[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 248 (Thursday, December 27, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66918-66920]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-31770]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[OR-120-5101 ER-H019, 2-0044]


Notice of Availability for the Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Availability for the Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS) on a proposed natural gas pipeline right-of-way.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental 
Policy Act of 1969, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Coos Bay 
District, directed the preparation of a Draft EIS by Biological 
Information Specialists, Inc., a third party contractor on the impacts 
of a proposed natural gas pipeline from near Roseburg in Douglas 
County, Oregon, to Coos Bay in Coos County, Oregon. BLM received a 
right-of-way application under Section 501 of the Federal Land Policy 
and Management Act of October 21, 1976, (43 U.S.C. 1737) on May 17, 
2000. The proposed pipeline will cross approximately 60 miles of public 
and private lands in Coos and Douglas Counties, Oregon. This notice 
initiates the public review process on the draft EIS. The public is 
invited to review and comment on the range and adequacy of the draft 
alternatives and associated environmental effects.

DATES: The comment period will end 60 days after publication of the 
Environmental Protection Agency's Notice of Availability of this draft 
environmental impact statement in the Federal Register. Comments on the 
draft EIS should be received on or before the end of the comment period 
at the address listed below.
    Public Participation: Public meetings will be held during the 
comment period. To ensure local community participation and input, 
public meetings will be held in Coos Bay, Oregon and at other locations 
if requested. Early participation by all those interested is

[[Page 66919]]

encouraged. At least 15 days public notice will be given for activities 
where the public is invited to attend. All individuals, organizations, 
agencies, and Tribes with a known interest in this planning effort have 
been sent a copy of the document for review. Written comments will be 
accepted at the address shown below. For comments to be most helpful, 
they should relate to specific concerns or conflicts that are within 
the legal responsibilities of the BLM. Specific dates and locations of 
meetings and comment deadlines will be announced through the local news 
media, newsletters, and the BLM web site (www.or.blm.gov/coosbay) and 
the Coos County web site ([email protected]).

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent to Bob Gunther, Project 
Coordinator, Coos Bay District, BLM, 1300 Airport Lane, North Bend, OR 
97459. Documents pertinent to this proposal may be examined at the Coos 
Bay District Office in North Bend, Oregon and local libraries. 
Comments, including names and street addresses of respondents, will be 
available for public review at the Coos Bay District Office during 
regular business hours 7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except holidays, and may be published as part of the Final EIS. 
Individual respondents may request confidentiality. If you wish to 
withhold your name or street address from public review or from 
disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act, you must state this 
prominently at the beginning of your written comment. Such requests 
will be honored to the extent allowed by law. All submissions from 
organizations and businesses, and from individuals identifying 
themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or 
businesses, will be available for public inspection in their entirety.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bob Gunther, Project Coordinator, at 
address above or telephone (541-751-4295), fax: 541-751-4303, or e-mail 
comments to the attention of Bob [email protected]. For Technical 
Information contained in the EIS contact Brian Cox, Senior Biologist, 
Biological Information Specialists, Inc., P.O. Box 27, Camas Valley, 
Oregon 97416, Telephone: (541) 445-2008.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Coos County Board of Commissioners has 
applied for a right-of-way proposing to contract construction of a 12-
inch natural gas transmission pipeline to be buried within the existing 
rights-of-ways of the Pacific Corp. (PP&L) and Bonneville Power 
Administration (BPA) electric transmission lines, and within the 
existing roadbed of the Coos Bay Wagon Road. The total length of the 
pipeline is approximately 60 miles, with approximately 3.0 miles 
located on lands administered by the BLM. The proposed pipeline would 
connect to the Williams Gas Pipeline at a meter facility southwest of 
Roseburg, in or near Section 33 Township 27 South, Range 6 West in 
Douglas County and would terminate at Ocean Boulevard in the city of 
Coos Bay (Section 27 Township 25 South, Range 13 West).
    The natural gas transmission pipeline will deliver gas to 
distribution facilities built by Northwest Natural Gas in the Coos Bay 
and North Bend communities. Smaller 6-inch or 4-inch laterals will be 
built off the mainline to serve the cities of Coquille, Myrtle Point, 
and perhaps Bandon at a later date. The location of the laterals has 
not been finalized, but is anticipated to follow the location of 
existing power line, State highway, or railroad rights-of-way. 
Locations of the distribution lines within the city limits are not 
known at this time, but are anticipated to be located within existing 
road rights-of-way.
    The proposed pipeline will fall under the jurisdiction of US 
Department of Transportation (DOT), as a gas transmission pipeline. It 
will be built and operated to all current specifications in 49 CFR Part 
192 (Natural Gas Pipelines) and other relevant sections. The Oregon 
Public Utility Commission will administer DOT Pipeline Safety 
regulations for this pipeline.
    The proposed pipeline will be designed with the appropriate design 
safety factors. The mainline is proposed as a welded steel pipeline 
with a Maximum Allowable Operating Pressure (MAOP) of 1,000 pounds per 
square inch (psi). The finished pipeline will be pressure tested to at 
least 150 percent of MAOP, to detect leakage or failure.
    All construction is done during daylight hours. Mainline 
construction will take about 6 months. Applicant plans to construct in 
the relatively dry summer months of April through October.
    Pipeline construction will require a working space up to 60 feet 
wide. DOT requires a minimum of 30 inches of cover in normal soils, 18 
inches in consolidated rock, 36 inches under roads. The pipe will be 
installed to a target depth of 48 inches to top of pipe. Some grading 
will be required to install the pipe, but shall be substantially 
restored to original grade before revegetation. All earth disturbance 
operations shall be subject to an erosion control plan to comply with 
US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) guidelines.
    In sections along electrical transmission lines, the contractor 
shall be required to have and follow a plan to continuously ground the 
pipe, to protect workers from shock from induced currents.
    Coos County plans to contract pipeline operations with an 
experienced pipeline operator. The County and its operator are required 
under DOT to formulate and use an Operations and Maintenance Plan 
specifically for this pipeline. The Operations and Maintenance Plan 
includes an Emergency Plan for specific procedures and notifications in 
case of an emergency.
    Coos County plans to provide cathodic protection against corrosion, 
as required by DOT. Magnesium anodes will be placed at regular 
intervals along the pipeline, to sacrificially corrode and protect the 
coated steel pipe. This method normally mitigates most induced 
alternating current (AC). In sections near electrical transmission 
lines, supplemental anodes and other measures will be taken as 
necessary to minimize induced AC on the pipeline.
    Long-term pipeline operation will require 40 feet of space to be 
kept clear of larger brush and trees. Access roads to the BPA corridor 
will be restored as needed for pipeline construction and access for 
Operations and Maintenance.
    After the initial pipeline construction period, there is no need to 
ever excavate any particular segment of pipe. Annual maintenance 
consists of checking depth of pipe in roadways, repairing any soil 
erosion, controlling brush, replacing line markers, painting and 
operating block valves, conducting leak surveys, and checking the 
effectiveness of the corrosion control system.
    The BLM considered issues and concerns identified during the 
scoping process in the preparation of the draft EIS. The issues 
identified include: socioeconomics impacts associated with the proposed 
project; soil erosion; water quality; fish, and wildlife; potential 
impacts to traditional Native American uses of the area, archaeological 
sites. Those individuals, organizations, and agencies with a known 
interest in the proposal will be sent a copy of the draft EIS. Persons 
wishing to be added to the mailing list for the EIS may do so by 
contacting the Coos Co. Pipeline Project Office, 1309 W. Central Blvd., 
Coquille, OR 97423. A final environmental impact

[[Page 66920]]

statement is expected to be available for public review in early 2002.

Richard Conrad,
Acting District Manager.
[FR Doc. 01-31770 Filed 12-26-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-33-P