[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 148 (Wednesday, August 3, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44616-44618]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-15383]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket Nos. CP05-91-000 and CP05-380-000]


Calhoun LNG, L.P. and Point Comfort Pipeline Company, L.P.; 
Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the 
Proposed Calhoun LNG Terminal and Pipeline Project, Request for 
Comments on Environmental Issues, and Notice of Public Scoping Meetings 
and Site Visit

July 7, 2005.
    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) will prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) that 
will discuss the environmental impacts of the Calhoun LNG Terminal and 
Pipeline Project involving construction and operation of facilities by 
Calhoun LNG, L.P. and Point Comfort Pipeline Company, L.P. 
(collectively referred to as Calhoun Point Comfort) in Calhoun and 
Jackson Counties, Texas.\1\ These facilities would consist of a 
liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal and storage facilities, and 
27 miles of 36-inch-diameter pipeline. This EIS will be used by the 
Commission in its decision-making process to determine whether the 
project is in the public convenience and necessity. Please note that 
the scoping period will close on August 8, 2005.
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    \1\ On March 8, 2005, Calhoun LNG, L.P. filed its application 
with the Commission under Section 3(a) of the Natural Gas Act (NGA) 
and part 153 of the Commission's regulations. On June 10, 2005 Point 
Comfort Pipeline Company, L.P. filed its application under Section 7 
of the NGA and Parts 157 and 284 of the Commission's regulations.
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    Comments may be submitted in written form or presented verbally at 
the public meetings detailed below. Further details on how to submit 
written comments are provided in the public participation section of 
this notice. In lieu of sending written comments, you are invited to 
attend the public scoping meeting scheduled as follows:
    July 26, 2005, 7 p.m. (cst), Bauer Community Center, 2300 N. 
Highway 35, Port Lavaca, Texas 77979. Telephone: (361) 552-1234.
    The public scoping meeting is designed to provide state and local 
agencies, interested groups, affected landowners, and the general 
public with more detailed information and another opportunity to offer 
your comments on the proposed project. Interested groups and 
individuals are encouraged to attend the meeting and to present 
comments on the environmental issues they believe should be addressed 
in the EIS. A transcript of the meeting will be made so that your 
comments will be accurately recorded.
    Also on July 26 2005, starting at 8 a.m., we will be conducting a 
visit to the proposed LNG terminal site and pipeline route. Anyone 
interested in participating in the site visit should meet at the Days 
Inn Port Lavaca at 2100 N. Hwy, Port Lavaca, Texas 77979 (phone number: 
361-552-4511). Participants must provide their own transportation. For 
additional information, please contact the Commission's Office of 
External Affairs at 1-866-208-FERC (3372).
    This notice is being sent to affected landowners; federal, state, 
and local government representatives and agencies; environmental and 
public interest groups; Native American tribes; local libraries and 
newspapers; and

[[Page 44617]]

intervenors in this proceeding. We \2\ request that state and local 
government representatives notify their constituents of this proposed 
action and encourage them to comment on their areas of concern.
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    \2\ ``We,'' ``us,'' and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff 
of the FERC's Office of Energy Projects (OEP).
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    A fact sheet prepared by the FERC entitled ``An Interstate Natural 
Gas Facility On My Land? What Do I Need To Know?'' 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

    Calhoun Point Comfort proposes to import, store, and vaporize on 
average about 1.0 billion cubic feet per day of LNG at its terminal 
facility on the southeastern shoreline of Lavaca Bay, south of Point 
Comfort, Texas. The proposed terminal site is bounded by Lavaca Bay to 
the west and south, Cox Bay to the east, and industrial facilities to 
the north owned by Alcoa and Formosa Plastics Corporation. The proposed 
pipeline, extending from the LNG terminal to its terminus southwest of 
Edna, Texas, would be capable of transporting about 1.0 billion cubic 
feet per day of imported natural gas to markets throughout the United 
States, via interconnections with existing intrastate and interstate 
pipeline systems and industrial users. Calhoun Point Comfort seeks 
authority to construct and operate:
     A single berthing structure along Lavaca Bay and unloading 
facilities equipped to unload up to 120 LNG ships per year;
     Two single containment LNG storage tanks, each with a 
nominal working volume of approximately 160,000 cubic meters (1,006,400 
barrels equivalent);
     LNG vaporization and sendout system and ancillary 
equipment and buildings;
     Natural gas recovery system;
     27 miles of 36-inch-diameter natural gas pipeline, 0.5 
mile of 8- and 16-inch-diameter lateral pipeline, and appurtenances; 
and
     Up to 10 interconnects with existing intrastate and 
interstate pipelines and industrial users.
    Construction of the proposed LNG terminal would also require 
construction of nonjurisdictional facilities, consisting of about 1.7 
miles of natural gas liquids pipeline and about 0.7 mile of new 
overhead electric power line. These facilities are not under 
jurisdiction of the Commission but they will be addressed in the EIS as 
related nonjurisdictional facilities.
    Calhoun Point Comfort would like to have the project constructed 
and operational prior to the 2009 winter heating season. The general 
location of the facilities is 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 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, 
Room 2A or call (202) 502-8371. For instructions on connecting to 
eLibrary refer to the last page of this notice. Copies of the 
appendices were sent to all those receiving this notice in the mail. 
Requests for detailed maps of the proposed facilities should be made 
directly to Calhoun Point Comfort.
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Land Requirements for Construction

    The proposed LNG terminal would be located on about 89 acres of 
land owned by the Port of Port Lavaca--Point Comfort. Onshore, 
permanent operation of the terminal would require the use of about 89 
acres while offshore, permanent operation of the marine berthing area 
would require the use of about 9 acres of open water. The Calhoun 
County Navigation District (CCND) would augment the harbor by dredging 
a new turning basin at the confluence of the Point Comfort Channel and 
the channel to the Alcoa plant. This augmentation would encompass 
construction of Calhoun Point Comfort's new berthing area as well as 
the CCND's turning basin and would require the dredging of about 
4,700,000 cubic yards of material. The material dredged during harbor 
augmentation would be placed within the Alcoa/Lavaca Bay Superfund Site 
in Lavaca Bay.
    Construction of the proposed pipeline would affect a total of about 
383 acres of land, including 3 acres for aboveground facilities. A 100-
foot-wide nominal construction right-of-way would be used, plus 
additional temporary extra work spaces, and the permanent pipeline 
easement would be 30 feet wide. Operation would require use of about 
103 acres. At the end of construction, the remaining 280 acres of land 
along the pipeline route would be restored to its previous condition 
and use. Construction of the proposed laterals would affect a total of 
about 5 acres of land, including 0.6 acre for aboveground facilities, 
while operation would require about 2 acres.

The EIS 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 the 
Commission 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 EIS on the 
important environmental issues and reasonable alternatives. With this 
notice, we are soliciting input from the public and interested agencies 
to help us focus the analysis in the EIS on the potentially significant 
environmental issues related to the proposed action. To ensure that 
your scoping comments are considered, please carefully follow the 
instructions in the public participation section beginning on page 5.
    We are also asking federal, state, local, and tribal agencies with 
jurisdiction and/or special expertise with respect to the environmental 
issues to formally cooperate with us in the preparation of the EIS. 
These agencies, especially the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Coast 
Guard, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Marine 
Fisheries Service, may choose to participate once they have evaluated 
the proposal relative to their responsibilities.
    Our independent analysis of the proposed project will be included 
in a draft EIS. The draft EIS will be published and mailed to federal, 
state, and local agencies, public interest groups, interested 
individuals, affected landowners, Native American tribes, newspapers, 
libraries, and the Commission's official service list for this 
proceeding. A 45-day comment period will be allotted for review of the 
draft EIS. We will consider all timely comments on the draft EIS and 
revise the document, as necessary, before issuing the final EIS. In 
addition, we will consider all comments on the final EIS when we make 
our recommendations to the Commission.

Currently Identified Environmental Issues

    The EIS will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of the 
construction and operation of the proposed project under the general 
resource headings listed below. 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 
Calhoun Point Comfort. This preliminary list of issues may be changed 
based on your

[[Page 44618]]

comments and our analysis. Our preliminary list includes the following:
     Augmentation of the harbor, including dredging of the new 
berthing area, and placement of dredged material within the Alcoa/
Lavaca Bay Superfund Site in Lavaca Bay
     Surface waterbodies, including the Navidad and Lavaca 
Rivers
     About 26 acres of wetlands
     State and/or federally-listed threatened and endangered 
species and essential fish habitat
     Consistency with coastal zone management area guidelines
     LNG ship traffic on the Port of Port Lavaca
     Archaeological sites at the LNG terminal and along the 
pipeline
     Air and noise quality
     Reliability and safety, including assessment of the 
transport, unloading, storage, and vaporization of LNG and security 
associated with LNG ship traffic and an LNG import terminal
     Alternative sites for the LNG terminal and pipeline route
     Cumulative impacts of the proposed project when combined 
with other past, present, or reasonably foreseeable future actions in 
the 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 EIS and considered by the Commission. 
You should focus on the potential environmental effects of the 
proposal, alternatives to the proposal (including alternative terminal 
locations or pipeline 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 Nos. CP05-91-000 and CP05-380-000
     Mail your comments so that they will be received in 
Washington, DC on or before August 8, 2005.
    Please note that 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 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.''

Becoming an Intervenor

    In addition to involvement in the EIS 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 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). 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

    Additional information about the project is available from the 
Commission's Office of External Affairs, at 1-866-208-FERC (3372) 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. To register for this service, go tohttp://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. 05-15383 Filed 8-2-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-U