[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 131 (Monday, July 10, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38874-38875]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-10687]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP05-91-000; Docket No. CP05-380-000]


Calhoun LNG, L.P.; Point Comfort Pipeline Company, L.P.; Notice 
of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the 
Calhoun LNG Terminal and Pipeline Project

June 30, 2006.
    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) has prepared this draft Environmental Impact Statement 
(EIS) for the construction and operation of the liquefied natural gas 
(LNG) import terminal and natural gas pipeline facilities (referred to 
as the Calhoun LNG Project or Project) as proposed by Calhoun LNG, L.P. 
and Point Comfort Pipeline Company, L.P. (collectively referred to as 
Calhoun Point Comfort) in the above-referenced dockets.
    The draft EIS was prepared to satisfy the requirements of the 
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The staff concludes that 
approval of the Calhoun LNG Project, with appropriate mitigating 
measures as recommended, would have limited adverse environmental 
impact. The draft EIS evaluates alternatives to the proposal, including 
system alternatives, alternative sites for the LNG import terminal, and 
pipeline alternatives.
    The purpose of the Calhoun LNG Project is to provide facilities 
necessary to import, store, and vaporize on average about 1.0 billion 
cubic feet per day of LNG to provide a competitive supply of natural 
gas to local industrial customers, such as Formosa Hydrocarbons Company 
and Formosa Plastics Corporation, and other energy-consuming customers 
in Texas and deliver natural gas into existing interstate and 
intrastate natural gas pipelines near Edna, Texas. In order to 
accomplish this purpose, Calhoun Point Comfort proposes to construct 
and operate a new LNG import terminal including an LNG ship berth and 
unloading facilities on the southeastern shoreline of Lavaca Bay, south 
of Point Comfort, in Calhoun County, Texas. In addition, Calhoun Point 
Comfort would construct and operate a new natural gas pipeline and 
ancillary facilities extending northward from the LNG terminal to 
natural gas pipeline interconnects southwest of Edna, in Jackson 
County, Texas.
    The draft EIS addresses the potential environmental effects of the 
construction and operation of the

[[Page 38875]]

following LNG terminal and natural gas pipeline facilities:
     A new marine terminal along Lavaca Bay that would include 
one berth to unload up to 120 LNG ships per year;
     Four 16-inch-diameter stainless steel unloading arms;
     Two single containment LNG storage tanks each with a 
nominal working volume of approximately 160,000 m\3\ (1,006,000 
barrels);
     Three in-tank pumps per LNG storage;
     Four low pressure (LP) and four high pressure (HP) sendout 
pumps;
     Six first-stage submerged combustion vaporizers (SCV) and 
six second-stage SCVs;
     A boil-off gas (BOG) and vapor removal system;
     A flare system that would include a 100-foot flare stack;
     Various support buildings and piping structures at the LNG 
terminal site;
     27.1 miles of 36-inch-diameter natural gas pipeline;
     A 0.25 mile of 8-inch-diameter lateral and 0.25 mile of 
16-inch-diameter lateral;
     Ten delivery points/interconnects; and
     A pig launcher facility and mainline valves.
    The draft EIS has been placed in the public files of the FERC and 
is available for public inspection at: Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission, Public Reference and Files Maintenance Branch, 888 First 
Street, NE., Room 2A, Washington, DC 20426. (202) 502-8371.
    A limited number of copies of the draft EIS are available from the 
Public Reference and Files Maintenance Branch identified above. In 
addition, copies of the final EIS have been mailed to Federal, State, 
and local agencies; elected officials; public interest groups; 
libraries, individuals and affected landowners who requested a copy of 
the draft EIS; and parties to these proceedings.

Comment Procedures and Public Meeting

    Any person wishing to comment on the draft EIS may do so. To ensure 
consideration prior to a Commission decision on the proposal, it is 
important that we receive your comments before the date specified 
below. Please carefully follow these instructions to ensure that your 
comments are received and properly recorded:
     Send an original and two copies of your comments to: 
Magalie R. Salas, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 
First Street, NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426.
     Reference Docket Nos. CP05-91-000 and CP05-380-000.
     Label one copy of the comments for the attention of the 
Gas Branch 2.
     Mail your comments so that they will be received in 
Washington, DC on or before August 21, 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 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.''
    In addition to or in lieu of sending written comments, we invite 
you to attend the public comment meeting scheduled as follows:

August 17, 2006, 7 p.m. (CST), Bauer Community Center, 2300 N. Highway 
35, Port Lavaca, Texas 77979. Telephone: (361) 552-1234.

    Interested groups and individuals are encouraged to attend and 
present oral comments on the draft EIS. Transcripts of the meetings 
will be prepared.
    After these comments are reviewed, any significant new issues are 
investigated, and modifications are made to the draft EIS, a final EIS 
will be published and distributed by the staff. The final EIS will 
contain the staff's responses to timely comments received on the draft 
EIS.
    Comments will be considered by the Commission but will not serve to 
make the commentor a party to the proceeding. Any person seeking to 
become a party to the proceeding must file a motion to intervene 
pursuant to Rule 214 of the Commission's Rules of Practice and 
Procedures (18 CFR 385.214). Anyone may intervene in this proceeding 
based on this draft EIS. You must file your request to intervene as 
specified above. \1\ You do not need intervenor status to have your 
comments considered.
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    \1\ Interventions may also be filed electronically via the 
Internet in lieu of paper. See the previous discussion on filing 
comments electronically.
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    The draft EIS has been placed in the public files of the FERC and 
is available for distribution and public inspection at: Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission, Public Reference Room, 888 First Street, NE., 
Room 2A, Washington, DC 20426. (202) 208-1371.
    Hard-copies of the draft EIS have been mailed to Federal, State, 
and local agencies; public interest groups; individuals and affected 
landowners who requested a copy of the draft EIS or provided comments 
during scoping; libraries; newspapers; and parties to this proceeding. 
A limited number of documents and CD-ROMs are available from the Public 
Reference Room identified above.
    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 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 the eSubscription link on the FERC Internet Web 
site.

Magalie R. Salas,
Secretary.
 [FR Doc. E6-10687 Filed 7-7-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P