[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 130 (Tuesday, July 8, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36507-36509]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-17691]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. CP97-526-000]


Southern Natural Gas Company; Notice of Intent to Prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed East Tennessee Expansion 
Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

July 1, 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 proposed by the Southern Natural Gas Company (Southern) 
for its East Tennessee Expansion 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\ Southern's application was filed with the Commission on May 
15, 1997 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

    Southern proposes to expand the capacity of certain of its 
facilities in

[[Page 36508]]

Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama to meet requests from 15 shippers for 
firm transportation service totaling about 65,000 thousand cubic feet 
per day of natural gas. Southern seeks authority to construct and 
operate the following facilities:
     East Tennessee Lateral--2.9 miles of 8-inch-diameter 
pipeline, in Catoosa County, Georgia and Hamilton County, Tennessee.
     Ocmulgee-Atlanta Loop \2\--8.0 miles of 30-inch-diameter 
pipeline, in Spalding and Henry Counties, Georgia.
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    \2\ A loop is a segment of pipeline installed adjacent to an 
existing pipeline and connected to the existing line on both ends. 
The loop allows more gas to be moved through the pipeline system.
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     2nd North Main Loop--2.8 miles of 24-inch-diameter 
pipeline, in Pickens County, Alabama.
     South Main 3rd Loop--4.6 miles of 30-inch-diameter 
pipeline, in Perry County, Alabama.
     Macon Branch Loop Line--replace 10.0 miles of existing 12-
inch-diameter pipeline with 16-inch-diameter pipeline, in Fulton and 
Clayton Counties, Georgia.
     Cartersville Gate Regulator Station--new regulator station 
at milepost (MP) 41.6 on Southerns Chattanooga Line in Floyd County, 
Georgia.
     East Tennessee Meter Station--new meter station at the 
terminus of Southerns proposed East Tennessee Lateral, in Hamilton 
County, Tennessee.
     Cleveland Branch Meter Station--expand an existing mater 
station at MP 21.1 on Southerns Cleveland Branch Line, in Bradley 
County, Tennessee.
     Rome Compressor Station--new 4,700 horsepower (hp) 
compressor station at MP 51.2 on Southerns Chattanooga Line in Floyd 
County, Georgia.
     York Compressor Station--uprate two existing compressor 
units from 6,500 hp each to 9,160 hp, in Sumter County, Alabama.
     Auburn Compressor Station--uprate two existing compressor 
units from 6,500 hp each to 9,160 hp, in Lee County, Alabama.
     Bell Mills Compressor Station--add a new 1,600 hp 
compressor unit to an existing compressor station, in Cleburne County, 
Alabama.
     Chattanooga Line--increase the maximum allowable operating 
pressure from the existing 1,114 pounds per square inch gage (psig) to 
1,200 psig in two segments, from about MP 0.8 to MP 41.6 and MP 51.2 to 
MP 114.9.
    The general location of the proposed project facilities are shown 
in appendix 1.\3\ Southern indicated the project would cost 
$52,179,005, and seeks an in-service date of November 1998.
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    \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, 888 
First 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

    Construction of the proposed facilities would disturb a total of 
about 353 acres. Of this, about 181 acres is currently existing 
permanent right-of-way, and about 27 acres would be added as new 
permanent right-of-way. The other 145 acres of temporary construction 
right-of-way 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
 Air quality and noise
 Endangered and threatened species
 Cultural resources
 Land use
 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 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 make 
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 
environmental information provided by Southern. These issues include:
     Karst features, sinkholes, caves, and limestone deposits 
in the vicinity of the East Tennessee Lateral and South Main 3rd Loop.
     Potential for landslides or ground failure in the vicinity 
of the East Tennessee Lateral and Rome Compressor Station.
     Potential for paleontological resources in the vicinity of 
the South Main 3rd Loop.
     Prime farmland in the vicinity of the East Tennessee 
Lateral, Ocmulgee-Atlanta Loop, 2nd North Main Loop, South Main 3rd 
Loop, Rome Compressor Station, and East Tennessee Meter Station.
     Crossing 32 perennial waterbodies, all classified as 
warmwater fisheries, of which two streams (Cahaba River and a tributary 
to the Cahaba) are over 100 feet wide.
     Crossing 36 wetlands totaling 9.5 acres.
     Crossing three streams with the potential for sensitive 
mussel species.
     Eleven archaeological sites identified along proposed 
project components.
     Eighteen residences within 50 feet of the construction 
right-of-way.
    This preliminary list of issues may be 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 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

[[Page 36509]]

comments are received and properly recorded:
     Send two copies of your comments to:

Lois Cashell, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 
First St., N.E., Room 1A, Washington, D.C. 20426;
 Reference Docket No. CP97-526-000; and
 Mail your comments so that they will be received in 
Washington, D.C. on or before August 4, 1997.

Becoming an Intervenor

    In addition to involvement in the EA scoping process, you may want 
to become an official party to the proceeding, known as 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 on the Commission's service list for this 
proceeding. 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 timely motions to intervene in this proceeding 
has passed, having ended June 23, 1997. 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.
Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 97-17691 Filed 7-7-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M