[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 122 (Wednesday, June 25, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34252-34253]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-16581]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. CP97-318-000]


Algonquin Gas Transmission Company; Notice of Intent To Prepare 
an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Taunton Municipal Lighting 
Plant Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

June 19, 1997.
    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, about 924 feet of 12-inch-diameter pipeline, a new 
meter station and appurtenant facilities, proposed in the Taunton 
Municipal Lighting Plant Project.\1\ This EA will be used by the 
Commission in its decision-making process to determine whether the 
project is in the public convenience and necessity.
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    \1\ Algonquin Gas Transmission Company'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

    Algonquin Gas Transmission Company (Algonquin) proposes to expand 
the capacity of its facilities in Massachusetts to transport an 
additional 27,000 million British thermal units per day of natural gas 
to the Taunton Municipal Lighting Plant (TMLP). Algonquin seeks 
authority to construct and operate:
     942 feet of 12-inch-diameter pipeline between the towns of 
Berkley and Taunton, Massachusetts;
     A new meter station on TMLP property in Taunton; and
     A tap and valving in Berkley.
    TMLP would construct about 150 feet of nonjurisdictional pipeline 
to connect

[[Page 34253]]

the meter station to the existing Cleary Flood generating station.
    The location of the project facilities is shown in appendix 1.\2\ 
If you are interested in obtaining procedural information please write 
to the Secretary of the Commission.
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    \2\ The appendices referenced in this notice are not being 
printed in the Federal Register. Copies are available from the 
Commissions Public Reference and Files Maintenance Branch, 888 First 
Street, N.E., 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

    Construction of the proposed facilities would require about 1.17 
acres of land. Following construction, about 0.58 acre would be 
maintained as new permanent right-of-way. The remaining 0.59 acre of 
land would be restored and allowed to revert to its former 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 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:
     Geology and soils
     Water resources, fisheries, and wetlands
     Vegetation and wildlife
     Endangered and threatened species
     Land use
     Cultural resources
     Air quality and noise
     Hazardous waste
     Public safety
    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 Commissions 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 make 
our recommendations to the Commission.

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 Algonquin. This preliminary 
list of issues may be changed based on your comments and our analysis.
     Crossing of the Taunton River by directional drilling.
     Location of the proposed directional drill target and pipe 
make-up area near the residences on Candice Lane.
     Location of a valve near the residences on Candice Lane.
     A potential alternative route that would be located 
entirely on the west side of the Taunton River.
    Also, we have made a preliminary decision to not address the 
impacts of the nonjurisdictional facilities. We will briefly describe 
their location and status in the EA.

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 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:
     Send two copies of your letter to: Lois Cashell, 
Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First St., N.E., 
Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426;
     Reference Docket No. CP97-318-000; and
     Mail your comments so that they will be received in 
Washington, DC on or before July 21, 1997.

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 
Commissions Rules of Practice and Procedure (18 CFR 385.214) (see 
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 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 comments considered.
Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 97-16581 Filed 6-24-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M