[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 246 (Thursday, December 21, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 80426-80428]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-32540]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

[Docket No. CP01-31-000]


Kern River Gas Transmission Company; Notice of Intent To Prepare 
an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Kern River Expansion 
Project, and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

December 15, 2000.
    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) will prepare an environmental assessment (EA) they will 
discuss the environmental impacts of the Kern River Expansion Project, 
involving construction and operation of facilities by Kern River Gas 
Transmission Company (Kern River) in Wyoming, Utah, and California.\1\ 
These facilities would consist of about 49,500 horsepower (hp) of 
compression distributed among three new and one existing compressor 
stations. No new mainline pipeline construction or looping is proposed. 
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\ Kern River's application was filed with the Commission under 
Section 7(c) of the Natural Gas and Subpart A of Part 157 of the 
Commission's regulations.
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    If you are a landowner receiving this notice, you may be contacted 
by a pipeline company representative about the acquisition of an 
easement to construct, operate, and maintain the proposed facilities. 
The pipeline company would seek to negotiate a mutually acceptable 
government. However, if the project is approved by the Commission, that 
approval conveys with it the right of eminent domain. Therefore, if 
easement negotiations fail to produce an agreement, the pipeline 
company could initiate condemnation proceedings in accordance with 
state law.
    A fact sheet prepared by the FERC entitled ``An Interstate Natural 
Gas Facility On My Land? What Do I Need To Know?'' was attached to the 
project notice Kern River provided to landowners. This fact sheet 
addresses a number of typically asked questions, including the use of 
eminent domain and how to participate in the Commission's proceeding. 
It is available for viewing on the FERC Internet website 
(www.ferc.fed.us)

Summary of the Proposed Project

    Kern River wants to expand the capacity of its existing system 
which extends between the southwest corner of Wyoming and the San 
Joaquin Valley near Bakersfield in southern California. The expansion 
would enable Kern River to transport an additional 124,500 million 
British thermal units per day of natural gas for four shippers. At 
least 40 percent of this gas would be directed to the electric power 
generation market in southern California. To support the expansion, 
Kern River seeks authority to construct and operate:
     A new 15,000-hp turbine-driven centrifugal compressor 
station in Utah

[[Page 80427]]

County, Utah, to be co-located with Kern River's existing pig 
launching/receiving facilities \2\ on a 27.8-acre site (the Elberta 
Compressor Station);
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    \2\ A pipeline ``pig'' is a device used to internally clean or 
inspect the pipeline. A pig launcher/receiver is a surface facility 
where pigs are inserted or retrieved from the pipeline.
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     A new 15,000-hp turbine-driven centrifugal compressor 
station in Washington County, Utah, on a 37.9-acre site (the Veyo 
Compressor Station);
     A new 6,500-hp electric motor-driven compressor station in 
San Bernardino County, California, to be co-located at the existing 
Daggett Interconnect Metering Facilities on a 27.-acre site (the 
Daggett Compressor Station); and
     An additional 13,000-hp compressor at its existing Muddy 
Creek Compressor Station in Lincoln County, Wyoming.
    Kern River would also restage a compressor at its existing Fillmore 
Compressor Station in Millard County, Utah, and upgrade metering 
facilities at two existing meter stations in Lincoln County, Wyoming 
(the Opal Receipt Meter Station), and Kern County, California (the 
Wheeler Ridge Delivery Meter Station). The general location of the 
project facilities in shown in appendix 1.\3\
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    \3\ The appendices referenced in this notice are not being 
printed in the Federal Register. Copies are available on the 
Commission's website at the ``RIMS'' link or from the Commission's 
Public Reference and Files Maintenance Branch, 888 First Street, 
NE., Washington, DC 20426, or call (202) 208-1371. For instructions 
on connecting to RIMS refer to the last page of this notice. Copies 
of the appendices were sent to all those receiving this notice in 
the mail.
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    Ancillary facilities at each new compressor station would include a 
compressor building, a compressor control building, and an auxiliary 
building; station piping and valves; and an auxiliary electric 
generator. Additionally, the Veyo Compressor Station would include gas 
coolers, filter/separate equipment, a pig launcher/receiver, a 4.3-
mile-long access road, and a 2.4-mile-long single wood pole power line. 
The Daggett Compressor Station would include filter/separator equipment 
and an electrical transformer (rather than an auxiliary electric 
generator).
    Installation of an additional compressor at the Muddy Creek 
Compressor Station would necessitate an extension of the existing 
compressor building and installation of additional gas coolers. Kern 
River also proposes to sandblast and re-coat about 200 feet of the 
existing buried 36-inch-diameter compressor discharge piping within the 
station yard.

Land Requirements for Construction

    Construction of the proposed facilities would require disturb about 
136 acres of land. Following construction, about 86 acres would be 
maintained as new aboveground facility sites (including upgraded access 
to the new Veyo Compressor Station). The remaining 50 acres 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 
\4\ 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.
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    \4\ ``We'', and ``our'' refer to the environment staff of the 
Office of Energy Projects (OEP).
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     geology and soils
     cultural resources
     vegetation and wildlife
     endangered and threatened species
     land use
     air quality and noise
     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 
our recommendations to the Commission.
    To ensure your comments are considered, please carefully follow the 
instructions in the public participation section beginning on page 5.

Currently Identified Environmental Issues

    We have already identified the following issue that we think 
deserves attention, based on a preliminary review of the proposed 
facilities and the environmental information provided by Kern River. 
This preliminary issue list may be changed based on your comments and 
our analysis.
     Fifteen federally listed endangered or threatened species 
may occur in the proposed project area.

Public Participation

    You can make a difference by providing us with your specific 
comments or concerns about the project. By becoming a commentor, your 
concerns will be addressed in the EA and considered by the Commission. 
You should focus on the potential environmental effects of the 
proposal, alternatives to the proposal (including alternative 
compressor station locations and/or access routes), and measures to 
avoid or lessen environmental impact. The more specific your comments, 
the more useful they will be. Please carefully follow these 
instructions to ensure that your comments are received in time and 
properly recorded:
     Send an original and two copies of your letter to: David 
P. Boergers, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First 
Street, NE, Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426.
     Label one copy of the comments for the attention of Gas 1.
     Reference Docket No. CP01-31-000.
     Mail your comments so that they will be received in 
Washington, DC on or before January 15, 2001.
    Comments may also be filed electronically via the Internet in lieu 
of paper. See 18 CFR 385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the instructions on the 
Commission's web site at http://www.ferc.fed.us/efi/doorbell.htm under 
the link to the User's Guide. Before you can file comments you will 
need to create an account which can be created by clicking on ``Login 
to File'' and then ``New User Account.''
    If you do not want to send comments at this time but still want to 
remain on our mailing list, please return the Information Request 
(appendix 3). If you do not return the Information Request, you will be 
taken off the mailing list.

Becoming an Intervenor

    In addition to involvement in the EA scoping process, you may want 
to become an official party to the

[[Page 80428]]

proceeding known as an ``intervenor''. Intervenors play a more formal 
role in the process. 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 14 copies of 
its fillings to the Secretary of the Commission and must send a copy 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). Only 
intervenors have the right to seek rehearing of the Commission's 
decision.
    Affected landowners and parties with environmental concerns may be 
granted intervenor status upon showing good cause by stating that they 
have a clear and direct interest in this proceeding which would not be 
adequately represented by any other parties. You do not need intervenor 
status to have your environmental comments considered.
    Additional information about the proposed project is available from 
the Commission's Office of External Affairs at (202) 208-0004 or on the 
FERC website (www.ferc.fed.us) using the ``RIMS'' link to information 
in this docket number. Click on the ``RIMS'' link select ``Docket #'' 
from the RIMS Menu, and follow the instructions. For assistance with 
access to RIMS, the RIMS helpline can be reached at (202) 208-2474.
    Similarly, the ``CIPS'' link on FERC Internet website provides 
access to the texts of formal documents issued by the Commission, such 
as orders, notices, and rulemakings. From the FERC Internet website, 
click on the ``CIPS'' link, select ``Docket #'' from the CIPS menu, and 
follow the instructions. For assistance with access to CIPS, the CIPS 
helpline can be reached at (202) 208-2474.

David P. Boergers,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 00-32540 Filed 12-20-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M