[Federal Register: August 10, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 154)]
[Notices]
[Page 45034-45035]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr10au07-72]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket Nos. CP06-470-000; CP06-471-000; CP06-472-000; CP06-473-000;
CP06-474-000]
Southern Lng Inc.; Elba Express Company, LLC; Southern Natural
Gas Company; Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact
Statement for the Elba III Project
August 3, 2007.
The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or
Commission) in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (COE);
U.S. Coast Guard (Coast Guard); and the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service has
prepared this final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Elba
III Project. The project is proposed by Southern Natural Gas Company
(Southern) and its subsidiaries Southern LNG Inc. (Southern LNG) and
Elba Express Company, L.L.C. (EEC). The proposed facilities consist of
an expansion of Southern LNG's existing onshore Elba Island Liquefied
Natural Gas (LNG) Import Terminal on the Savannah River in Georgia and
construction and operation of the Elba Express Pipeline--a natural gas
pipeline with compression and other appurtenant facilities in various
counties in Georgia and South Carolina.
The final EIS was prepared to satisfy the requirements of the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). Its purpose is to
inform the Commission, the public, and other permitting agencies about
the potential adverse and beneficial environmental impacts associated
with the proposed project. It also recommends practical, reasonable,
and appropriate mitigation measures which would avoid or reduce
significant adverse impacts to the maximum extent practicable and,
where feasible, to less than significant levels.
In addition to the proposed action, the final EIS evaluates
alternatives, including alternative energy sources, system
alternatives, alternative sites for the LNG import terminal,
alternative designs, pipeline alternatives, and alternatives to the
Coast Guard Letter of Recommendation (LOR) action. The final EIS
concludes that the Elba III Project is unlikely to result in
significant adverse environmental impact on particular resources within
the Zones of Concern because it is unlikely that a substantial cargo
release would occur. In addition, if the project is constructed and
operated in accordance with applicable laws and regulations, Southern
LNG and EEC's proposed mitigation, and the additional mitigation
recommendations (see section 5), it would be an environmentally
acceptable action.
Proposed Facilities--Elba Terminal Expansion
Southern LNG plans to construct and operate an expansion of its
existing LNG import terminal on Elba Island near Savannah, in Chatham
County, Georgia. The expansion would; (a) More than double the
terminal's LNG storage capacity by adding 405,000 cubic meters (m\3\)
of new storage; (b) substantially increase the facility's existing
vaporization capacity; (c) upgrade the terminal's send-out meter
station capacity by an additional 900 million cubic feet per day
(MMcfd); and (d) modify the terminal's LNG tanker berthing and
unloading facilities to accommodate larger tankers and provide
simultaneous unloading of two LNG tankers. Terminal expansion would
entail an increase in the frequency (and potentially the size) of LNG
vessels using the Savannah River transit route. All of the planned
facilities would be located entirely within the existing 190-acre
facility site on Elba Island.
The LNG terminal expansion would be constructed in two phases, A
and B. Phase A would be completed as early as January 2010 and would
include the following facilities:
a. One new 200,000 m\3\ (1.25 million barrels) LNG storage tank,
one associated boil-off gas condenser, and three boil-off gas
compressors;
b. Three submerged combustion vaporizers, each with a peak capacity
of 180 MMcfd (providing a total peak send-out capacity of 1,755 MMcfd
for the full facility at the completion of phase A); and
c. Modifications to the unloading docks to accommodate new, larger
LNG tankers and to allow simultaneous unloading of two LNG tankers. The
modifications to the dual berthing slip include:
Adding four mooring dolphins (two for each berth);
Dredging approximately 72,000 cubic yards of material from
the slope at the back of the existing slip (and
[[Page 45035]]
disposing of dredged material into the existing spoil disposal area
adjacent to the terminal); and
Installing a sheet pile bulkhead at the back of the slip.
These modifications would allow the slip to accommodate larger LNG
tankers with an approximate overall length of 345 meters (m) (compared
to the current 288 m), breadth of 55 m (currently 49 m), design laden
draft of 12.0 m (currently 11.7 m), and displacement of 177,000 metric
tons (currently 128,000 metric tons). Slip modifications are designed
to accommodate LNG vessels capable of transporting up to 266,000 m\3\
of LNG, although carriers currently in service and delivering to the
Elba terminal typically transport between 125,000 and 145,000 m\3\.
Phase B would be completed no later than December 2012 and would
include the following facilities:
a. One new 200,000 m\3\ LNG storage tank; and
b. Three submerged combustion vaporizers (two for service and one
spare), each with a peak send-out capacity of 360 MMcfd (providing a
total peak send-out capacity of 2,115 MMcfd for the full facility at
the completion of phase B).
Each of the two phases would include all necessary ancillary
equipment including related pumps, piping, controls and appurtenances,
and associated systems (electrical, mechanical, civil, instrumentation,
hazard detection, and fire protection) and buildings necessary to
accommodate the associated tanks and vaporizer units. Southern LNG
estimates that following the expansion, the terminal would receive LNG
shipments about every 5 to 10 days, depending on natural gas demand and
LNG carrier size.
Elba Express Pipeline
EEC plans to construct and operate about 188 miles of new natural
gas pipeline and appurtenant facilities in Georgia and South Carolina.
The pipeline would be constructed in two phases, extending between an
interconnection with Southern near Port Wentworth, Chatham County,
Georgia on the southern end and an interconnection with
Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Corporation (Transco) in Anderson
County, South Carolina on the northern end.
The first phase is proposed to be placed in service no later than
July 2011 with a design capacity of 945 MMcfd, and would consist of:
a. The ``Southern Segment,'' which includes about 104.8 miles of
42-inch-diameter pipeline extending from Port Wentworth to the existing
Southern Wrens Compressor Station (Wrens) in Jefferson County, Georgia
(to be collocated in a corridor with existing Southern pipelines); and
b. The ``Northern Segment,'' which includes about 10 miles of 42-
inch-diameter pipeline and 72.3 miles of 36-inch-diameter pipeline
extending from Wrens to interconnections with Transco in Hart County,
Georgia, and Anderson County, South Carolina.
The second phase would involve construction and operation of a new
compressor station of about 10,000 horsepower near Millen, Jenkins
County, Georgia. The compressor station would increase the pipeline
design capacity by 230 MMcfd to a total of 1,175 MMcfd, and is proposed
to be placed in service no later than January 2013.
The Coast Guard has assessed potential risks to navigation safety
and port security associated with the proposed project. The Coast
Guard's safety and security assessment is documented in the Captain of
the Port's Waterway Suitability Report (WSR). The final EIS includes an
analysis of the environmental impacts related to the Coast Guard's LOR
regarding the suitability of the Savannah River for more frequent and
larger LNG vessel operations.
The Coast Guard Captain of the Port will issue an LOR to Southern
LNG and the appropriate federal, state and local agencies, in
accordance with 33 CFR 127.009. The LOR, which will be based on the
Coast Guard's WSR, is an official determination regarding the
suitability or unsuitability of the waterway to support the proposed
terminal expansion and associated LNG marine traffic. The Coast Guard
intends to adopt all or portions of this EIS to serve as the NEPA
analysis for the LOR. The LOR will not be issued until after the NEPA
process has been completed.
Additional information about the Elba III Project and relevant
Coast Guard authorities and responsibilities can be obtained from:
Charlie Johnson, Port Security Specialist, Coast Guard Marine Safety
Unit Savannah, 100 W. Oglethorpe Avenue, JGL Federal Building,Savannah,
GA 31401, (912) 652-4353 ext. 271.
The final EIS has been placed in the public files of the FERC and
is available for distribution and public inspection at: Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, Public Reference Room, 888 First Street, NE.,
Room 2A, Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502-8371.
A limited number of hard copies and CD-ROMs are available from the
Public Reference Room identified above. CD-ROM copies of the final EIS
have been mailed to federal, state, and local agencies; public interest
groups; libraries and newspapers in the project area; affected
landowners; individuals who requested a copy of the final EIS; and
parties to these proceedings. Hard copy versions of the final EIS were
mailed to those specifically requesting them.
The COE is accepting comments on this final EIS for a period of 30
days after a notice of its availability is published in the Federal
Register. The COE is particularly interested in comments pertaining to
decisions it must make on the Elba III Project. These include a Section
404 Permit for expansion of the existing terminal, a Section 404 Permit
for wetland impacts associated with construction of the pipeline, an
easement where the pipeline crosses COE-managed lands, modifications to
existing COE wildlife mitigation lands, and approval for a large fuel-
carrying pipeline across federal property. Comments on these issues may
be submitted either by e-mail to the following address:
william.g.bailey@sas02.usace.army.mil or in hard copy to the following
address: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah District, ATTN: Mr.
William Bailey (PD-E), Post Office Box 889, Savannah, GA 31402-0889.
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 website (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, please contact FERC Online Support at
FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov or toll free at 1-866-208-3676, or for TTY,
contact (202) 502-8659. 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.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E7-15633 Filed 8-9-07; 8:45 am]
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