[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 30 (Monday, February 14, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-3354]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: February 14, 1994]



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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
[Docket No. CP93-672-000]

 

Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America; Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for Proposed Amarillo Upgrade Project and 
Request for Comments

February 8, 1994.

    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or the 
Commission) will prepare an environmental assessment (EA) that will 
discuss environmental impacts of the construction and operation of new 
facilities and the abandonment of existing facilities proposed in the 
Amarillo Upgrade Project.\1\ This EA will be used by the Commission in 
its decision-making process to determine whether an environmental 
impact statement is required and whether or not to approve the project.

    \1\Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America's application was 
filed with the Commission under section 7 of the Natural Gas Act and 
part 157 of the Commission's regulations.
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Summary of the Proposed Project

    Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America (Natural) wants Commission 
authorization to:

     Abandon about 490 miles of the Amarillo No. 1 mainline 
between Compressor Station 111 in Hutchinson County, Texas, and 
Compressor Station 198 in Marion County, Iowa;

     Abandon one 12,000-horsepower (hp) compressor engine at 
Compressor Station 195 in Washington County, Kansas;

     Construct and operate about 9.41 miles of new 30-inch-
diameter pipeline in Hutchinson County, Texas (Segment 1);

     Construct and operate about 5.1 miles of new 36-inch-
diameter pipeline in Ford County, Kansas (Segment 2);

     Construct and operate about 4.1 miles of new 36-inch-
diameter pipeline in Lincoln County, Kansas (Segment 3);

     Construct and operate about 9.46 miles of new 36-inch-
diameter pipeline in Otoe County, Nebraska (Segment 4); and

     Add 2,500 hp of compression by retrofitting an existing 
12,500-hp engine at Compressor Station 195, in Washington County, 
Kansas.

    The general location of these facilities is shown in appendix 1.\2\
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    \2\The appendices referenced in this notice are not being 
printed in the Federal Register. Copies are available from the 
Commission's Public Reference Branch, room 3104, 941 North Capitol 
Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426, or call (202) 208-1371. Copies of 
the appendices were sent to all those receiving this notice in the 
mail.

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Land Requirements for Construction

    Natural proposes to abandon about 490 miles of 24-inch-diameter 
Amarillo No. 1 mainline and to remove it over a 4- to 5-year period. 
Natural proposes to leave the pipe in place in sensitive areas (such as 
waterbody crossings, wetland crossings, and areas of cultural and 
sensitive biological resources) where it believes removal activities 
could result in significant environmental impacts.

    The Amarillo No. 1 mainline is next to the Amarillo No. 4 mainline. 
The segments of proposed new pipeline would loop\3\ the Amarillo No. 4 
mainline. The segments of proposed new pipeline would generally be 
placed in the same trench as the Amarillo No. 1 mainline after the 
segments of that pipeline are removed.

    \3\A loop is a segment of pipeline that is installed adjacent to 
an existing pipeline and connected to it at both ends. The loop 
allows more gas to be moved through the pipeline system at the 
location in which the loop is installed.
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    Natural proposes to use a 75-foot-wide to 100-foot-wide 
construction right-of-way, at least partly within existing rights-of-
way. Areas of steep slope, staging areas, and other areas where 
additional right-of-way would be needed to permit safe construction 
would be identified on a site-specific basis. No new permanent right-
of-way would be required. Abandonment of all 490 miles of pipe by 
removal and construction of the replacement pipeline would disturb 
about 5,900 acres. Most of the acreage disturbed would consist of 
existing pipeline right-of-way.

    One storage yard, about 4 acres in size, would be required for each 
of the four segments of new pipeline. Storage yards, about 6 acres in 
size, would be required about every 50 miles for the removal of the 
abandoned Amarillo No. 1 mainline. Private roads/lanes would be used to 
access the pipeline during construction and removal. These roads may 
require repair and upgrading to support increased traffic.

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 
to discover and address concerns the public may have about proposals. 
We call this ``scoping''. The main goal of the scoping process is to 
focus the analysis in the EA on the important environmental issues. By 
the Notice of Intent, the Commission requests public comments on the 
scope of the issues it will address in the EA. All comments received 
are taken into account during the preparation of the EA.

    The EA will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of the 
construction, operation, and abandonment of the proposed project 
facilities under these general headings:

     Geology and soils
     Water resources, fisheries, and wetlands
     Vegetation and wildlife
     Endangered and threatened species
     Land use
     Cultural resources
     Hazardous waste

    We will also evaluate possible 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.
    Our independent analysis of the issues will be in the EA. Depending 
on the comments received during the scoping process, the EA may be 
published and mailed to Federal, state, and local agencies, public 
interest groups, interested individuals, affected landowners, 
newspapers, libraries, and the Commission's official service list for 
these proceedings. A comment period will be allotted for review if the 
EA is published. We will then consider all comments on the EA before we 
recommend that the Commission approve or not approve the project.

Currently Identified Environmental Issues

    We have already identified several issues that we think deserve 
attention based on a preliminary review of the proposed facilities and 
the environmental information provided by Natural. Keep in mind that 
this is a preliminary list; the list of issues will be added to, 
subtracted from, or changed based on your comments and our own 
analysis. The currently identified issues are:
     The removal of abandoned pipeline and construction of new 
pipeline could affect 30.42 acres of wetlands.
     The project could cross habitat of the least tern, bald 
eagle, and whooping crane (federally listed endangered species) and of 
the piping plover (a federally listed threatened species).
     The project could cross habitat of the Arkansas darter, 
Arkansas river shiner, snowy plover, and eastern spotted skunk (Federal 
candidate species).
     Pipeline would be abandoned within the Fort Larned 
National Historic Site (a National Historic Landmark).
     The abandoned pipe may be coated with materials that 
contain asbestos.

Public Participation

    You can make a difference by sending a letter with your specific 
comments or concerns about the project. You should focus on the 
potential environmental effects of the proposal, alternatives to the 
proposal (including alternative routes for the loops), and measures to 
avoid or lessen environmental impact. The more specific your comments, 
the more useful they will be. Please follow the instructions below to 
ensure that your comments are received and properly recorded:
     Address your letter to: Lois Cashell, Secretary, Federal 
Energy Regulatory Commission, 825 North Capitol St., NE., Washington, 
DC 20426;
     Reference Docket No. CP93-672-000;
     Send a copy of your letter to: Mr. Mark Jensen, EA Project 
Manager, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 825 North Capitol St., 
NE., room 7312, Washington, DC 20426; and
     Mail your comments so that they will be received in 
Washington, DC on or before March 10, 1994.
    If you wish to receive a copy of the EA, you should request one 
from Mr. Mark Jensen of the Commission staff at the above address.

Becoming an Intervenor

    In addition to involvement in the EA scoping process, you may want 
to become an official party to the proceeding or an ``intervenor''. 
Among other things, intervenors have the right to receive copies of 
case-related Commission documents and filings by other intervenors. 
Likewise, each intervenor must provide copies of its filings to all 
other parties. If you want to become an intervenor, you must file a 
Motion to Intervene according to Rule 214 of the Commission's Rules of 
Practice and Procedure (18 CFR 385.214) attached as appendix 2.
    The date for filing timely motions to intervene in this proceeding 
has passed. Therefore, parties now seeking to file late interventions 
must show good cause, as required by Sec. 385.214(b)(3), why this time 
limitation should be waived. In certain cases environmental issues have 
been viewed as good cause for late intervention. Section 385.214(d) 
applies to grants of late intervention. You do not need intervenor 
status to have your scoping comments considered.
    Additional information about the proposed project is available from 
Mr. Mark Jensen, EA Project Manager, at (202) 208-1121.
Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 94-3354 Filed 2-11-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P