[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 58 (Friday, March 26, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14590-14591]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-6682]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. CP10-50-000]
Petal Gas Storage, L.L.C.; Notice of Intent To Prepare an
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Cavern 12A Conversion Gas
Storage Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues
March 19, 2010.
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 Cavern 12A Conversion Gas
Storage Project involving construction and operation of facilities
proposed by Petal Gas Storage, L.L.C. (Petal) in Forrest County,
Mississippi. 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.
This notice announces the opening of the scoping process we will
use to gather input from the public and interested agencies on the
project. Your input will help the Commission staff determine what
issues need to be evaluated in the EA. Please note that the scoping
period will close on April 23, 2010.
This notice is being sent to the Commission's current environmental
mailing list for this project. State and local government
representatives are asked to 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, you may be contacted
by a pipeline company representative 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 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 that Petal 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 also available for viewing on the FERC Web site (http://www.ferc.gov).
Summary of the Proposed Project
Petal proposes to purchase an existing salt-brine storage cavern
(12A) from an affiliate, and convert it into a natural gas storage
cavern. The proposed facilities would mostly be within Petal's existing
storage field on the Petal Salt Dome. The project would increase
Petal's firm natural gas storage capacity to meet anticipated growing
demand for storage services in the Southeastern United States. Petal
would rework the existing well and expand the underground storage
capacity of Cavern 12A through solution mining. Cavern 12A would have
an overall capacity of about 8.2 billion cubic feet (Bcf), consisting
of 5.0 Bcf of working gas and 3.2 Bcf of cushion gas.
The proposed facilities include:
Existing Cavern 12A to be converted from brine storage to
natural gas storage;
New 16-inch-diamter pipeline, about 1,525-feet-long,
connecting Cavern 12A with Petal's existing withdrawal header between
existing Caverns 6 and 7; and
New appurtenant facilities grouped near existing Petal
Compressor Station 2, including a withdrawal separator, heat exchanger,
hot oil pump, pressure regulator, and Triethylene Glycol contactor and
regeneration skid.
The general location of the proposed facilities is shown in
Appendix 1.\1\
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\1\ The appendices referenced in this notice are not being
printed in the Federal Register. Copies of appendices were sent to
all those receiving this notice in the mail and are available at
http://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.
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Land Requirements for Construction
Petal estimated that about 39 acres of land would be disturbed by
construction of the proposed facilities. About 5.8 acres would be
retained for Petal's permanent operational easement, following
construction. The remaining temporary construction acreage would be
restored to its former condition and 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 be addressed in the EA. All
comments received will be considered during the preparation of the EA.
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\2\ ``We,'' ``us,'' and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff
of the Commission's Office of Energy Projects.
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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 and wetlands;
Vegetation and wildlife;
Cultural resources;
Land use;
Air quality and noise; and
Safety and reliability.
[[Page 14591]]
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 various resources. Our independent analysis
of the environmental issues will be presented in the EA.
The EA will be placed in the public record and, depending on the
comments received during the scoping process, may be published and
distributed to the public. A comment period will be allotted if the EA
is published for review. 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 of this notice (below).
With this notice, we are asking agencies with jurisdiction and/or
special expertise with respect to environmental issues to formally
cooperate with us in the preparation of the EA. These agencies may
choose to participate once they have evaluated the proposal relative to
their responsibilities. 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 (below).
Consultations Under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation
Act
In accordance with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation's
implementing regulations, we are using this notice to solicit the views
of the public on the project's potential effects on historic
properties.\3\ We will document our findings on the impacts on cultural
resources, and summarize the status of consultations under section 106
of the National Historic Preservation Act in our EA.
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\3\ The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation's regulations
are at Title 36, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 800. Historic
properties are defined in those regulations 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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Public Participation
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. The more specific
your comments, the more useful they will be. To ensure that your
comments are timely and properly recorded, please send your comments so
that they will be received in Washington, DC on or before April 23,
2010.
For your convenience, there are three methods which you can use to
submit your written comments to the Commission. The Commission
encourages electronic filing of comments and has expert eFiling staff
available to assist you at 202-502-8258 or [email protected].
(1) You may file your comments electronically by using the Quick
Comment feature, which is located at http://www.ferc.gov under the link
called ``Documents and Filings.'' Quick Comment is an easy method for
interested persons to submit text-only comments on a project;
(2) You may file your comments electronically by using the
``eFiling'' feature that is listed under the ``Documents and Filings''
link. eFiling involves preparing your submission in the same manner as
you would if filing on paper, and then saving the file on your
computer's hard drive. You will attach that file to your submission.
New eFiling users must first create an account by clicking on the links
called ``Sign up'' or ``eRegister.'' You will be asked to select the
type of filing you are making. A comment on a particular project is
considered a ``Comment on a Filing;'' or
(3) You may file a paper copy of your comments at the following
address: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, 888 First Street, NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426.
Environmental Mailing List
The environmental mailing list includes federal, state, and local
government representatives and agencies; elected officials;
environmental and public interest groups; Indian tribes that
historically used or occupied the project area; 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 the EA is published for distribution, 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 intervenor are
included in the User's Guide under the ``e-filing'' link on the
Commission's Web site.
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
Internet at 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
(i.e., CP10-50). Be sure you have selected an appropriate date range.
For assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at
[email protected] or toll free at 1-866-208-3676, 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 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/EventCalendar/EventsList.aspx along with other related information.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2010-6682 Filed 3-25-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P