[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 238 (Monday, December 13, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 72189-72191]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E4-3601]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP05-19-000]


Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation; Notice of Intent To 
Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Line A-5 
Replacement Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

December 6, 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 the Line A-5 Replacement Project 
involving construction and operation of facilities by Columbia Gas 
Transmission Corporation (Columbia) in Orange and Rockland Counties, 
New York.\1\ These facilities would consist of about 8.8 miles of 30-
inch-diameter pipeline, modifications to three existing measurement and 
regulation (M&R) stations, and related facilities. 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.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ Columbia's application was filed with the Commission under 
section 7 of the Natural Gas Act and part 157 of the Commission's 
regulations.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    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 Columbia 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 Web site (http://www.ferc.gov).

Summary of the Proposed Project

    Columbia wants to replace existing 8- and 16-inch-diameter pipeline 
on its Line A-5 with 30-inch-diameter pipeline. Columbia presently is 
conducting a Line A-5 Age and Condition replacement program to replace 
sections of its aging Line A-5 to ensure safety and continuity of 
service. Under the Age and Condition program, the 8.8 miles of pipeline 
normally would be replaced with 10-inch-diameter pipeline. However, 
Columbia proposes instead to install 30-inch-diameter pipeline in 
anticipation of increased firm demand for natural gas in the northeast 
and to avoid re-entering and disturbing sensitive areas along the 
existing pipeline right-of-way again in the near future to install the 
larger diameter pipeline. Columbia seeks authority to:
     Construct and operate 8.8 miles of 30-inch-diameter 
pipeline between its existing Tuxedo/Central Hudson M&R Station in 
Orange County, New York, and its existing Ramapo M&R Station in 
Rockland County, New York, replacing 8- and 16-inch-diameter pipeline 
on its Line A-5;
     Modify its existing Tuxedo/Central Hudson M&R Station at 
project milepost (MP) 0.0 in Orange County, New York;
     Modify its existing Sloatsburg M&R Station at MP 5.3 in 
Rockland County, New York;
     Modify its existing Ramapo M&R Station at MP 8.8 in 
Rockland County, New York; and
     Abandon in place about 1 mile of Line A-5 where Columbia 
would install a section of 30-inch-diameter pipeline by horizontal 
directional drill (HDD) between MPs 1.87 and 2.12 to cross New York 
Route 17, the Metro North Railroad, the Ramapo River, and Interstate 
87.
    Orange and Rockland Utilities (ORU) would relocate about 475 feet 
of its 4-inch-diameter distribution pipeline that is currently located 
adjacent to Columbia's Line A-5 east of the Sloatsburg M&R Station. The 
ORU pipeline would be moved about 15 feet from its present location, 
but would be installed within the construction right-

[[Page 72190]]

of-way for the Line A-5 Replacement Project.
    The location of the project facilities is shown in Appendix 1.

Land Requirements for Construction

    Construction of the proposed facilities would require about 139.8 
acres of land. This acreage includes all of the construction 
workspaces, storage/contractor yards, and access roads. About 38.8 
acres of the construction work area would be within the existing Line 
A-5 right-of-way. Following construction, about 54.3 acres would be 
maintained for operation of the pipeline. About 4.9 acres would be new 
permanent right-of-way. The remaining 85.5 acres of land would be 
restored and allowed to revert to its former use.
    Typically, pipeline construction would require a 75-foot-wide 
construction right-of-way. However, in areas with steep terrain and 
large amounts of rock, an additional 25 feet of temporary workspace 
would be required. In residential areas and within waterbodies and 
wetlands, the construction right-of-way width would be restricted to 75 
feet. Extra workspaces would be required at road, waterbody, and 
wetland crossings, and at the entry and exit points of the HDD. 
Columbia would use about 12.5 acres of land as storage/contractor yards 
during construction of the project. Nine access roads would be used for 
the project affecting about 8.3 acres. Most of these are existing 
roads, however they would require widening for use by construction 
vehicles.

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 
to discover and address 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. By this Notice of Intent, the Commission staff 
requests public comments on the scope of the issues to 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.
    In the EA we \2\ will discuss impacts that could occur as a result 
of the construction and operation of the proposed project under these 
general headings:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \2\``We'', ``us'', and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff 
of the Office of Energy Projects (OEP).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

     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.
    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 several issues that we think deserve 
attention based on a preliminary review of the proposed facilities and 
the environmental information provided by Columbia. This preliminary 
list of issues may be changed based on your comments and our analysis.
     Eight residences have been identified within 50 feet of 
the construction right-of-way.
     A proposed residential development has been identified 
between MPs 1.7 and 1.9 of the pipeline.
     Seven private water wells would be within 150 feet of the 
construction right-of-way.
     Thirty nine waterbodies would be crossed including 1 
ephemeral, 14 intermittent, and 15 perennial waterbodies.
     About 3,899 feet of wetlands would be crossed affecting 
about 3.94 acres of wetlands.
     Two trout fisheries would be crossed.
     Two federally threatened or endangered species or their 
habitats may be affected.
     Six State threatened or endangered species or their 
habitats may be affected.
     About 55.4 acres of forest would be cleared for 
construction permanently affecting about 1.6 acres.
     Cultural resources may be affected.
     Blasting would be required for pipeline construction.
     Steep slopes may be a potential hazard during 
construction.
     Pipeline construction would cross public land including 
the Sterling Forest State Park (MP 0.0 to 0.1 and MP 0.4 to 0.8), 
Harriman State Park (MP 2.1 to 5.3 and MP 5.4 to 7.9), and Kakiat 
County Park (MP 7.9 to 8.7). Contractor/Storage yards would be in 
Harriman State Park (near the intersection of New York Routes 17 and 
17A), and in the Samuel Fisher Mount Ivy Environmental County Park 
along U.S. Route 202.
     A total of 14 hiking trails would be crossed in Harriman 
State Park and Kakiat County Park.
     Operation of the HDD would be noisy.
     Safety.

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 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: Magalie 
R. Salas, 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 
Branch 2.
     Reference Docket No. CP05-19-000
     Mail your comments so that they will be received in 
Washington, DC on or before January 5, 2005.
    Please note that we are continuing to experience delays in mail 
deliveries from the U.S. Postal Service. As a result, we will include 
all comments that we

[[Page 72191]]

receive within a reasonable time frame in our environmental analysis of 
this project. However, the Commission strongly encourages electronic 
filing of any comments or interventions or protests to this proceeding. 
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 a free account which can be created on-line.
    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 4). 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 send one electronic copy (using the 
Commission's eFiling system) or 14 paper 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).\3\ Only intervenors have 
the right to seek rehearing of the Commission's decision.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ Interventions may also be filed electronically via the 
Internet in lieu of paper. See the previous discussion on filing 
comments electronically.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    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.

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 3, to express their interest in becoming cooperating agencies 
for the preparation of the EA.

Additional Information

    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, please contact FERC Online Support at 
[email protected] or toll free at 1-866-208-3676, or for TTY, 
contact (202) 502-8659. The eLibrary link 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 www.ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm.
    Finally, public meetings or site visits will be posted on the 
Commission's calendar located at http://www.ferc.gov/EventCalendar/EventsList.aspx along with other related information.

Magalie R. Salas,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E4-3601 Filed 12-10-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P