[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 20 (Tuesday, January 31, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5917-5918]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-2258]



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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
[Docket No. CP94-575-000]


El Paso Natural Gas Co.; Notice of Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed San Juan Triangle Expansion 
Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

January 25, 1995.
    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or the 
Commission) will prepare an environmental assessment (EA) that will 
discuss the potential environmental impacts of the construction and 
operation of the facilities proposed by El Paso Natural Gas Company (El 
Paso) for its San Juan Triangle Expansion Project.\1\ This EA will be 
used by the Commission in its decision-making process to determine 
whether an environmental impact statement is necessary and whether or 
not to approve the project.

    \1\El Paso's application was filed with the Commission under 
section 7 of the Natural Gas Act and Part 157 of the Commission's 
regulations on June 1, 1994.
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Summary of the Proposed Project

    El Paso seeks Commission authorization to:
     Construct and operate approximately 29.7 miles of 34-inch-
diameter pipeline loop\2\ between El Paso's existing Blanco Plant and 
its Gallup Compressor Station, in San Juan County, New Mexico; and

    \2\A loop is a segment of pipeline installed adjacent to an 
existing pipeline and connected to it on both ends. The loop allows 
more gas to be moved through that segment of the pipeline system.
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     Install a replacement compressor unit on one of the 
turbines at El Paso's existing Gallup Compressor Station, in McKinley 
County, New Mexico.
    The proposed San Juan Triangle Expansion Project would allow El 
Paso to receive additional volumes of natural gas from the San Juan 
Basin area and transport up to 300,000 thousand cubic feet per day 
through the new loop to its customers. The general location of the 
project facilities is shown in appendix 1.\3\

    \3\The appendices referenced in this notice are not being 
printed in the Federal Register. Copies are available from the 
Commission's Public Reference and Files Maintenance Branch, Room 
3104, 941 North Capitol Street, NE., Washington, D.C. 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

    The proposed loop would be constructed parallel to an existing 
pipeline corridor which already contains five other pipelines for 
approximately 16.7 miles and two other pipelines for about 13 miles. 
The new loop would be installed 30 feet west of the existing El Paso 
Blanco Plant to Gallup Station Loop Line, except at locations where 
terrain or other factors dictate a wider spacing. The construction 
right-of-way would be 100 feet wide, beginning 10 feet west of the 
existing loop.
    El Paso would acquire an additional 10 to 30 feet of new permanent 
right-of-way for the proposed loop, and 50 feet of temporary work space 
would be needed west of the new permanent right-of-way. Other temporary 
work space would be required adjacent to the planned construction 
right-of-way at road and stream crossings. Following construction, the 
temporary work space would be allowed to revert to its former land use.

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 on important environmental issues. By this Notice of 
Intent, the Commission requests public comments on the scope of the 
issues we will address in the EA. All comments received are taken into 
account during the preparation of the EA. State and local government 
representatives are encouraged to notify their constituents of this 
proposed action and encourage the to comment on their areas of concern.
    The EA will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of the 
construction operation of the proposed project under these general 
headings:
     Geology and soils
     Water resources, fisheries, and wetlands
     Vegetation and wildlife
     Endangered and threatened species
     Land use
     Cultural resources
     Air quality and noise
    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 resources. [[Page 5918]] 
    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 
this proceeding. A comment period will be allotted for review if the EA 
is published. We will 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 in the EA, based on a preliminary review of the proposed 
facilities and the information provided by El Paso. 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 analysis. 
The environmental issues are:
     The proposed loop would be within allotted and Tribal 
lands administered by the Navajo Nation.
     The proposed loop would cross 4 major washes and 18 
ephemeral drainages.
     The proposed loop would disturb desert shrub and 
grasslands.
     The proposed loop could impact federally listed threatened 
and endangered species.
     The proposed loop could impact significant cultural 
resources.

Public Participation

    You can make a difference by sending a letter addressing your 
specific comments on concerns about the project. You should focus on 
the potential environmental effects of the proposal, alternatives to 
the proposal (including alternative routes), 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., N.E., Washington, 
D.C. 20426;
     Reference Docket No. CP94-575-000;
     Send a copy of your letter to: Paul Friedman, EA Project 
Manager, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 825 North Capitol St., 
N.E., Room 7312, Washington, D.C. 20426; and
     Mail your comments so that they will be received in 
Washington, D.C. on or before March 3, 1995.
    Additional information about the proposed project is available from 
Paul Friedman, EA Project Manager, at (202) 208-1108. If the EA is 
published for comment and you wish to receive a copy of the EA, you 
should request one from Mr. Friedman 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 become 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 
mut show good cause, as required by section 385.214(b)(3), why this 
time limitation should be waived. Environmental issues have been viewed 
as good cause for late intervention. You do not need intervenor status 
to have your scoping comments considered.
Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 95-2258 Filed 1-30-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M