[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 164 (Friday, August 24, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48631-48633]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-16743]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. PF07-9-000]


Steckman Ridge, L.P.; Notice of Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Steckman Ridge Storage 
Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

August 20, 2007.
    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) will prepare an environmental assessment (EA) that will 
address the environmental impacts of the Steckman Ridge Storage Project 
proposed by Steckman Ridge, L.P. (Steckman). The Commission will use 
the EA in its decision-making process to determine whether or not to 
authorize the project. This notice explains the scoping process the 
FERC staff will use to gather input from the public and interested 
agencies on the project. Your input will help us determine the issues 
that need to be evaluated in the EA. Please note that the scoping 
period will close on September 20, 2007.
    This notice is being sent to affected landowners; federal, state, 
and local government agencies; elected officials; environmental and 
public interest groups; Native American tribes; other interested 
parties; and local libraries and newspapers. We \1\ encourage 
government representatives to notify their constituents of this planned 
project and encourage them to comment on their areas of concern.
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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 Steckman 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 FERC, 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,

[[Page 48632]]

including the use of eminent domain and how to participate in the 
FERC's proceedings.

Summary of the Proposed Project

    Steckman proposes to convert a depleted natural gas production 
field into a multi-cycle natural gas storage facility located in 
Bedford County, Pennsylvania. The proposed facility would have about 
17.7 billion cubic feet (Bcf) total capacity (up to 12 Bcf would be 
working capacity and 5.7 Bcf would be base gas). The proposed project 
would include:
    Removal and/or abandonment of existing production field piping and 
aboveground equipment; Conversion of 5 depleted production wells into 
storage wells; Drilling and development of 18 new storage wells and 
construction of wellhead facilities; Construction of a storage field 
pipeline network and associated aboveground facilities including 
launcher/receiver facilities and valve sites; and Construction of one 
9,000 horsepower compressor station, including a meter and regulator 
station, common launcher and receiver facility, and other associate 
appurtenances.
    The storage field piping network would include the Trunk Line 91 
(about 3.13 miles of 16-inch diameter pipeline), Trunk Line 90 (about 
4.36 miles of 16-inch diameter pipeline), and 23 well laterals totaling 
3.6 miles of 6-inch, 8-inch, and 10-inch diameter pipeline. Steckman 
plans to file its certificate application in November 2007 and 
anticipates receiving a Commission certificate by April 2008.
    A general location of the proposed project is provided in Appendix 
1.\2\
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    \2\ 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 website at 
the ``eLibrary'' link or from the Commission's Public Reference 
Room, 888 First Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20426, or call (202) 
502-8371. For instructions on connecting to eLibrary refer to the 
Public Participation section 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 Iroquois.
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Land Requirements for Construction

    The Steckman Ridge Storage Project is in the preliminary planning 
stage. The precise facility design, pipeline route, rights-of-way, and 
other details have not yet been finalized. The proposed storage field 
piping network is being planned to follow routes of the existing 
production rights-of-way where possible. Specific information on the 
proposed project location and the land used by it will be made 
available to the public when it is finalized.
    The proposed storage field would be located on about 1,800 acres, 
and a buffer zone surrounding the filed would be established on about 
2,900 acres. Construction of the proposed compressor station would 
require about 35 acres of land, and operation of the station would 
require maintaining about 23 acres of the affected land.

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 when it considers whether or not an interstate 
natural gas pipeline should be approved. The FERC will use the EA to 
consider the environmental impact that could result if the Steckman 
Ridge Storage Project is authorized under section 7 of the Natural Gas 
Act. NEPA also requires us to discover and address concerns the public 
may have about proposals to be considered by the Commission. 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. With this Notice of Intent, the Commission staff 
is requesting public comments on the scope of the issues to be 
addressed in the EA. All comments received will be considered during 
preparation of the EA.
    Our independent analysis of the issues will be included in the EA. 
We will also evaluate possible alternatives to the proposed project or 
portions of the project, and make recommendations on how to lessen or 
avoid impacts on affected resources.
    The EA will be mailed to federal, state, and local government 
agencies; elected officials; environmental and public interest groups; 
Native American tribes; affected landowners; commentors; other 
interested parties; local libraries and newspapers; and the FERC's 
official service list for this proceeding. A 30-day comment period will 
be allotted for review of the EA. We will consider all comments on the 
EA before we make our recommendations to the Commission. To ensure that 
your comments are considered, please follow the instructions in the 
Public Participation section of this notice.
    Although no formal application has been filed, the FERC staff has 
already initiated its NEPA review under its Pre-filing Process. The 
purpose of the Pre-filing Process is to encourage the early involvement 
of interested stakeholders and to identify and resolve issues before an 
application is filed with the FERC.
    With this notice, we are asking federal, state, and local 
governmental agencies with jurisdiction and/or special expertise with 
respect to environmental issues, to express their interest in becoming 
cooperating agencies for the preparation of the EA. These agencies may 
choose to participate once they have evaluated the proposal relative to 
their responsibilities. Agencies that would like to request cooperating 
status should follow the instructions for filing comments provided 
below (see Public Participation).

Currently Identified Environmental Issues

    The EA will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of the 
construction and operation of the proposed project. We have already 
identified several issues that we think deserve attention based on a 
preliminary review of the project site and the facility information 
provided by Steckman. This preliminary list of issues may be changed 
based on your comments and our analysis.
     Potential impacts on perennial and intermittent streams 
and waterbodies.
     Evaluation of temporary and permanent impacts on wetlands.
     Potential effect on federally and state-listed species.
     Potential visual effects of the aboveground facilities on 
surrounding areas.
     Potential impacts to local air and noise quality 
associated with construction and operation.
     Public safety and potential hazards associated with the 
transport of natural gas and the proposed compressor facilities.

Public Participation

    You can make a difference by providing us with your specific 
comments or concerns about the proposed 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, reasonable alternatives (including alternative 
facility sites and pipeline routes), and measures to avoid or lessen 
environmental impact. The more specific your comments, the more useful 
they will be. To ensure that your comments are timely and properly 
recorded, please mail your comments so that they will be received in 
Washington, DC on or before September 20, 2007 and carefully follow 
these instructions:
    Send an original and two copies of your letter to: Kimberly D. 
Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory

[[Page 48633]]

Commission, 888 First St., NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426.
    Label one copy of your comments for the attention of Gas Branch 2, 
DG2E. Reference Docket No. PF07-9-000 on the original and both copies. 
The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing of any comments in 
response to this Notice of Intent. For information on electronically 
filing comments, please see 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, as well as information in 18 CFR 385.2001(a)(1)(iii). 
Before you can submit comments, you will need to create a free account, 
which can be created on-line.
    Based on the comments we receive on the project, we may hold a 
public scoping meeting. A public scoping meeting is designed to provide 
another opportunity to offer comments on the proposed project. 
Interested groups and individuals are encouraged to attend the meeting 
and to present comments on the issues they believe should be addressed 
in the EA. A transcript of the meeting would be generated so that your 
comments would be accurately recorded.
    When Steckman submits its application for authorization to 
construct and operate the Steckman Ridge Storage Project, the 
Commission will publish a Notice of Application in the Federal Register 
and will establish a deadline for interested persons to intervene in 
the proceeding. Because the Commission's Pre-filing Process occurs 
before an application to begin a proceeding is officially filed, 
petitions to intervene during this process are premature and will not 
be accepted by the Commission.

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. If you 
received this notice, you are currently on the environmental mailing 
list for this project. If you want to remain on our mailing list, 
please return the attached Information Request (Appendix 2). All 
individuals who provide written comments, attend the scoping meetings, 
or return the Information Request will remain on our environmental 
mailing list for this project.

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, select ``General Search'' and enter 
the project docket number excluding the last three digits (i.e., PF07-
9) 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 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 rule makings.
    In addition, the FERC now offers a free service called 
eSubscription that 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 to http://www.ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm. 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.
    Finally, Steckman has established an Internet Web site for this 
project at www.steckmanridgestorage.com. The Web site includes a 
description of the project, maps of the proposed pipeline facilities, 
and answers to frequently asked questions. You can also request 
additional information or provide comments directly to Steckman by 
phone at 1-877-379-0338.

Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
 [FR Doc. E7-16743 Filed 8-23-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P