[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 48 (Thursday, March 12, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12112-12113]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-6324]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Minerals Management Service


Pacific Outer Continental Shelf Region

AGENCY: Mineral Management Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of the availability of environmental documents prepared 
for Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) pipeline installation proposal on the 
Pacific OCS.

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SUMMARY: The Minerals Management Service (MMS), in accordance with 
Federal regulations (40 CFR Section 1501.4 and Section 1506.6) that 
implement the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), announces the 
availability of a NEPA-related Environmental Assessment prepared by the 
MMS for pipeline installation activities proposed on the Pacific OCS. 
This listing includes the only proposal for which a Finding of No 
Significant Impact (FONSI) was prepared by the Pacific OCS Office in 
the 3-month period preceding this Notice.

Proposal

    Exxon proposes to install a 12.75 inch outside diameter (OD) gas 
pipeline which would be approximately 7 miles in length in the Santa 
Ynez Unit (SYU) from Platform Heritage to Platform Harmony. This 
proposal is a change from the currently approved 17-mile gas pipeline 
which was planned to be installed from Platform Heritage to the Las 
Flores Canyon onshore facility. Compared to the currently approved 
project, the proposed modification would reduce the length of the 
pipeline needed to be installed by 10 miles, since the currently-
proposed pipeline would not be installed all the way to shore. The 
proposed pipeline would be placed in the same surveyed area as the 
currently-installed Platform Heritage to Platform Harmony oil emulsion 
pipeline and power cables. The proposed gas pipeline would be installed 
in water depths ranging from 1,090 to 1,350 ft. The pipeline would be 
used to transport

[[Page 12113]]

produced gas from Platform Heritage to Platform Harmony for connection 
to the existing gas pipeline between Platform Harmony and Platform 
Hondo. From Platform Hondo, the gas would enter the Pacific Offshore 
Pipeline Company (POPCO) pipeline for transfer to the onshore POPCO gas 
processing plant and/or the Exxon gas treating facilities in Las Flores 
Canyon. The pipeline would not increase peak gas rates above either 
Exxon's or POPCO's permitted values and would not require any 
modifications to the POPCO pipeline or gas plant facilities. The 
proposed gas pipeline capacity is 75 million cubic feet per day 
(MMCFPD).

Location

Leases
OCS-P0182
OCS-P0183
OCS-P0329

    EA Title: OCS Environmental Assessment, Platform Heritage to 
Platform Harmony Gas Pipeline, Santa Ynez Unit, Exxon Company, U.S.A., 
December 3, 1997.
    FONSI Date: December 3, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Persons interested in reviewing 
environmental documents for the proposal listed above, or in obtaining 
information about EA's and FONSI's prepared for activities on the 
Pacific OCS, are encouraged to contact the Pacific OCS Regional office 
of MMS. The FONSI and associated EA are available for public inspection 
between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday at: 
Minerals Management Service, Pacific OCS Region, Office of Public 
Affairs, 770 Paseo Camarillo, Camarillo, California 93010, phone: (805) 
389-7533. Request may also be sent to MMS to Ralph Snyder, Minerals 
Management Service, Pacific OCS Region, 770 Paseo Camarillo, Camarillo, 
California 93010. This EA has been posted on the Pacific OCS Region's 
homepage. The homepage address is: http://mmspub/omm/pacific/public/
homepg.html.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The MMS prepares EA's and FONSI's for 
proposal which related to exploration and development for oil and gas 
resources on the Pacific OCS. The EA's examine the potential 
environmental effects of activities described in the proposal and 
present MMS conclusions regarding the significance for those effects. 
The EA is used as a basis for determining whether or not approvals of 
the proposals constitute major Federal actions that significantly 
affect the quality of the human environment in the sense for NEPA 
102(2) (C). A FONSI is prepared in those instances where MMS finds that 
approval will not result in significant effects on the quality of the 
human environment. The FONSI briefly presents the basis for that 
finding and includes a summary of the EA. This Notice constitutes the 
public Notice of Availability of environmental documents required under 
the NEPA regulations.

    Dated: January 5, 1998.
Peter Tweedt,
Acting Regional Director, Pacific OCS Region,
Minerals Management Service.
[FR Doc. 98-6324 Filed 3-11-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-P