[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 221 (Thursday, November 17, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 69772-69774]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-22828]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

[COTP Mobile-05-051]


Notice, Request for Comments; Letter of Recommendation, Gulf LNG 
Clean Energy Marine Terminal Project, Jackson County, MS

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Request for comments; notice of public meeting.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the requirements in 33 CFR 127.009, the 
U.S. Coast Guard Captain of the Port (COTP) Mobile, AL is preparing a 
letter of recommendation as to the suitability of the Pascagoula Bar, 
Horn Island Pass, Lower Pascagoula, and Bayou Casotte Channels for 
liquefied natural gas (LNG) marine traffic. The letter of 
recommendation is in response to a letter of intent submitted by Gulf 
LNG

[[Page 69773]]

Clean Energy Marine Terminal Project to operate a LNG facility in 
Jackson County, MS. The COTP Mobile, AL is soliciting written comments 
and related material, and will hold a public meeting seeking comments, 
pertaining specifically to maritime safety and security aspects of the 
proposed LNG facilities. In preparation for issuance of a letter of 
recommendation and the completion of certain other regulatory mandates, 
the COTP Mobile, AL will consider comments received from the public as 
input into a formalized risk assessment process. This process will 
assess the safety and security aspects of the facility, adjacent port 
areas, and navigable waterways.

DATES: All written comments and related material must reach the Coast 
Guard on or before December 14, 2005. In addition, a public meeting 
will be held December 7, 2005 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. local time. Those 
who plan to speak at the meeting should provide their name by December 
2, 2005 to Lieutenant (Junior Grade) J. Mangum using one of the methods 
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. The comment period 
associated with the public meeting will remain open for seven days 
following the meeting. The meeting location is: Pascagoula High School, 
1716 Tucker Ave, Pascagoula, MS.

ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments to Commanding Officer, U.S. 
Coast Guard Sector Mobile, Brookley Complex, Bldg 102, South Broad 
Street, Mobile, AL 36615-1390. Sector Mobile maintains a file for this 
notice. Comments and material received will become part of this file 
and will be available for inspection and copying at Sector Mobile 
between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions on this notice, 
contact Lieutenant (Junior Grade) J. Mangum at Coast Guard Sector 
Mobile by one of the methods listed below:
    (1) Phone at 251-441-5940;
    (2) E-mail at [email protected];
    (3) Fax to 251-441-6169.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Request for Written Comments

    We encourage you to submit written comments and related material 
pertaining specifically to marine safety and security aspects 
associated with the proposed LNG facilities. If you do so, please 
include your name and address, identify the docket number for this 
notice (COTP Mobile-05-051), and give the reason for each comment. You 
may submit your comments and related material by mail, or hand 
delivery, as described in ADDRESSES, or you may send them by fax or e-
mail using the contact information under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT. To avoid confusion and duplication, please submit your 
comments and material by only one means.
    If you submit comments by mail or hand delivery, submit them in an 
unbound format, no larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable for 
copying and electronic filing. If you submit them by mail and would 
like to know that they reached U.S. Coast Guard Sector Mobile, please 
enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard or envelope.

Public Meeting

    Due to the scope and complexity of this project, we have decided to 
hold a public meeting to allow the public the opportunity to comment on 
the proposed LNG facility. With advance notice, organizations and 
members of the public may provide oral statements regarding the 
suitability of the Pascagoula Bar, Horn Island Pass, Lower Pascagoula, 
and Bayou Casotte Channels for LNG vessel traffic. In the interest of 
time and use of the public meeting facility, oral statements should be 
limited to five minutes. Persons wishing to make oral statements should 
notify Lieutenant (Junior Grade) J. Mangum using one of the methods 
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT by December 2, 2005. 
Written comments may be submitted at the meeting or to the Docket up to 
December 14, 2005.

Background and Purpose

    In accordance with the requirements of 33 CFR 127.007, Gulf LNG 
Energy, LLC submitted a Letter of Intent on December 3, 2004, to 
operate an LNG facility in Jackson County, MS.
    The proposed Gulf LNG Energy, LLC terminal is an LNG import, 
storage, and re-gasification facility. LNG carriers (ships) would berth 
at a new pier and LNG would be transferred by pipeline from the 
carriers to one of two storage tanks, each with a net capacity of 
160,000 cubic meters (m3) and a gross capacity of 320,000 m3. The LNG 
would then be regasified and metered into natural gas pipelines. LNG 
would be delivered to the terminal in double-hulled LNG carriers 
ranging in capacity from 88,000 m3 to 150,000 m3. The larger carriers 
would measure up to approximately 975 feet long with up to 
approximately a 150 foot wide beam, and draw 37 feet of water. The Gulf 
LNG Energy LLC terminal would handle approximately 150 vessels per 
year, depending upon natural gas demand, and carrier size, with 
shipments arriving about every 2.5 days.
    The U.S. Coast Guard exercises regulatory authority over LNG 
facilities which affect the safety and security of port areas and 
navigable waterways under Executive Order 10173, the Magnuson Act (50 
U.S.C. 191), the Ports and Waterways Safety Act of 1972, as amended (33 
U.S.C. 1221, et seq.) and the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 
2002 (46 U.S.C. 701). The Coast Guard is responsible for matters 
related to navigation safety, vessel engineering and safety standards, 
and all matters pertaining to the safety of facilities or equipment 
located in or adjacent to navigable waters up to the last valve 
immediately before the receiving tanks. The Coast Guard also has 
authority for LNG facility security plan review, approval, and 
compliance verification as provided in Title 33 CFR Part 105, and 
siting as it pertains to the management of vessel traffic in and around 
the LNG facility.
    Upon receipt of a letter of intent from an owner or operator 
intending to build a new LNG facility, the Coast Guard COTP conducts an 
analysis that results in a letter of recommendation issued to the owner 
or operator and to the state and local governments having jurisdiction, 
addressing the suitability of the waterway to accommodate LNG vessels. 
Specifically, the letter of recommendation addresses the suitability of 
the waterway based on:
     The physical location and layout of the facility and its 
berthing and mooring arrangements.
     The LNG vessels' characteristics and the frequency of LNG 
shipments to the facility.
     Commercial, industrial, environmentally sensitive, and 
residential areas in and adjacent to the waterway used by the LNG 
vessels en route to the facility.
     Density and character of marine traffic on the waterway.
     Bridges or other manmade obstructions in the waterway.
     Depth of water.
     Tidal range.
     Natural hazards, including rocks and sandbars.
     Underwater pipelines and cables.
     Distance of berthed LNG vessels from the channel, and the 
width of the channel.

In addition, the Coast Guard will review and approve the facility's 
operations manual and emergency response plan (33 CFR 127.019), as well 
as the facility's security plan (33 CFR 105.410). The Coast Guard will 
also provide input to other Federal, State, and local

[[Page 69774]]

government agencies reviewing the project. Under an interagency 
agreement the Coast Guard will provide input to, and coordinate with, 
the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the lead Federal 
agency for authorizing the siting and construction of onshore LNG 
facilities, on safety and security aspects of the Gulf LNG Energy, LLC 
terminal project, including both the marine and land-based aspects of 
the project.
    In order to complete a thorough analysis and fulfill the regulatory 
mandates cited above, the COTP Mobile, AL will be conducting a formal 
risk assessment, evaluating various safety and security aspects 
associated with the proposed Gulf LNG Clean Energy Marine Terminal 
Project. This risk assessment will be accomplished through a series of 
workshops focusing on the areas of waterways safety, port security, and 
consequence management, with involvement from a broad cross-section of 
government and port stakeholders with expertise in each of the 
respective areas. The workshops will be by invitation only. However, 
comments received during the public comment period will be considered 
as input into the risk assessment process.

Additional Information

    Additional information about the Gulf LNG Clean Energy Marine 
Terminal Project is available from FERC's Office of External Affairs at 
1-866-208-FERC or on the FERC Internet Web site (http://www.ferc.gov) 
using their eLibrary link. Comments relating to aspects other than 
marine safety and security aspects associated with the proposed LNG 
facility may be submitted at this Web site. For assistance, please 
contact FERC online support at [email protected] or toll free 
at 1-866-208-3676, or for TTY contact 1-202-502-8659.

Information on Services for Individuals With Disabilities

    For information on facilities or services for individuals with 
disabilities, or to request assistance at the meeting, contact 
Lieutenant (Junior Grade) J. Mangum listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT as soon as possible.

    Dated: November 10, 2005.
Steve Venckus,
Chief, Office of Regulations and Administrative Law, Office of the 
Judge Advocate General, U.S. Coast Guard.
[FR Doc. 05-22828 Filed 11-14-05; 3:29 pm]
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