[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 148 (Wednesday, August 1, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39748-39751]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-19129]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP01-361-000]


Northwest Pipeline Corporation; Notice of Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Grays Harbor Pipeline Project 
2001 and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

July 26, 2001.
    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 Grays Harbor Pipeline Project 
2001 involving construction and operation of facilities by Northwest 
Pipeline Corporation (Northwest) in Thurston and Grays Harbor Counties, 
Washington.\1\ These facilities would consist of about 48.9 miles of 
20-inch-diameter pipeline and 4,700 horsepower (hp) of compression. 
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\ Northwest'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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[[Page 39749]]

    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 
agreement. 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 Northwest 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 proceedings. 
It is available for viewing on the FERC Internet website 
(www.ferc.gov).

Summary of the Proposed Project

    Northwest wants to expand the capacity of its facilities in 
Washington to transport an additional 161,500 million British thermal 
units per day of natural gas to Duke Energy Grays Harbor, LLC (Duke) at 
the Satsop Meter Station for electricity generation at a planned new 
electric power plant (the Satsop Combustion Turbine Project) near 
Satsop, Grays Harbor County, Washington. The electric power plant would 
be located in the Satsop Development Park at the site of two abandoned 
nuclear power plant projects started in the late 1970's by the 
Washington Public Power Supply System (now Energy Northwest). Work on 
the nuclear plants was halted in 1983. Northwest seeks authority to 
construct and operate:
     49 miles of 20-inch-diameter pipeline and tie-in assembly 
in Thurston and Grays Harbor Counties, Washington;
     Two 16-inch taps, one each on Northwest's 26-inch-diameter 
mainline and 30-inch-diameter loop;
     Approximately 4,700 horsepower (hp) of additional 
compression and related modifications at the existing Tumwater 
Compressor Station in Thurston County, Washington;
     A new meter station;
     Four block valve assemblies; and
     A new antenna and radio repeater at the existing Capitol 
Peak radio site in an existing building.
    The location of the project facilities is shown in appendix 1.\2\
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    \2\ 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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    Approximately 30 miles (61 percent) of the lateral pipeline would 
be constructed parallel to (loop) existing pipelines that were 
installed in the 1950's and 1960's and 19 miles of new right-of-way.
    Over 77 percent of the the gas lateral pipeline alignment currently 
proposed by Northwest is the same route evaluated in the Bonneville 
Power Authority's (BPA) Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and 
approved by the Washington State Energy Facility Site Evaluation 
Council (EFSEC). A summary of the route is included below.
    From the tie-in with Northwest's mainline at milepost (MP) 0.0 to 
the transmission line corridor at MP 16.73, the pipeline alignment is 
the same as the route analyzed in the BPA's EIS and approved by the 
EFSEC.
    From the BPA transmission line corridor at MP 16.73 to about MP 
24.69, Northwest proposes to utilize an alignment different from the 
BPA/EFSEC route (that is, to continue to loop its existing Olympia to 
Sheldon pipeline west around Black Lake) .
    From MP 24.69 to MP 28.01, Northwest's pipeline route follows the 
BPA/EFSEC route, and from MP 28.01 to MP 33.11, the pipeline would 
continue west across Capitol State Forest on the south side of the 
McCleary Pipeline.
    From its departure from the McCleary Pipeline (MP 33.11) to the 
just east of the Workman Creek crossing at MP 45.73, the pipeline route 
followed is the same as the BPA/EFSEC route.
    From MP 45.73 Northwest's alignment deviates from the BPA/EFSEC 
route and proceeds north across the BPA Transmission Line and west 
crossing the Chehalis River at two locations before reaching the tie-in 
at the Satsop Meter Station.

Land Requirements for Construction

    Construction of the proposed facilities would require about 475.8 
acres of land. Following construction, about 186.1 acres would be 
maintained as permanent right-of-way including the aboveground facility 
sites. The remaining 289.7 acres of land would be restored and allowed 
to revert to its former use. The upgrade to the existing Tumwater 
Compressor Station would be within a new 40 foot by 56 foot building 
within the existing compressor station property. The new Satsop Meter 
Station would occupy a site approximately 200 feet by 200 feet (0.92 
acre); a tie-in assembly at Northwest's existing mainline at MP 0.0 
would be about 90 feet by 130 feet (0.27 acre); and each block valve 
would require less than 0.1 acre of disturbance.
    The Satsop Combustion Turbine Project would be constructed on a 13-
acre industrial site formerly used as an equipment laydown area for the 
now abandoned nuclear power plants.

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 
\3\ 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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    \3\ ``We'', ``us'', and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff 
of the Office of Energy Projects (OEP).
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    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
 land use
 water resources, fisheries, and wetlands
 cultural resources
 vegetation and wildlife
 air quality and noise
 endangered and threatened species
 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. We have initially 
observed one alternative that needs to be explored from approximately 
MP 24.5 to MP 48.9 where the lateral pipeline could

[[Page 39750]]

potentially follow and overlap an existing BPA electric transmission 
line right-of-way. Also, the applicant has identified an alternative 
route (the East Black Lake Alternative) from about MP 16.5 to MP 24.5 
that needs to be explored in greater detail (see alternative route on 
maps in Appendix 1, from MP E0 to MP E7, pages 6 through 9 of 22).
    In addition, the BPA prepared an EIS in November 1995 and the EFSEC 
completed a Site Certification Agreement in August 1999 for the project 
area. Those documents have already reviewed the currently proposed gas 
pipeline corridor to a large extent, and we intend to incorporate them 
by reference to the greatest extent possible in the preparation of our 
EA. Any relevant changes to our EA will be made as necessary.
    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 6.

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 Northwest. This preliminary 
list of issues may be changed based on your comments and our analysis.
     Several federally listed endangered or threatened species 
may occur in the proposed project area.
     A total of 25.6 acres of cropland and pastureland would be 
converted to permanent pipeline right-of-way and about 114.2 acres of 
forest land including cultivated timber land would be permanently 
impacted.
     Six waterbodies would be crossed using the horizontal 
directional drill method.
     Many of the streams and rivers that would be crossed by 
the pipeline contain anadromous salmon which are listed or proposed for 
listing under the Endangered Species Act. Also, essential fish habitat 
is present in numerous waterbodies that the pipeline would cross.
     An increase in noise may result from the addition of 4,700 
hp at the existing Tumwater Compressor Station.
     The pipeline would cross the Fort Lewis Military 
Reservation.
     The pipeline would cross the Black River Unit Nisqually 
National Wildlife Refuge.
     The pipeline would cross the Capitol State Forest 
property.
     Nineteen residences are known to be located within 50 feet 
of the proposed construction right-of-way.
    We have made a preliminary decision to not address the impacts of 
the nonjurisdictional electric power plant facilities. An EIS was done 
on those facilities by the BPA and a Site Certification Agreement 
completed by the EFSEC. We will briefly describe the location and 
status of those facilities in the EA.

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 
locations/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 
St., NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426.
     Label one copy of the comments for the attention of Gas 2.
     Reference Docket No. CP01-361-000.
     Mail your comments so that they will be received in 
Washington, DC on or before August 27, 2001.
    Comments, protests and interventions 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.gov under the ``e-Filing'' link and 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 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 filings 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).\4\ Only intervenors have 
the right to seek rehearing of the Commission's decision.
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    \4\ Interventions may also be filed electronically via the 
Internet in lieu of paper. See the previous discussion on filing 
comments electronically.
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    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.
    Copies of this filing are on file with the Commission and are 
available for public inspection. Additional information about the 
proposed project is available from the Commission's Office of External 
Affairs at (202) 208-1088 or on the FERC website (http://www.ferc.gov) 
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) 208-2222.
    Similarly, the ``CIPS'' link on the 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

[[Page 39751]]

CIPS helpline can be reached at (202) 208-2474.

Linwood A. Watson, Jr.,
Acting Secretary.
[FR Doc. 01-19129 Filed 7-31-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P