[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3124 Introduced in House (IH)]






109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3124

 To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to allow the Columbia Gas 
  Transmission Corporation to increase the diameter of a natural gas 
  pipeline located in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 29, 2005

 Mr. Sherwood introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                         Committee on Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to allow the Columbia Gas 
  Transmission Corporation to increase the diameter of a natural gas 
  pipeline located in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Delaware Water Gap National 
Recreation Area Natural Gas Pipeline Enlargement Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Corporation.--The term ``Corporation'' means the 
        Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation.
            (2) Pipeline.--The term ``pipeline'' means that portion of 
        the pipeline of the Corporation numbered 1278 that is--
                    (A) located in the Recreation Area; and
                    (B) situated on 2 tracts designated by the 
                Corporation as ROW No. 16405 and No. 16413.
            (3) Recreation area.--The term ``Recreation Area'' means 
        the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area in the 
        Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
            (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Interior.
            (5) Superintendent.--The term ``Superintendent'' means the 
        Superintendent of the Recreation Area.

SEC. 3. EASEMENT FOR EXPANDED NATURAL GAS PIPELINE.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary may enter into an agreement with the 
Corporation to grant to the Corporation, for no consideration, an 
easement to enlarge the diameter of the pipeline from 14 inches to not 
more than 20 inches.
    (b) Terms and Conditions.--The easement authorized under subsection 
(a) shall--
            (1) be consistent with--
                    (A) the recreational values of the Recreation Area; 
                and
                    (B) protection of the resources of the Recreation 
                Area;
            (2) include provisions for the protection of resources in 
        the Recreation Area that ensure that only the minimum and 
        necessary amount of disturbance, as determined by the 
        Secretary, shall occur during the construction or maintenance 
        of the enlarged pipeline;
            (3) be consistent with the laws (including regulations) and 
        policies applicable to units of the National Park System; and
            (4) be subject to any other terms and conditions that the 
        Secretary determines to be necessary;
    (c) Permits.--
            (1) In general.--The Superintendent may issue a permit to 
        the Corporation for the use of the Recreation Area in 
        accordance with subsection (b) for the temporary construction 
        and staging areas required for the construction of the enlarged 
        pipeline.
            (2) Prior to issuance.--The easement authorized under 
        subsection (a) and the permit authorized under paragraph (1) 
        shall require that before the Superintendent issues a permit 
        for any clearing or construction, the Corporation shall--
                    (A) consult with the Superintendent;
                    (B) identify natural and cultural resources of the 
                Recreation Area that may be damaged or lost because of 
                the clearing or construction; and
                    (C) submit to the Superintendent for approval a 
                restoration and mitigation plan that--
                            (i) describes how the land subject to the 
                        easement will be maintained; and
                            (ii) includes a schedule for, and 
                        description of, the specific activities to be 
                        carried out by the Corporation to mitigate the 
                        damages or losses to, or restore, the natural 
                        and cultural resources of the Recreation Area 
                        identified under subparagraph (B).
    (d) Pipeline Replacement Requirements.--The enlargement of the 
pipeline authorized under subsection (a) shall be considered to meet 
the pipeline replacement requirements required by the Research and 
Special Programs Administration of the Department of Transportation 
(CPF No. 1-2002-1004-H).
    (e) FERC Consultation.--The Corporation shall comply with all other 
requirements for certification by the Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission that are necessary to permit the increase in pipeline size.
    (f) Limitation.--The Secretary shall not grant any additional 
increases in the diameter of, or easements for, the pipeline within the 
boundary of the Recreation Area after the date of enactment of this 
Act.
    (g) Effect on Right-of-Way Easement.--Nothing in this Act increases 
the 50-foot right-of-way easement for the pipeline.
    (h) Penalties.--On request of the Secretary, the Attorney General 
may bring a civil action against the Corporation in United States 
district court to recover damages and response costs under Public Law 
101-337 (16 U.S.C. 19jj et seq.) or any other applicable law if--
            (1) the Corporation--
                    (A) violates a provision of--
                            (i) an easement authorized under subsection 
                        (a); or
                            (ii) a permit issued under subsection (c); 
                        or
                    (B) fails to submit or timely implement a 
                restoration and mitigation plan approved under 
                subsection (c)(3); and
            (2) the violation or failure destroys, results in the loss 
        of, or injures any park system resource (as defined in section 
        1 of Public Law 101-337 (16 U.S.C. 19jj)).
                                 <all>