[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 146 (Tuesday, July 31, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41735-41737]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-14744]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP07-405-000]


Texas Gas Transmission, LLC; Notice of Intent To Prepare An 
Environmental Assessment For the Proposed Texas Gas Storage Expansion 
Project Phase 3 and Request For Comments on Environmental Issues

July 23, 2007.
    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 Gas Storage Expansion 
Project, involving construction and operation of facilities by Texas 
Gas Transmission L.L.C. (Texas Gas) in Hopkins, Muhlenberg, and Webster 
Counties, Kentucky. 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.
    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. Your input will help the Commission staff 
determine which issues need to be evaluated in the EA. Please note that 
the scoping period will close on August 23, 2007.
    With this notice, we \1\ are asking other federal, state, local, 
and tribal agencies with jurisdiction and/or special expertise with 
respect to environmental issues to cooperate with us in the preparation 
of the EA. Agencies that would like to request cooperating status 
should follow the instructions for filing comments provided below.
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    \1\ ``We,'' ``us,'' and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff 
of the FERC's Office of Energy Projects.
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    If you are a landowner receiving this notice, you may be contacted 
by a Texas Gas representative about the acquisition of an easement to 
construct, operate, and maintain the proposed project 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?'' 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

    Texas Gas seeks authorization to install one 5,488 horsepower (hp) 
compressor and retire in place two existing 2,000 hp compressor units 
at its existing Midland III Compressor Station in Muhlenberg County, 
Kentucky. Texas Gas also proposes minor modifications at its existing 
Slaughter's Compressor Station in Webster County, Kentucky. No change 
in horsepower is proposed at the Slaughter's Compressor Station at this 
time. Further, Texas Gas would: construct about 11 miles of 30-inch-
diameter looping pipeline in Hopkins and Muhlenberg Counties, Kentucky; 
construct 2,900 feet of extension to its existing 16-inch-diameter 
storage lateral

[[Page 41736]]

(E-9 pipeline); drill seven new horizontal injection/withdrawal wells 
at its existing Midland Storage Field; and add related piping to 
connect these wells with its lateral system (ranging from 8 to 12 
inches in diameter and 150 to 3,000 feet in length). A general project 
location map is included in Appendix A.
    In addition, Texas Gas would construct new pig launcher/receiver 
facilities: within its existing Hanson Compressor Station; to the west 
of its Midland III Compressor Station; and at each end of its modified 
E-9 pipeline.

Land Requirements for Construction

    Construction of the proposed Texas Gas Storage Expansion Project 
Phase 3 would affect a total of about 202.5 acres during construction. 
Following construction, about 108.8 acres would be allowed to revert to 
its previous conditions. Disturbance associated with aboveground 
facilities would permanently disturb 4.1 acres of land.
    Texas Gas proposes to construct its 30-inch-diameter pipeline in a 
90-foot-wide construction right-of-way and well lines within a 75-foot-
wide construction right-of-way. Texas Gas would maintain a 50-foot-wide 
permanent right-of-way for operation and maintenance of the pipelines.

The EA Process

    We are preparing the EA to comply with the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA) which 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, we are requesting public comments on the scope of the issues to 
address in the EA. All comments received will be considered during the 
preparation of the EA.
    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 and libraries in the project area; 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.

Public Participation

    You can make a difference by providing us with your specific 
comments or concerns about the project. By becoming a commenter, your 
concerns will be addressed in the EA and considered by the Commission. 
Your comments should focus on the potential environmental effects of 
the proposal, reasonable 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: 
Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 
First Street, NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426.
     Label one copy of the comments for the attention of Gas 
Branch 1;
     Reference Docket No. CP07-405-000;
     Mail your comments so that they will be received in 
Washington, DC on or before August 23, 2007.
    Please note that the Commission strongly encourages electronic 
filing of comments. See 18 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 
385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the instructions on the Commission's Internet 
Web site at http://www.ferc.gov under the ``eFiling'' link and the link 
to the User's Guide. Prepare your submission in the same manner as you 
would if filing on paper and save it to a file on your hard drive. 
Before you can file comments you will need to create an account 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 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). 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.

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. We 
encourage government representatives to notify their constituents of 
this planned project and encourage them to comment on their areas of 
concern. If you do not return the attached form (Appendix B), you will 
be removed from the Commission's environmental mailing list.

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, select ``General Search'' from the eLibrary menu, 
enter the selected date range and ``Docket Number'' excluding the last 
three digits (i.e., CP07-405), and follow the instructions. For 
assistance with access to eLibrary, the 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 rule makings.
    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

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the documents. Go to http://www.ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm.

Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
 [FR Doc. E7-14744 Filed 7-30-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P