[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 212 (Wednesday, November 3, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64044-64046]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E4-2984]


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FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. PF05-1-000]


Colorado Interstate Natural Gas Company; Notice of Intent To 
Prepare an Environmental Assessment for Colorado Interstate Natural Gas 
Company's Proposed Raton Basin 2005 Expansion Project and Request for 
Comments on Environmental Issues

October 27, 2004.
    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) will prepare an environmental assessment (EA) that will 
discuss the environmental impacts of Colorado Interstate Natural Gas 
Company's (CIG's) proposed Raton Basin 2005 Expansion Project. The 
project is located in Las Animas and Baca Counties, Colorado; in Morton 
County, Kansas; and Texas and Beaver Counties, Oklahoma. This notice 
announces the opening of the scoping process we \1\ will use to gather 
input from the public and interested agencies on the project. Your 
input will help us determine which issues need to be evaluated in the 
EA. The Commission will use the EA in its decision-making process to 
determine whether to authorize the project. Please note that the 
scoping period will close on December 15, 2004.
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    \1\ ``We,'' ``us,'' and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff 
of the FERC's Office of Energy Projects.
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    The FERC will be the lead federal agency in the preparation of the 
EA which will satisfy the requirements of the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA). The Raton Basin 2005 Expansion Project is in the 
preliminary design stage. At this time no formal application has been 
filed with the FERC. For this project, the FERC staff is initiating its 
NEPA review prior to receiving the application. The purpose of our pre-
filing process is to involve interested stakeholders early in project 
planning and to identify and resolve issues before an application is 
filed with the FERC. A docket number (PF05-1-000) has been established 
to place information filed by CIG, and related documents issued by the 
Commission, into the public record.\2\ Once a formal application is 
filed with the FERC, a new docket number will be established.
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    \2\ To view information in the docket, follow the instructions 
for using the eLibrary link at the end of this notice.
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    This notice is being sent to landowners; federal, state, and local 
government agencies; Indian tribes;

[[Page 64045]]

elected officials; environmental and public interest groups; and local 
libraries and newspapers. With this notice, we are asking federal, 
state, and local agencies with jurisdiction and/or special expertise 
with respect to environmental issues to formally cooperate with us in 
the preparation of the EA. Agencies that would like to request 
cooperating status should send a letter describing the extent to which 
they want to be involved. Follow the instructions for filing comments 
provided below.
    Some affected landowners may be contacted by a project 
representative about the acquisition of an easement to construct, 
operate, and maintain the proposed facilities. If they are, the company 
would seek to negotiate a mutually acceptable agreement. However, if 
the project is certificated by the Commission, that approval conveys 
the right of eminent domain for securing easements for the pipeline. 
Therefore, if easement negotiations fail to produce an agreement, the 
company could initiate condemnation proceedings in accordance with 
state law.

Summary of the Proposed Project

    CIG requests Commission authorization to construct and operate 
approximately 102 miles of natural gas pipeline looping, and to upgrade 
existing and install new above-ground facilities, parallel to CIG's 
existing Picketwire Lateral, Campo Lateral, 10A, and 12A natural gas 
pipelines. The Little Bear and Wet Canyon Meter Stations on nearby 
lateral natural gas pipelines would also be upgraded. The pipeline 
loops would consist of the following:
     Line 151B 20'' Expansion--1.9 miles of 20-inch-diameter 
pipeline in Las Animas County, Colorado;
     Line 200B 16'' Expansion West--4.8 miles of 16-inch-
diameter pipeline in Las Animas County, Colorado;
     Line 200B 16'' Expansion Middle--30.3 miles of 16-inch-
diameter pipeline in Las Animas County, Colorado;
     Line 200B 16'' Expansion East--34.3 miles of 16-inch-
diameter pipeline in Baca County, Colorado;
     Line 10C 24'' Expansion--23.6 miles of 24-inch-diameter 
pipeline in Baca County, Colorado and Morton County, Kansas;
     Line 12B 24'' Expansion--7.2 miles of 24-inch-diameter 
pipeline in Texas County, Oklahoma
    Upgrading of existing, and installation of new, above-ground 
facilities would occur at four locations along Line 151B, three 
locations along Line 200B West, three locations along Line 200B Middle, 
three locations along Line 200B East, four locations along Line 10C, 
and three locations along Line 12B. In addition, CIG would install 
1,775 horsepower of compression at the Beaver Compressor Station on 
Line 12A in Beaver County, Oklahoma.
    A map depicting the proposed pipeline loops is provided in Appendix 
1.\3\
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    \3\ The appendices referenced in this notice are not being 
printed in the Federal Register. Copies of all appendices, other 
than Appendix 1 (maps), are available on the Commission's Web site 
at the ``eLibrary'' link or from the Commission's Public Reference 
and Files Maintenance Branch, 888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 
20426, or call (202) 502-8371. For instructions on connecting to 
eLibrary refer to page 6 of this notice. Copies of the appendices 
were sent to all those receiving this notice in the mail.
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    At this time, CIG has executed five precedent agreements with 
natural gas producers in the Rotan Basin production area for 104,600 
decatherms/day of the proposed transportation capacity on CIG's system. 
These producers have requested an in-service date as early as October 
1, 2005. Therefore, CIG would seek an order authorizing the project to 
be issued no later than May 2005 in order construct and place the 
requested facilities into service in October 2005. CIG plans to file 
its application between December 2004 and January 2005.

Land Requirements for Construction

    The loops would be spaced about 35 feet from the existing 
pipelines. The nominal construction right-of-way (ROW) would be 85 feet 
wide, partially overlapping the existing 50-foot-wide ROW. The nominal 
width would be reduced to 75 feet through wetlands and the Comanche 
National Grasslands, and would be increased up to 120 feet for storage 
of segregated topsoil in agricultural areas and for safe working 
conditions in rugged terrain. CIG would require extra work areas along 
the nominal ROW at roads, railroads, waterbody and wetland crossings as 
well as 1-5 acre-size contractor yards, pipe yards and staging yards at 
the ends of loops or in off-line areas. CIG would reroute 0.9 miles of 
Line 200B West near Trinidad in Las Animas County, Colorado, to avoid 
potential residential development. Following construction, CIG would 
require a new total permanent ROW width of 80 feet to be kept under 
easement.
    Construction of the proposed facilities would require a total of 
about 1,224 acres of land, which includes 364 acres of additional 
permanent ROW, 690 acres of temporary nominal ROW, 56 acres of extra 
work spaces alongside the nominal ROW, and 114 acres of off-line work 
spaces for pipe yards, contractor yards and staging areas. CIG would 
use numerous access roads during construction. Most of these roads 
would be existing roads, and several access roads may be widened and/or 
lengthened.
    Upgrading and installation of above-ground facilities would be done 
within CIG's existing ROW and would involve construction mostly within 
previously disturbed fenced-in graveled areas. Following construction, 
all temporary ROW and extra work spaces for the loop installations 
would be restored and allowed to revert to its former use.

The EA Process

    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 issues and concerns the public 
may have about proposals. This process is referred to as ``scoping.'' 
The main goal of the scoping process is to focus the analysis in the EA 
on the important environmental issues and reasonable alternatives. By 
this notice, we are requesting agency and public comments on the scope 
of the issues to be analyzed and presented in the EA. All scoping 
comments received will be considered during the preparation of the EA. 
To ensure your comments are considered, please carefully follow the 
instructions in the public participation section of this notice.
    Our independent analysis of the issues will be included in an EA. 
The EA may be mailed to Federal, state, and local government agencies; 
Indian tribes; elected officials; environmental and public interest 
groups; affected landowners; other interested parties; local libraries 
and newspapers; and the Commission(s official service list for this 
proceeding. Depending on the response to this notice and the nature of 
issues raised during the review process, a 30-day comment period may be 
allotted for review of the EA. We will consider all comments on the EA 
before we make our recommendations to the Commission.

Currently Identified Environmental Issues

    The EA will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of 
construction and operation of the proposed project. We have already 
identified a number of issues that we think deserve attention based on 
a preliminary review of the proposed facilities and the environmental 
information provided by CIG. This preliminary list of issues may

[[Page 64046]]

be changed based on your comments and our analysis.

 Geology and Soils
    --Soils with high erosion and poor revegetation potential.
    --Lands set-aside for the Conservation Reserve Program.
 Water Resources and Wetlands
    --Crossing of 5 perennial streams.
    --Crossing small wetlands.
 Vegetation
    --Crossing approximately 40 miles of short grass prairie, mostly on 
the west end.
    --Crossing approximately 60 miles of cultivated cropland/hayfields, 
mostly on the east end.
 Threatened and Endangered Species
    --Arkansas river shiner, bald eagle, interior least tern, Mexican 
spotted owl, piping plover, whooping crane, black-footed ferret 
potentially present in construction area.
    --Other listed, candidate, or sensitive species potentially present 
in the project area include the burrowing owl, ferruginous hawk, lesser 
prairie-chicken, long-billed curlew, mountain plover, northern goshawk, 
northern harrier, short-eared owl, and swift fox.
 Cultural Resources
    --Santa Fe Trail crossed on Line 200B Middle
    --Potential impacts on cultural resources.
    --Consultations with Native Americans.
 Land Use
    --Crossing primarily rangeland, hay land and cultivated cropland.
    --Crossing approximately 10 miles of the Comanche National 
Grasslands from loops along Line 200B East, Line 200B Middle, and Line 
10C.

Public Participation

    You can make a difference by providing us with your specific 
comments or concerns about the project. You should focus on the 
potential environmental effects of the proposal, reasonable 
alternatives (including alternative compressor station sites and 
pipeline routes), and measures to avoid or lessen environmental impact. 
The more specific your comments, the more useful they will be. By 
becoming a commentor, your concerns will be addressed in the EA and 
considered by the Commission. To ensure that your comments are timely 
and properly recorded, please mail your comments so that they will be 
received in Washington, DC on or before December 15, 2004, and 
carefully follow these instructions:
     Send an original and two copies of your letter to: Magalie 
R. Salas, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First 
Street, NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426;
     Label one copy of your comments for the attention of Gas 
Branch 2, DG2E; and
     Reference Docket No. PF05-1-000 on the original and both 
copies.
    Please note that we are continuing to experience delays in mail 
deliveries from the U.S. Postal Service. Therefore, the Commission 
encourages electronic filing of comments. See 18 CFR 
385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the instructions on the Commission's Internet 
Web site at http://www.ferc.gov under the ``e-Filing'' link and the 
link to the User's Guide. Prepare your submission in the same manner as 
you would if filing on paper and save it to a file on your hard drive. 
Before you can file comments you will need to create a free account by 
clicking on ``Login to File'' and then ``New User Account.'' You will 
be asked to select the type of filing you are making. This filing is 
considered a ``Comment on Filing.''
    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.

Intervention

    When CIG files its application for authorization to construct the 
proposed pipeline, the Commission will publish notice of the 
application in the Federal Register and establish a deadline for 
interested persons to intervene in the proceeding. Because the Pre-
Filing Process occurs before an application to begin a proceeding is 
officially filed, petitions to intervene during this process are 
premature and will not be accepted by the Commission. You do not need 
intervenor status to have your environmental comments considered.

Environmental Mailing List

    An effort is being made to send this notice to all individuals, 
organizations, and government entities interested in and/or potentially 
affected by the proposed project. This includes all landowners who are 
potential right-of-way grantors, whose property may be used temporarily 
for project purposes, or who own homes within distances defined in the 
Commission's regulations of certain aboveground facilities. By this 
notice we are also asking governmental agencies, especially those in 
Appendix 2, to express their interest in becoming cooperating agencies 
for the preparation of the EA.

Availability of Additional Information

    A fact sheet prepared by the FERC entitled ``An Interstate Natural 
Gas Facility On My Land? What Do I Need To Know?'' is also available 
for viewing on the FERC Internet website. 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.
    Additional information about the project is available from the 
Commission's Office of External Affairs, at 1-866-208-FERC or on the 
FERC Internet Web site (http://www.ferc.gov) using the eLibrary link. 
Click on the eLibrary link, click on ``General Search'' and enter the 
docket number excluding the last three digits in the Docket Number 
field. Be sure you have selected an appropriate date range. For 
assistance with eLibrary, the eLibrary helpline can be reached at 1-
866-208-3676, TTY (202) 502-8659, or at [email protected]. The 
eLibrary link on the FERC Internet Web site also provides access to the 
texts of formal documents issued by the Commission, such as orders, 
notices, and rulemakings.
    In addition, the Commission now offers a free service called 
eSubscription which allows you to keep track of all formal issuances 
and submittals in specific dockets. This can reduce the amount of time 
you spend researching proceedings by automatically providing you with 
notification of these filings, document summaries and direct links to 
the documents. Go to http://www.ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm.
    Information about the project is also available from CIG. CIG has 
established a single point of contact for the project. The contact is 
Mr. David Anderson, Manager, Land Department, and can be reached by 
phone at 1-877-598-5263 or e-mail at [email protected].

Magalie R. Salas,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E4-2984 Filed 11-2-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P