[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 222 (Friday, November 17, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57704-57705]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-28426]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
[Docket No. CP96-10-000]
Transwestern Pipeline Company; Notice of Intent To Prepare an
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed San Juan Expansion Project
and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues
November 13, 1995.
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 construction and operation of
the facilities proposed in the San Juan 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 to approve the project.
\1\ Transwestern Pipeline Company's application was filed with
the Commission under section 7 of the Natural Gas Act and part 157
of the Commission's regulations.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Summary of the Proposed Project
Transwestern Pipeline Company (Transwestern) proposes to:
construct a 10,000-horsepower (hp) electric driven Bisti
Compressor Station (C.S.) in San Juan County, New Mexico;
add a 7,000-hp electric driven compressor to the existing
Bloomfield C.S. in San Juan County, New Mexico;
operate an existing 4,132-hp gas compressor at the
Bloomfield C.S. originally certificated as a back-up compressor;
adjust its capacity on its mainline and San Juan Lateral
facilities on a flexible basis in response to market demands for San
Juan gas. This would require changing the pressure in its mainline
facilities from the current level of 950 pounds per square inch
gauge (psig) to as low as 800 psig, to the extent required to meet
reduced market demand for firm transportation capacity to
California, but high demand for San Juan gas in Arizona, California
and Transwestern's eastern markets; and
purchase from Northwest Pipeline Corporation (Northwest) a
77.7 percent ownership interest in Northwest's south end mainline
extension facilities extending from the Ignacio C.S. near Ignacio,
Colorado to the Blanco Hub near Bloomfield, New Mexico.
The location of the facilities is shown in appendix 1.\2\
\2\ 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, 888
First Street NW., Washington, DC 20426, or call (202) 208-1371.
Copies of the appendices were sent to all those receiving this
notice in the mail.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Transwestern would bring electrical power to the compressor
stations to operate the electrical driven compressors.
Land Requirements for Construction
Construction of the new Bisti C.S. would require about 3.5 acres of
land. Transwestern would fence about 2.1 acres for the compressor site
facilities. No additional land would be required for the proposed
facilities at the existing Bloomfield C.S.
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
this Notice of Intent, the Commission requests public comments on the
scope of the issues it will address in the EA. All comments received
are considered during the preparation of the EA. State and local
government representatives are encouraged to notify their constituents
of this proposed action and encourage them to comment on their areas of
concern.
The EA will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of the
construction and operation of the proposed project under these general
headings:
land use
water resources, fisheries, and wetlands \3\
\3\ According to the applicant, the project will not affect any
waters of the United States. We will report any potential impacts,
or their absence, under this heading.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
cultural resources
public safety
air quality and noise
endangered and threatened species
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
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 one issue that we think deserves
attention based on a preliminary review of the proposed facilities and
the environmental information provided by Transwestern:
[[Page 57705]]
The proposed compressor station and additional compression
proposed at the existing compressor stations may increase ambient
noise levels.
Keep in mind that this is a preliminary issue. Issues may be
added, subtracted, or changed based on your comments and our
analysis.
Public Participation
You can make a difference by sending a letter addressing 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 locations), 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, 888 First Street NE., Washington, DC
20426;
Reference Docket No. CP96-10-000;
Send a copy of your letter to: Mr. Herman K. Der, EA
Project Manager, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First
St., NE., 7th Floor (PR11.1), Washington, DC 20426; and
Mail your comments so that they will be received in
Washington, DC on or before December 20, 1995.
If you wish to receive a copy of the EA, you should request one
from Mr. Herman K. Der 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) (see
appendix 2).
The date for filing of timely motions to intervene in this
proceeding has passed. Therefore, parties now seeking to file late
interventions must 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.
Additional information about the proposed project is available from
Mr. Herman K. Der, EA Project Manager, at (202) 208-0896.
Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 95-28426 Filed 11-16-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M