[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 106 (Friday, June 2, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32073-32075]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-8595]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP06-115-000]


Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Texas Eastern Incremental 
Market Expansion II Project and Request for Comments on Environmental 
Issues

May 26, 2006.
    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 Texas Eastern Incremental 
Market Expansion (TIME) II Project involving construction, replacement, 
and operation of facilities by Texas Eastern Transmission, LP (Texas 
Eastern) in Pickaway and Monroe Counties, Ohio and Somerset, Bedford, 
Franklin, Bucks, Fayette, and Adams Counties, Pennsylvania. The TIME II 
Project would provide additional natural gas pipeline capacity to the 
New Jersey market area, alleviating the constraints currently 
experienced as a result of increasing market demand. The TIME II 
Project would provide up to 150,000 dekatherms per day (dth/d) of 
transportation capacity.
    This notice announces the opening of the scoping period that will 
be used to gather environmental input from the public and interested 
agencies on the project. Please note that the scoping period will close 
on June 30, 2006.
    This notice is being sent to potentially affected landowners; 
Federal, state, and local government agencies; elected officials; 
environmental and public interest groups; Native American Tribes, other 
interested parties; local libraries and newspapers. State and local 
government representatives are asked to notify their constituents of 
this planned project and encourage them to comment on their areas of 
concern.
    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?'' is available for 
viewing on the FERC Internet Web site (http://www.ferc.gov). 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.

Summary of the Proposed Project \1\

    In 2007, Texas Eastern proposes to:
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    \1\ Texas Eastern's application was filed with the Commission 
under section 7 of the Natural Gas Act and part 157 of the 
Commission's regulations.
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     Remove about 6.4 miles of its existing 24-inch-diameter 
Line 1 pipeline and replace it, within the same trench, with a 36-inch-
diameter pipeline in Somerset and Bedford Counties, Pennsylvania 
(Uniontown Discharge);
     Remove about 4.9 miles of its existing 24-inch-diameter 
Line 1 pipeline and replace it, within the same trench, with a 36-inch-
diameter pipeline in Franklin County, Pennsylvania (Bedford Discharge);
     Remove about 10.3 miles of its existing 20-inch-diameter 
Line 2 pipeline and replace it, within the same

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trench, with a 36-inch-diameter pipeline in Bucks County, Pennsylvania 
(Eagle Discharge);
     Construct the new Heidlersburg Compressor Station, which 
would include a 16,000 horsepower (hp) electric motor/centrifugal 
compressor and related facilities near Heidlersburg in Adams County, 
Pennsylvania; and
     Remove, relocate, or install appurtenant facilities.
    In 2008, Texas Eastern proposes to:
     Remove about 6.3 miles of its existing 24-inch-diameter 
Line 1 pipeline and replace it, within the same trench, with a 36-inch-
diameter pipeline in Pickaway County, Ohio (Five Points Discharge);
     Construct about 4.0 miles of 36-inch-diameter pipeline 
loop \2\ in Monroe County, Ohio (Berne Discharge);
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    \2\ A loop is a segment of pipeline that is installed adjacent 
to an existing pipeline and connected to it on both ends. The loop 
allows more gas to be moved through the pipeline system.
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     Install a 16,000 hp electric motor/centrifugal compressor 
unit at its existing Uniontown Compressor Station in Fayette County, 
Pennsylvania; and
     Install appurtenant facilities.
    The general location of Texas Eastern's proposed facilities is 
shown on the map attached as 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, 888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426, 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.
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Land Requirements for Construction

    Construction of Texas Eastern's proposed pipeline facilities would 
require about 571.6 acres of land, including construction rights-of-way 
for the loop and replacements, additional temporary workspaces, access 
roads, staging areas, and pipeyards/wareyards. Following construction, 
about 319.9 acres would be maintained as permanent rights-of-way. The 
remaining 251.7 acres would be restored and allowed to revert to its 
former use.
    Construction at the existing Uniontown Compressor Station would 
require disturbance of about 0.5 acre within the existing compressor 
station site and would not require the clearing of additional land.
    Construction of the Heidlersburg Compressor Station would require 
about 6.3 acres of land. Following construction, about 6.2 acres would 
be maintained as a new aboveground facility site.

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 
\4\ 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. By this notice, we are also 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 follow the instructions for filing comments below.
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    \4\ ''We'', ``us'', and ``our'', refer to the environmental 
staff of the Office of Energy Projects (OEP).
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    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.

Currently Identified Environmental Issues

    In the EA, we will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of 
the construction and operation of the project. We will also evaluate 
possible alternatives to the proposed project or portions of the 
project.
    We have already identified several issues that we think deserve 
attention based on a preliminary review of the proposed facilities, 
environmental information provided by Texas Eastern, and comments 
gathered from concerned citizens at Texas Eastern's open houses. This 
preliminary list of issues may be changed based on your comments and 
our analysis.
     Potential noise levels due to the operation of the 
compressor stations;
     Safety concerns;
     Eight federally-listed threatened and endangered species 
may potentially occur in the project areas;
     56 perennial waterbodies would be crossed; and
     About 6.2 acres of agricultural land would be converted to 
industrial use for the Heidlersburg Compressor Station.

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 locations 
and 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 1.
     Reference Docket No. CP06-115-000.
     Mail your comments so that they will be received in 
Washington, DC on or before June 30, 2006.
    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 an account which can be created online.

Becoming an Intervenor

    In addition to involvement in the EA scoping process, you may want 
to become an official party to the proceeding, or ``intervenor''. 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). Intervenors have the right to seek rehearing of the 
Commission's decision. Motions to Intervene should be electronically 
submitted using the Commission's eFiling system at http://www.ferc.gov. 
Persons without Internet access should send an original and 14 copies 
of their motion to the Secretary of the Commission at the address 
indicated

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previously. Persons filing Motions to Intervene on or before the 
comment deadline indicated above must send a copy of the motion to the 
Applicant. All filings, including late interventions, submitted after 
the comment deadline must be served on the Applicant and all other 
intervenors identified on the Commission's service list for this 
proceeding. Persons on the service list with e-mail addresses may be 
served electronically; others must be served a hard copy of the filing.
    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.

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 http://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. E6-8595 Filed 6-1-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P