[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 143 (Friday, July 24, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44873-44875]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-16087]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket Nos. CP20-484-000 and CP20-485-000]
ANR Pipeline Company; Great Lakes Transmission Limited
Partnership; Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environment Assessment for
the Proposed Alberta Xpress and Lease Capacity Abandonment Projects
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 Alberta Xpress Project
involving construction and operation of facilities by ANR Pipeline
Company (ANR) in Evangeline Parish, Louisiana, and the Lease Capacity
Abandonment Project proposed by Great Lakes Transmission Limited
Partnership (GLTLP), which is associated with the Alberta Xpress
Project. 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 about issues regarding the project. The National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) requires the Commission to take into account the
environmental impacts that could result from its action whenever it
considers the issuance of a Certificate of Public Convenience and
Necessity. NEPA also requires the Commission to discover concerns the
public may have about proposals. This process is referred to as
``scoping.'' The main goal of the
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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 issues to address in the EA. To ensure that
your comments are timely and properly recorded, please submit your
comments so that the Commission receives them in Washington, DC on or
before 5:00pm Eastern Time on August 20, 2020.
You can make a difference by submitting 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 determine what issues they need to evaluate in the EA. Commission
staff will consider all filed comments during the preparation of the
EA.
If you sent comments on this project to the Commission before the
opening of this docket on June 22, 2020, you will need to file those
comments in Docket No. CP20-484-000 and/or CP20-485-000 to ensure they
are considered as part of this proceeding.
This notice is being sent to the Commission's current environmental
mailing list for these projects. State and local government
representatives should notify their constituents of the proposed
projects 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 easement agreement. You
are not required to enter into an agreement. However, if the Commission
approves the projects, that approval conveys with it the right of
eminent domain. Therefore, if you and the company do not reach an
easement agreement, the pipeline company could initiate condemnation
proceedings in court. In such instances, compensation would be
determined by a judge in accordance with state law.
ANR 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) under the natural gas Landowner Topics
link.
Public Participation
The Commission offers a free service called eSubscription which
makes it easy to stay informed of all issuances and submittals
regarding the dockets/projects to which you subscribe. These instant
email notifications are the fastest way to receive notification and
provide a link to the document files which can reduce the amount of
time you spend researching proceedings. Go to https://www.ferc.gov/ferc-online/overview to register for eSubscription.
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 staff available to assist you at (866) 208-
3676 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, which is on the Commission's website (www.ferc.gov) under the
link to FERC Online. Using eComment 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, which is also on the Commission's website (www.ferc.gov) under
the link to FERC Online. 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.'' 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 can file a paper copy of your comments by mailing them to
the following address using the U.S. Postal Service. Be sure to
reference the project docket number (CP20-484-000 and/or CP20-485-000)
with your submission: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Room 1A, Washington, DC
20426. Submissions sent through carriers other than the U.S. Postal
Service must be sent to 12225 Wilkins Avenue, Rockville, Maryland 20852
for processing.
Summary of the Proposed Project
CP20-484-000
ANR proposes to construct and operate one new greenfield compressor
station (designated as the Turkey Creek Compressor Station) in
Evangaline Parish, Louisiana and acquire a lease between ANR and GLTLP.
ANR has executed binding precedent agreements with two shippers to
provide 165,000 Dekatherms per day.
The Alberta Xpress Project would consist of one new compressor
station, which would include the following facilities:
One 15,900 ISO horsepower gas-fired turbine compressor;
three inlet filter separators;
three discharge gas cooling bays;
36-inch-diameter suction and discharge piping;
16-inch-diameter cold recycle valves and piping;
16-inch-diameter unit control valve and bypass piping; and
related appurtenant facilities.
The general location of the project facilities is shown in appendix
1.\1\
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\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.
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CP20-485-000
GTLP proposes to abandon firm capacity by a lease agreement with
ANR. No new construction is proposed as part of the Lease Capacity
Abandonment Project; however, this is related to the application filed
by ANR to construct and operate the Alberta Xpress Project.
Land Requirements for Construction
Construction of the proposed ANR facilities would require the use
of 23.7 acres of land during construction, resulting in both temporary
and permanent impacts. Following construction, ANR would maintain about
12.3 acres associated with the installation of the proposed aboveground
facilities, including foundation or impervious surfaces within the
footprint of the proposed Turkey Creek Compressor Station. ANR would
restore the remaining acreage following construction and allow it to
revert to former uses.
The EA Process
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;
water resources and wetlands;
vegetation and wildlife;
threatened and endangered species;
cultural resources;
land use;
socioeconomics;
air quality and noise;
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public safety; and
cumulative impacts
Commission staff 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 Commission staffs' independent analysis of the
issues. The EA will be available in electronic format in the public
record through eLibrary \2\ and the Commission's natural gas
environmental documents web page (https://www.ferc.gov/industries-data/natural-gas/environment/environmental-documents). If eSubscribed, you
will receive instant email notification when the EA is issued. The EA
may be issued for an allotted public comment period. Commission staff
will consider all comments on the EA before making recommendations to
the Commission. To ensure Commission staff have the opportunity to
address your comments, please carefully follow the instructions in the
Public Participation section, beginning on page 2.
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\2\ For instructions on connecting to eLibrary, refer to the
last page of this notice.
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With this notice, the Commission is asking agencies with
jurisdiction by law and/or special expertise with respect to the
environmental issues of these projects to formally cooperate 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.
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\3\ The Council on Environmental Quality regulations addressing
cooperating agency responsibilities are at Title 40, Code of Federal
Regulations, Sec. 1501.6.
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Consultation 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, the Commission is using this notice to initiate
consultation with the applicable State Historic Preservation Office,
and to solicit their views and those of other government agencies,
interested Indian tribes, and the public on the projects' potential
effects on historic properties.\4\ The EA for this project will
document 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;
environmental and public interest groups; 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. Commission staff will update the environmental
mailing list as the analysis proceeds to ensure that Commission notices
related to this environmental review are sent to all individuals,
organizations, and government entities interested in and/or potentially
affected by the proposed project.
If the Commission issues the EA for an allotted public comment
period, a Notice of Availability of the EA will be sent to the
environmental mailing list and will provide instructions to access the
electronic document on the FERC's website (www.ferc.gov). If you need
to make changes to your name/address, or if you would like to remove
your name from the mailing list, please return the attached ``Mailing
List Update Form'' (appendix 2).
Additional Information
Additional information about the projects 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
in the ``Docket Number'' field, excluding the last three digits (i.e.,
CP20-484 or CP20-485). Be sure you have selected an appropriate date
range. For assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at
[email protected] or (866) 208-3676, or for TTY, contact (202)
502-8659. The eLibrary link also provides access to the texts of all
formal documents issued by the Commission, such as orders, notices, and
rulemakings.
Public sessions or site visits will be posted on the Commission's
calendar located at https://www.ferc.gov/news-events/events along with
other related information.
Dated: July 20, 2020.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2020-16087 Filed 7-23-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P