
copying and electronic filing. If you submit them by mail and would
like to know that they reached the Docket Management Facility or U.S.
Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound, please enclose a stamped, self-
addressed postcard or envelope.
All comments received will be posted, without charge, to http://dms.dot.gov
and will include any personal information you have
provided. We have an agreement with the Department of Transportation
(DOT) to use the Docket Management Facility. Please see DOT's ``Privacy
Act'' paragraph below.
[[Page 48181]]
To view comments, as well as documents mentioned in this preamble
as being available in the document, go to http://dms.dot.gov at any
time and conduct a simple search using the docket number, USCG-2005-
21863. You may also visit the Docket Management Facility in room PL-401
on the Plaza Level of the Nassif Building, 400 Seventh Street, SW.,
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday,
except Federal holidays.
Anyone can search the electronic form of all comments received into
any of our dockets by the name of the individual submitting the comment
(or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf of an association,
business, labor union, etc.). You may review the Department of
Transportation's Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register
published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477), or you may visit http://dms.dot.gov
.
Public Meeting
Due to the scope and complexity of this project, we have decided to
jointly hold four public meetings with FERC to allow the public the
opportunity to comment on the proposed LNG facility. The dates and
locations of these meetings are listed under DATES above. Organizations
and members of the public may provide oral statements regarding the
suitability of Long Island Sound for LNG vessel traffic at these
meetings. In the interest of time and use of the public meeting
facility, the length of oral statements may be limited. Written
comments may be submitted at the meeting or to the Docket up to October
7, 2005.
Background and Purpose
In accordance with the requirements of 33 CFR 127.007, Shell Oil
and TransCanada Corporation under the joint company Broadwater LNG,
submitted a letter of Intent on November 9, 2004, notifying the COTP
Long Island Sound that they intend to construct and operate an offshore
FSRU for LNG, named Broadwater Energy, in the New York State waters of
Long Island Sound. An Amendment to the Letter of Intent was submitted
on April 26, 2005, updating the location of the proposed FSRU. The
proposed location of the FSRU is approximately nine (9) miles off the
coast of Riverhead, New York, and about 11 miles from the nearest
Connecticut shoreline.
FERC will be the lead agency for the Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS) mandated by the National Environmental Policy Act. To help FERC
make sure that the EIS covers the Coast Guard's Letter of
Recommendation and other actions under this proposal, the Coast Guard
will serve as a cooperating agency.
The proposed FSRU would serve as an LNG import terminal. LNG
carriers (ships) would berth at the FSRU and LNG would be transferred
from the carriers to the storage tanks located on the FSRU. The
Broadwater FSRU is designed to have an onboard LNG storage capacity of
up to 350,000 cubic meters (m3). The LNG would then be re-
gasified and metered into natural gas pipelines. The terminal would
connect with the existing subsea Iroquois Gas Transmission System
pipeline via an underwater connecting pipeline that would be about 25
miles long.
LNG would be delivered to the terminal in double-hulled LNG
carriers. Typical LNG carriers currently have a carrying capacity of
135,000 m3 (4,767,480 ft3). The largest LNG
tanker in operation has a capacity of 145,000 m3 (5,120,627
ft3). Current LNG carriers are approximately 900 to 1000
feet long with up to approximately a 145 foot wide beam, and draw
between 36 and 39 feet of water. Larger LNG carriers capable of
transporting as much as 225,000 m3 to 250,000 m3
(7,945,799 ft33 to 8,828,666 ft33) of LNG are
being considered. The Broadwater FSRU would receive approximately
between 2 and 3 vessels per week, or approximately 100 to 160 LNG
vessels per year, depending upon natural gas demand and carrier size.
The U.S. Coast Guard exercises regulatory authority over LNG
facilities which affect the safety and security of port areas and
navigable waterways under Executive Order 10173, the Magnuson Act (50
U.S.C. 191), the Ports and Waterways Safety Act of 1972, as amended (33
U.S.C. 1221, et seq.) and the Maritime Transportation Security Act of
2002 (46 U.S.C. 701). The Coast Guard is responsible for matters
related to navigation safety, vessel engineering and safety standards.
The Coast Guard also has authority for LNG facility security plan
review, approval, and compliance verification as provided in Title 33
CFR part 105, and recommendation for siting as it pertains to the
management of vessel traffic in and around the LNG facility.
Upon receipt of a letter of intent from an owner or operator
intending to build a new LNG facility, the Coast Guard COTP conducts an
analysis that results in a letter of recommendation issued to the owner
or operator and to the state and local governments within whose
jurisdictions the proposed facility lies, addressing the suitability of
the waterway to accommodate LNG vessels. Specifically, the letter of
recommendation addresses the suitability of the waterway based on:
The physical location and layout of the facility and its
berthing and mooring arrangements.
The LNG vessels' characteristics and the frequency of LNG
shipments to the facility.
Commercial, industrial, environmentally sensitive, and
residential areas in and adjacent to the waterway used by the LNG
vessels en route to the facility.
Density and character of marine traffic on the waterway.
Bridges or other manmade obstructions in the waterway.
Depth of water.
Tidal range.
Natural hazards, including rocks and sandbars.
Underwater pipelines and cables.
Distance of berthed LNG vessels from the channel, and the
width of the channel.
In addition, the Coast Guard will review and approve the facility's
operations manual and emergency response plan (33 CFR 127.019), as well
as the facility's security plan (33 CFR 105.410). The Coast Guard will
also provide input to other Federal, State, and local government
agencies reviewing the project.
FERC is the lead Federal agency responsible for licensing LNG
facilities located on shore and within state waters. Under an
interagency agreement, the Coast Guard will provide input to, and
coordinate with, FERC on maritime safety and security aspects of the
proposed Broadwater LNG project. FERC will be the lead agency for the
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) mandated by the National
Environmental Policy Act. To help FERC make sure that the EIS covers
the Coast Guard's Letter of Recommendation and other actions under this
proposal, the Coast Guard will serve as a cooperating agency.
In order to complete a thorough analysis and fulfill the regulatory
mandates cited above, the COTP Long Island Sound will be conducting an
assessment of the various safety and security aspects associated with
the proposed Broadwater LNG proposed project. This assessment will be
accomplished through a series of workshops focusing on the areas of
waterways safety, port security, and consequence management, with
involvement from a broad cross-section of government and port
stakeholders with expertise in each of the respective areas. The
workshops will be by invitation only. However, comments
[[Page 48182]]
received during the public comment period will be considered as input
into the assessment process.
Additional Information
Additional information about the Broadwater LNG project is
available from FERC's Office of External Affairs at 1-866-208-FERC or
on the FERC Internet Web site (http://www.ferc.gov) using their
eLibrary link. Comments relating to aspects other than marine safety
and security aspects associated with the proposed Broadwater LNG
facility may be submitted at this Web site. For assistance, please
contact FERC online support at FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov or toll free
at 1-866-208-3676, or for TTY contact 1-202-502-8659.
Information on Services for Individuals with Disabilities. For
information on facilities or services for individuals with
disabilities, or to request assistance at the meeting, contact LT A.
Logman listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT as soon as
possible.
Dated: August 9, 2005.
Peter J. Boynton,
Captain, U.S. Coast Guard, Captain of the Port Long Island Sound.
[FR Doc. 05-16287 Filed 8-12-05; 1:32 pm]
BILLING CODE 4910-15-P